First built in 1957, the Trabant stayed in production for more than three decades. In that time, its design never received a significant refresh. Why? Because it was the product of communist East Germany.
As Doug DeMuro points out in his latest video, the Trabant was also a pretty terrible car. Not only was it slow, small, uncomfortable, and loud, it also lacked a lot of features we take for granted. For example, while the Trabant did have windshield wiper fluid, you had to manually squirt it with a small plunger.
Since the Trabant didn't have a fuel pump, the tank was located on top of the engine. And since it used a two-stroke two-cylinder, you have to make sure you mix in the right amount of oil with the gasoline. With no fuel gauge inside the car, though, there was no way to tell how much was left without opening the gas tank and manually checking with a dipstick.
Still, the Trabant did have a few things going for it. It was front-wheel drive and used an independent suspension. Plus, it had a plastic body mounted to a steel chassis. When the Trabant was first introduced in the late 1950s, that was pretty advanced.
Unfortunately, by the 1980s when the car in the below video was produced, those features weren't so groundbreaking. And the Trabant still spewed smoke. So much smoke. No wonder communism failed.
