The employees from Skoda Museum and Skoda Auto Prototype centre collaborated on a project to reconstruct the Skoda 1100 OHC Coupe racing car to mark the 120th anniversary of Skoda Motorsport.
The team used high-end technology and traditional techniques in body construction and started the project by reconditioning the original frame, chassis and engine. The body of the Skoda 1100 OHC was also rebuilt according to its historic documentation.
Only two Skoda 1100 OHC coupes were created in 1959/1960 with closed bodywork and the vehicles were no longer based on a central tube with forks for an OHV engine mounted at the front. Instead, they used a rigid lightweight truss frame welded from thin-walled tubes.
Additionally, the front wheels were fitted with a Trapezoidal suspension with two triangular wishbones whereas the rear has been installed with a coupling axle with trailing arms.
The Skoda 1100 OHC is powered by a naturally aspirated in-line four-cylinder engine made of aluminium derived from the Skoda 440 ‘Spartak’ including the crankcase and crankshaft. The engine generates an output power of 92hp at 7,700 rpm with 85hp per litre of displacement, the top speed is set at 200 km/h. It weighs 555kgs and for short bursts, the engine could reach up to 8,500 rpm.
The vehicle has been fitted with dual-circuit brakes to further ensure effective deceleration and reduce unsprung mass whereas the rear drum brakes have been mounted on the differential gear.
The team were to only display the chassis of the Skoda 1100 OHC Coupe next to the open-bodied version in the Skoda Museum collection but later on decided to just reconstruct a fully functional vehicle.
