Laurin & Klement Type S

Laurin & Klement Type S was the most successful car by Laurin & Klement, manufactured between 1911 and 1925. A record number of Laurin & Klement Type S cars were produced, in several versions: S, Sa, Sb, Sc, Sd, Se, Sg, Sh, Sk, Si, Sm, So and Sp. These markings signified the type of car, whether it was a two-seat, four-seat or even six-seat car.

Laurin & Klement was a Czech manufacturer of cars, motorcycles and bicycles, founded in 1895 in Mladá Boleslav by automobile pioneers Václav Laurin and Václav Klement. From 1925, the company was a part of Škoda Auto, now the largest car maker in the Czech Republic. The first Laurin & Klement Type S cars had a 1.8-litre inline-four sidevalve engine with a non-removable cylinder head. The type had a three-gear transmission, while the following models had a four-gear one. The first model had a power output of 14 horse powers and a maximum speed of 50 to 60 km/h. It was produced for only a year, during which 106 units were manufactured. Differences between the other models were only technical and the design of Type S was preserved. Type Sb was produced as a four-seat phaeton with a more powerful engine and a higher maximum speed (16 horse powers and 10 km/h faster). Later versions had a larger engine; after 1913 they reached 1,847 cm³ and towards the end of its production up to 2.4 litres and 30 horse powers.

More than two thousand cars in all versions were sold by 1924, which made it one of the most successful cars in the history of the Laurin & Klement company. Its production ended in 1925, when the company transformed into Škoda.