The recovering decade

BMW Isetta 300

4-wheel

They   redesigned   the   powerplant   around   a   BMW one-cylinder,    four-stroke,    247    cc    motorcycle engine     which     generated     10     kW     (13     hp). Although    the    major    elements    of    the    Italian design    remained    intact,    BMW    re-engineered much   of   the   car,   so   much   so   that   none   of   the parts   between   a   BMW   Isetta   Moto   Coupe   and an    Iso    Isetta    are    interchangeable.    The    first BMW Isetta appeared in April 1955. In   May   1962,   three   years   after   launching   the conventionally   modern-looking   BMW   700,   BMW ceased     production     of     Isettas.    A     total     of 161,728 units had been built.

Fiat 500 Belvedere

The   Fiat   500,   commonly   known   as   "Topolino", is   an   Italian   automobile   model   manufactured by Fiat from 1936 to 1955. The   Topolino   was   one   of   the   smallest   cars   in the    world    at    the    time    of    its    production. Launched     in     1937,     three     models     were produced    until    1955,    all    with    only    minor mechanical    and    cosmetic    changes.    It    was equipped    with    a    569    cc    four-cylinder,    side- valve,   water-cooled   engine   mounted   in   front of    the    front    axle,    (later    an    overhead    valve motor)   and   so   was   a   full-scale   car   rather   than a   cyclecar.   The   radiator   was   located   behind the    engine    which    made    possible    a    lowered aerodynamic    nose    profile    at    a    time    when competitors   had   a   flat,   nearly   vertical   grill. The     shape     of     the     car's     front     allowed exceptional forward visibility.

Fuldamobil King S7

Fuldamobil   is   the   name   of   a   series   of   small cars   produced   by   Elektromaschinenbau   Fulda GmbH         of         Fulda,         Germany,         and Nordwestdeutscher     Fahrzeugbau     (NWF)     of Wilhelmshaven between 1950 and 1969. Though    numbers    produced    were    relatively small,   the   cars   attracted   sufficient   attention to   see   licensed   construction   on   four   continents including   Europe.   In   its   ultimate   configuration it   is   said   to   have   inspired   the   term   "bubble car".

Goggomobil T400 - 1959

Goggomobil     was     a     series     of     microcars produced   in   the   Bavarian   town   Dingolfing   after World War II by Glas. Glas      produced      three      models      on      the Goggomobil     platform:     the     Goggomobil     T sedan,    the    Goggomobil    TS    coupé,    and    the Goggomobil   TL   van.   The   engine   was   an   air- cooled,       two-stroke,       two-cylinder       unit originally   displacing   250   cc,   but   later   available in   increased   sizes   of   300   cc   and   400   cc.   It   had an   electric   pre-selective   transmission   built   by Getrag   and   a   manual   clutch.   The   engine   was behind     the     rear     wheels.     Suspension     was independent   all   round   using   coil   springs   with swing axles.

Heinkel Kabine - 1959

The   Heinkel   Kabine   was   a   microcar   designed by   Heinkel   Flugzeugwerke   and   built   by   them from   1956   to   1958.   Production   was   transferred under   licence   to   Dundalk   Engineering   Company in     Ireland     in     1958     but     the     licence     was withdrawn    shortly    afterwards    due    to    poor quality   control.   Production   restarted   in   1960, again    under    licence,    under    the    Trojan    200 name    by    Trojan    Cars    Ltd.    in    the    UK,    and continued until 1966. The   Heinkel   Kabine   were   also   assembled   from 1959   to   1962   under   licence   by   Los   Cedros   S.A. As    Heinkel    in    Argentina,    they    were    built alongside Studebaker pickups.

Victoria Spatz 250 - 57

The     Spatz     (German     for     sparrow),     later renamed   the   Victoria   250,   is   a   four-wheeled microcar    that    was    built    between    1956    and 1958. The    car    was    originally    conceived    by    Egon Brütsch   as   the   Brütsch   200   "Spatz"   a   Fiberglass three-wheeler   with   the   suspension   of   the   front wheels   and   the   rear   wheel   attached   directly   to the    body    shell.    As    such    the    car    proved engineeringly   unsound   and   trial   runs   on   rough roads led to severe cracks in the bodywork.  

1950-1959

The   Fifties   was   a   decade   that   began   on   January   1,   1950   and   ended   on   December   31,   1959.   By   its   end,   the   world   had   largely   recovered   from   World   War   II   and the   Cold   War   developed   from   its   modest   beginning   in   the   late   1940s   to   a   hot   competition   between   the   United   States   and   the   Soviet   Union   by   the   beginning   of the 1960s. Clashes   between   communism   and   capitalism   dominated   the   decade,   especially   in   the   Northern   Hemisphere.   The   conflicts   included   the   Korean   War   in   the beginnings   of   the   decade   and   the   beginning   of   the   Space   Race   with   the   launch   of   Sputnik   I. Along   with   increased   testing   of   nuclear   weapons   (such   as   RDS-37 and   Upshot-Knothole),   this   created   a   politically   conservative   climate.   In   the   United   States,   the The   Second   Red   Scare   caused   public   Congressional   hearings   by both   houses   in   Congress   and   anti-communism   was   the   prevailing   sentiment   in   the   United   States   throughout   the   decade.   The   beginning   of   decolonization   in Africa and Asia occurred in this decade and accelerated in the following decade, the 1960s.