NESSELSDORFER WAGENBAU / TATRA ( 1897 - 1999 )
The origins of the TATRA brand date back to 1850, when Ignaz Schustala established a bodywork factory in Nesselsdorf, a town that was then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.Today, the city is called Koprivnice.
Automobile manufacturing began in 1897. The vehicles were therefore also called NESSELSDORFER. After the end of the First World War and becoming Czechoslovakian, the company name was changed to TATRA. The name TATRA comes from the mountain range of the same name that forms the border with Poland.
So let us start with the first NESSELSDORFER WAGENBAU emblem:
 |
| NESSELSDORFER WAGENBAU therefore the white letter N and the black letter W |
Size
| 11.2 cm x 5.2cm
|
|---|---|
Year
|
1912- 1923 |
Estimate
|  |
During World War I, civilian car production was not stopped and manufacturers continued to advertise their civilian vehicles. However, the economic situation and the general mood of crisis meant that very few vehicles were sold during this period.
 |
| 1917 advertisement in a German journal |
In 1923, the company merged with Ringhoffer AG to form RINGHOFFER - TATRA AG.
The first newly built cars still bore the emblems of both brands:
 |
| 1918 advertisement in German Motor journal |
Until 1933, Tatra built air-cooled engines, which meant that the cars did not have a classic water radiator at the front. The V-shaped emblem was fixed on a V-shaped hood:
| Size | 6.4 cm |
|---|---|
| Year | 1923- 1933 |
| Estimate |  |
 |
| engine hood without air tintakes |
 |
| period photo of of a 1924 TATRA ; the characteristics of the air-cooled vehicle can also be clearly seen from the side view ( photo collection Thomas Ulrich ) |
 |
| 1924 advertisement for the German market |
The AUSTRO - TATRA emblem, which was used at the Austrian assembly plant in Vienna, is particularly rare:
| Size | 5.2 cm |
|---|---|
| Year | 1925 |
| Estimate |  |
In 1925, the Type 17 was released, featuring a flat water-cooled radiator with a flat emblem.
| Size | 6.0 cm |
|---|---|
| Year | 1925 - 1937 |
| Estimate | |
 |
| 1925 brochure for the UK market showing the new flat radiator |
In 1937, the large TATRA type 87 with an air-cooled rear engine was launched. A teardrop-shaped emblem with the tip pointing upwards was now mounted on the front of the hood.
| Size | 6.4 cm |
|---|---|
| Year | 1937 - 1967 |
| Estimate | |
 |
| backside without makers mark |
The tip pointed downwards on the models Type 87 and 97:
| Size | 6.1 cm x 11.2 cm |
|---|---|
| Year | 1937 |
| Estimate | |
 |
| TATRA type 87 seen in a Czech museum |
In 1959, the TATRA factory received permission from the government to build a representative luxury car, as they were not satisfied with the Russian models. The Type 603 was released. Initially, it did not have an emblem. It was not until the Type 603/2 that a plastic emblem with two chrome wings was added to the hood:
| Size | 18.0 cm x 6.8 cm |
|---|---|
| Year | 1963 - 1974 |
| Estimate | |
During the model update of the TATRA 613, the emblems were also changed. Around 1974, the front was given this round plastic emblem with a chrome border:
| Size | 7.1 cm |
|---|---|
| Year | 1974 - 1980 |
| Estimate | |
The last emblem for a civil TATRA vehicle was made of glass:
| Size | 6.7 cm |
|---|---|
| Year | 1980 - 1992 |
| Estimate | |
 |
| Impressive collection of TATRA emblems of my collector friend Peter |
The last TATRA limousine was built in 1999. Truck production still exists today.
For more Czech emblems please click here for WIKOV or SKODA !
For more emblems see older posts or top right ( list of car makers ).
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