Tatra 77

  • Tatra 77
  • Tatra 77a
Overview
ManufacturerTATRA, a. s.
Production
  • 1934–1935 (Tatra 77)
  • 1935–1938 (Tatra 77a)
  • 249 produced[1]
    (+ 4 pre-serial in 1933) [2]
AssemblyKopřivnice, Moravia, Czechoslovakia
Designer
Body and chassis
Class4-door sedan
Executive luxury vehicle
Body stylelimousine (Finned fastback, Cd=0.36)
LayoutRR layout
Powertrain
Engine
  • 3.0L Tatra 77 V8 (T77)
  • 3.4L Tatra 77a V8 (T77a)[1]
Transmission4-speed manual[1]
Dimensions
Wheelbase3,150 mm (124.0 in)[1]
Length
  • 5,000–5,200 mm (196.9–204.7 in) (T77)
  • 5,300–5,400 mm (208.7–212.6 in) (T77a)[1]
Width
  • 1,650 mm (65.0 in) (T77)
  • 1,660 mm (65.4 in) (T77a)[1]
Height
  • 1,420–1,500 mm (55.9–59.1 in) (T77)
  • 1,600 mm (63.0 in) (T77a)[1]
Kerb weight
  • 1,700 kg (3,700 lb) (T77)
  • 1,800 kg (4,000 lb) (T77a)[1]
Chronology
PredecessorTatra V570
SuccessorTatra 87

The Tatra 77 (T77) is one of the first serial-produced, truly aerodynamically-designed automobiles, produced by Czechoslovakian company Tatra from 1934 to 1938. It was developed by Hans Ledwinka and Paul Jaray, the Zeppelin aerodynamic engineer. Launched in 1934, the Tatra 77 is a coach-built automobile, constructed on a platform chassis with a pressed box-section steel backbone rather than Tatra's trademark tubular chassis, and is powered by a 60 horsepower (45 kW) rear-mounted 2.97-litre air-cooled V8 engine, in later series increased to a 75 horsepower (56 kW) 3.4-litre engine. It possessed advanced engineering features, such as overhead valves, hemispherical combustion chambers, a dry sump, fully independent suspension, rear swing axles and extensive use of lightweight magnesium alloy for the engine, transmission, suspension and body. The average drag coefficient of a 1:5 model of Tatra 77 was recorded as 0.2455. The later model T77a, introduced in 1935, has a top speed of over 150 km/h (93 mph) due to its advanced aerodynamic design which delivers an exceptionally low drag coefficient of 0.212.[3][4][5][6][7] Sources claim that this is the coefficient of a 1:5 scale model, not of the car itself,[8][9] so the actual drag coefficient may have been slightly higher.[10]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "CARS & HISTORY: TATRA 77 & T77A (1933-1938)". tatra.demon.nl. Archived from the original on 2006-10-12. Retrieved 2008-03-13.
  2. ^ Tatra - Passenger Cars, Karel Rosenkranz, TATRA, a. s., 2007
  3. ^ "Cheating Wind - Aerodynamic Tech and Buyers Guide". europeancarweb.com. Retrieved 2008-03-13.
  4. ^ "Tatra 77 aerodynamic car (czech)". Retrieved 2010-05-17.
  5. ^ Optimization and computational fluid dynamics, Gàbor Janiga, Springer, 2008, page 196
  6. ^ Winning the oil endgame: innovation for profits, jobs and security, Amory B. Lovins, Rocky Mountain Institute, 2004, page 53
  7. ^ "Conceptcarz.com". Retrieved 2010-05-17.
  8. ^ Ivan Margolius, 'Model Behaviour', Octane, February 2012, pp. 38-9
  9. ^ "Tatra T600 Tatraplan". Tatra T600 Tatraplan.
  10. ^ "Tatra 77 před 85 lety nastartovala aerodynamickou revoluci". Retrieved 2023-01-07.