Praga

Type	Společnost s ručením omezeným
Industry	Automotive
Founded	1907
Headquarters	Prague, Czech republic
Products	cars, karts, planes
Parent	PRAGA-Export s.r.o.
Website	pragaglobal.com

Praga is a manufacturing company based in Prague, Czech Republic. The company produced automobiles, karts, road supersports and planes. Praga V3S was one of the best off-road trucks in its time and was used by the Czechoslovak Army more than half a century.

The current company Praga-Export, which uses the brand Praga, is engaged in the production of cars, karts and car racing.

History

Praga was founded in 1907 to build motor cars as a venture between entrepreneur František Ringhoffer and the company 1. českomoravská továrna na stroje (“First Bohemian-Moravian Machine Works”, later a founding part of the ČKD factories). Ringhoffer only stayed for one year and in 1909 the trade name Praga (“Prague” in Latin) was adopted. One of its early models was built under licence from the Italian company of Isotta-Fraschini.

Praga also diversified into building engines and gearboxes for other applications such as aircraft and tanks.

In 1929 Praga merged with ČKD, one of Czechoslovakia’s largest engineering companies.

In 1929 ČKD’s BDmotorcycle was re-branded under the Praga marque. This was an advanced four-stroke single-cylinderunit constructiondouble overhead camshaft model of 500cc designed in 1927 by JF Koch. The “BD” designation was retained as its model name.

In 1932 Praga added a second motorcycle model, the BC. This had a single overhead camshaft engine of 350cc, shaft drive and a pressed steelframe. Praga ended production of both motorcycle models in 1933.

The factory was largely destroyed by air raids in 1945. After the Second World War it was rebuilt and resumed truck and bus construction.

The M53/59 Praga was a self-propelled anti-aircraft gun developed in the late 1950s. It consists of a heavily modified Praga V3S 6 wheel drive truck chassis and twin 30 mm AA autocannon.

In 2006, Praga was purchased by British International Truck Alliance with the intention to produce trucks with the name of Praga in Lublin, Poland. In 2007 it produces gearboxes and hydraulic machinery.

In June 2011 the company unveiled at Dutch Supercar Challenge in Belgium, the new car Praga R4 with eight-cylinder engine of 520 hp, which has not been so far homologated for normal road traffic. According to company owner Petr Ptáček, there will follow gradual steps, so new Praga cars will not be seen only at racetracks, but we could meet them in normal traffic.

In 2016, the company plans first deliveries of supersport road cars Praga R1R, in a limited edition of 68 cars. It will be the first road car of Praga since 1947.

Products

Automobiles

Praga Mignon (1911-1929)Praga Grand (1912–1932) – limousinePraga Alfa (1913–1942)Praga Baby (1934–1937)Praga Piccolo (1924–1941)Praga Super Piccolo (1934–1936)

Praga Golden (1934–1935)

1935 Praga Lady Ambulance

• 1938 Praga Lady jako ambulans
•                     
• 1938 Praga Lady r.v. Praga Lady (1935–1947)
• Praga R4S (2011) – racing car (the company plans homologation for normal operation)Praga R1 (2012) – racing car

All Praga automobile production stopped by 1947, but was restarted in 2011 when Praga constructed the R4S. It utilizes a 3.2 liter V8 based on the Suzuki Hayabusa engine and produces 530 BHP, with a total weight of only 88 kilograms. A feature on the R4S are the markings for camber and toe, which eliminates the need of advanced tools, with a specific amount of “clicks” representing a certain degree of camber or toe.

Motorcycles

 1929 Praga BD motorcyclePraga BD 500 DOHC (1929-1933)                                                                                               Praga BC 350 OHC (1932-1933)

                                                  Praga ED 250 (1999-2003) – enduro

Praga ED 610 (2000-2003) – enduro

Praga Trucks

 Praga V3S was one of the best off-road trucks in its time

Praga N (1915-1931) – 4 ton truck (4×2)

Praga A150 (1947-1951) – 1.5 ton light truck (4×2)

Praga RN (1933-1953) – 3 ton truck (4×2)

Praga RND Bus (1934-1955) – modification of RN with diesel engine

 Praga RV (1935-1939) – 2 ton army truck (6×4)

Praga ND (1938-?) – 7 ton heavy truck (4×2)

• Praga V3S (1953-1990) – 3 ton all-terrain truck (6×6), produced around 130,000 units
• Praga S5T (1956-1974) – 5 ton truck (4×2)
• Praga UV100 (prototype 1985)
• Praga UV120 (prototype 1985)

Praga UV80 (1992-2001) – multi-purpose medium truck (4×4)

Buses

Praga NDOPraga RN

and Praga RND(iesel)

Trolleybuses

Praga TOT                                                                                                                                Unrealized projects: Praga TNT and Praga TB 2

Light Tank

Aircraft

Praga BH-39 (E-39)                                                                                               Praga BH-41

• Praga BH-44Praga BH-111
• Praga E-39
• Praga E-40
• Praga E-45Prage E-51Praga E-114Praga E-114M Air Baby OK-BGL edited-2
• Praga E-2101952 Hillson Praga G-AEUT

Artillery tractors

          Praga T-3

• Praga T-4
• Praga T-6
• Praga T-7
• Praga T-8
• Praga T-9

• Praga Company website

The rest are pictures from my collection: all collected on the world wide web:

1932 Praga_Alfa_1932_katalog 1932 Praga_Piccolo_1932_katalog 1936 lady_1936 1937 praga_lady_1937

1980 Praga v3s

That’s it