Industrieverband Fahrzeugbau (lit. 'Industrial Association for Vehicle Construction'), usually abbreviated as IFA, was a conglomerate and a union of companies for vehicle construction in the former East Germany.

IFA produced bicycles, motorcycles, light commercial vehicles, automobiles, tractors, vans and heavy trucks. All East German vehicle manufacturers were part of the IFA, including Barkas, EMW (which made Wartburg cars), IWL, MZ, Multicar, Robur, Sachsenring (which made Trabant cars) and Simson.

IFA cars were based on pre-war DKW designs and made in the former Horch factory in Zwickau. The IFA badge was dropped from cars in 1956, and the cars were named  Zwickau and Wartburg and production transferred to Eisenach.

The IFA-Kombinat Personenkraftwagen Karl-Marx-Stadt included the following factories:

In the former Audi and Horch factories in Zwickau, the IFA F8, F9, Sachsenring P240, AWZ P70 and later the Trabant were produced.

In the former BMW factory in Eisenach, the EMW 321, 340 and 327, IFA F9 and later the Wartburg were made.

In Karl-Marx-Stadt (now: Chemnitz) the Framo and later the Barkas were made.

The manufacturers of various trailers, folding trailers (Camptourist, sold in the Netherlands as Alpenkreuzer) and caravan models QEK, Bastei and Intercamp also belonged to this Kombinat.

1945-1955

Eisenacher Motorenwerk (EMW) was an East German manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles based in Eisenach. EMW also entered Formula One as a constructor in 1953, but participated in only one race, the 1953 German Grand Prix. The car retired after 12 laps with exhaust problems.

One of the pre-World War II BMW factories was located in Eisenach, which after the war was taken over by the Soviets, since Eisenach was situated in the Soviet occupation zone. The factory continued producing cars and motorcycles under the BMW brand, but after a lawsuit in 1952 they had to change the name to EMW instead. The logotype was also similar, but instead of the blue BMW used, EMW used red.

Later the automobile section of EMW became VEB Automobilwerk Eisenach and built the Wartburg. Motorcycle manufacture ended in the 1950s and was replaced by the AWO 425 built by Simson at Suhl.

1949-1959

f8

1949-1955

The IFA F8 is a passenger car of the Industrieverband Fahrzeugbau, which was built from 1949 to 1955 by Automobilwerk Zwickau in the East German city of Zwickau as a further development of the almost identical DKW F8.

The F8 is part of the DKW Frontwagen series, which started in 1931 with the F1. In the series, front-wheel drive was successfully used in a production car for the first time.

In the spring of 1948, IFA presented the DKW Meisterklasse Cabrio-Saloon, DKW Viersitzer Luxus-Cabriolet and DKW Kastenlieferwagen at the Leipziger Messe, which were hardly changed compared to the pre-war models. The former brand and type names were used explicitly.
It was not until 1949 that production of the now called IFA F8 began in the former Audi factory in Zwickau. The pre-war construction was built almost unchanged, and the pre-war engine with cast iron cylinder head was also used, but unlike the old Reichsklasse with 600 cc, the F8 had the stronger 700cc engine that delivered 20 hp.

In 1953 some technical and optical changes followed; From that moment on, the bonnet was made of plastic. The total production until 1955 amounted to more than 26,000 pieces, a large part of which was exported to Western countries.

f9

1950-1956

The IFA F9 is a passenger car of the Industrieverband Fahrzeugbau, which was built from 1950 to 1953 by Automobilwerk Zwickau (AWZ) in Zwickau and from 1953 to 1956 by Automobilwerk Eisenach (AWE) in Eisenach, both in East Germany.

Production of the wagon, now called IFA DKW F9 and from 1952 onwards IFA F9, began in small series at the former Audi plant in Zwickau in October 1950. The F9 bodies came from the Zwickauer Horch factory, the assembly took place at Audi. At the Leipziger Frühjahrsmesse in 1951, the Cabriolet was exhibited for the first time and the Saloon with various modifications (e.g. the full instead of split windscreen) which, however, were partly only implemented in series production years later.

A maximum of 7 body versions were in production in total, including a Kübelwagen and a small number of Roadsters made for exhibition purposes. However, a four-door version of the F9 did not materialize.

All models used a 3-cylinder in-line, two-stroke, 900 cc engine which was mated to a 4 speed manual.

40.663 were made.

The AWZ P70 "Zwickau", also known as Zwickau P70, was a passenger car from the East German car factory VEB Sachsenring Automobilwerk Zwickau in Zwickau. P70 stands for Passenger car with 700cc. The P70 was the successor to the IFA F8 and was internally referred to as F8 K.

1955-1959

The P70 appeared in three versions. The body of the Limousine (sedan) delivered from autumn 1955 onwards was created at VEB Karrosseriewerke Dresden, sometimes also with a roll-up roof, but its trunk was never accessible from the outside. 

The Kombi version (station wagon) of the P70, with a side-hinged rear door, was offered from spring 1956. Up to the B-column it was identical to the Limousine, but the roof was not made of plastic but was made of a wickerwork covered with artificial leather. Initially, the Kombi was created directly in the Zwickauer factory, and from the end of 1956 it was also produced in Dresden.

The third body variant of the P70 was the 2+2 Coupé. Much slimmer and more elegant than the Limousine and Kombi, it really made a good impression. Usually it was painted in two colors. A chrome rim hump was enthroned on the bonnet and the Coupé was the only P70 type to have a boot lid. The Coupé body was also created in Dresden.

All models were front engine and front-wheel drive. The 2 cylinder in-line, two-stroke, 684 cc enigne was mated to a 3-speed manual gearbox.

36.796 were made.

1955-1959

Sachsenring was an East German car brand, which was used as a brand name for various models from 1955 to 1959.

In addition to the small passenger car developed in Zwickau, the AWZ P70, the car manufacturers in the former Horch factory in Zwickau also tried to build a car in the large middle class. This was developed by the Horch factory and built by hand, with the chassis being matched by the now discontinued EMW 340.

p240

1955-1959

In 1954, the model with panoramic rear window was shown for the first time. The first 100 units were built in 1955-1956. In the beginning, the P240 was released under the Horch brand name, including the legendary H logo with the crown above the vertical slats in the grille trim (with pointed indicators next to it), on the boot lid and on the hubcaps. The price was 27.000 East German marks. The actual production costs, however, were 33.000 East German marks.

The P240 has a six-cylinder in-line, 2407 cc engine pared to a 4-speed manual gearbox.

Until the end of P240 production in 1959, a total of 1382 units of the Limousine (sedan) were officially built. Insiders speak of 1800 copies that were made up to 1960 using residual files.  After Horch and Audi merged on 1 May 1958 to form VEB Sachsenring Automobilwerke Zwickau, the P240 was now released under the Sachsenring brand, with the S logo that would later also adorn the Trabant.

From 1958 onwards, half a dozen P240s were converted into large Kombis (station wagons) with a rear door hinged to the side at the Dresden body factory on behalf of the East German state television.

For representation purposes only, 5 to 10 four-door Cabrioletswere built on a P240 basis. These cars were mainly used for the generals of the National People's Army, who were also responsible for the conversion.

p2m and p3

Equipped with the powerful six-cylinder engine that also powered the first versions of the P240, an all-terrain command vehicle for the GDR army was produced by VEB Barkas-Werk in Karl-Marx-Stadt in an edition of around 2000 units. A special feature of the five-seater was the permanent all-wheel drive with limited slip differential at the rear. This made the car difficult to drive. The ground clearance of the P2 M was 30 cm, the payload was 400 kg.

The P2M was succeeded in 1958 by the thoroughly developed P3. Until this was succeeded by Russian GAZ off-road vehicles from Gorky, about 4000 units were built first in Karl-Marx-Stadt and then in Ludwigsfelde.

The 2.4-liter six-cylinder was 10 hp more powerful in modified form; The technology remained largely the same. New was the placement of the rear seats on the left and right perpendicular to the direction of travel along the side walls. In this way, a total of 7 occupants or driver and co-driver plus 500 kg could be transported. The rear seats were accessible through a back door. The ground clearance of the off-road vehicle, of which no version with a fully fixed body was built, became 33 cm, the payload increased from 400 to 700 kg.

1952-1958   p2m

repräsentant

1969

In 1969, two more open four-door Phaetons with modernized lines were built on a Sachsenring P240 basis in the prototype building department of the Zwickau factory. The conversion costs per car amounted to 100.000 Marks (GDR). The client was again the Nationale Volksarmee, which used the Repräsentant for the military parade on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the GDR in October 1969.

The body of the car with a convertible top was made of plastic and had double round headlights, a fine-meshed grille and a huge boot lid, under which extra batteries and transmitting equipment were hidden. The interior equipped with Wartburg instruments had a large two-spoke steering wheel, two continuous benches with leatherette upholstery and a bar to hold.

1899-1991

The brand name Wartburg, after the castle of the same name near Eisenach (Thuringia), was already used in 1899 for a car built by the Eisenacher Automobilfabrik. Later this factory used the name Dixi. Dixi was taken over by BMW.

The BMW factory in Eisenach ended up in the Soviet zone after the Second World War. The factory remained in use for the production of cars. They produced under the brand names IFA and EMW.

The cars of the Wartburg brand were built from 1956 to 1991 by the Automobilwerk Eisenach in Eisenach. Wartburg, together with the brands Trabant and Barkas, was part of Industrieverband Fahrzeugbau (IFA).

It was not until 1988 that a more modern variant with a Volkswagen four-stroke engine was introduced, but this proved too late to compete with more modern cars on the free market. On November 9, 1989, the Berlin Wall fell and on April 14, 1991, production of the Wartburg 1.3 was stopped. Part of the plant, Betriebsteil Eisenach-West, founded in 1977, was bought by Opel and is still in use today for the production of the Opel Corsa, the Opel Adam and the Opel Grandland.

After the fall of the Wall, interest in the Wartburg quickly declined. In 1989, 70,204 new four-stroke Wartburgs were produced, in 1990 there were only 63,068. At the end of 1990, a few modifications were made, such as a modified interior and an irregular catalytic converter, but they could not stop the decline. An announced five-speed gearbox was never available.

When the 1.3 was ready for export, it was actually too late. Export could only take place under market economy conditions, there was no longer any question of previous subsidies. Although there was still a lot of interest in the 1.3 in former Eastern Bloc countries such as Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary, an export to those countries was difficult, because after the introduction of the German mark in the GDR, the Wartburg had to be paid in hard currency. Many of these countries were fighting for their own survival and were unable to do so. In the second half of 1990, production therefore had to be reduced by 25%. Not only domestically but also abroad, demand had fallen to a minimum.

On April 10, 1991, the last Wartburg 1.3 was produced in Eisenach. Some of the factory buildings had already been sold by the Treuhandanstalt in 1990 to Opel, which started production of the Opel Vectra in Eisenach.

1957-1990/1990-1991 (west germany)

Trabant is a series of small cars produced from 1957 until 1991 by former East German car manufacturer VEB Sachsenring Automobilwerke Zwickau. Four models were made: the Trabant 500, Trabant 600, Trabant 601, and the Trabant 1.1. 

The first model, the 500, was a relatively modern car when it was introduced.

It featured detachable duroplast body panels on a galvanised steel unibody chassis, front-wheel drive, a transverse two-stroke engine, and independent suspension. Because this 1950s design remained largely unchanged until the introduction of the last model, the Trabant 1.1 in 1990, the Trabant became symbolic of the former East Germany's stagnant economy and the collapse of the Eastern Bloc in general. Called "a spark plug with a roof", 3.096.999 Trabants were produced. Older models have been sought by collectors in the United States due to their low cost and fewer restrictions on the importation of antique cars. The Trabant also gained a following among car tuning and rallying enthusiasts.

1958-1990

Barkas (VEB Barkas-Werke) was an East German manufacturer of small delivery vans and minibuses named the B 1000. In addition to delivery vans, Barkas also made engines for Trabant cars.

The van was built in a new factory in Chemnitz (then known as Karl-Marx-Stadt) on a site which was formerly home to the Framo car plant, the old Framo factory having been crated up and shipped to the Soviet Union as part of a larger war reparations package in the late 1940s. The business had subsequently been nationalized by the GDR government.

B 1000 production started in 1961 and continued until 1991. Originally the B 1000 was powered by the 45 PS three cylinder, two stroke DKW derived engine found also in contemporary Wartburgs. Shortly before production ceased, the model designation was changed to B 1000-1, and the old engine was replaced by a 1.3 four-stroke engine manufactured under licence from Volkswagen. The Belgian importer began installing a 1.8-litre (Endura-D) Ford diesel engine in the 1980s as the two-stroke was no longer competitive.

The B 1000 was a remarkable van at the time; the unusually high loading capacity, two-stroke engine, front wheel drive, and semi trailing arms suspension differed from the more traditionally constructed vans in the West. Being the only commercially available van in East Germany, the factory offered many body styles; a flatbed, a panel van, a people carrier, a box van, and an ambulance were all available.

Altogether, 175.740 B 1000s and 1.961 B 1000-1s were built.

b1000