Cu Fiat 125 prin Romania / Around Romania by Fiat 125

Aceste imagini, din 1970 si 1971, imi inspira destul de multa nostalgie. E vorba, cum spune istoricul Dan Ciachir, de epoca in care se descopera automobilul proprietate personala. Pentru prima oara, clasa mijlocie isi poate permite asa ceva, si multi descopera placerile (si peripetiile) automobilismului. Masina era iubita, bibilita, apare in toate pozele "la iarba verde" - e ca un nou membru a familiei. In cazuri fericite noaptea se tinea in garaj; dar pentru calatoria anuala spre litoral trebuia sa fie protejata noaptea sub o prelata... In hierarhia masinilor Fiat 125 era la top, numai 250 fiind aduse in tara oficial pentru vanzare pe piata libera. In zilele de astazi cand, pentru majoritatea lumii, automobilul e pur si simplu alt bun casnic care se schimba odata la trei-patru ani, atitudinea romaneasca anilor 70 fata de automobil e o memorie distanta, vizibila numai rar, in fata vreunui bloc vechi, cand mai vedem vrreun pensionar lustruindu-si Dacia 1300 veche, pastrata impecabil...

These photos, from 1970 and 1971, bring back a sense of nostalgia. This is the era when Romania discovers the automobile. For the first time, the middle classes could, en masse, buy them, and many discovered the pleasures (and frustrations) of driving. The car was loved, polished, a feature in all photos - just like a family memember. The aim was to keep it in a grage overnight, but when it was time for the annual trip to the seaside, great care was taken to cover it in a tarpaulin lest it should get damaged. In the car hierarchy the FIAT 125 was right at the top, only 250 being officially imported for public sale. These days, when the car is just another dispoable good to be bought and sold three or four years later, 1970s Romanians' love for it is a distant memory, only brought back occasionally when, in front of some tower block, we come across a pensioner still polishing his ancient but impeccable Dacia 1300...

Automobilul Rodica, 1957 / Rodica microcar, 1957

Dupa razboi, in toata Europa fenomenul microcar era in voga. Pur si simplu, nu erau bani pentru masini mari si luxoase. In Europa comunista, nicu nu dadea bine asa ceva: masina era un lux burghez si deci neptrovita pentru majoritatea poporului. Totusi, dorinta pentru transport personal a supravietuit. Mai ales in Cehia, Polonia si Ungaria, au fost construite multe automobile de mic litraj, de obicei artizanal sau in serie foarte mica. Printre altele, ungurii aveau Balaton si Alba Regia, polonezii Mikrus, si cehii Velorex. Dupa anii 60, cand au intrat pe piata masini "normale", nu mai erau atat de cautate, majortatea fiind abandonate cand se strica cate ceva.

Si in Romania au fost cateva tentative. Malaxa (1946) e poate cea mai cunoscuta, si cea mai mare. Printre altele amintim: M.R. construit in 1945 de Radu Manicatide; IAR din 1947, dezvoltat sub inginerul Radu Mardarescu si construit in trei exemplare; microcarul Oszkar Beke din 1957, inspirat dupa Isetta, cu motor de Zundapp si inca in existenta in Oradea; MR-1957, inca un minicar cu 3 roti din 1957 facut de ing Manicatide, cu motor de 5.5cp; si, in anii 60 si dupa, eforturile lui Iustin Capra.

Se pare ca, tot in Brasov (sau, ma rog, orasul Stalin cum era pana in 1960), a mai existat un microcar; e vorba de automobilul Rodica. Nu am multe detalii, dupa spusele unei enciclopedii ar fi fost facuta de un inginir, Nicolae Lucaci, in 1957. Avea un motor de 13cp, tot dezvoltat de Lucaci, care ar fi parucrs destui kilometri cu masina. Greu de spus ce e fapt si ce e poveste, totusi imaginea nu minte. Detaliile acestei mica decapotabila par a fi inspirate un pic de Skoda Felicia, un pic de Volga... Cine stie ceva mai mult despre aceasta masina, vreau sa aud de la ei!


In post war Europe, microcars were in great vogue. A continent struggling to rebuild itself could not afford expensive automobiles; at any rate, behind the Iron Curtain cars were a dangerous bourgeois commodity and therefore frowned upon. Nevertheless, there were several valiant efforts to build microcars, especially in Poland, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia. These were either home-made one offs or built in small numbers. Among the best known makes are the Balaton and Alba Regia from Hungary, the Velorex from Czechoslovakia and the Mikrus from Poland. After the 1960s, when "real cars" became far more of a mass market commodity, most of these unusual little vehicles were abandoned.

Romania tried to make some too. The best known is prbably the 1946 Malaxa. However, there were others: in 1945, Radu Manicatide's MR microcar; in 1947, Radu Mardarescu's IAR, of which three were allegedly built; the 1957 Zundapp-engined Oszkar Beke three-wheeler, inspired by the Isetta and still in existence; another 1957 three-wheeled microcar with a 5.5 hp engine built in Stalin City (now Brasov) by Radu Mardarescu; and, finally, Iustin Capra's efforts of the 1960s and beyond.

Another Brasov-built car has come to light: the 1957 Rodica. Details are scanty: it seems that it was built by an engineer called Nicolae Lucaci, who also penned the 13hp engine. It covered a respectable amount of kms; after that, little is known. But at least the photograph, showing a small convertible with a few styling cues from the Skoda Felicia and a few more from the Volga, does not lie. If anybody knows more about this vehicle, I want to hear from them!

SR-101 - o noua descoperire / SR-101 - a new discovery

Cautand prin imagini vechi, mi-am dat seama ca nu prea exista multe poze cu SR-101. Deci m-am gandit sa le scot in evidenta pe aceastea. Unele sunt foarte cunoscute, altele nu prea! Sper ca cel putin cea din Tms e in premiera. Ceea ce este interesant este ca se pare ca ar fi fost doua tipuri de SR-101. Unul avea "SR" stampilat in fata, celalalt (varianta 2) avea "Steagul Rosu" cromat. Prima varianta avea "Steagul Rosu RPR" pe aripa, a doua nu. In final, a doua varianta are masca radiatorului cu riduri - exact ca la ZIS-150 dupa care e copiat SR-101. Supravietuitorul din uzina se pare ca face parte din prima varianta. Un exemplar din varianta 2 se vede si pe o coperta din anii 50, dar, dupa poze cel putin, e varianta mai putin comuna. Ma intreb, tinand in cont similaritatea cu ZIS, daca e de fapt prima serie?

Looking through old images, it struck me that remarkably few exist with the SR-101. Therefore, I thought I'd show these. Some are very well known, others less so. Hopefully at least the one from Timis is a complete novelty. What was interesting is that there seem to be two types: one with "SR" embosseed on the front and one with "Steagul Rosu" (Red Flag) chromed on. The former type also has "Steagul Rosu RPR" (People's Republic of Romania) on the side wings, unlike the second version. Finally, the second version has the lines of the radiator grille continuing onto the bodywork - exactly as on the ZIS-150 from which the SR-101 was copied. The survivor in the factory is of the former variety. The second variety, also photographed for a contemporary book cover, seems somewhat rarer. I wonder, given the ZIS similarity, if it is the earlier one?

Multumesc... / Thank you...

Astazi am intrat pe pagina cu statistici si hop, aflu ca acest blog a fost citit de 100,000 ori. Si in Romania, si peste hotare, in cele mai ciudate tari... Deci trebiue sa va multumesc, dragi cititori, pentru interes, pentru comentarii, si pentru ideile voastre pentru articole.

Daca aveti idei in plus despre ce vreti sa cititi, scrieti-mi, sau ca un comentariu, sau la blackvolga@googlemail.com.

Multumesc din nou, si vizionare placuta in continuare!


Today I had a quick look on the stats page and it turns out this blog seems to have been read a hundred thousand times. In Romania, but also abroad, sometimes in the most bizarre countries... So thank you, dear readers, for your support, interest, comments, and ideas.

Any more thoughts about what you'd like to read about, just drop me a line, either as a comment or on blackvolga@googlemail.com.

Thank you once again - and happy reading for the future!

Moartea unui Renault Dauphine Gordini / Death of a Renault Dauphine Gordini

Aceste poze au fost puse cu mandrie pe site-ul primariei Sectorului 2. Arata ultima calatorie a unui Renault Dauphine, zis Gordini pe piata romaneasca. 3,000 exemplare au fost importate oficial in anii 60, fara discutie mai multe au ajuns prin alte metode. Astazi calcul ca mai sunt in viata vreo suta, din care marea majoritate in stare proasta.

Masina din imagine nu rulase de mult si desigur, ocupa un mult ravnit loc de parcare bucurestean. Nu era intr-o stare extraordinara, aceste masini ruginesc si nu au cotatie enorma. Totusi nu putem trece peste faptul ca ce a fost odata piesa comuna pe strazile patriei a devenit rara avis. La un eveniment de masini de epoca (sau chiar pe strada) ai usor mai multe sanse sa vezi un Mustang sau un Cadillac decat o masina, cum se spune in limba engleza, de "bread and butter". Nu pot sa nu regret faptul asta, mai ales ca, pentru mine cel putin, farmecul masinilor vechi este unul nostalgic, si noi nu prea am crescut cu Cadillac in curte.

In plus, nu pot sa nu regret bucuria cu care siteul a semnalat distugerea acestui Gordini - mai ales ca, in aceeasi serie de ridicari, s-au luat (si, punct important, de multe ori fara sau chiar impotriva acordul proprietarilor) alte masini precum doua Opeluri Olympia P2, un Ford Taunus, un Rambler Ambassador, un Lastun, doua Saaburi clasice si o mana de Dacii 1100. Trist.

These photos were displayed with much prode on the website of the Bucharest Sectory 2 mayor. They show the last journey of a Renault Dauphine, sold in Romania as the Renault Gordini. 3,000 of these were officially imported in the 60s, with several more making their way over by other means. These days, I estimate about a hundred have survived, most of them precariously.

The pictured car clearly hadn'd been driven for a long time and was probably occupying a much-needed parking space. It didn't look great; Dauphines rust notoriously; restored, the value's not great. Yet I can't help but feel sad. This car, once common on Romanian roads, has become a rarity. At a show (or even on the street), you're far likelier to see a Mustang or a Cadillac than a bread-and-butter model such as this, which is a great shame because, to me at least, a great part of the charm of old cars is the nostalgia value, and, bluntly, we didn't exactly grow up with Cadillacs.

Again, I am saddened by the glee with which the demise of this old Renault was presented on the website. Esepcailly so because, alongside it (and, crucially, many without or against the owners' wishes) other cars met their end, including two Opel Olympia P2s, a Ford Taunus, a Rambler Ambassador, a Lastun, two classic Saabs and a handful of Dacia 1100s. A shame, that.

Acum 90 de ani / Ninety years ago

Recent pe okazii a aparut aceasta carte postala, care se spune ca ar fi circa 1920, aratand un superb automobil in Olanesti. E una din cele mai detaliate vederi din Romania cu o masina. Marca imi e necunoscuta dar pare a fi un phaeton de prin 1910. Din pacate vanzatorul vrea 80 Euro deci nu va face parte din colectie!

Recently, on the okazii auction site, this splendid postcard, apparently circa 1920, with a vintage car in Olanesti appeared. This is one of the most detailed shots of a car on a Romanian postcard of that era. The car itself is a mystery but looks to be a circa 1910 phaeton. Sadly the owner wants 80 Euros for it so I won't be buying!

Chevroletul nemuritor / The Chevrolet that refuses to die

Multi dintre voi probabil cunoasteti siteul "vanatorii de epave", vanatoriideepave.3x.ro . Pozele de acolo, majoritatea facute in zona Craiovei acum peste zece ani, sunt de-a dreptul spectaculoase si arata ce fel de masini interesante existau chiar in provincie in acei ani. Chiar si antebelice. Bine inteles, majoritatea sunt fier vechi dar recent s-a redescoperit un Chevolet din 1937. Masina se gaseste de vanzare pe un site britanic. Dupa numarul de Oltenia nu a circulat dupa 1966, si vizibil conditia s-a deteriorat dupa anii 90 cand a fost fotografiata. Totusi, e bine ca a supravietuit si, cine stie, poate se va si restaura. In Romania mai sunt cel putin 5-6 Chevroleturi din 37-39, majoritatea in stare precara desi unu, in Tecuci (GL99POD), e restaurat intr-un mod destul de rudimentar.

Many readers may be aware of the "Wreck Hunters" website, vanatoriideepave.3x.ro . Most of the photos there were made in the Craiova region over ten years ago, and provide a fascinating snapshot of the spectacular vehicles existing in the Romanian provinces at that time - even pre-war vehicles. Unsurprisingly, most of the cars have disappeared, but recently, a 1937 Chevrolet was rediscovered on a British website. Jusging by the Oltenia plate it has not been driven since at least 1966, and the condition is visibly worse than when it was photographed in the mid 1990s. However, it has survived and may perhaps get a new lease of life. In Romania there are at least 5 or 6 other Chevrolets from the 37-39 generation, most in precarious condition but one, in Tecuci, restored, albeit rudimentarily.