ŠKODA Shows Off Unique Classics In Paris

›   ŠKODA Auto Museum displaying seven historic vehicles at ‘Salon Retro Mobile’

›   Unique 1928 Hispano Suiza ŠKODA and two other 1930s vintage cars shine in hall 3 of Porte de Versailles fairground

Mladá Boleslav, February 1^st, 2012– At the prestigious ‘Salon Retro Mobile’ held in Paris from February 1^st to 5^th, 2012, precious exhibits from the ŠKODA Auto Museum are on display. The limelight at Paris’ Porte de Versailles fairground will be on five historic ŠKODA cars, a motorcycle and a racing bicycle.

Being one of the oldest and most tradition-proud car manufacturers in the world, ŠKODA could not be missing at one of the world’s most renowned shows of vintage vehicles.  As befits a company with a 117-year history, ŠKODA has returned to Paris with a selection of historic vehicles.

The oldest and also one of the most valuable ŠKODA exhibits is the Hispano Suiza ŠKODA from 1928, powered by a six-cylinder inline engine with a displacement of 6.654 cu cm putting out 100 hp.

Representing ŠKODA’s pre-World War II production are no less than three of the cars on show in hall 3: there is the elegantly aerodynamic ŠKODA Popular Monte Carlo and ŠKODA Rapid II, which sports a one-of-a-kind body made to the original customer’s order, and features the unique ‘Kottal’ electromagnetic transmission. Both cars have a four-cylinder engine with a displacement of 1,386 cu cm and a rated power output of 30 hp. Both, incidentally, were built in 1937. The third car from the 1930s is the majestic ŠKODA Superb 3000 OHV (type 924). Produced in 1939, it has a six-cylinder inline engine like the Hispano Suiza ŠKODA but with a mere 3,137 cu cm of displacement. The ŠKODA Superb 3000 OHV’s puts out 85 hp.

One exhibit is something of a “youngtimer”, having been built in 1961: ŠKODA Felicia (type 994). Its 1,089 cu cm engine generates 50 hp. Completing this little selection of historic automobiles from the collection of the ŠKODA Auto Museum is a Laurin & Klement CCD type motorcycle dating back to 1906. Only 675 were made at the time. Also on display is the Laurin & Klement Slavia racing bicycle, which was reconstructed from valuable historic original part. This vehicle’s history harks back to the year 1900.

This year’s exhibits are all different from last year’s, which included the legendary 1906 Voiturette A von 1906 or the 1958 ŠKODA 1100 OHC racing car. Thus, visitors will get to know yet more attractions from ŠKODA’s precious collection.

“The ‘Salon Retro Mobile’ is a prestigious and important event, which is why we took great care in selecting the vehicles to be shown. We hope that we will be able to introduce visitors to yet another part of our corporate history this year, and to one that is just as interesting as the ones we previously featured,” says Eva Ticová, head of Škoda Auto Museum’s restoration workshop.

The ‘Salon Retro Mobile’ has been welcoming lovers of vintage cars for 37 years. In 2012, the show’s area has been expanded to three halls for the first time in order to house the more than 350 exhibitors. Organisers expect a total of 90,000 visitors from all over the world during the five days from February 1^st to the 5^th, 2012.