Have you got a problem with your Goggomobil? Is it the Dart or the T250?
I’m hoping I just unlocked a memory for you, but personally I was not accustomed with the legendary Goggomobil until I saw a Dart in the flesh at the National Motor Museum.
Where might you remember the Goggomobil from? Why, this ad of course.
Now, when I brought up the Goggomobil, my editor was confused that I didn’t know about the ad, but it has quickly become one of my favourites, even if it preceded my birth by about six years. It’s like straight out of The Castle.
The actor in the ad, Tommy Dysart, unfortunately died earlier this year, leaving behind quite an iconic performance. Shannons even brought him on board for a separate ad in 2013 featuring the Dart, a subtle nod to the Goggomobil in the Yellow Pages ad that featured the “Not the Dart” T250.
The Goggomobil was more than these ads, however. A 392cc twin cylinder, two-stroke engine, capable of 100km/h, weighing only 380kg with a fibreglass body, the Goggomobile Dart was an Australian compact car built in 1960, with running gear and chassis imported from Hans Glas in Germany.
The car was designed and built in NSW by Buckle Motors, which still exists today as a car dealership. Carsales estimates there are only about 50 left in Australia today, after 700 were produced between 1960 and 1961.
It looks like a toy car, right? Like, you’d be lucky to see something this small on the road in Australia, except for perhaps an original Morris Mini.
It was designed to compete with the microcars of the day, such as the earlier mentioned Mini, but also the BMW Isetta and the Messerschmitt KR200. It was one of the only microcars ever designed and built in Australia.
If you’d like to go and see a Goggomobil Dart for yourself, head to the National Motor Museum in Birdwood, South Australia. They’ve got heaps of cars worth seeing up close, like the Holden Torana GTR-X and the Telstra Phone Car.
We’ve also written about the Holden Hurricane, GM EV1, and the Holden Coupe 60.