<Dl> <Dt> Tatra </Dt> </Dl> <P> The Austrian car designer Hans Ledwinka was a contemporary of Porsche working at the Czechoslovakian company Tatra . In 1931, Tatra built the V570 prototype, which had an air - cooled flat - twin engine mounted at the rear . This was followed in 1933 by a second V570 prototype with a streamlined body similar to that of the Porsche Type 32 . The rear - engine, rear - wheel drive layout was a challenge for effective air cooling, and during development of the much larger V8 engined Tatra T77 in 1933 Tatra registered numerous patents related to air flow into the rear engine compartment . The use of Tatra's patented air cooling designs later became one of ten issues for which Tatra filed suit against VW . </P> <P> Both Hitler and Porsche were influenced by the Tatras . Hitler was a keen automotive enthusiast, and had ridden in Tatras during political tours of Czechoslovakia . He had also dined numerous times with Ledwinka . After one of these dinners Hitler remarked to Porsche, "This is the car for my roads". From 1933 onwards, Ledwinka and Porsche met regularly to discuss their designs, and Porsche admitted "Well, sometimes I looked over his shoulder and sometimes he looked over mine" while designing the Volkswagen . The Tatra T97 of 1936 had a 1,749 cc, rear - located, rear - wheel drive, air - cooled four - cylinder boxer engine . It cost 5,600 RM and accommodated five passengers in its extensively streamlined four - door body, which provided luggage storage under the front bonnet and behind the rear seats . It also featured a similar central structural tunnel found in the Beetle . </P> <P> Just before the start of the Second World War, Tatra had ten legal claims filed against VW for infringement of patents . Although Ferdinand Porsche was about to pay a settlement to Tatra, he was stopped by Hitler who said he would "solve his problem". Tatra launched a lawsuit, but this was stopped when Germany invaded Czechoslovakia in 1938, resulting in the Tatra factory coming under Nazi administration in October 1938 . The T97, along with the T57, were ordered by Hitler to be removed from the Tatra display at the 1939 Berlin Autosalon and Tatra was later directed to concentrate on heavy trucks and diesel engines, with all car models, except for the V8 - engined Tatra T87, being discontinued . The matter was re-opened after World War II and in 1965 Volkswagen paid Ringhoffer - Tatra 1,000,000 Deutsche Marks in an out of court settlement . </P>

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