Technology Museum in Bistra Opens New Car Exhibition
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The museum located in Bistra, a village some 15km southwest of Ljubljana, now shows ten additional old cars and four motorcycles in the exhibition dedicated to the first century of motoring in Slovenia.
Curator Boris Brovinsky said that the first car in Slovenia was a Benz Velo Comfortable with a top speed of 25km/h. It was brought to Ljubljana by Baron Anton Codelli in 1898. Brovinsky added that only about ten cars drove on Slovenian roads in the late 19th century.
In the early 20th century cars became more popular in Slovenia. Before World War I, small and light cars, such as the oldest preserved car in Slovenia, a two-seat Piccolo from 1906, were very popular.
Some 100 cars in Slovenia in that period also include many from the Graz-based plant of Slovenian-born Janez Puch.
Between the wars Slovenians mostly drove American-made cars, such as Ford, Chrysler and Chevrolet, Brovinsky said, adding that 1,200 cars were in Slovenia in 1929.
In the 1950s, Yugoslav car industry saw a boost. Fičo, a Yugoslav copy of Fiat 500, was the most popular car in the country, Brovinsky said.