It’s a car! No, it’s a motorcycle! No, it’s a Messerschmitt! We haven’t featured one of these unique microcars in while so when this project showed up here on eBay, I knew we needed to give it a mention. Messerschmitt was a German manufacturer who was known for their aircraft, but for a while there they tried their hand at automobile manufacturing too. Well, sort of. The KR-175 was a three-wheeler that was powered by an air-cooled engine, so it may have seemed more like a motorcycle than a car. With tandem seating and a top though it offered cheap transportation to those who wanted a little more protection from the elements. This early example is going to need a full restoration, but it does look complete. Thanks goes to Robert R for the tip!
The only thing more forlorn than a rusty old German bubblecar is one with a broken canopy and no wheels….
Amazing!!! Can you believe, only has a 9 horse power motor, and yet it has logged 100k miles! Wonder if you can get a replacement shell for it? The rest looks quite restorable. I still remember driving up hill coming out of S.F. on the freeway only to be passed by one of these streaking past everyone! …Obviously had done a motor transplant of some kind.
Had one of these once.. drove it in HS back in ’61.. It was registered as a Cabin Motorscooter. The bubble top was it’s only downfall, hotter than Hades in the summertime. Ended up having it tinted a dark green.. problem solved. :)
Too bad its on the ground,but its in suprising condition,and yes the canopies were available , not sure if they still are
These were still on the road when I was stationed in Germany in the late 60s. I was fascinated with them then and I still am.
With the take over of “off-the-rack-rice-rockets” and the extinction of Cadillac land-yachts, one might actually live to tell about driving one of these on the open road, …almost.
These really are only garage ornaments, aren’t they?
NO!!!! They are alive and well all over the world, be it in small numbers ……
Evidently we’ve just witnessed the price of “crack” addiction…..oh well….
cheers…..JeffH
I hope someone buys this and saves it, but Haggerty’s puts a daily driver at about $18,K, so $10K for this maybe a little excessive.
I remember seeing several of these in decent condition for sale in Germany in the mid 1970s, typical asking price was DM 100 to DM 200 [$35 to $75]. Nobody wanted them. Even running & driving Tigers were for sale at around DM 500 [$175]
Messerschmitt! I LOVE these cars! In my opinion one of the coolest bubble cara ever!