The industrial towns of Sinshiem and Speyer in Germany are home to two extremely impressive auto and technical museums. The collections include numerous cars, motorbikes, scooters, trains, aircraft, ships, submarines, a space shuttle, military hardware and even a chainsaw collection. Housed in vast hangers, with giant aircraft suspended overhead, they are truly amazing. Even though Shelly was initially a little dubious, we spent a several hours at both museums and it was quite overwhelming.
Of the two museums, I felt Sinshiem was the better. The collection was better presented and the auto section was much larger. Both cities are about two hours drive south east of Frankfurt. For more details, check their website: https://sinsheim.technik-museum.de/en/
This set of photographs primarily covers the scooter and microcar collections at both museums in 2008, when we visited. There is simply so much on display that the other collections will be have to be posted separately.
The Scooter Collection
A Heinkel Perle moped
The beautiful Zundapp Bella
Another Bella with a Stieb sidecar
Lambretta TV
NSU Prima V. NSU became the licensed manufacturer of Lambrettas in Germany but found the Lambretta 'insufficiently well engineered' to suit German tastes. Once the license had expired they developed their own series of much more advanced scooters.
The Heinkel collection at Speyer. Having been banned from aircraft manufacturing after the war, Heinkel turned to scooters and microcars. https://heinkelscooter.blogspot.com/2009/01/heinkel-scooter-story.html
More scooters in the microcar display - Zundapp Bellas, Adler Junior, and a Goggomobile
Vespa fender-light https://heinkelscooter.blogspot.com/2009/10/piaggio-museum-pontedera.html
IWL Berlin and a Vespa 125 https://dkwautounionproject.blogspot.com/2019/09/east-german-iwl-scooters.html
Adler Junior
Cheating a bit - this is actually from Brussels Auto Museum - A Goggo
A prototype Piaggio 3-wheeler. The MP3 has come a long way
German microcar royalty - Messerschmitt and Heinkel
NSU-Fiat 600. NSU began building Fiat cars under license again after the Second World War under the name of NSU-Fiat. The NSU-Fiat plant at Neckarsulm was split off from NSU so that the company could focus on motorcycles. However, by the late 1950s, NSU had begun designing their own car, the NSU Prinz. The two companies then became rivals in the small car market. To avoid confusion, NSU-Fiat changed their name to Neckar.
Hanomag were a truck, tractor and steam engine company but in 1924 introduced the Hanomag Kommissbrot budget car. This little two-seat budget car is important for reintroducing rear-engine mounting for cars, inspiring a raft of engineers in the 1930s.
The iconic BMW Isetta. This small, egg-shaped microcar was designed by the Italian refrigerator and scooter company, ISO. BMW was in a desperate financial state in the 1950s and purchased a license to build the Isetta in Germany. It proved to be the salvation of the company. https://heinkelscooter.blogspot.com/2023/01/bmw-isetta-saviour-of-company.html
A line up of 1964/65 Goggomobile Coupes
NSU Prinz Spyder
Nothing says "bubble car" like an Isetta
Except maybe a Heinkel...
A 1957 Goggomobile T-250 sedan
1955 Kleinschnittger F-125 https://heinkelscooter.blogspot.com/2024/07/kleinschnittger-f250.html
Zundapp Janus
The ultra cool Messerschmitt https://heinkelscooter.blogspot.com/2023/05/fmr-messerschmitt-mokuli-delivery.html
The Mercedes-Benz 170 H was Mercedes' attempt to develop a "volkswagen" during the late 1930s. The first model with a rear-engine was the 130 of 1934, but the placement of a four-cylinder water-cooled engine the rear gave it poor handling. In 1936 the much improved 170 H was introduced with double acting shock absorbers on the rear. Handling was still tricky for the unwary and the car was never the success they hoped it would be. https://heinkelscooter.blogspot.com/2025/02/1936-mercedes-benz-170-h.html
The east and west German "volkswagens" - Trabant and Beetle.
The Volkswagen Saga: https://heinkelscooter.blogspot.com/2012/03/volkswagen-world-beating-peoples-car.html
The Trabant: https://dkwautounionproject.blogspot.com/2017/07/trabant-east-german-peoples-car.html
More photos from our visit to Speyer and Sinsheim
Speyer aircraft and military: https://militarymuseum.blogspot.com/2020/05/speyer-technical-museum-germany.html
Sinsheim aviation and military: https://militarymuseum.blogspot.com/2020/05/sinsheim-technical-museum-germany.html
Motorcycles: https://heinkelscooter.blogspot.com/2009/08/auto-technik-museums-at-sinshiem-speyer.html
Microcars: https://heinkelscooter.blogspot.com/2009/08/sinshiem-micro-car-collection.html
European cars: https://heinkelscooter.blogspot.com/2009/12/speyer-and-sinshiem-auto-collection.html
American cars: https://heinkelscooter.blogspot.com/2009/12/sinshiem-auto-collection-american-cars.html
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