Praga (company)

1930 Praga Alfa car
An Austo-Hungarian Army Staff Car manufactured by Praga

Praga is a manufacturing company based in Prague, Czech Republic. In 2006, it was purchased by International Truck Alliance.

History

Praga was founded in 1907 to build motor cars as a venture between entrepreneur František Ringhoffer and the company 1. českomoravská továrna na stroje ("First Bohemian-Moravian Machine Works", later a founding part of the ČKD factories). Ringhoffer only stayed for one year and in 1909 the trade name Praga ("Prague" in Latin) was adopted. One of its early models was built under licence from the Italian company of Isotta-Fraschini.

Praga also diversified into building engines and gearboxes for other applications such as aircraft and tanks.

In 1929 Praga merged with ČKD, one of Czechoslovakia's largest engineering companies.

In 1929 ČKD's BD motorcycle was re-branded under the Praga marque. This was an advanced four-stroke single-cylinder unit construction double overhead camshaft model of 500cc designed in 1927 by JF Koch. The "BD" designation was retained as its model name.

In 1932 Praga added a second motorcycle model, the BC. This had a single overhead camshaft engine of 350cc, shaft drive and a pressed steel frame. Praga ended production of both motorcycle models in 1933.

The factory was largely destroyed by air raids in 1945. After the Second World War it was rebuilt and resumed truck and bus construction. In 2007 it produces gearboxes and hydraulic machinery.

The M53/59 Praga was a self-propelled anti-aircraft gun developed in the late 1950s. It consists of a heavily modified Praga V3S 6 wheel drive truck chassis and twin 30 mm AA autocannon.

In June 2011 the company unveiled at Dutch Supercar Challenge GT races in Belgium, new car Praga R4 with eight-cylinder engine of 520 hp, which has not been so far homologated for normal road traffic. According to company owner Petr Ptacek will follow gradual steps, so new Praga cars were not seen only at racetracks, but we could meet them in traffic.[1]

Self-propelled anti-aircraft gun PV3S PLDVK vz. 53/59 - "Ještěrka" ("Lizard"). The chassis and the motor was produced in Praga.[2][3]

Products

Automobiles

All Praga automobile production stopped by 1947, but was continued in 2011 when Praga constructed the R4S. It utilized a 3.2 liter V8 based on the Suzuki Hayabusa engine and produced 530 BHP, with a total weight of only 88 kilograms. The R4S have been well received throughout by the media, but the company's choice to not utilize either CFD nor windtunnels has been criticiced. A neat feature on the R4S is the markings for camber and toe, which eliminates the need of advanced tools. Now, engineers know that a specific amount of "clicks" represents a certain degree of camber or toe.

Motorcycles

1929 Praga BD motorcycle

Praga Trucks

Praga V3S truck

Buses

Trolleybuses

Light Tank

Panzer 38(t)Ausführung S in the German Panzermuseum in Munster.

Aircraft

Artillery tractors

References

  1. ↑ "Praga se vrací na silnice". Byznys.ihned.cz. 2011-06-28. Retrieved 2012-04-06.
  2. ↑ VZ.53/59 JEŠTĚRKA (Czech)
  3. ↑ PV3S PldvK vz. 53/59 - JEŠTĚRKA (Czech)
  4. ↑ Apral, K. "PRAGA 1930". www.classiccarcatalogue.com. Retrieved 10 July 2013.

External links

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