The Goliath Rapid is a lorry made by ''Bremer Kühlerfabrik Borgward & Co. GmbH'' in Sebaldsbrück (a neighborhood in

Hemelingen Hemelingen ( Plattdeutsch: ') is a district of Bremen belonging to the Bremen district East. Geography and districts Hemelingen is located about 6 km east of the center of Bremen on the right bank of the Weser. The neighboring districts a ...

, a suburb of

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (, ), is the capital of the States of Germany, German state of the Bremen (state), Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (), a two-city-state consisting of the c ...

, Germany). The Rapid, which technically was an improved version of the Goliath Blitzkarren, was sold under the ''Goliath'' brand name. Bordward's radiator-producing company was later renamed to ''Goliath-Werke Borgward & Co. GmbH''. The Rapid consists of two parts: A "cart"-like front with two steerable wheels, and a "motorcycle" rear part with a single wheel. Between cart a motorcycle, it has an orthogonal wall and a steering wheel, to control the front wheels. A windshield was offered as a factory option. The Rapid has an electric starter, a clutch, and a 3-speed gearbox with a single reverse gear. Electric lamps including a stoplight were offered as a factory option that cost RM 170; an electric horn was offered for RM 30. The maximum permissible payload is 250 kg. The Rapid is powered by an

ILO-Motorenwerke The ILO-Motorenwerke GmbH 2-stroke motor company in Pinneberg, Germany existed from 1911 to 1990 and was one of the biggest manufacturers of two-stroke engines in Germany. The term ‘ILO’ comes from the constructed language Esperanto and mean ...

-made 198 cc, single cylinder, two-stroke-engine that produces 4 PS. In 1928, a new model with an increased payload of up to 300 kg and a 250 cc, 5.5 PS engine was put into production. In 1931, the payload was increased to 500 kg. A version with a framed flatbed was offered for RM 1100; a closed freight box version was available as well, for RM 1200. Odometer or a passenger seat also offered from the factory. Carl Borgward had filed a patent on "single rear wheel drive technology". The

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an sufficiency of disclosure, enabling discl ...

was granted on 8 August 1928.

Goliath Standard

In addition to the Rapid, a 500 kg freight version called Goliath Standard was put into production. It has a 350 cc single cylinder, two-stroke gasoline engine made by

with a rated power of 7.5 PS. Its flatbed version cost RM 1295, the "closed freight-box" version was offered for RM 1440. The Standard's top speed is 40 km/h (25 mph). In 1931, a 750 kg freight version with a 400 cc two cylinder engine rated 9 PS cc was introduced. In 1931, prices rose to RM 1600 resp. RM 1750. In 1933, the Standard production was ceased – the successors Goliath F200 and F400 were put into production in autumn of 1933.

Competitors

* Oscar Vidal & Sohn

Tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...

Pony, T1 and T2, built from 1928 to 1930, a very similar vehicle *

D-Lieferwagen L-7 The D-Lieferwagen L-7 (D delivery truck L-7) was a three-wheeler pickup truck built by AG from 1927 to 1930 in the Berlin suburb Spandau, Germany. The vehicle was created in response to the demand for inexpensive vehicles for small and express t ...

, 1927–1930 * Later in 1932–1934,

BMW Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, trading as BMW Group (commonly abbreviated to BMW (), sometimes anglicised as Bavarian Motor Works), is a German multinational manufacturer of vehicles and motorcycles headquartered in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Th ...

produced a similar freight cart and sold it as BMW F 76 and F 79 with bigger engine. It included a passenger seat. * Rollfix record, also late for the market * In late 1940s til 1952

Innocenti Innocenti () was an Italian machinery works, originally established by Ferdinando Innocenti in 1933 in Lambrate, a neighborhood on the eastern outskirts of Milan. Over the years, they produced Lambretta scooters as well as a range of automobiles, ...

produced the

Lambretta Lambretta () was a brand of motor scooters, manufactured in Milan, Italy, by Innocenti. The name is derived from the word Lambrate, the suburb of Milan named after the river Lambro which flows through the area, and where the factory was locat ...

models FA, FB and FC * Tatra 49, 1929–1930

References

External links

* Volker Schacht
A Goliath Rapid/Standard at the 27th International Threecycle Meeting 2015
YouTube, 24 June 2015

{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190225223944/http://www.goliath-veteranen-club.de/Existierende-Autos.htm , date=2019-02-25 , retrieved February 2019
Sales brochure of the Goliath Rapid/Standard
Goliath vehicles Three-wheeled motor vehicles