Hanomag Kommissbrot
One can certainly talk of minimalism in relation to this Hanomag. It was one of the smallest and simplest cars of its day.
A time when Germany laboured under hyperinflation and bread cost millions of Reich Marks. The rounded shape of the body resembled the loaves of bread distributed by the army to the needy and this was how this first Hanomag passenger car got its nickname ‘Kommissbrot’ (army loaf).
Note the single headlight in the centre. The 10 hp, single-cylinder, 500 cc engine enabled the vehicle to achieve a maximum speed of 60 km/h. The car is fitted with just one single brake drum. The Hanomag was also available in a cabriolet version and as a delivery van, and approximately 15,000 were produced between 1924 and 1928. An interesting fact is that stripped Hanomags raced at the Nürburgring in 1927.
‘Hanomag’ is an abbreviation of Hannoverische Maschinenfabrik AG. The firm originally manufactured steam locomotives, moving on to lorries and tractors. The company produced passenger cars between 1924 and 1939. At the end of the 1960s Hanomag merged with Henschel, a lorry manufacturer, and in turn this company was taken over by Mercedes-Benz in 1971.