Borgward?

Tiki Tom · Oct 30, 2015

I have to admit that, before today, I'd never heard of these vintage autos.
Very cool golden era pictures, I have to say.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/23/a...n-carmaker-tries-comeback-in-china.html?_r=0#

Although I doubt the revived company will have much in common with its predecessor.

Stanley Doble · Oct 31, 2015

I remember the Borgward. They sold a few cars in Canada. I have seen a few of them. As an old car buff I know something of their history.

Carl Borgward was a real live wire in the tradition of Henry Ford, Walter Chrysler or Lee Iaccoca. He built up his auto empire from nothing in 15 years and made some very innovative cars. They ranged from tiny 1 or 2 cylinder bubble cars to a six cylinder sedan selling against BMW and Mercedes.

But he had to borrow a lot of money to finance his dreams and when he died, the banks foreclosed at once. There is no reason the company could not have continued under new management but the banks demanded their money immediately and the company was forced into liquidation.

Never heard anything bad about the cars or the company. Everything I have read, indicates they were well thought of both at home and in export markets.

As the company was liquidated in 1961 it would not be correct to call this a revival. The new cars, and the company , can have nothing in common with the old one.

One more amusing story. The Borgward company made a tiny car called the Goggomobile named after Borgward's nephew whose nickname was Goggo. Possibly the silliest reason for naming a car in history. Wonder if Goggo is going to play any role in the new company?

Fading Fast · Oct 31, 2015

Just Google the name to see some images. I'm very impressed, they made several very attractive looking cars. I'm surprised I never heard of the company - with that name, if I had, I think I would have remembered it.

Braz · Oct 31, 2015

In the early 1960s one of the members of my local sports car club had a Borgward Isabella coupe. The only one I ever saw.

GE-Man · Oct 31, 2015

@Stanley Doble :
The Goggomobil wasnt a car from the Borgward Corporation, it was built by Glas. Glas was another relatively small german car manufacturer. Glas went bankrupt in the late 1960ies and the company was bought up by BMW.

@All other:
While nearly noone of you have ever driven a borgward, nearly everybody knows how a car with a spirit of the Borgward Isabella drives and feels. Its because you know the BMW 3 series and 5 series. Those cars are the rightful successors of the Isabella. When Borgward went bankrupt in 1961, BMW bought tools like steel presses and machinery out of the bankrupt's assets. And more important, BMW hired the brainpower that developed the Isabella to design the BMW New Class, the ancestor of nowadays BMW 3 series and 5 series.
further reading

tonyb · Nov 1, 2015

I recall hearing of Borgward when I was a kid, although I wouldn't be able to identify one without reading its badges. But the name did penetrate the American consciousness at least a little way back when.

Capesofwrath · Nov 1, 2015

I remember the cars well and I always liked the look of them when I was a kid. I went to school in East Africa in the fifties and they were very popular there. Cars had to be tough to deal with the mostly unmade roads, and Mercs and Australian GM subsidiary Holden, and Peugeot 203s were popular, along with many of the US cars and pick ups of the time. Another car that was popular there and is now almost forgotten was the Simca Vedette which had a small Ford derived V8 engine and a stylish 50s body. They had a reputation as cars that would take punishment too.

Stanley Doble · Nov 2, 2015

I even remember the Vedette. They were sold in Canada for a very brief period, a year or two. I saw 2 of them when they were 10 or 15 years old. One thing that stands out in my memory is the amount of plastic trim on the dash board and doors, and how it all seemed to be warped and crumbling. This in Canada's cold climate, how long could it have lasted in Africa?

Edward · Nov 2, 2015

Lovely cars. I'd buy a Borgward Isabella very quickly if I was looking for a regular driver.

Pat Spade · Nov 2, 2015

Yep, Borgward build fine cars...a friend of me has an Isabella...very nice car. But for me, I stay with my Peugeot 203. Didn`t know that there was much of them in East Africa in the fifties..

Capesofwrath · Nov 3, 2015

From memory Peugeot 203s did well and placed in a couple of Safari rallies in the fifties. It was called the Coronation Safari rally then. They were very popular cars. Another car which was surprisingly common was the little DKW, and I think that won a Safari Rally at the time. Surprisingly because they were small two strokes which you wouldn’t have thought would stand up to being driven fast on murram roads. But they did.

Pat Spade · Nov 3, 2015

Oh, DKW....must been the F89 or F91 then...solid, strong going two-stroking
"little" cars (...well, in fact not that little for Germany/Europe in the fifties, and definetly big compared to, say, the Goggomobil or the Messerschmitt KaRo for example...)
Absolutely OT, I know, but here`s a pic of my 203...:

Capesofwrath · Nov 3, 2015

Nice. Would that have been standard paint at the time? Can’t recall ever seeing two tone paint on one before. I always liked the fast back on the saloon version. Reminded me a bit of my then boyhood dream car which was a Mulliner R Type Bentley Continental.

Pat Spade · Nov 3, 2015

...ah, no, this isn't the original paint. someone painted the car some decades ago in that two-tone. Originally it was "mouse-grey" like a lot of them...yes, the back of the Berline (Saloon) type is very good looking...when I started to think about a 203 it was what first came to my mind...but then I have a dog and am playing double bass, so it became the station-wagon...

Stanley Doble · Nov 4, 2015

There were a lot of innovative cars coming out of Germany in the fifties. One I liked was the DKW 3=6. A front wheel drive, 3 cylinder car with a 2 stroke engine. Like a SAAB but better looking. It resembled an upmarket VW beetle in appearance. I saw a couple of them years ago but never got the chance to drive one.+

Capesofwrath · Nov 5, 2015

That was the DKW which I mentioned above which was quite common in Kenya in the fifties. Pretty little cars in an ugly duckling sort of way and surprisingly tough. The VW was seen a lot there too at that time.

Fading Fast · Nov 5, 2015

The above DKW looks like an early Mini Cooper.

Stanley Doble · Nov 5, 2015

It is possible the Austin people took a close look at the DKW front drive mechanism before designing the Mini.

Fading Fast · Nov 5, 2015

Stanley Doble said:
It is possible the Austin people took a close look at the DKW front drive mechanism before designing the Mini.

The resemblance is striking.

Pat Spade · Nov 5, 2015

...funny, I cannot see Mini Cooper....maybe a bit Morris Minor...

Borgward?

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