A dusty Skoda Forman LX, seen on the streets of the Chinese capital Beijing. The good Skoda was sadly in a very sad shape; dusty, dirty, and apparently abandoned.
The Skoda Forman was made from 1990 until 1995. It was a five-door wagon based on the Bertone-designed Skoda Favorit hatchback. In some markets, including the U.K., it was called the Favorit Estate.
The Favorit/Forman was the last Skoda without any input from Volkswagen, which bought the company in 1995. The Favorit/Forman was the first Skoda with:
1) the engine at the front (!).
2) a transversely mounted engine.
3) front-wheel drive.
The small Skoda proved to be a popular car, selling very well in central and eastern Europe. There were exports to various far-away countries like Argentina, Israel, and to China.
Exports to China were based on good-old commie-style government-to-government deals, where China would purchase cars directly from Czechoslovakia, and later from the Czech Republic. Once arrived in China, the government would hand out the cars as it saw fit.
The Favorit and Forman used to be quite common in Beijing until about 2005. Nowadays they are extremely rare. Most of these great cars have been scrapped or abandoned.
LX was a trim level. Power came from a 1.3 liter four-cylinder petrol engine with 54-68 hp, depending on exact specification. Torque varies less; from 93 Nm to 100. Gearbox was a five-speed manual.
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Forman, not Foreman. It’s a car, not a BBQ.
Ai! I always do that.. Thanks.
I still remember the shockingly large number of Polish-built FSO’s I saw in Guangzhou, circa 1988…. It was somewhat crude, but very very tough and durable to the touch. Felt like a small tank.
My experience with other Skoda’s (110, 120) gave me an entirely different impression. They were relatively delicate and precise, and felt decidedly less “Eastern Bloc”.
“Nowadays they are extremely rare.” I met one in UK few months ago in very good stage 🙂