Five Brothers and a War

DKW

In 1935, Bruynzeel traded in their Chevrolet for a DKW F7, assigning it to Leendert for his continued use as a sales manager. It would be a reasonable conclusion that cars built in the 1930s, at least for the masses, were not checked for quality, and competitive comparisons were likely not available. DKW was short for Dampf-Kraft Wagen (“Steam-driven Car”), as the company began production

DKW F7

by attempting to build steam engines for cars. The van Pelt boys changed that acronym to mean Dat Kreng Weigert , (loosely translated as “That rotten thing refuses to go.”) The models were well-regarded for being front-wheel drive, but not well known for power, as they all had two-cylinder, two-stroke engines. Two versions of the Reichsklasse engine were available: the first produced 18 horse-power from its 584 cc engine, and the second stepped up to 20 horse-power from its 692 cc engine. DKW claimed top speeds of 80 and 85 km/h (50 and 53 mph) respectively, although this had to have been a downhill test. Through the few years he began driving, Leendert had become a very safe driver, with a clear record. That is, right up to the day he was driving his DKW and a streetcar ran right into it.

The car was partly made of plywood. The door panels were plywood and the doors on one side now showed a lot of splinters. Embarrassed, he stepped away and joined the onlookers drawn by this unusual accident. As a result, he had a front row experience where mockery was liberally dished out. People had a good time mocking the “stupid driver”. The worst moment, however, occurred when the police arrived and asked the crowd who the driver was. Leendert then had to drop all pretense, and step forward from the crowd to take responsibility.

van Pelt

Five Brothers and a War

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