Micro & Mini Car Day

Every year the Larz Anderson Museum (a.k.a. Museum of Transportation, to some) in Brookline, MA puts on a number of Lawn Events. All of those events are themed in some way, for instance in the past I have attended the Italian Car Day, German Car Day, British Car Day and Mercedes Benz Day.

I would love to attend all of them as they are always a lot of fun and few gems can always be found, but with my limited time I can only pick and choose the few I go to. This first event I attended this year was the Micro & Mini Car Day and I must say that it blew my mind.

There was so much awesomeness that I don’t even know where to start. The most significant vehicle to me at the show was an East German Trabant,which is a small plastic four-passenger vehicle powered by a 2-stroke 2-cylinder engine. I remember those from my childhood and the unmistakable sounds they made.

Another vehicle that I found amazing was the Messerschmitt KR200. It is a three-wheel little vehicle with a 1+2 sitting configuration. Often referred to as Kabinenroller, or a Cabin Scooter, it was powered by a single cylinder 2-stroke engine mounted in front of the rear wheel. Over 60,000 units produced in various configurations between 1955 and 1964. If the name sounds familiar, it is because it is made by the same company that made deadly World War II fighter planes. Wiki entry.

Another super amazing vehicle with cult following is the venerable, and everyone’s favorite, Citroen 2CV. I am going to say that this was the French answer to the VW Beetle, except it was better! For one, it had four doors and the heater worked a little better than in the VW!

Designed before World War II and then hidden from the Nazis, it was mass produced from 1948 until 1990. Some say that the real end of production is ’88 as manufacturing was moved to Portugal for the remaining two years.

Extremely simple yet ingenious and very French, the 2CV was able to be driven across unplowed fields while providing a comfortable ride, a trademark which has remained with Citroen cars for some time. There are myths that say that despite its extreme body roll, the 2CV will never actually roll over, as long as you are going forward. Going in reverse was a different story.

The 2CV came in various body styles, including a pickup truck and a van. There was also a 4×4 version, which used two engines – one to power the front wheels and one for the rear wheels. Ingenious indeed.

Fiats were plentiful too, most notable being the Multipla taxicab and the longer version of the 500 (sorry, don’t know the name) which had a little mini camping trailer attached. Too cute.

No mini car show would be complete without a Mini Cooper of course, and those too were represented in large numbers. No car there wasn’t awesome, and those those certainly include the Isettas (including a two-door version!), Metropolitan Nashes, few VWs and a bunch of other cars which I have never seen before. Enjoy the pictures!

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