SPECIFICATIONS

Manufacturer: David S.A.

Origin: Barcelona, Spain

Production: 75

Motor: David 1-cyl, 2-stroke

Displacement: 345 cc

Power: 10 hp

Length: 9 ft. 3 in.

Identification No. B0063671

The origins of this venerable company lie in the somewhat strange field of bobsledding. Soon after the turn of the century, Don José Manuel de Armangué was building wheeled bobsleds for use in his hot, dry country. He began fitting JAP motors for the return trip up the hill. His cyclecars were very successful in the cyclecar boom years of the teens and twenties, and he produced a wide range of lightweights with various four-cylinder motors, including an ingenious 16-speed transmission. Taxi bodies were being fitted to some cars and, after the cyclecars were finished, and after the accidental death of its founder, the company sold Citroën 10 horsepower Landaulet taxis. During the Spanish Civil War, many Citroëns were converted by David to electric power due to gas shortages.

It was a changed world in 1950, and the reorganized company offered a range of small three-wheelers, which were advertised “not as a car with one less wheel, but as a motorcycle with one more wheel.” The first body style had the rear wheels and separate fenders outside of the body, with headlamps integrated into the nose, while the second series enclosed the wheels entirely, and the headlamps were situated independently on the front bumper. This was the most commonly seen version, and it was built as a trio of typically Spanish body styles, from open-sided runabouts (the Torpedo) to woody station wagons (the Rubia), to minitrucks (the Tricamioneta).

Truly an original blank-sheet-of-paper design, the David’s tube chassis supported trailing arms on coil springs at the rear. It featured a motor mounted behind, and turning with, the front wheel, which was in turn suspended from the chassis on an amazing three-quarter elliptic leaf spring. The gear lever, working through a huge “H” slot in the dashboard, selected the gears via fingers running through the middle of the front kingpin. The large, Teutonic white steering wheel (from an Auto-Union supplier) turned a primitive, large-diameter, open crown-and-pinion via a Voisin patent constant-velocity joint. Rear brake levers and cables were external, another eccentric touch.

The car was a success in Spain, and along with Biscuter, Kapi, and PTV, David SA was one of the four all-Spanish firms that produced microcars in significant quantities. This particular car was restored in Spain. It is a delight to drive and offers a very unique driving experience, which is one of the many joys of owning an exotic microcar.