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1952 Kleinschnittger F-125

The engineer Paul Kleinschnittger conceived the idea for the cheapest drivable vehicle possible in the late 1930's but plans had to be shelved for the war's duration.

Using parts from scrapped airplanes and military vehicles, he completed his 98cc single headlamp prototype in 1949. Building a small factory, he put his front-engined "4-wheeled scooter" into series production.

Brilliantly conceived, the complex tubular chassis was suspended on rubber bands and clad in a light aluminum body shell reminiscent of a pedal car.
The prototype, shown towards the end of 1949, was identifiable by its split windshield, KR-201 style fenderlamps serving as taillamps, and two-tone paint.

On April 26, 1950 the first five production cars were shown to the press, finished in brown, green, ivory, black and dark brown. Production was rather slow getting underway, and optimistic production quotas of 500 per month soon gave way to 10 to 30 cars.

The early cars had full-width grilles and square windshields. Kleinschnittger was an industry leader in the fitting of Hella blinkers, where most cars had the easily damaged flip-up trafficators. Exports cars got a clock. No jack was provided, as the car was light enough to lift by hand.

The little car from Westfalia acquired a cult following and was entered in numerous events. Complaints of the flimsy aluminum cracking and breaking were answered by additional rivetted gussets, and free wheel replacements.

A spare wheel came in fall 1952. The optional 200 Deutschmark Dynastart was not recommended, as Paul Kleinschnittger felt that it affected the free-revving motor by its extra weight

Manufacturer: Kleinschnittger Werke GmbH, Arnsberg, Germany

Model: F-125 Motor: Ilo, 2-stroke Body: Aluminum
Years Built: 1950 – August 1957 No. Cylinders: 1 Chassis: Steel Tube
No. Produced: 1,980 Displacement: 123 cc Suspension Front: Rubber band
No. Surviving: est. 100 Horsepower: 5 Suspension Rear: Rubber band
Length: 2 895 mm Gearbox: 3 speed Steering: Rack & Pinion
Width: 1 220 mm Starter:Pull rope or Dynastart Brakes: Cable
Weight: 167 kg Electrics: 6 v 4 Wheels: 20 x 2.25"
Interior: Bench Ignition: Coil Top Speed: 70 kph

© 2002