Lloyd 400

Last updated
Lloyd 400
Lloyd LP 400, Bj. 1955 (2014-08-31 6837 b).JPG
Lloyd LP400
Overview
Manufacturer Carl F. W. Borgward GmbH
Production1953–1957
106,110
Body and chassis
Body style 2-door saloon
2-door Cabrio-Limousine
Kombi
Panel van
Layout FF layout
Doors Suicide doors
Related Suzuki Suzulight
Powertrain
Engine 386 cc two-stroke 2-cylinder
(parallel twin)
Transmission 3-speed manual:
no synchromesh
Dimensions
Wheelbase 2,000 mm (78.7 in)
Length3,355 mm (132.1 in)
Width1,410 mm (55.5 in)
Height1,400 mm (55.1 in)
Curb weight 510 kg (1,124 lb) (empty)
820 kg (1,810 lb) (loaded)
Lloyd LS400 (Kombi) Borgward Lloyd LS 400 Kombi 1954 blue r TCE.jpg
Lloyd LS400 (Kombi)

The Lloyd 400 is a small car produced by the Borgward Group's Lloyd Motoren Werke GmbH (Lloyd Motor Works) in Bremen between 1953 and 1957. [1]

Contents

As with its predecessor, the Lloyd 300, the full name of the Lloyd 400 featured a two letter prefix that identified the body shape as follows: LP400 ("Limousine" / saloon), LK400 (panel van) and LS400 (estate). From August 1955 an LC400 ("Cabrio-Limousine" / cabriolet saloon) was also offered.

Engine and running gear

The Lloyd 400 was powered by an air-cooled twin cylinder two-stroke engine with a horizontal-flow Solex 30 BFRH carburetor. The engine was mounted transversely. [2] The engine was based on that of the Lloyd 300, but the cylinder bore (diameter) was increased by 8 millimetres (0.31 in) to 62 millimetres (2.4 in). The resulting engine capacity of 386cc provided for a maximum power output of 13 PS (9.6 kW) at 3,750 rpm. The top speed listed was 75 km/h (47 mph). [2] Despite the leisurely performance figures, the Lloyd 400 was considerably faster and more powerful than its predecessor. The car was fueled using "regular" grade petrol/gasoline, mixed in the ratio of 25:1 with oil, [2] reflecting the requirements of the "motorbike-style" two-stroke engine. When driven normally the Lloyd 400 consumed fuel significantly more frugally than West Germany's best selling small car, the Volkswagen. [2] Space was at a premium and the 25 litres (5.5 imp gal; 6.6 US gal) fuel tank was accommodated ahead of the bulkhead underneath the front hood/bonnet in a space shared with the engine and the six-volt battery. Power was fed to the front wheels via a three-speed manual gear box: there was no synchromesh. [2]

The steering employed a rack and pinion mechanism which was conventional at the time. It required 2¼ turns between opposite locks: the turning circle was 11 m (36 ft). The front wheels were suspended by two laterally mounted leaf springs. At the back there was a swing axle with semi-elliptical longitudinally configured leaf springs. [2] There were essentially three development phases for the Lloyd 400, and the first batch of cars was delivered with drum brakes of 180 millimetres (7.1 in) diameter, controlled via a cable linkage. From March 1953, however, a hydraulic linkage mechanism was installed, and on cars produced after August 1955 the diameter of the brake drums was increased to 200 millimetres (7.9 in). [2] The mechanically controlled hand brake worked on the front wheels. [2]

A budget version of the Lloyd 400, the Lloyd 250, was launched in April 1956. Its stripped down specification meant the removal of hub caps and bumpers, and there was no backrest for passengers in the back. The reduced size and power of the engine in the Lloyd 250 nevertheless enabled it to be driven legally with a "Class IV" driving license, meaning that in West Germany it could be driven by people who had not yet passed a standard driving test. [2]

Body

Structural changes through the model life define the three phases of the Lloyd 400's production. [2] The car was launched with a timber frame body, clad in a synthetic-leather outer skin, reflecting the structural underpinnings of the Lloyd 300 of which the Lloyd 400 was in many respects an upgraded version. However, only about 1,000 cars had been produced before the skins on the wing panels were replaced with steel panels in March 1953. [1] From January 1954 the bonnet/hood and boot/trunk lids were also formed of sheet steel, and cars produced after November came with a steel roof. The steel roofed Lloyd 400s are easy to differentiate from earlier cars with synthetic leather skin covering the roof, since the switch to a steel roof was accompanied by an increase in the size of the (now curved) rear window. [2]

Lloyd themselves still had no heavy presses for stamping body panels from sheet steel. Body panels were bought in, delivered in bare-metal form to the Lloyd factory in Bremen for finishing, assembly and painting. Most of the cars produced were LP400 Limousine (saloon/sedan) bodied cars. A LS400 Kombi (estate/station wagon) was also available along with an LK400 panel van. In September 1955 an LC400 Cabrio-Limousine (convertible) joined the range. [2] The doors were hinged at the rear edge in every case.

Commercial

In 1953 the Lloyd LP400 (saloon/sedan) came with a manufacturer's recommended price of DM 3,780, while the Kombi was priced at DM 3,970. By September 1955, supported by that year's healthy sales volumes, and presumably in response to pressure from the market, the price of the LP400 was down to DM3,350, and the Kombi was offered at DM3,480. However, the small car market in West Germany was increasingly dominated by Volkswagen. In March 1954, the price of a standard Volkswagen was reduced from DM4,150 to DM3,950. Apart from a handful of exotic looking (and exotically priced) vehicles, the passenger cars produced by Volkswagen were all the same shape. The shape had been innovative twenty years earlier, but the architecture and look of the car had changed very little since. The approach of the Borgward Group could hardly have been more different. In 1955 the group produced 91,810 passenger cars, using three different brands and offering a wider range of models than any other West German manufacturer, with models replaced or substantially upgraded every few years. One result of these contrasting approaches was that it was Volkswagen that set the prices in what was still an acutely price sensitive market segment. In August 1955 the price of a standard Volkswagen came down again, to DM3,790, a level that it held till 1961. [3] In order to maintain market share, competitors had little option other than leaving Volkswagen to set the benchmark prices on the domestic market.

The Lloyd 400 was nevertheless considered a commercial success. In 1955, production peaked, at 47,903 cars, which represented more than 50% of the cars produced by the entire Borgward Group in what turned out to be its best ever year, in terms of production volumes. [2] Total production for the Lloyd 400 between 1953 and 1957 came out at 106,110 units. [1] [4] This enabled the Borgward Group to feature as West Germany's third largest automobile producer, behind only Volkswagen and Opel [1] (and ahead of Ford and Mercedes-Benz). It is, however, salutary to note that even in 1955, Volkswagen produced 279,986 Volkswagen Beetles, [3] representing more than five Beetles for every Lloyd 400 produced.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Opel Kadett</span> German small car model

The Opel Kadett is a small family car produced by the German automobile manufacturer Opel from 1936 until 1940 and then from 1962 until 1991, when it was succeeded by the Opel Astra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford Eifel</span> Motor vehicle

The Ford Eifel is a car manufactured by Ford Germany between 1935 and 1940. It initially complemented, and then replaced, the Ford Köln. It was itself replaced by the Ford Taunus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Opel Olympia</span> Motor vehicle

The Opel Olympia is a compact car by German automaker Opel, then part of G.M., from 1935 to 1940, and after World War II continued from 1947 to 1953. It was one of the world's first mass-produced cars with a unitary body structure, after the 1934 Citroën Traction Avant; and it was a mass-production success, made in six-figure numbers. Opel achieved this even before the war, all while Hitler promised Germany a "Volkswagen" - a 'People's car', which didn't materialize until 1946. From 1967-1970 the Olympia badge was briefly reused on a later car.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mercedes-Benz W186</span> Motor vehicle

The Mercedes-Benz W186 Model 300 was a four-door luxury sedan produced by Mercedes-Benz between 1951 and 1957. It was the company's flagship model at the time, succeeding the World War II era W150. Three versions were produced in succession, known informally as the 300a, 300b, and 300c. An enlarged "300d" variant built on the W189 chassis succeeded it in late 1957.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mercedes-Benz W136</span> Motor vehicle

The Mercedes-Benz W136 was Mercedes-Benz's main line of inline-four cylinder motorcars from the mid-1930s into the 1950s. The model 170 V made its public debut as successor to the W15 Typ 170 in February 1936. Between 1936 and 1939 it was Mercedes' top selling model.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mercedes-Benz W187</span> Motor vehicle

The Mercedes-Benz W187 is a luxury car produced by Mercedes-Benz from 1951 to 1955. Introduced at the Frankfurt Motor Show in April 1951, the W187 was powered by a single overhead camshaft inline six-cylinder M180 engine and available as a saloon, coupé, and cabriolet, all designated with the 220 model name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borgward Isabella</span> Motor vehicle

The Borgward Isabella is an automobile which was manufactured by the Bremen based auto-manufacturer Carl F. W. Borgward GmbH from 1954 to 1962.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borgward Hansa 2400</span> German car model built 1952-1959

The Borgward Hansa 2400 was an executive six-cylinder saloon (E-segment) presented in 1951, and manufactured by the Bremen based auto-manufacturer Carl F. W. Borgward GmbH from 1952 until 1959. The car was launched as a four-door fastback saloon; a longer-wheelbase notchback version appeared a year later. The Hansa 2400 suffered from teething troubles including inadequate brakes and problems with the automatic transmission Borgward developed for it. In a small closely contested market, the large Borgwards lost out to less flamboyant models from the German south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Opel Olympia Rekord</span> Motor vehicle

The Opel Olympia Rekord was a two-door family car which replaced the Opel Olympia in March 1953. Innovations included the strikingly modern Ponton format body-work incorporating numerous styling features from the United States and large amounts of chrome decoration both on the outside and on the inside.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford Taunus P1</span> Motor vehicle

The Ford Taunus P1 is a small family car which was produced by Ford Germany from 1952 until 1962. It was marketed as the Ford Taunus 12M, and, between 1955 and 1959, as the larger-engined Ford Taunus 15M. The company produced a succession of Ford Taunus 12M models until 1970, as the name was applied to a succession of similarly sized cars, but the first Taunus 12M models, based on the company's Taunus Project 1 (P1), remained in production only until 1962. In that year the Taunus P1 series was replaced by the Taunus P4 series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DKW Typ 4=8</span> Motor vehicle

The DKW Typ 4=8 is a small rear-wheel drive two-stroke V4 engined car produced at the company's Spandau plant by DKW. It was launched at the Berlin Motor-show in 1929 as a successor to the DKW Typ P built at the same factory, although the DKW Typ P 4=8 was significantly larger than the Typ P: in terms of market positioning a more direct successor to the DKW Type P was probably the DKW F1 produced in Zwickau from 1931.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adler 2.5-litre</span> Motor vehicle

The Adler 2.5-litre was a sensation when first presented by Adler at the Berlin Motor Show early in 1937, although this did not convert into correspondingly sensational sales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adler Trumpf Junior</span> Motor vehicle

The Adler Trumpf Junior is a small family car introduced by the Frankfurt based auto-maker Adler, early in 1934. The Adler Trumpf had by now been available for two years, and the Trumpf Junior was conceived as a similar but smaller car which would broaden the range and claim a share of a growing market which DKW were creating with their F1 model, and its successors, for small inexpensive front wheel drive cars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Opel 1,2 Liter</span> Motor vehicle

The Opel 1,2 Liter is a small car manufactured by Opel between 1931 and 1935. The 1,2 Liter was replaced in 1935 by the Opel P4 which was broadly similar but employed a new engine and continued in production until December 1937. For just one year, in 1933, the manufacturer also offered the Opel 1,0 Liter which was a smaller engined version of the 1,2 Liter. The Opel 1,2 Liter replaced the last version of the Opel Laubfrosch and was itself first complemented and then effectively replaced by the more roomy Opel Kadett, which had itself already entered production in 1935.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Opel 2.0 litre</span> Motor vehicle

The Opel 2 Liter, also known as the Opel »6«, is an executive car that was manufactured by Opel. Produced from January 1934, the 2 Liter replaced the Opel 1.8 litre which had ceased production in November 1933. Production continued till June 1937, but the replacement model, the Opel Super 6, was already in production in November 1936, after which production volumes for the 2 Liter were very much diminished.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mercedes-Benz W21</span> Motor vehicle

The Mercedes-Benz W 21 was a six-cylinder passenger car launched in 1933 using the name Mercedes-Benz Typ 200. It was one of several Mercedes-Benz models known, in its own time, as the Mercedes-Benz 200 and is therefore in retrospect more commonly referred to using its Mercedes-Benz works number, “W21”.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Opel Kadett B</span> Motor vehicle

The Opel Kadett B is a car that was launched by Opel at the Frankfurt Motor Show in late summer 1965. The Kadett B was larger all-round than the Kadett A: 5% longer both overall and in terms of the wheelbase, 7% wider and 9% heavier, albeit 10 mm (0.39 in) lower in basic standard "Limousine" (sedan/saloon) form. Production ended in July 1973, with the successor model introduced a month later following the summer shut-down, in August. Unlike its predecessor, it had no relationship with the Vauxhall Viva, which had moved to its own platform for its corresponding second generation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lloyd 600</span> Motor vehicle

The Lloyd 600 is a small car produced by the Borgward Groups's Lloyd Motoren Werke GmbH in Bremen between 1955 and 1961.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lloyd Arabella</span> Motor vehicle

The Lloyd Arabella was a passenger car produced by the Borgward Group in West Germany between 1959 and 1961. After the company's controversial bankruptcy the Arabella continued to be produced, albeit in greatly reduced quantities and branded as the Borgward Arabella until 1963. By the standards of the time and place it would have been defined as a small family car.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lloyd 300</span> Motor vehicle

The Lloyd 300 was a small car produced by the Borgward Group's Lloyd Motoren Werke GmbH in Bremen between 1950 and 1952.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Ulf Kaack (2012). Minimalismus auf vier Rädern ... Lloyd LP 400. GeraMond Verlag, München. pp. 77, 79. ISBN   978-3-86245-667-3.{{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Werner Oswald [in German] (2001). Lloyd 400 (1953-1957). Vol. 4. Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart. pp. 424–425, 446–447. ISBN   3-613-02131-5.{{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  3. 1 2 Oswald, Werner [in German] (2003). Volkswagen 1200 Standard-Modell (1954-1964). Vol. 3. Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart. pp. 8–9, 20–23, 36–37. ISBN   3-613-02116-1.{{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  4. German wikipedia gives a total volume of 109,878 units: no explanation has been found for the discrepancy.