Amphicar at home on land or at sea

Car Collector Corner

By Greg Zyla

Amphicar at home on land or at sea

Q: Greg, I look forward to reading your column on collector cars. Back in the 1960's, there was a car that I thought was real cool called the Amphicar. Do you remember them? It didn't last very long and was gone by the time I could afford a car.But, I have one now, and what a fun car (or should I say boat) it is. I have taken it to shows, where it always draws a crowd. Most of the older people remember seeing the car on TV and in movies (Pontiac Moon), but haven't seen one up close. The kids are amazed that it can 'swim' and laugh when they see the twin propellers in the back.The International Amphicar Club has a web page at amphicar.com where you can find the history of the Amphicar, the specs, and where there will be a “swim-in.” Also, the March-April issue of the club’s newsletter "Wheels-N-Waves” has an article about the Amphicars used in the movie “Pontiac Moon.” Also, there is a part about the testing of the Amphicar for the March issue of Classic Motorsports magazine.Finally, I want to mention that my "car" has passed the U.S. Coast Guard 'Vessel Safety Check' in 2008 and 2009 and I proudly display the 2009 sticker. This is the only 'car' they have inspected in the Washington, DC area. Fred Monger, Lusby, Maryland.

A: Fred, thanks for the kind words and great memories of one very different car/boat! For the record, Amphicar was built in Berlin, Germany, from 1961 to 1968, and was powered by a 4-cylinder, 43-horsepower Triumph engine. The total production came in at 3,878 vehicles, of which 3,046 were imported into the United States. To this day, Amphicar is still the one and only amphibious passenger automobile ever mass produced. You’ve got a true rarity on your hands, and I wish you good driving and fishing. (Greg Zyla writes regularly for Auto Roundup and he welcomes reader questions or car related stories at extramile_2000@yahoo.com or at 303 Roosevelt St., Sayre, Pa. 18840.)

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Shop Talk: Seeking help for broken sway bars

Car Collector Corner By Greg Zyla Seeking help for broken sway barsQ: Greg, I own a 2002 Chevy Avalanche and have just experienced a rear broken sway bar. I have priced the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) part, but am wondering if an aftermarket brand would be a better way to go. Thanks much and I enjoy your interesting car and truck columns. Brad L., Ohio.A: Brad, you are now the second reader who has written about breaking a rear sway bar on a Chevy Avalanche. You are also correct in your assumption that looking at an aftermarket brand may be a better choice. I recommend Eibach Springs as the company you want to check out for a much better sway bar kit. This company produces many parts, most notably its performance springs, but they also make some fine anti-roll sway bar kits, and its sway bar business is booming. You can check all of Eibach’s suspension kits, suspension springs, engine valve springs, industrial and other offerings for cars, trucks, snowmobiles, motorcycles and more on its Internet home page on at www.eibach.com. Additionally, I also want to point out that Eibach’s rear sway bars, which I’ve seen in person at the Performance Racing Industry trade shows, are very strong solid units, unlike the real tubular (hollow) units that came on the Avalanche from the factory. This could be the reason the rear sway bar broke under stress after years of use. Eibach, however, does manufacture beefier tubular sway bars for the larger bardiameter applications that need some weight reduction, and for the Avalanche in question, the front bar is tubular, while the rear is solid. Also, check out what an Eibach suspension kit did for a Ford F-150, not only helping handling but also improving gas mileage at http://eibach.com/cgi-bin/start.exe/eibach/index.html?entry=y&thid=122). Finally, and quite the coincidence, one of my mechanic friends recently broke a rear sway bar on his Chevy Avalanche, and he’s installing an Eibach front and rear sway bar anti-roll kit, which we’ll report on it in a future column. Thanks for your letter, and if you don’t have internet, contact Eibach at 1-800-507-2338 for more information and a dealer near you.(Greg Zyla writes regularly for Auto Roundup publications. Contact him at 303 Roosevelt St., Sayre, Pa. 18840 or email him at extramile_2000@yahoo.com.

For more articles like these, pick up a copy of Auto Round-Up Magazine at your local newsstand, or visit http://www.auto-roundup.com/ today!

Rare T-600 Tatraplan

Car Collector Corner

By Greg Zyla

Rare T-600 Tatraplan

Q: Greg, I’m working on a T-600 Tatraplan automobile, and I know many people have ever never seen or heard of one of these. Mine is a 1947 model, and it would be interesting to see what info you can provide. I have both 4-cylinder and a V8 air cooled engines and transaxles. I enjoy your column very much. Raymond Hogg, Big Spring, Texas.

A: Raymond, I haven’t heard the word Tatraplan since my good friend Jack Kulp mentioned this Czechoslovakian-built car to me about 25 years ago. Kulp, a famous drag racer, used to run blown 445-inch Olds and Hemi Chrysler engines in foreign cars, most notably a Simca blown AA/Gas Supercharged machine. (He also ran Willys coupes, too).Anyway, Kulp had told me about the Tatraplan which was built by the Tatra car company, and that he nearly bought one and made it into a racecar. Your car is a mid to late year 1947 model that received the nomenclature T-600 Tatraplan. The Tatraplan name comes from what was a government sponsored, “centralized economic” plan in Czechoslovakia, where the car was produced. T-600 Tatraplans were streamliner type cars that came with a 1952cc inline 4-cylinder air-cooled engines that were placed in the rear between the axle. The body had a coefficient aerodynamic drag of 0.32, which was great for that era. Overall, some 4,200 T-600’s were sold from 1947 through 1951, but in late 1951, the Czech Department of Defense, which controlled the production of the cars, informed Tatra they would now build trucks, and that all cars would be built under the Skoda brand. Skoda was one of the other car companies in the country at the time, and also run by the government. The third car company in the Czech Republic was Praga. In 1954, however, Tatra re-joined the car building with a large passenger car, and this is where that air cooled V8 engine and transaxle you have in your garage come into play. The V8 T603-engine had previously been developed and tested on the race track in Tatra experimental and race type cars. It was used for the Tatra-603, and went on sale in 1955 and remained in production until 1975. In its’ 18 years of sales, a total of 20,422 T-603’s were built.You have some very interesting items in your garage, so keep us informed and send a photo as you move forward. Hope this all helps and thanks for the nice comments.(Greg Zyla is a syndicated auto columnist who welcomes reader inquiries at 116 main St., Towanda, Pa. 18848 or email him at extramile_2000@yahoo.com).

For more articles like these, pick up a copy of Auto Round-Up Magazine at your local newsstand, or visit www.Auto-Roundup.com today!