Laurin & Klement 1905-1925 - the classic route to becoming a car manufacturer
Summary
There were around 10,000 car brands and designers - most of them have disappeared. One of these vanished brands is Laurin & Klement. The history of this vehicle manufacturer based in Jungbunzlau sounds classic: it began with bicycles, then built motorcycles and finally constructed its first automobile in 1901. Numerous racing victories led to a good reputation that spread far beyond the country's borders.
Estimated reading time: 3min
Preview (beginning of the article)
Laurin & Klement followed the classic path to becoming a car manufacturer: 1895 renting a workshop for repairing and manufacturing bicycles, 1898 building a factory, 1899 starting motorcycle production, 1901 building the first car, 1905 starting car production. Václav Klement was a bookseller, Václav Laurin a locksmith. Place of business: Jungbunzlau in the Austro-Hungarian Danube Monarchy, today Mladá Boleslav in the Czech Republic. The Laurin & Klement Voiturette A reached 45 km/h, but further development was rapid: 1906 four-seater and larger V2 engines, first four-cylinder, 1907 foundation of a joint stock company; until 1914: factory expansion, two to eight-cylinder in-line engines, also trucks, buses, motorized ploughs; exports even reached the Japanese imperial court.
Continue reading this article for free?
