Thursday, December 14, 2023

Sodomka's Streamlined Czech Cars

Czechoslovakia was the land of streamlined cars in the middle of the 1930s.  The best-known were built by Tatra (some information here).  But Škoda also dabbled in aerodynamics, an example being the 1935 Škoda 935 prototype.

Another Czech aerodynamic actor was the important coachbuilder firm Sodomka.  Its circa-1934-1935 Regent Airspeed type built for Walter is featured below along with a 1937 Škoda 913 Superb with a more conventional version of the same design.

Some other mid-1930s streamliners are included below for added context.

Gallery

1933 Tatra 77 prototype
Streamlined Tatras had their motor in the rear.  This seems to be the earliest of the general shapes shown below.

1935 Škoda 935 prototype
Another rear-engine streamliner from Czechoslovakia.

c.1934-1935 Walter Regent Airspeed sedan by Sodomka: photo set
Walter Regents had conventional engine-forward layouts.  Note that the B-pillar extends only up to the beltline.  It's hard to see, but the rear door's window is in two segments, the forward one can be rolled down, the after element is fixed in place.  Wheelbase is a long 141.7 inches (3600 mm).

The rear taper is in the same spirit as the Tatra and Škoda prototypes shown above.

The front retains a sloped, yet mostly conventional radiator grille.  Headlight housings are blended into the fenders.

c.1934-1935 Walter Regent Airspeed cabriolet by Sodomka
I'm not sure if Sodomka's cabriolet was called an Airspeed, but its lower body essentially matches the sedan's shown above.

Side view.  Compare the fender design to those seen in the following images.

1935 Renault Vivastella Grand Sport
Scan segment of page 78 from Toutes les Voitures Françaises 1935: Le Salon 1934. These six-cylinder Renaults and the eight-cylinder Nervastella Grand Sport with its longer hood were announced at the 1934 Paris automobile show that opened 14 October.  Fenders and frontal styling are similar to Sodomka's contemporaneous Airspeeds.  If the Airspeed was designed and built in 1934, then we seem to have a case of what's called "simultaneous invention" such as the calculus by Isaac Newton and Gottfried Wilhelm Leibnitz.  But if the Airspeed was truly a 1935 production, then it's possible that the folks at Sodomka were aware of the new Renault design and borrowed some of its features. 

1937 Škoda Superb 913 sedan by Sodomka
This later Sodomka streamliner has the same general fenderline character as the Airspeeds and Renaults, though the rear fender is almost entirely blended into the side of the car.  The rear door's window is also split into two segments, the forward one retractable.  Again, the design is "pillarless."

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