, Tuesday, November 14th, 1989, p. 11

BMW fine - Trabi destroyed

Frankfurt (fh). - The first accident involving a Trabi in Frankfurt had unusual results. A 27-year-old from Apolda near Erfurt and his 19-year-old girlfriend crossed the Friedensbrücke in the Sachsenhausen direction and stopped too late, crashing into a BMW from Langen. Although the impact was heavy, the Western bumper took it undamaged.

The Trabi, on the other hand, wasn't made for such a kind of rendezvous. "Absolutely ripe for the scrap heap", concluded the police. But instead of arguing drivers, a crowd of people met the police. Lots of passing drivers had stopped to help. An elderly man presented the couple with 50 DM, and a policeman invited them to stay at his home for the night, which they thankfully accepted. One man offered to take the Trabi to the border, but the police declined because it was damaged beyond repair.

The young couple had their Trabi delivered home nevertheless, hoping to find someone to repair it at home. The small damage to the BMW bumper bar will be paid for by an insurance association.

Annotation: "Trabi" is the short name for "Trabant", an East German car brand famous for their two-stroke engines and cardboard-like car bodies.

Frederik Ramm, 2001-04-27