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It's better to swim with the second one - Amphicar model 770 in (historical) test

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Created on July 5, 1964

Reading time 15min

Written by:

Jürgen Stockmar

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Archiv

15

Archiv

15

Amphicar 770 (1964) – Da soll noch einer sagen, Venedig wäre keine autogerechte Stadt

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Amphicar 770 (1964) – Der Schwimmwagen als Jagdwagen

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Amphicar 770 (1964) – Versuchen Sie dies nicht mit Ihrem Triumph Herald

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Amphicar (1965) - Durchsichtszeichnung

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Amphicar (1965) - Interieur des Schwimmwagens

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Amphicar (1964)

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Amphicar (1965) - erzeugte immer eine Menschenansammlung

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Amphicar 770 (1965) - der Autofahrer als Kapitän

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Amphicar (1964) - das perfekte Freizeitgefährt

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Amphicar (1962) - in der Reifenwerbung von Pirelli

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Amphicar 770 (1965) - über Eleganz kann man sich streiten

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Amphicar (1964) - erleben Sie den Zauber einer Wasserfahrt in Ihrem Auto

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Amphicar (1964) - Amphibienfahrzeug, das sowohl für die Strasse wie auch für Gewässer bestimmt ist - Genfer Automobilsalon 1964

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Triumph Herald Convertible (1960) – Er spendete dem Amphicar den Motor

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Triumph Herald (1959) – Sein Motor werkelt auch im Amphicar, dort allerdings im Heck

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Summary

In the history of the automobile, the Amphicar was as unique as it was unsuccessful: no one had ever built a floating car for private use before - and no one had ever missed it. The motorboat with tires would have cut a fine figure as a second car for the well-to-do leisure society, as this historical test report explains. However, compromises had to be made both on the road and in the water.

This article contains the following chapters

First: a car
Like a fast transporter
Small engine - small thirst
More boat than car inside
It even lies down!
Into the water
Ideal second car
Technical data and measurements

Estimated reading time: 15min

Preview (beginning of the article)

Ever since driving a car ceased to be an exclusive activity, people have been looking for new hobbies thanks to the ever-increasing prosperity of the Federal Republic. The searching gaze of a particularly large number of them has come across motorboats. - You can see this from the fact that boat tests are now also published in automobil. Unfortunately, not every body of water is good enough for a real boat, quite apart from the fact that motor boating is not permitted everywhere. Only the lucky ones have a navigable body of water on their doorstep, the others often have to transport their boat over long distances if they want to indulge in their new hobby. This requires a sturdy boat trailer and an equally sturdy crew, because only in brochures is it child's play to launch a full-grown boat from a trailer. In an emergency - yes, I mean the one with the bitter aftertaste - such a procedure is too cumbersome, and since war is supposed to be the father of all things, the military came up with something (supposedly over 2000 years ago): the amphibious vehicle, which is capable of moving on land and water. One of the best-known representatives of this type was the VW Schwimmwagen, which is traded at collector's prices today. A Berlin-based company thought to itself: why shouldn't such a vehicle also be usable for peaceful purposes? So the "Deutsche Waggon- und Maschinenfabriken" built an amphibious vehicle for civilian purposes: the Amphicar.

Welcome to Zwischengas!

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