Car Restoration Projects

This rare Škoda-Hispano-Suiza 25/100 KS limited series is one of 100 Czech-assembled HB6 cars from the 1920s. It was painstakingly restored by Škoda factory experts in 2023.

This professionally restored Škoda Hispano-Suiza was presented to the public at the Techno Classica trade fair in Essen on 12th April, 2023, but before we get into the nitty gritty of this car’s history, it’s timely to discover how the Škoda brand came to be emblazoned on the prestigious radiator of an Hispano-Suiza car.

After World War I, the Czech car manufacturer, Laurin & Klement (L&K) was struggling to stay afloat in the post-War economic climate, having never been a high-volume, low-cost producer, so its quality cars had few prospective buyers,

All L&K models had earned great reputations, but the annual production volume of the car plant in Mladá Boleslav averaged only 336 vehicles and, even at the peak of the more affordable S series in 1914, only 453 vehicles were produced. Another issue that affected production volumes of scale was the fact that the company produced more than 20 different models between 1905 and 1925.

Without the after effects of WWI that saw upheaval in former European empires, combined with massive underemployment of millions of de-mobbed soldiers, L&K might have continued as a low-volume car maker in its own right – at least until the Great Depression –  but a massive fire at its factory in 1924 plunged it into financial crisis and the directors looked around for a rescuer. A large engineering company, Škoda Works, was approached.

Arms and munitions producer, Škoda Works, had become one of the largest industrial enterprises in Europe and the largest in Czechoslovakia, but had desperately sought to enlarge its non-arms-manufacturing base, in the post-War climate.

On November 10, 1924, Karel Loevenstein, general manager of Škoda Pilsen, had signed an agreement to start the licensed production of the Hispano-Suiza H6B luxury passenger car. (Škoda Pilsen already produced aircraft engines designed by this highly prestigious company.)

However, Škoda lacked a car production line and body shop for its pending Hispano cars, so when L&K came knocking it looked like a marriage made in heaven. The takeover was finalised on 12th September, 1925.

Škoda-Hispano-Suiza cars were assembled alongside progressively improved L&K models in Mladá Boleslav from 1926 until 1929. One third of the cars produced were exported to Turkey and Argentina, in addition to European countries. 

Although the original model designation was H6B, the type designation of 25/100 KS of the Czech product was code for a taxable horsepower figure of 25hp combined with the actual output of 100bhp (74kW), achieved at just 1600rpm. The 6.6-litre, OHC, six-cylinder engine could deliver up to 135bhp (99kW) for short periods, providing strong acceleration up to a claimed maximum speed of more than 120km/h. 

The engine had six cast iron cylinder liners in an aluminium block. Disregarding considerable manufacturing cost, the crankshaft, housed in seven main bearings, was machined from a 270kg forging to a finished 17kg.

Hispano-Suiza’s mechanical brakes were extremely reliable and a patented, progressive booster used the kinetic energy of the decelerating vehicle to increase braking power.

The president’s car

The cars featured ribbed chassis frames, with a long wheelbase of 3690mm. The delivery certificate for the first of the Škoda-Hispano-Suiza vehicles bore the date 10th May 1926 and that special limousine served President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk for almost 10 years. 

Around half of the cars were bodied in-house, but the others were finished by independent companies, including Aero, Brožík, JO Jech, Petera, Pokorný & Beiwl and Uhlík. 

Quality from the L&K works was never in doubt, so, when in mid-September 1926, the management of Hispano-Suiza undertook a comparison of their version with the licensed Škoda car, they found the Czech production to be superior in many respects, including more accurate gear-shifting and steering.

The Škoda Museum car

Only a handful of Škoda Hispano-Suiza cars have survived to this day and among the most attractive is the exhibit at the Škoda Museum. 

The chassis bears the serial number 469 and the vehicle is fitted with engine No 1181. The rolling cowl-chassis was completed in Pilsen on 4th May, 1928 and was promptly sent to the renowned Prague coachbuilder J O Jech.

The soft-top touring bodied car was handed over to the Association of Czechoslovak Sugar Refineries on 22nd September, 1928. Its president, Robert Mandelík was an industrialist, financier and mayor of Ratboř near Kolín and used the Škoda-Hispano-Suiza until the mid-1930s. 

Many luxury cars that featured strong chassis and powerful engines were converted into trucks, buses and fire engines when their owners no longer needed them and such was the fate of chassis 469. It served throughout the War as a fire appliance with the Corps in Katowice near Strakonice. 

Although it suffered the demeaning process of having its rear bodywork removed and replaced with benches for a fire crew and towing device for a fire hose, this conversion preserved the car for prosperity.

Nothing is known of its ownership unit a Slovak collector bought the now vintage vehicle in the 1970s. 

1990s restoration in progress

The next owner, from Prague, started a demanding 10-year renovation in 1995. The artist, Václav Zapadlík, designed bodywork for it, in the style of J O Jech, retaining the original front part of the body.

Subsequently, the car changed ownership twice more, but has been part of the Škoda Museum’s collection since 2010.

The final restoration

In August 2019, the factory restoration project began, with the aim of restoring the car to its original form, based on a thorough search of archival materials. The experts studied the archive of Škoda Plzeň stored in the town of Nepomuk, as well as photographs, film footage and documents from the Mandelík family. 

During the initial teardown, after the engine had been removed, major defects were discovered in the engine and other components, and faulty repairs carried out in the past were corrected. 

The engine overhaul was a challenge that eventually took three years. Here, too, the experts had to deal with the consequences of a botched crankshaft repair, for example and with an engine block cover that was deformed and oxidised after an inept renovation effort.

During the professional refurbishment the engine parts were cleaned, cast-alloy bearings were fitted to the crankshaft and connecting rods and new connecting rod bushes were fitted. The valves were ground; the carburettor was repaired and calibrated; and the lubrication system was repaired.

The car was moved to a workshop specialising in the restoration of historic coachwork, including the wooden framing. The shape of the rear section had to be adjusted and the rear doors needed to be lengthened and metal-skinned. This was followed by new rear mudguards and running boards, as well as new front door metal-skinning.

A new roof covering was faithfully cut and sewn; the folding roof mechanism was modified; new seat structures were made and the dashboard was repaired and repainted. 

Even Covid-19 didn’t stop the work! 

In 2021 it was the turn of the seat upholstery and wood trim veneering. Marquetry – creating differently coloured patterns in wood veneers –  featured ebony inlays on and above the dashboard and door trims, and on the partition separating the front-seat area from the rear passengers.

The four-spoke steering wheel was also carefully restored; as was the mechanically operated turn signal with a rotating illuminated arrow: the precursor of turning indicators. 

All the nickel-plated brightwork was redone.

Icing on the cake were the faithful replicas of registration plates Č-26.960 from the First Czechoslovak Republic. If we remember the original owner’s line of business, we might say that the reborn Hispano-Suiza is sugar-sweet. 

The finished gem adorns the Škoda Museum in Mladá Boleslav and sometimes graces vintage car events with its presence.

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