Nine of the best classic Skodas
This year, Czech car maker Skoda celebrates its 120th birthday. It’s come a long way since its beginnings in 1895. Back then, its first production model used two wheels rather than four. It wasn’t called Skoda, either. The story starts when two cycling fanatics got together to make and sell bikes. Mechanic Vaclav Laurin and bookseller Vaclav Klement sold their two wheel offerings under the name Slavia. The bikes sold so well that by 1899 they were knocking out motorbikes under the name Laurin & Klement.
The pair’s first car, called the Voiturette A, arrived in the early 1900s. The outbreak of war in 1914 meant the company swapped motors for munitions. In the face of tough economic conditions in Czechoslovakia, the pair needed help from a strong industrial partner. That help came from engineering firm Pizen Skodovka and the subsequent merger in 1925 created Skoda.
After some success, challenging political and economical conditions meant the future of the company was uncertain. By the 1980s its cars were out of date and largely out of favour. But with the collapse of the Berlin Wall, a new free market economy arrived and Skoda was once again able to look for a strong partner. A joint venture with Volkswagen followed in 1990 and the rest, as they say, is history.
1977 Skoda 110R (1970-1980)
As time marched on, Skoda found it increasingly difficult to make cars that kept up with the rapid pace of automotive change. Based on the 110-series, the 110R was a sporty model pumping out 62bhp from its 1.1-litre four cylinder. On the road, its posh frock hid ageing underpinnings with the same basic rear-engine and swing-axle layout from the mid-1960s 1000MB. At full tilt, the average driver might have described the handling as ‘scary’ while enthusiastic wheel-jockeys thought it ‘entertaining’. Needless to say, it found favour on motorsport circuits all over Europe. Skoda built 57,000 110Rs, with 90% finding their way overseas.
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