East Germany's Iconic Car - The Trabant

ZWICKAU, GERMANY - AUGUST 31: Spare parts for old Trabants are seen on sale at the Trabant Club Zwickau annual gathering of Trabi owners on August 31, 2018 in Zwickau, Saxony, Germany. The rally is an annual event attracting some 500 Trabant owner's and enthusiasts. The first Trabant rolled out of the VEB Sachsenring Automobilwerke Zwickau factory in Saxony, Eastern Germany, on November 7, 1957. All the various models of Trabant were built in Zwickau, totalling 3,096,999 completed cars. This iconic car is often seen as symbolic for the GDR. The production finally stopped 1990 following German re-unification. Often referred to as "a spark plug with a roof", Trabants were constructed from a hard plastic body mounted on a one-piece steel chassis and not from compressed cardboard as is often rumoured. It had front-wheel drive, a transverse engine, and independent suspension which were unusual and innovative production features for the time. In the early 1990's it was possible to buy a Trabi for a few Deutschmarks. Prices later recovered as the Trabi gained cult status. Today Trabants are starting to fetch prices equivalent with other classic cars. (Photo by Craig Stennett/Getty Images)