1965 Steyr-Puch 650 TR #29
Pilots: S. Zasada / K. Osiński
Team: Sobiesław Zasada
Race: 17th overall (first in 1.1 class) at the Monte Carlo Rally 1965
Spark - S2133 (resin)
Published 11/06/26
Steyr-Puch began in 1864 as a rifle company, in Steyr, Austria. In 1894 they expanded their manufacturing to also produce bicycles. With business booming, by 1920 they launched their first automobile. In 1934, they merged with Austro-Daimler-Puch, and formed Steyr-Daimler-Puch, initiating a vast range of off-road vehicles. However, with the post-WWII situation in Europe, they decided to launch a small and affordable car. To minimize development costs, they approached FIAT to buy and adapt the complete bodyshell of their 500 “Topolino”. Officially called Steyr-Puch 500, their first models rolled out of the production line in 1957. Though the body came from FIAT, Steyr-Puch produced the engine cover and the roof. And with that, they only offered the 500 with a long folding roof and rear-hinged doors (“suicide doors”). Moreover, FIAT also supplied the steering and suspension systems. Yet, what set the 500 apart from the Topolino was the engine.
While the Topolino came with an inline-4 569 cm³, Steyr-Puch used a 493 cm³ boxer-2 with hemispherical combustion chambers. Though only producing 12 kW (16 hp), Steyr-Puch’s unit ran far smoother, and could resist high revs for quite longer. And to make things even better, Steyr-Puch used a much better transmission, differential driving axles and brakes. The car was an immediate hit in Austria, and received the nickname “Puchwagen”. With the good sales, in 1959 came the first revision of the model, followed by another in 1967 and then in 1961. In 1962, Steyr-Puch introduced the 650T model, sporting a new and expanded 650 cm³ that delivered 18.5 kW (25 hp). Shortly after, in 1964, they released the 650 TR. The strongest version so far, it was initially intended for the public emergency services. With dual carburetors, the 650 cm³ engine developed 20 kW (27 hp).
By the 1960s, and now produced in Thondorf, in Graz, Austria, the Puchwagen developed a solid reputation as a “mountain car”. To the point that Steyr-Puch called the new 650 “TR” (for Thondorf Rally). With that reputation, Sobiesław Zasada bought a brand new 650 TR and took it to the 34e Rallye Automobile Monte-Carlo, in 1965. That year, The Monte was held from January 16th to 23rd, and started in quite a few cities 🤨. Depending where you lived, you could start at Lisbon, London, Paris, Athens, Frankfurt, Monte Carlo, Warsaw or Minsk. The finish line, obviously, was at Monte Carlo. There were 237 cars on the starting lines, but due to a difficult route and heavy snows, only 35 finished. And one of them was the Steyr-Puch 650 TR #29, piloted by Zasada and his navigator Kazimierz Osiński. They came in 17th overall and first in the 1.1 class.
In my eyes, the 650 TR is a total oddball. Just look at the size of it, it’s even smaller than a Mini Cooper 😲! So, a strange car with a very nice story behind it – my kind of car. And of course, Spark majestically recreating it in 1:43 helps a lot. The detail level is terrific and the paint job is top notch. In other words, Spark being Spark. However, I’m positive that this won’t be a very popular model with collectors (maybe with the hardcore rally collectors, perhaps?). I asked my regular dealer and according to him I’m his only client that goes for these oddballs 😁. What can I do if I like the cool and different stuff?