How many Messerschmitts were made?

Recent publications such as Classic & Sports Car have stated that thirty three thousand Messerschmitt vehicles were produced. This will always be in doubt since there appears to be many gaps in the chassis number sequences. Messerschmitt Club Deutschland and particularly Heiko Zimmermann, have researched these details carefully with the German registration authorities to produce the detailed data presented here. Their assistance is gratefully acknowledged. Such information is not yet available from the U.K. vehicle records office and even if we do eventually obtain it, it is unlikely to be as detailed as this report.

In the spring of 1955 the KR200 was in the showrooms and in this one year thousands were sold despite considerable competition. Exports were always strong, with particular interest from the U.K due to taxation advantages. The Suez Crisis of June 1956, brought Petrol rationing to the U.K. and production was increased to meet demand. This was the pinnacle of Messerschmitt production, with some 500 workers producing the vehicle in Regensburg.

Fritz Fend and his hub and brake component supplier, Valentin Knott, took over the manufacture of Messerschmitt vehicles on 15th January 1957. Knott is the origin of the MKE symbol on the hub grease cap. (Maschinenbau Knott – Eggstat). Under the name of “Fahrzeug und Maschinenbau GmbH”, which became known as F M R, Knott and Fend quickly rationalised manufacture replacing many expensive bought in components with locally manufactured parts. The drop in demand for the KR200 was the result of increasing competition from conventional car production and to counter this, new products were developed. Special equipment versions such as the KR201 and “Sport” were introduced. A trade goods vehicle for the transport of light packages under the name of “Mokuli” was also manufactured simultaneously with the KR200.

How Many Messerschmitts remain? From the German registration information, we can develop a new graph showing the theoretical number of six thousand cars imported to the U.K. It is possible that 158 roadworthy vehicles remain (that is, vehicles carrying an exempt tax disc). If attendance of our Rally is used as a measure, this is about right. Many of our members own more than one Messerschmitt, with large numbers still awaiting restoration. We can confidently suggest a figure of five hundred Messerschmitts remaining in the U.K. It should be noted that the MCD data does not include vehicles awaiting restoration. Their registration system does not issue number plates to a car until it is registered for use on the road. Therefore, like us, they will have many unrecorded vehicles awaiting restoration.

It is often thought that the Tg500 is the rarest of the FMR products, with only 198 documented examples. However, examination of the figures suggests the KR175 is the most rare despite a production run of thousands. Even the KR 201 has more survivors, probably because it is the more attractive of the two.