Tatra 613
Power: 167 hp
Displacement: 3,495 cm3
Number of cylinders/valves: 8/2
Weight: 1,690 kg
Condition: operational
Catalogue number: 99
This is a representative limousine of the upper-middle class, produced by the Tatra car manufacturer between 1974 and 1995 as the successor to the second-generation Tatra 603. The first prototypes were built as early as 1969.
History
It is among automotive legends and is exceptional both in its design and its history. The car was developed in Czechoslovakia as a representative vehicle intended primarily for top state officials and members of the ruling Communist Party. The vehicle was not available to the general public. It was manufactured in small series in Tatra’s branch plant in Příbor, which also made production very expensive. After the development ended in 1973, the car entered production and, in a modernized version, was manufactured until 1995, when it was replaced by the last passenger car of the Tatra brand, the Tatra 700.
Technical Specifications
The Tatra was known as a fast, spacious, and comfortable vehicle with a responsive 2×2 OHC carbureted engine with a displacement of 3.5 liters and a power output of 168 hp. It could reach speeds of up to 190 km/h. Later, small numbers of more powerful engines with higher displacement appeared. Toward the end of production, engines with fuel injection and outputs of up to 200 hp were introduced. These cars could reach speeds of up to 230 km/h. Initially, the gearbox was four-speed, and in the final models, a five-speed transmission was used. Most of the vehicles had sedan-type bodies, but other versions were also made, such as coupés, two-seaters for rescuers and firefighters, ambulances, utility vehicles, police cars, and special ceremonial landaulettes.
Prototypes
Many sports-bodied prototypes were also built based on the Tatra 613’s technical platform. The most famous of these is the MTX Tatra V8 from 1991. Another attempt at modernizing the model line was the Tatra Prezident prototype.
Production
In total, only about ten thousand vehicles of all versions were produced, which, along with its original technical concept, makes the Tatra 613 unique.
However, with the change in the political system and, most importantly, the unrestricted availability of vehicles produced west of our borders, the exclusivity of these representative Tatra cars came to an end. That doesn’t change the fact that, in its time, this was the most luxurious car produced in socialist countries, and it’s a pity that it was also the last model, effectively ending Tatra’s production of passenger cars.
