Skoda 979-1 1956 Cream/Brown

Skoda 979-1 1956 Cream/Brown by Autocult

A lot of effort, no success

In 1955, the Czechoslovakian Ministry of Automotive Industry approved the development of a commercial vehicle that had to be spacious, lightweight, and modern. The future van was designed to have a load capacity of 950 kg, a top speed of approximately 100 km/h, and fuel consumption of around 10 liters per 100 kilometers. Keeping these specifications in mind, Škoda built the first test vehicle and gave it the internal type designation S 979. Work on the small transporter began in March 1956, and just six months later, a prototype was ready for testing under real-world conditions. This work was carried out at the two plants in Mladá Boleslav and Vrchlabí. Visually, the van was not attractive. From today's perspective, it had the flair of a socialist vehicle with its pessimistic-looking front end, unfortunate color accents, and chrome radiator grille with two headlights that did not present a happy face. It can be assumed that this appearance did not appeal to the decision-makers and was one reason the small van was not approved for production. While it is unclear if there were other criticisms of the first prototype, the front end was certainly one of them. In the next version, the headlights and entire front section were much more prominent.