Narrower than a pay phone and shorter than a Vespa, it’s officially the smallest car in the world.
The world of microcars is much broader than we can imagine. After the Second World War, a series of smaller cars designed to ensure mobility in difficult times appeared. The Italian Isetta, the French Biscuter (creation of the great Voisin) or the German Gogomobil are part of the landscape of Spain in the 50s. But there are many more models that already
they are remembered only by amateurs or specialists like the Spanish PTV, Clua or David; the French Rovin or Mochet; the Germans Messerschmitt, Heinkel, Weidner and Zundapp; the Italian Vespa 400 or Siata Mitzi; or the English Bond Minicar, Scootacar … and the Peel.
The Peel Engineering Company (an Isle of Man company), founded by Cyril Cannell in the late 1940s, originally supplied glass-reinforced plastic parts to the marine and automotive industries. But in the early 1960s they decided to go one step further and so at the 1962 Earls Court Motorcycle Show in London they presented a very small car called the Peel 50, which was on sale for £199. The manufacturer advertised that the Peel could carry “an adult and a shopping bag” and was “almost cheaper than walking”. If we take into account their low consumption, they have not exaggerated much…, but one does not quite understand where to put the shopping bag.
With a fiber body (single door, on the left) it used a 48 cc two-stroke DKW engine that transferred its 4.5 hp to the single rear wheel. The gearbox was a three-speed, not a reverse gear: the driver had to lift his P50 from behind (using a lever) and then turn it in the desired direction: it actually handled better than some “easily removable” minibus seats.
As for the speed, it reached 61 km/h, a promise of strong emotions when we think of its size… Indeed, because the most striking thing was its small size: only 1.34 m long. In addition, a first-generation Smart Fortwo (2.50m long) would almost look like a limousine, and even a 2.28m BMW Isetta wouldn’t be able to compete. Jeremy Clarkson, the famous journalist-presenter of the “Top Gear” program, did not hesitate a few years ago to take a 1963 P50 through the streets of London to the BBC television center and, after getting the car into the elevator caught, lead him into the newsroom to his desk.
There was one prototype, the Peel P55 Saloon Scooter, which unlike the production Peel P50 (along with all developments and replicas of it), used a single wheel architecture at the front and two at the rear. But the principle of two wheels at the front and one at the rear was chosen, as this was a better solution in terms of stability.
The one that also went into production was the two-seat Peel Trident, with a bubble-type plexiglass cabin, which was raised for comfortable getting in or out of the car. Built between 1964 and 1965, it outsold the P50. The Trident is said to be “very popular with couples in love,” perhaps because the small cabin meant the driver and passenger knew each other well.
But let’s go back to our single-seater, the P50. The characteristics and performance of the model a priori limit its use. Of course, the Peel 50 is suitable for commuting in the city, but not for long journeys. Alex Orchin (you know the British have always been busy with this record) covered a whopping 1,400 km in 2021, from Scotland to the south of England. The driver had access to a bottle of water and a GPS in the car. However, the Peel 50 was followed throughout the journey by a motorhome, which served as a mobile hotel room for the driver…
The Peel P50 was and still is road legal in the UK where it was homologated in the ‘tricycle’ category. In other countries, they were sometimes classified as mopeds (for example, the P50 that went to Finland).
Fewer than fifty original P50s were made between 1964 and 1965 (there are said to be only twenty-seven left in the world) and about eighty Tridents (other sources say 45 units), with production being discontinued in 1966. And Peel Engineering 1974 closed.
The rarity and scarcity of the device translates into high prices in the world of classics. So it’s no wonder that on February 15, 2013, at the Bruce Weiner RM auction, a 1964 Peel P50 (registration number ARX 37B) fetched over $120,000.
And not long ago on the Car & Classic online platform, a copy of the P50 was sold for the exceptional amount of 111,000 pounds, that is, the trade-in would be just over 132,000 euros, which, according to the English press, established the second higher quantity to be auctioned for this model, but keep in mind that this P50 unit in question has a particularly remarkable pedigree, as it would be a pre-production copy, with unique characteristics that no other P50 can have, including a colored steering wheel cream and that still does not include the rear beam.
Do you think these numbers are high? Well, over one hundred and seventy thousand euros has been paid for a P50. However, the consumption of about 2.8 liters per hundred kilometers “compensates” the owner for any sacrifice. And when you go to a gas station, you can say “refuel” without your voice trembling, because with only ten euros you can fill your tank of less than five liters.
Today, the Peel 50 collector cars are, in some cases, out of reach, as we can see. But as many of his followers dreamed and cried out for his rebirth, there were those who listened to them. And so the company Peel Engineering Ltd (not to be confused with the Peel Engineering Company of the Isle of Man in the 1960s) was born, which was formed in 2010 to study this project of the new Peel. Today, the small car is produced to order in various versions with prices starting from around twelve thousand euros. It has been redesigned based on the principles of modern engineering, but has remained true to the original concept: 60s style with modern reliability… and vice versa. The engine is now a four-stroke single-cylinder petrol engine, approved for the three-wheel vehicle category, with a consumption of only 1.35 liters per 100 km and a maximum speed of 45 km/h. There is also an electric version. Otherwise, hundreds of original P50 parts and components have been painstakingly reproduced. It can also be purchased as a kit to assemble.
A convertible version specially ordered as a gift for a Middle Eastern king has resulted in the P.50 “Cabrio”. Faced with several requests, the company has decided to produce a series limited to 50 units, each in its own color. Very small, very exclusive, another dimension.
Source: La Verdad
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
