Škoda · 1972–1979
Škoda 760
RGW-Auto was a joint project for the construction of passenger cars in the former East Germany and Czechoslovakia. Both countries were members of Comecon (the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance). The aging Trabant 601, Wartburg 353, Škoda 100 and Dacia 1300 were to be replaced by vehicles with a modern design. The manufacturers involved were Automobilwerk Eisenach (Wartburg), Sachsenring Automobilwerke Zwickau (Trabant), AZNP Mladá Boleslav (Škoda) and Uzina de Autoturisme Pitești (Dacia). Mass production of the ambitious project was to begin in 1978, but it never happened.
Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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History
=== Background === In both countries, it was noticed at the end of the 1960s that the local automotive industry was increasingly moving away from western manufacturers in terms of its technologies. Exports to non-socialist economic areas (NSW) such as Great Britain were also important to both countries, as this allowed foreign exchange to be procured. With these, socialist countries could easily procure goods such as special machines in NSW that were not available in the socialist area. In East Germany, cars were built with two-stroke engines at the time. It was foreseeable that these vehicles would find fewer and fewer buyers in NSW. As early as the 1970s, the Wartburg 353 model was not registered in Great Britain because of new emissions regulations. In 1979 there was a ban on registration throughout NSW due to non-compliance with the necessary ECE regulations. The East German government did not want to raise the necessary investments for series production with a four-stroke engine. At the end of the 1950s, Škoda in Czechoslovakia decided to build vehicles with rear engines. The Škoda 1000 MB was introduced for this purpose in 1964. At that time, western manufacturers, apart from Volkswagen, were moving away from the rear engine. In hindsight, the rear engine was a dead end for Škoda: The new production line built for the 1000 MB meant that the necessary funds for the renewed reorientation could not be raised. Development. The goal was a technical basis for the successors to the Trabant 601, Wartburg 353 and Škoda 100: Škoda was to provide the technology for light alloy four-stroke engines and gearboxes. In addition, Škoda, in contrast to East Germany, also built self-supporting bodies and thus gave them access to this technology. The engineers in East Germany had ex
Sections adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0); text is shortened. Read the full article for the complete history and citations.
Specifications
- name
- P760
- Manufacturer
- AZNP, AWE, AWZ, UAP
- Production
- 1972–1979 (prototypes only)
- Class
- Supermini (B), Small family car (C), Large family car (D)
- Body style
- sedan, coupe and estate
- Engine
- Petrol:, 1.1–1.8 L
- Predecessor
- Trabant 601, Wartburg 353, Škoda 100, Dacia 1300
Specification summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Check the linked sources for citations.
More photos
Sources
- Wikidata — https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q117390CC0 1.0 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RGW-AutoCC BY-SA 4.0 · Text © Wikipedia contributors; revision 1316690214 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SkodaPrototyp760_(1).JPGCC BY-SA 3.0 · Photo: Alofok · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Car Model Index — https://models.autoculturesociety.com/Compiled record. Sources that do not permit reuse are not copied; this index is credited instead.