Hansa 1100 History

Debuting at the 1934 Berlin Motor Show, the Hansa 1100 was a genuine step forward: an all-steel body (two-door saloon or cabriolet) on a backbone chassis with outriggers, featuring independent front suspension at a time when many competitors still relied on beam axles. The 1,100 cc four-cylinder engine produced up to 28 PS in standard form; later specifications reached 56 PS in the most powerful variant.

The 1100 was the most commercially successful Hansa to date and established the Borgward group's engineering credibility among independent German manufacturers. It ran through July 1939, when a new six-cylinder 2300 model succeeded it under the Borgward name — marking the effective end of the Hansa brand on mainstream passenger cars.

Its direct influence was felt postwar: a modernised relative, the Goliath 1100, kept the basic engineering concept alive into the late 1950s under a different Borgward sub-brand.