Wartburg 353 Schwimmwagen

The Wartburg 353 Schwimmwagen was an amphibious derivative of the East German Wartburg 353 car. Notes in the archive, in German, say it came from a small pilot or pre-production series and was fully able to float, being driven in the water by its wheels in the manner of the Soviet LuAZ. Only two cars had four-stroke engines; the remainder, perhaps five, had two-strokes.

The 353 also gave rise to the 353/400 Kübelwagen, an open military off-road version with the three-cylinder engine enlarged to 1,200 cc, giving 55 hp and 95 km/h; photographs of it are included in the folder. An English-language web comment copied into the notes was unsure whether the Schwimmwagen really was amphibious, noting that it is pictured with open doors, and the archive owner also recorded doubts.