A Variety of other countries, apart from the United States, Great Britain, France, Germany and Italy, possessed a car industry. These , both large and small, were completely wiped out or drastically reduced in size either by the crisis at the end of the 1930s or an inability to change from quality to mass production.
Austria had two large car manufacturers, Austro-Daimler and Steyr. Steyr was founded near Graz in 1864 by Josef Werndl and the highly original work of its first designer, Ledwinka, influenced the firm’s production for many years.
Gottlieb Daimler created three enterprises, one of which was Austro-Daimler in Austria (the other two being in England and Germany). Ferdinand Porsche’s presence at Austro-Daimler ensured that it produced highly prestigious models.
From the beginning of the century until the outbreak of the Second World War the Belgian car industry was one of the most active in Europe. In 1900 300 cars were in use in Brussels alone. There were many successful companies such as Germain, F.N. (or Fabrique Nationale d’ Armes de Guerre), Nagant, Pieper, Delin, V. Antoine, Lefert, Linon, Mans and Vincke, as well as a large number of coach building workshops. The leading company , at least in terms of quality, was Minerva which had been founded in 1903. Between 1905 and 1908 a number of other makes a appeared, such as Imperia and Springuel, and M?tallurgique reorganized its entire production. In 1912 there were 16 car factories in Belgium, employing 5,000 workers.
The First World War dealt an initial, severe blow to the strength of the Belgian car industry. There were many attempted mergers, agreements and groupings, with the result that the number of car manufacturing groups in the country was reduced to two. Both Minerva and F.N. were forced to give up independent manufacturing. The assembly of foreign firms’ models, which has been developed since the Second World War, has been the salvation of the industry.

Austro Daimler AD 617
Car : Austro Daimler AD 617
Year : 1921
Engine :6 cylinders in line
Bore and stroke :85?130 mm
Cylinder capacity : 4426 cc
Gears : 4 forward
Brake horse power : 60
Maximum speed : 72 mph
Wheelbase :11 ft 4 ins (3.45 m)
Suspension : front: semi-elliptic leaf- springs ; rear : cantilever springs
The Austrian division of Daimler of Cannstatt originated in 1899 and subsequently became associated with the Bierenz Fischer company (which had specialized in machine tools since 1848). Austro Daimler was managed from 1902 by Paul Daimler and in that year it became the independent Osterreichische Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft. After 1905 the management passed to Ferdinand Porsche.

The AD 617 was the first 6-cylinder car built by the Austrian firm; it was designed by Porsche himself and was fitted with an engine clearly derived from that of an aircraft, having a single a aluminium engine block, steel liners screwed into the engine block and an overhead camshaft. It developed a power of 60 bhp at 2,300 revs and had a maximum speed, according to the manufacturers, of about 72 mph. From 1923 to 1926 the AD became the ADV (the V indicating front brakes). As the large capacity of its engine indicates, the ADV was essentially a luxury car. All the products of this factory were based on highly original principles. It began to make a name for itself in races before the First World War, especially those the First World War, especially those sponsored by Prince Heinrich of Prussia which , for a while , were the culmination of the racing activities of many car manufacturers of the period.

Excelsior Albert I
Car : Excelsior Albert I
Year : 1926
Engine :6 cylinders in line
Bore and stroke :90?140 mm
Cylinder capacity : 5343 cc
Gears : 3 forward
Brake horse power : 130
Maximum speed : 100 mph
Wheelbase :10 ft 10 ins (3.30 m)
Suspension : front: semi-elliptic leaf- springs ; rear : cantilever springs
Excelsior was active from 1903 until 1932, quite a long period for a company that never aimed at mass production of their cars. It began by using French Aster engines, but from 1911 onwards it built its own 6-cylinder 4500 cc engine with which it equipped a range of prestige cars.

After the war it restarted production, still with a 6-cylinder engine which powered a model that has gained a place in history through one of its features. This was a system of diagonal braking in which the front right and rear left wheels and the front left and rear right wheels were linked; for safety reasons this system has been readopted on cars in the 1970s. The Albert I went into production in 1922. Initially it had a 4768 cc engine, but subsequently, the bore having been increased, a larger capacity (5350 cc) engine. It is the sports version of the Albert I that is pictured here. With the help of 3 carburetors it developed over 130 bhp and had a maximum speed of 100 mph. This car had servo brakes and these, again, were diagonally linked. This machine gained two racing successes. It came second in the Belgian Grand Prix of 1926 and in the following year it won the same race. In 1932 Excelsior was taken over by Minerva.

Graf und Stift SP 8
Car : Graf und Stift SP 8
Year : 1933
Engine :8 cylinders in line
Bore and stroke :85?132 mm
Cylinder capacity : 5992 cc
Gears : 4 forward
Brake horse power : 125
Maximum speed : 88 mph
Wheelbase :12 ft 4 ins (3.76 m)
Suspension : front and rear : semi-elliptic leaf- springs
Like Austro Daimler, Graf und Stift consistently produced luxury cars which bore comparison with Rolls-Royce, Hispano-Suiza and Isotta-Fraschini. The firm was founded by the Graf brothers who began, shortly before the end of the last century, with a small front wheel drive car powered by single-cylinder De Dion-Bouton engine. The company made a fresh start with an agreement between the Graf brothers and Willy Stift, the owner of Celeritas.

The latter did not build cars independently but assembled ones imported from France. Graf und Stift was born in 1902 and in the beginning constructed cars on behalf of , and under the name of , Arnold Spitz. Spitz was one of the principal car dealers in Austria. The failure of Spitz in 1907 freed Graf und Stift and it took the company name of Wiener Automobilfabrik A.G. This specialized in the production of large 4-cylinder cars. It was whilst he was in a Graf und Stift that Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated at Sarajevo. The SP 8 had an 8-cylinder engine which developed 125 bhp; it had an overhead camshaft, aluminium engine block, 9 main bearings and a sychromesh transmission. It had a maximum speed of 88 mph. It was this model in particular that earned Graf und Stift the title of the ‘Austrian Rolls-Royce’

Car : Lancia Aprilia Tipo 97
Year : 1937
Engine :V-4
Bore and stroke :73?83 mm
Cylinder capacity : 1388 cc
Gears : 4 forward
Brake horse power : 46
Maximum speed : 80 mph
Wheelbase :9 ft 0 ins (2.74 m)
Suspension : front : telescopic ; rear: transverse leaf-spring and torsion bars
The Aprilia, which appeared in 1937 , was a very popular product of this Turin company. Vincenzo Lancia gave his collaborators strict specifications regarding the volumn, spaciousness, wind resistance and weight of this car. The car may not have been very attractive but the line of the body fulfilled strict scientifically obtained requirement. Amongst production cars it still has one of the best coefficients of penetration (Cx = 0.47).

The Aprilia was powered by a narrow angled V-4 (slightly more than 17?) with a single overhead camshaft and valves arranged in a V. It had an aluminum engine block and cylinder head. It had telescopic front suspension whilst the rear suspension was by transverse leaf-spring and torsion bars. The Aprilia was built both before and after the war and the total number produced was 27,608. The capacity was increased in the second series to 1486 cc, the bore and stroke rising to 74.61?85 mm , although the maximum power remained virtually the same.

OM Tipo 469
Car : OM Tipo 469
Year : 1922
Engine :4 cylinders in line
Bore and stroke :69?100 mm
Cylinder capacity : 1496 cc
Gears : 4 forward
Brake horse power : -
Maximum speed : -
Wheelbase :9 ft 2 ins (3.25 m)
Suspension : front and rear : semi-elliptic leaf- springs
The company of OM was started in 1848 when Benedtto Grondona began to build carriages outside the Porta Nuova in Milan. He was succeeded by his son Felice who, together with Giovanni Miani and Paolo Zambelli, broadened its interests to include other sorts of vehicles including railway vehicles. In 1880 Maiani founded a new firm, Miani, Venturi & Compagnia, in association with Girolamo Silvestri and Prospero Venturi, with the aim of building a steam engine of the Viennese SIGL design. On the death of Prospero Venturi the company became Miani, Silvestri and Compagnia. The OM factory was in Porta Vicentina, Milan , where the first Italian electri streetcar was built (it would link Florence and Fiesole).

In 1918 the first OM, which was very similar to the Brixia-Zust, was produced. The next to appear was the 465; this number had a definite significance , the 4 standing for the number of cylinders, and the 65 standing for the bore. The 465 was followed by the 467 and the 469, the latter being regarded as this car manufacturer’s war horse. The 469’s engine had a detachable cylinder head and the cooling system’s fan had wooden blades. Magneto ignition was added later. In 1930 the engine capacity was increased to 1680 cc.

SPA 25/30
Car : SPA 25/30
Year : 1913
Engine :4 cylinders in line
Bore and stroke :100?140 mm
Cylinder capacity : 4398 cc
Gears : 4 forward
Brake horse power : 30
Maximum speed : 65 mph
Wheelbase :9 ft 2 ins (3.25 m)
Suspension : front: semi-elliptic leaf- springs ; rear : ?elliptic leaf- springs
The Ceirano brothers were responsible for the formation of Spa. It was founded in 1906 by Michele Ansaldi (who came from Fiat) and Matteo Ceirano (who had previously worked for Itala). Spa enjoyed a long period of their products and the foresight of Ansaldi and Ceirano.

They saw the inevitable slump in the market before the war and turned also to manufacturing aircraft engines. Once the war had begun, many of these were sold to the Italian Air-Force.
The car illustrated here is a sports version. The engine developed 30 bhp at 1,300 revs; was fed by a single body carburetor; had high tension magneto ignition, side valves , and a camshaft in the crankcase; pumped water cooling with a fan ; and had a honeycomb radiator. There was a multi-plate clutch, a chassis with two channel side members, acetylene headlights and oil burning side lamps. The seats were slightly staggered , mainly to make the driving position more comfortable. The failure of the Banca Nazionale di Sconto placed Spa in difficulties and in 1926 Fiat took control and turned Spa over exclusively to truck production. The Spa name was dropped in 1947 , but the factory is still used by Fiat for production of its heavy trucks.

The Swiss industry, like the Austrian one, existed for a relatively short time only and specialized in sturdy vehicles. Fischer, founded in Zurich in 1909, had only a fleeting existence, but Fischer himself was an important designer. He developed an innovative gearbox which had internally toothed pinions and a sleeve-valve engine. He granted the manufacturing rights to this to a German firm which never produced it.
Martini had a much more fortunate career, remaining active from 1902 until 1934. They also made a name for themselves with their racing cars. Friedrich von Martini had started in 1860 as a manufacturer of sheet pressing machinery and, later, of guns.
Turicum (the old Latin name for Zurich) is another important name in the history of the Swiss car industry. This factory was founded in 1904 and closed in 1914. Its guiding force, particularly from the point of view of design, was Martin Fischer.
Though there was only one wellknown Dutch make of car, the Spyker, the innovative solutions adopted on its vehicles give Holland an important place in the history of automobile engineering. Its innovationa included dust and water proof hood, the production of the first 6-cylinder engine, 4-wheel drive and overhead camshafts.
For many years the Spanish car industry was identified with the luxurious Hispano-Suiza cars designed by Marc Birkigt. After the war Spain gradually became more industrialized and car manufacturing became increasingly important. The first companies to be founded were SEAT (Fiat) and Pegaso. Recently Ford have also opened a factory in Spain. Citro?n, Renault and Chrysler all assemble their own products in Spain.
In Sweden Scania had been making cars since 1901 and Vabis since 1897. In 1911 the two companies merged (Scania-Vabis) and produced the only important Swedish make until 1929.

Züst 2535 HP
Car : Züst 2535 HP
Year : 1913
Engine :4 cylinders in line
Bore and stroke :100?150 mm
capacity : 4714 cc
Gears : 4 forward
Brake horse power : 50
Maximum speed : 60 mph
Wheelbase :9 ft 7? ins (2.93 m)
Suspension : front and rear : semi-elliptic leaf- springs
The company of Züst goes back to 1871, when the Swiss engineer Robert Züst became a partner of Guller and Groff of Intra on Lake Maggiore. This had been founded in 1854 and specialized in mechanical engineering. In 1893 Züst took over completely and the company too the name of its new owner. In 1905 it moved to Milan and concentrated on car production. Amongst its first designers was Giustino Cattaneo who was to become one of the most admired car engineers in Italy. Züst’s cars had 4-cylinder in line, twin block, high capacity engines with low tension magneto ignition, 4-speed gears and chain drive. Production of relatively low engine capacity cars , such as the 14/18 HP (3770 cc), was delegated to Brixia- Züst, a small firm formed in 1905 in Brescia in which Züst retained a majority shareholding. Züst was dissolved in 1917 with the transfer of its plant to Officine Meccaniche gi? di Miani, Silvestri & Compagnia, which resulted in the birth of OM.

In common with certain large engined models the 25/35 HP ahd a pear shaped radiator. In practice Z?st’s tendency to produce exclusive cars left the buyer free to choose between several shapes of radiator.
The radiator caps of prestige cars, particularly in 1930s, often bore a statuette of a figure which was nearly always winged or an animal. One of the most admired is the Rolls-Royce ‘The spirit of ecstasy’