See that cutaway up there? That’s for a 1936 car called the Steyr 50, nicknamed the Steyr “Baby.” I’ve always enjoyed mocking this cutaway because of the position of the heels of that rear passenger there, which appear to be breaking through the floor of the car, something that is generally not allowed. And now I think that it’s me who has been wrong, all these years, and I owe the Steyr Baby an apology. Also, it’s not a bad idea to talk a bit about the Steyr 50 (and the updated 55) because they were sort of Austria’s Volkswagen, just with some key mechanical ideas flipped around.
The Steyr 50 had, like the Beetle, a flat-four engine, though the Steyr stuck everything up front and cooled it with water, not air. The Steyr also cut costs by not bothering with rear side windows, though there was an updated version that added those, they Steyr 55, taking pity on the poor bastards stuck in that cave-like rear end.
It seems like there were Steyr 55s that didn’t enjoy the extra rear side windows, so perhaps that’s not a defining trait of the 55? Here’s a side window-less 55 brochure:
I don't usually collect pre-WW2 brochures but here's an exception. The streamlined 'Baby' Steyr Typ 55 was a 4-seater well ahead of its time. Born amid the darkest of times for Austria, it debuted as the 50 in 1936 before this improved version arrived in 1938. #carbrochure #Steyr pic.twitter.com/4T3RNBrHaR
— Car Brochure Addict (@addict_car) October 26, 2021
That brochure also has a picture of the dashboard with a strange optical illusion that bothers me, oddly:
See the white knob just to the lower right of the multi-gauge with the clock? It manages to nestle into the curves of the metal steering wheel hub just so in a way that makes it look like it’s both in front of the wheel and behind it at the same time! It messes with my mind.
Okay, but let’s get to the main point: why I owe the Baby an apology:
It has heel-holding chambers, below the floor of the car! So that woman wasn’t breaking any rules or physics or floors with her heels – the Steyr used this clever trick to get a couple extra inches of legroom in this cramped little car! I take back any pointing and derisive laughter.
Oh! Another cool detail? The wipers are mounted through the glass of the windshield! Look, you get a great view of it in this video:
I’m not sure I can think of another car that does wiper mounting like that?
The Steyr 50 and 55 only lasted until 1940; the Beetle ended up becoming the rounded, carapace-like peoples’ car to make it. In fact, after the war, a lot of Steyr Babies were converted to VW mechanicals, using all the leftover Küblewagen chassis and drivetrains from the war. The crude Kübelwagen bodies were swapped for the more refined Steyr bodies, and the results were known as Kohlruss VWs. I wrote about them years ago, if you want to know more!
Also, I’m told no one puts Baby in a corner.
My worry with that foot area in the back, is if you bottom out or hit debris, then what happens to the passenger’s feet and legs?
Wow, it actually ran on 17″ wheels! Coool 😎
-And here’s a photo of one I found, reseaching a bit.
Nice idea actually with the floor indent for room.
Strange that EV manufactures can’t make something similar, here almost 90 years later, and everybody on the rear seat has to sit with their knees under their chins, due to the floor battery packs.
Well at least the standard range version of the Porsche Taycan came with two “foot garages” 😉
I really wish somebody would offer a modern car with this exterior styling. I’d rock it.
Thanks for the explanation. That side cut away drawing had me thinking she was gonna go full Fred Flintstone style on his ass and say I just stopped the car. I am the backseat driving Goddess from hell. When I say stop this fricken car, you will stop or I’ll stop the damm thing for ya A-hole!!!
Oddly, I just commented today on a video on @DougsCars YouTube channel featuring an Avion Voisin with a similar wiper setup: https://youtube.com/shorts/yq4IWtfFSLQ?si=JD4WlD9iXEFlw5Cz
The 1931 Chrysler Imperial CG roadsters and phaetons also had the windshield wipers mounted through the glass.
https://images.app.goo.gl/8GkitFgd2hUUVjwNA
The wipers appear to have some kind of motor mechanism mounted inside the car to the left of the driver. Or perhaps that’s the upgrade and the standard one had a handle you moved to operate the wipers (not unusual for the time).
I don’t know about the windshield, but tons and tons of cars and CUV/SUV have their *rear* wipers mounted through holes in the glass, including my DD. Steyr was actually ahead of their time on this.
That notorious white knob appears to be an ashtray.
http://www.oldie-point.at/unser-angebot/detailansicht/vehicle/steyr-daimler-puch-55-saloon-baby/#&gid=1&pid=18
Amazing find. ????????
Sorry that was supposed to be 2 claps. I guess the system doesn’t like emojis. lol
I told my brother that Freddy Flintstone’s car would work…
That couple is on the way to get their brown shoes polished before they attend the Nazi rally.
Brown shoes don’t make it
I think for the home guard maybe, but I’m not well versed in the uniforms of the Reich, thank god!
I’m so old my pop culture references die in the dirt
Yikes to that optical illusion. I looked at that photo and that white knob started screwing with me before I even read the warning paragraph above or the explanation paragraph below. I almost feel like the artist did that intentionally.
Poor technique. A slight shadow on the white knob would have indicated it’s behind the steering wheel.
Indeed. I worked with an engineer who liked to make his CAD drawings just slightly wrong to mess with people, so I can’t help but wonder if the artist of the above drawing did it too (malicious compliance and all that)?
This is what happens when you design a car using “idclip” but forget to use “iddqd” and “idkfa”.
i_understood_that_reference.gif
How about “idgaf”
I wonder if people complained about the massive c-pillars and blind spots on the 55 like they do today…
“Also, I’m told no one puts Baby in a corner.”
Handling is terrible, got it. I still assume if Jason ever drove one, he’d have the time of his life.
More importantly, did DJT get it ?
Forget the lady’s heels for a minute. It’s the little engine I’m curious about. I never came across that one. It’s hard to find anything on it online. Especially since there’s also a technically unrelated Steyr 50 tractor.
If anybody has more information on this cute little side-valve boxer, please share.
Steyr 55 Baby engine running on youtube
According to the brochure above, it is a 1.1-liter water-cooled boxer (rubber-mounted) with a bore of 64mm and a stroke of 90mm, putting out approximately 25.5 horsepower at 3600RPM. It has cylinder heads with high-output combustion chambers and standing (?) valves, aluminum pistons, and a three-bearing crankshaft. There is a gear-driven oil pump for pressurized lubrication. It has “thermo siphon cooling”, which leads me to believe there is no water pump.
The clutch is a single disc. The transmission has four gears and two of them are synchronized (“noise free”).
Dankeschön. I saw that and should have mentioned it. Standing valves means side valves, as opposed to OHV.
Vielen Dank für die Erklärung!
Okay, one last link regarding this adorable little car (including engine porn).
https://habel-restauration.at/rental_service/steyr-55-projekt/
Now, back to work!
Well would you look at that. You can actually see them poking out down there on that side view picture you posted. Neat!
Looking at those I can’t help but notice they’re right at the perfect spot for a high-center situation, I imagine the Steyr Baby would be the most ideal automotive see-saw if it got stuck on a rock. The slightly horrifying exposed cable brake system also catches my attention, with levers, pulleys and cables hanging a good distance below the belly pan. On 30s Austrian roads, such a system would fill me with dread.
Cable-operated brakes front and rear? Very interesting!
I think that the cables were for the parking brake, because these, notably, had hydraulic brakes!
That would indicate that it has 4-wheel parking brakes, which would be quite interesting.
Ford also used 4 wheel cable brakes in ’37 and ’38 also, as a half step between mechanical and hydraulic. Henry Ford really didn’t want to have to go hydraulic
Imagine hitting something with force on those “heel-holding chambers”? Whilst I doubt it’d be off-roading, a good chunk of ice in the winter would definitely wake up the rear passenger.
Whenever you guys link to your articles on the old site I’ve noticed the images don’t load. Is it just me?
You have to log into kinja to see old images on that company’s sites now.
Seriously? That’s just about the stupidest thing I’ve Herb of. I’m not going to dig up my old Kinja login for the images but thanks for clearing up that mystery for me.
Yeah, it’s super dumb. But that’s the kind of thing The Herb loves to do.
In a certain and specific area of North Carolina, those are called “antler catchers”.
This is actually a pretty smart solution! I imagine having the footrest angled like that would probably be more comfortable than a flat floor. More manufacturers should do this!
No doubt lacking seatbelts, rear seat passengers need a place to dig in their heels and brace for impacts.
It’s like a tiny version of the Tucker’s crash chamber.
“No brakes! Hannelore, coil up and get down in the crash chamber!”