MIKE'S GARAGE

HOW I GOT STARTED: I've always been fascinated by air-cooled cars. I purchased my first car, a 1960 Corvair, in 1967 for $365. I really wanted a Volkswagen Sedan, but they were too expensive for me. At the time, a 1960 Beetle sold for about $1,100. I later owned several other Corvairs, VW Bugs and Buses.

Once while reading about Volkswagens, I came across a reference to Tatra with a very small side view of a T600 Tatraplan. This was in about 1970 and the concept of an air-cooled Czechoslovakian car seemed pretty esoteric. I could never have imagined I would ever own one.

I didn't think much about Tatras again until I was reading the San Diego Union Tribune one day in January, 1972...

(Above): This is the advertisement. I called my brother and we immediately went out to see the car. There are some other interesting cars listed in this ad.

(Above): The Tatraplan was in National City, only about 10 miles from where I lived at the time. The owner, Randy, had the Tatra for the past 14 years. It wasn't running and was a bit weathered. I was really tempted to buy it, but didn't.

In September, 1972 Edward Zdvorak in Santee advertised the Tatra and I bought it from him. Mr. Zdvorak had a bit of problem with truth. He claimed the engine turned over easily with the starter. When I got the Tatraplan home I found out it had a bad connecting rod bearing. To top it off, one of the pistons was rusted/corroded in it's cylinder completely locking up the engine. Where ever you are Mr. Zdvorak, shame, shame, shame.

I really didn't have the skills to restore the vehicle, so in August, 1974 I sold it to Owen Hoyt from San Francisco. He garaged it in San Diego and had some restoration work done, but not to completion. The vehicle remained in the local area until the early 90's when Hoyt moved it to San Francisco. A few years later he sold it to Keith Murphy in Cupertino Estates. Keith still has the Tatraplan and another he bought in Reno, Nevada. Keith is a machinist and has done much research on parts interchange for the T600.

September, 1998: I found two 1950 Tatraplans in Oregon and brought them home. Here they are appreciating the drier San Diego climate.

June,1999: I purchased another Tatraplan in Texas. Notice it has a VW engine installed. A rebuilt T600 engine followed it about 4 months later from Alex Veronac's shop in London, Ontario.