The Neckar 1500 was the Heilbronn-built version of the Fiat 1500, added to the German company’s range in 1961. Like every Neckar it was a Fiat built under licence, slightly modified and usually more luxurious than the car made in Turin. A sporting 1500 TS coupé, derived from the Siata 1500 TS, joined it in the same year.
Neckar 1500 at a glance
| Maker | Neckar Automobilwerke AG, Heilbronn, West Germany |
|---|---|
| Brand history | Fiat cars built under licence, badged NSU-Fiat until 1957 |
| Model | Neckar 1500, the Heilbronn-built Fiat 1500 |
| Introduced | 1961 |
| Coupé | Neckar 1500 TS, a Fiat 1500-based coupé originally sold as the Siata 1500 TS |
| French market name | Neckar Mistral (1500 TS) |
| Range companions | Neckar Weinsberg (Fiat 500), Jagst (600), Europa (1100) and Panorama |
| Annual output | 50,000 cars in 1962 |
| Licence production ended | 1971 |
Wikipedia has no article on the Neckar 1500; this page is based on the passages about the model in the English article on the Neckar marque and the German article on NSU-Fiat.
History of the Neckar 1500
The Fiat 1500 comes to Heilbronn
NSU had sold its Heilbronn car factory to Fiat in 1929 for one million Marks, and the plant had built Fiat cars under licence ever since, badged NSU-Fiat. After a long legal dispute with NSU over the use of the NSU name, the German subsidiary rebranded its cars as Neckars in 1957 and carried on building Fiats in West Germany. By the late 1950s it was making no more than 25,000 vehicles a year, chiefly the Fiat 500 as the Neckar Weinsberg, the 600 as the Neckar Jagst and the 1100 as the Neckar Europa.
A wider range
The launch of the Fiat 1500 in 1961 and then of the Neckar Panorama, derived from the Autobianchi Bianchina Panoramica, allowed Neckar to reach a yearly production of 50,000 units in 1962. The Neckar 1500 TS, a Fiat 1500-based coupé originally sold as the Siata 1500 TS, was added to the lineup that year; in France it was sold as the Neckar Mistral. The Neckar cars were typically more luxurious and sporty than the Fiats produced in Turin.
The end of the licence
The high cost of the German workforce, supported by the German government’s determination to sustain what some thought a high value for the Deutsche Mark, doomed Neckar. Fiat refused to sell the licence of the new Fiat 124, 125 and 128 to the German company, and production slowed down from 1963. Neckar continued to produce Fiats in West Germany until 1971.
Design and features
- Licence-built Fiat: the 1500 was assembled in Heilbronn from Fiat designs, like every Neckar.
- German specification: the Heilbronn cars were typically more luxurious and sporty than the Fiats made in Turin.
- 1500 TS coupé: a sporting derivative that began life as the Siata 1500 TS and was sold in France as the Mistral.
- Range growth: with the 1500 and the Panorama, Neckar doubled its annual output to 50,000 cars in 1962.
Neckar 1500 versions
- Neckar 1500 (from 1961): the saloon, the Heilbronn-built Fiat 1500.
- Neckar 1500 TS: the coupé based on the Fiat 1500 and derived from the Siata 1500 TS.
- Neckar Mistral: the name used for the 1500 TS in France.
The 1500 joined the smaller Jagst and the Europa in the Heilbronn range. More cars of the marque are in the Neckar collection.
Sources
- Neckar (car), English Wikipedia: brand history, model range, 1500, 1500 TS and Mistral
- NSU-Fiat, German Wikipedia: licence production in Heilbronn, end of the marque
