Tuesday, February 8

Preview - MiniArt's new 35th scale Tempo E400 Stahlblech Pritsche 3-wheel Truck

MiniArt has given us another selection of hard working Tempo E400 Stahlblech Pritsche 3-wheel Trucks in their latest 35th scale kit. These are carrying a concrete mixer, along with five marking choices & info of the kit's contents in our preview...
Preview - MiniArt's new 35th scale Tempo E400 Stahlblech Pritsche 3-wheel Truck

Tempo E400 Stahlblech Pritsche 3-wheel Truck
From MiniArt
Kit No #35359
1/35th scale
The kit contains five marking choices in the box.
Photo-etch & clear parts are included
The Subject: Tempo E400 Hochlader Pritsche 3-wheel Truck 
On September 25, 1928, the sales company Vidal & Sohn was established to distribute the three-wheelers of the brand Tempo in Hamburg. The name Tempo was attributable to the patented three-wheeler design of Gustav Ehlers. Although the cooperation of both parties ended quite quickly, Vidal & Sohn brought its own three-wheeled trucks on the market after a short space of time. The competition was enormous but it turned out that both Hamburger had the right sense for the needs of petty traders. After only two years, in November 1930, the completion of the 1000th Tempo three-wheeler was celebrated.

The Tempo "boy" is an early model of the truck. The “Boy” versions had somewhat smaller engines than the man versions; a 10 hp 244 cc motor in order to qualify its use by a Category IV driver’s license, which was immensely easier and cheaper to obtain.
In 1936 a new type, designated with the abbreviation E400, was introduced. The number 400 signified the rounded up capacity of exact 396 cc and the letter E stood for “Eisen” (German for Iron). In plain terms, the new letter gave information about the state of the car body. The former mixed construction of the driver’s cabin and the chassis out of plywood and steel made way for a complete construction out of steel. Besides the choice of materials also the tire size was amplified by 1 inch to 18 inches in total. 

The E400 restored in modern times
With his brothers – the E200 and E600 – the sales could be additionally pushed and Vidal & Sohn were pleased with full order books. The E 400, also known and available under the name "Athlet" at the dealers, was fitted with a water-cooled two-cycle engine, which was mounted on the steering. The engine had a performance of 12,5 hp, which was transferred through a 3-speed gearbox and a chain to the single front wheel.

A post world War II version of the E400
Although the E400 was very popular it could not reach the success of its small Brother; the E200. Totalled up 3,311 three-wheelers of the E400 were produced at the works in Hamburg during 1936 and 1938.

A 1938 Tempo E 400 by Tempowerk Vidal & Sohn
The kit from Miniart: The feature set of the kit is already known from the first release that we are showing the build preview. The known features are:
- Two licence plate holder options for customization.
- Two-wheel cover choices and an alternate number plate position on the rear.
- Both the doors and the bonnet can be opened
- The highly detailed engine can be seen through a fine photo-etched grille
- The sides of the tray can be posed up or down...
- The whole structure of the underside of the vehicle is replicated faithfully on this model
- The wooden cargo tray is moulded faithfully to the grainy texture

CAD shots of the sprues:
MiniArt has provided us with CAD sprue shots of the kit that give us a little more idea of the kit that is the second in their Tempo series.
The photo-etch sheet includes finer parts and a nameplate!
Also, the single deal sheet is supplied for five versions of the Tempo
There are five marking choices, most of them in government or civilian service in the 40's...
The E400 is seen at work in the northern port town in the 40's

An image of this E400 from the Munich District in the south in the 1940's
That is all we know about this release so far. See more about all of MiniArt's kits on their website...