Episode 1774
Porsche Type 12
Sun, 2022-Mar-13 00:43 UTC
Length - 2:33
Direct Link
Welcome to random Wiki of the Day where we read the summary of a random Wikipedia page every day.
The random article for Sunday, 13 March 2022 is Porsche Type 12.
The Porsche Type 12 was a German project to develop an "Everyman's automobile" (Auto für Jedermann) for Zündapp. The Type 12 was designed by Ferdinand Porsche in 1931, and prototypes were built in 1932.
It was an early example of the aerodynamic / rounded designs that came somewhat in vogue in the 1930s, developed concurrently with Mercedes-Benz's 120H, and ahead of Tatra's second V570 prototype, and DKW's F2-based, one-off rear-engined streamline prototype — both in 1933. In production cars the style was typified by the 1934 Chrysler and DeSoto Airflow, Toyota's AA copy of these (1936), and the eventual "People's car", the 1938 KdF-Wagen aka the Volkswagen Type 1 or Beetle.
Contemporaneous prototypes with a more extreme focus on aerodynamics were the 1933 Dymaxion car and Karl Schlör's Schlörwagen, developed from 1936 to 1939.
It featured a five-cylinder radial engine at Zündapp's insistence, rather than the flat four Porsche preferred. It also used a swing axle rear suspension (invented by Edmund Rumpler). In 1932, three prototypes were running. After the Zündapp five cylinder radial, a two-cylinder two-stroke, and Porsche's own flat four boxer were tested. None of the engines performed particularly well and the project was cancelled. All of those cars were lost during World War II, the last in a bombing raid in Stuttgart in 1945.
The Type 12 is typically considered an important early step in the development of the original Volkswagen.
A replica of the Type 12 is on display at the Museum Industrielkultur in Nürnberg.
This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 00:43 UTC on Sunday, 13 March 2022.
For the full current version of the article, see Porsche Type 12 on Wikipedia.
This podcast is produced by Abulsme Productions based on Wikipedia content and is released under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.
Visit wikioftheday.com for our archives, sister podcasts, and swag. Please subscribe to never miss an episode. You can also follow @WotDpod on Twitter.
Abulsme Productions produces the current events podcast Curmudgeon's Corner as well. Check it out in your podcast player of choice.
This has been Joanna Standard. Thank you for listening to random Wiki of the Day.
|
|
Buy WotD Stuff!!
