About Amphicar
The Amphicar was the only amphibious automobile ever mass-produced for sale to the public. The German vehicle was designed by Hanns Trippel and manufactured by the Quandt Group at Lübeck and at Berlin-Borsigwalde, its name is a portmanteau of "amphibious" and "car".
Performance
The powerplant was the 1147 cc (69 in³) engine from the British Triumph Herald 1200 introduced by the new owners Leyland Motors Ltd. Many engines were tried in prototypes but the Triumph engine was "state of the art" in 1961 and had the necessary combination of performance, weight, cool running and reliability. This engine remained in production in the Triumph Spitfire until 1979. The Amphicar engine had a power output of 43 hp (32 kW) at 4750 rpm. Called the "Model 770", the Amphicar could achieve speeds of 7 knots in the water and 70 mph (113 km/h) on land. Later versions of the engine displaced 1300cc and 1500cc and produced up to 75bhp. Some Amphicar owners have fitted these engines to improve performance.
It was said that the Amphicar wasn't a very good car and wasn't a very good boat because of modest performance in and out of water, but in many parts of the world it is capable of breaking the speed limits on both.
In water as well as on land, the Amphicar steered with the front wheels, which made it very easy to "drive" in the water, although it was not as maneuverable as a conventional boat.
