Isetta

[Barry]

I had a great Isetta in the 80's, we used to race them around our derelict farm.  I like having a Schmitt but there is a lot of microcar snobery that goes with it which I am not interested in.  I think I would prefer to have an Isetta on the road now.  Not as frantic.
I was thinking of fitting a long aerial on the Schmitt with a red LED on top.  Driving around the local winding country roads is particularly dangerous as you are well below the hedge line and most cars drive in the middle of the road assuming they can see the roof of any oncoming cars.  Sinclair C5 style.

[Big Al]

Schmitt is not helped by something of a closed shop mentality. It is a selfish car though, isn't it? Driver sat on his own, car needs to be thrashed a bit to get places and does not have the performance to run happily with the four stroke bubbles, which tend to be more friendly as you sit side by side driving more like a car. So when the Schmitts go belting off down some hill to get speed up for the next one you can almost sense some of the Treinkettas giving a 'thank goodness they've gone' thought bubble. And yes folks do drive in the middle of the lanes these days. What used to be good for two normal 60's saloons at speed is now a single carriageway.

[Barry]

Just got my Morris Isis 2600cc back on the road (six seats if you accept the bench seat).  I noticed that a modern Mini is probably a bit wider than the Isis.

[wilksie]

But a few details have thrown me, am I correct in my thinking that UK Isetta Production ended in 1962? and the seller is stating this car is a 63', also the steering wheel doesnt seem quite right..... I thought Isetta wheels were three spoke? Am i right, or totally misinformed?

This type of steering wheel was used in the German sliding window Isetta. The German bubble windows had the three spoke wheel. There may have been some overlap, but it is roughly the case in most German Isetttas encountered these days. I have never seen the two spoke wheel in British Brighton built Isettas.

According to my records British Isettas were manufactured 1957 - 1964. At some stage around 1962 BMW took over and moved the assembly line to Portslade  where British chassis had been built all along. Historic records are remarkably unclear with regard to manufacturing dates. The last Isettas were assembled from left over parts. There are plenty of A- and B-registered Isettas still in existence. According to my records the last registered Isetta still in existence is the late 'Jim'll fix it's 1965 (C-reg) model.

Of course there is always the discrepancey between date of manufacture and date of first registration. I cannot find any records for any Isetta's manufacturing date, so every Isetta is now listed according to the date of first registration. And as has been pointed out in a previous thread, many vehicles spent a long waiting time in a dealer's showroom before they were sold and registered.