Steyr 55 "Baby" (1939)

1939 Steyr 55 "Baby". Made in Austria.

Steyr began as a company in 1820 building rifles. The badge that they put on their cars is meant to represent a shooting target. Steyr began building cars and tractors just prior to the outbreak of WWI.

The Steyr 55 was the company's first attempt at building a small, affordable car. It offered better seating and luggage space than the Volkswagen Beetle and was also shorter in overall length. The 55 Baby is based off of the Steyr 50 which was introduced in 1936. The 55 "Baby" was produced from 1938 to 1940. During that time, over 13000 55 Baby's were built.

The Steyr 55 Baby had a 61 cubic inch, flat 4-cylinder (boxer style) motor capable of 22HP. Top speed was 60 MPH. The Steyr 55 used a thermosiphon cooling system instead of a water pump.