Trabant 601 in Budapest

Oh, the much-maligned Trabi. The Trabant 601 was produced from 1963 to 1990 by VEB Sachsenring in Zwickau, Sachsen (East Germany). I’m not an expert on the Trabant 601 but this one appears to be from the mid- to late-1980s (maybe 1990) and was in remarkably good condition when I photographed it in Budapest in 2006.

The Trabant was designed to be reliable and affordable. Trabants were the most common car in East Germany (DDR) and at one point, the wait list was 18 years long.

You can still buy a used Trabant in Hungary. I found a 1987 Trabant 601 in good condition (and running) for about US$800.

One more thing: Here is an East German commercial for the Trabant 601. I believe that the commercial is from 1969.