Closing date July issue -> May 19
Barkas B 1000-1 (1990) Charming round bus for Aram
Aram has a thing for the unforgettable icons of the GDR. He collects a number of sputtering Trabants, is very active within the club, and above all wants these East German vehicles to stay on the road. It will come as no surprise that he possesses a great deal of knowledge about the GDR and is happy to share it with those interested. This short article is already an example of that.
Barkas B 1000-1
Aram: “I fell for this Barkas because of its practical design, simplicity, and typical engineering from that era. Barkas was a manufacturer of delivery vans. The name refers to Hamilcar Barca, the famous general from Carthage. My newly acquired Barkas is one of the best-known models. It is a true all-rounder, certainly for light transport, but also for conversion into a police or ambulance vehicle. Within the club, we also have a fire truck and a beautiful pickup with a canvas roof. Secretly, the versatile Barkas is sometimes affectionately called 'East Bulli,' as a nod to the most famous Transporter in the world: the Volkswagen.”
Crown jewel of the collection
Aram: “I have since promoted it to the crown jewel of my collection. I sit behind the wheel with pride when attention is drawn as I drive by. It is amazing how admiringly passersby react, but also how often that likeable bus is not immediately recognized. It will be clear that my heart beats faster for this strikingly colored Barkas.”
Status symbol?
Aram: “In everyday life, I am a truck driver on the road with an engine of 450 hp. To maintain balance, I enjoy driving the Barkas in my spare time. It is precisely that contrast that makes it beautiful. For me, by the way, the status symbol is not the car itself, but the freedom to spend time on my automotive hobby, the freedom to do whatever you really feel like doing.”
Position
We do not necessarily long to return to specific things, but rather to the feelings they evoke in us. That is why a subscription to Auto Motor Klassiek so important. In articles, reports, and stories, we take you back to the past to evoke pleasant memories. Touching history for 49,50 a year is actually just a bargain.
(More photos below.)
In 1989, they were quickly fitted with a VW 1300 four-stroke, but that was not a great success, with fewer than 2000 units sold.
What do you think of these Barkassers?
Nice story about the Barkas. It makes clear how times and opinions change. I often drove my boss's open-bed Barkas. Budget transport. People often conspicuously held their noses to indicate that it stank. Two-stroke engines had fallen out of favor. Once, I passed the factory near Karl Marx City in the GDR. The freshly painted cabs were standing on the sidewalk drying, waiting for further assembly.
Op http://www.autofolderstekoop.nl There are still a few nice and original Dutch brochures for various Barkas models for sale; perhaps nice to have along with them.
The Barkas looks familiar to me too. There was also such a Barkas in the (now) museum 'Untersuchungsgefängnis Hohenschönhausen'. The little car itself is ingeniously built. Unfortunately, other East Germans were ingenious as well. They had managed to build up to four or five cells inside that Barkas there. Using that Barkas, disguised as a grocery van, they picked up prisoners—sometimes even just around the corner, so to speak—driving them blindfolded criss-cross through the surrounding area for as much as 30 km, so that they, completely disoriented, had the impression of having been taken I don't know how far away, after which they disappeared behind closed doors. Once vanished, they were literally screamed up the stairs from the Barkas to the interrogation rooms. A very nice car with plenty of space. Unfortunately, also for the malicious members of the Stasi. The technology is charmingly simple. The sound is monumental!
Aram, we went on holiday to Sweden once with a Barkas like that.
Then problems with the Dynastart, otherwise nothing but praise. Real old-fashioned DKW engineering.