Scania-Vabis
Encyclopedia
Scania-Vabis was a Swedish
truck and car manufacturer. The company was formed from a merger of Scania
with the firm of Vabis
in 1911. The car production ended in 1929. The Vabis name being dropped from the trucks in 1968.
(Maskinfabriksaktiebolaget Scania), which started out by manufacturing bicycles, with Vabis
(Vagnfabriks Aktiebolaget i Södertälje), in 1911. Until 1929 the company manufactured cars in Malmö
, as well as trucks and buses. Over the succeeding years, the company, based in Södertälje
, Sweden
, developed an enviable reputation for the toughness, comfort and reliability of its commercial vehicles. The 1963 LB76 was the model that forged the Scania-Vabis reputation outside Sweden
. This forward-control design was one of the first exhaustively crash-tested truck cabs.
For some time Daimler-Benz
waged a 'logo war' with Scania-Vabis, claiming a possible confusion between the Scania-Vabis 'pedal crank' design featuring on Scania bicycles around 1900 and the Mercedes 'three-pointed star'. In 1968 Daimler-Benz won and the Scania-Vabis logo changed to a simple griffin's head on a white background, and 'Vabis' was dropped from the name.
, to form the Saab-Scania AB company, under the Wallenberg family
umbrella. This corporation was split in 1995 and the company became simply Scania AB, which is still a manufacturer of advanced truck and bus designs. In 1999, the European Union
blocked a merger with Volvo
.
holder in the roof. Prince Carl of Sweden had a 1913 Scania-Vabis 3S. The type 3S was fitted with an in-car phone or buttons so the passenger could communicate with the driver. They also made two-seat sports cars (or "sportautomobil").
, Botswana
, Brazil
, Korea
, Tanzania
, The Netherlands, Zimbabwe
and (temporarily) in the USA.
(the Scania Museum) in Södertälje.
The name Scania almost certainly derived from the name of the region in Sweden where the company originated: Skåne.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
truck and car manufacturer. The company was formed from a merger of Scania
Scania AB
Scania Aktiebolag , commonly referred to as Scania AB or just Scania, is a major Swedish automotive industry manufacturer of commercial vehicles - specifically heavy trucks and buses...
with the firm of Vabis
Vabis
Vabis was a Swedish car and truck manufacturer, founded in 1891 as Vagnfabriks Aktiebolaget i Södertälje in municipality of Södertälje to produce railway cars....
in 1911. The car production ended in 1929. The Vabis name being dropped from the trucks in 1968.
History
Its name came from the merger of ScaniaScania AB
Scania Aktiebolag , commonly referred to as Scania AB or just Scania, is a major Swedish automotive industry manufacturer of commercial vehicles - specifically heavy trucks and buses...
(Maskinfabriksaktiebolaget Scania), which started out by manufacturing bicycles, with Vabis
Vabis
Vabis was a Swedish car and truck manufacturer, founded in 1891 as Vagnfabriks Aktiebolaget i Södertälje in municipality of Södertälje to produce railway cars....
(Vagnfabriks Aktiebolaget i Södertälje), in 1911. Until 1929 the company manufactured cars in Malmö
Malmö
Malmö , in the southernmost province of Scania, is the third most populous city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg.Malmö is the seat of Malmö Municipality and the capital of Skåne County...
, as well as trucks and buses. Over the succeeding years, the company, based in Södertälje
Södertälje
Södertälje is a city and the seat of Södertälje Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 86,069 inhabitants in 2010.The industrial city, about south of Stockholm, is the home to truck maker Scania AB and a top 10 pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca....
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, developed an enviable reputation for the toughness, comfort and reliability of its commercial vehicles. The 1963 LB76 was the model that forged the Scania-Vabis reputation outside Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. This forward-control design was one of the first exhaustively crash-tested truck cabs.
For some time Daimler-Benz
Daimler-Benz
Daimler-Benz AG was a German manufacturer of automobiles, motor vehicles, and internal combustion engines; founded in 1926. An Agreement of Mutual Interest - which was valid until year 2000 - was signed on 1 May 1924 between Karl Benz's Benz & Cie., and Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft, which had...
waged a 'logo war' with Scania-Vabis, claiming a possible confusion between the Scania-Vabis 'pedal crank' design featuring on Scania bicycles around 1900 and the Mercedes 'three-pointed star'. In 1968 Daimler-Benz won and the Scania-Vabis logo changed to a simple griffin's head on a white background, and 'Vabis' was dropped from the name.
SAAB Scania merger
In 1969 Scania merged with SAABSaab
Saab AB is a Swedish aerospace and defence company, founded in 1937. From 1947 to 1990 it was the parent company of automobile manufacturer Saab Automobile, and between 1968 and 1995 the company was in a merger with commercial vehicle manufacturer Scania, known as Saab-Scania.-History:"Svenska...
, to form the Saab-Scania AB company, under the Wallenberg family
Wallenberg family
The Wallenberg family is a prominent Swedish banking family, renowned as bankers, industrialists, politicians, diplomats and philanthropists. The most famous of the Wallenbergs, Raoul Wallenberg, a diplomat, worked in Budapest, Hungary, during World War II to rescue Jews from the Holocaust...
umbrella. This corporation was split in 1995 and the company became simply Scania AB, which is still a manufacturer of advanced truck and bus designs. In 1999, the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
blocked a merger with Volvo
Volvo
AB Volvo is a Swedish builder of commercial vehicles, including trucks, buses and construction equipment. Volvo also supplies marine and industrial drive systems, aerospace components and financial services...
.
Scania-Vabis cars
For Scania-Vabis, there were many inexpensive, imported cars with which to compete so, in order to establish a profile of their own, they made high-class, luxury cars. Examples include the Scania-Vabis Limousine Type III, from 1920, that included a top hatTop hat
A top hat, beaver hat, high hat silk hat, cylinder hat, chimney pot hat or stove pipe hat is a tall, flat-crowned, broad-brimmed hat, predominantly worn from the latter part of the 18th to the middle of the 20th century...
holder in the roof. Prince Carl of Sweden had a 1913 Scania-Vabis 3S. The type 3S was fitted with an in-car phone or buttons so the passenger could communicate with the driver. They also made two-seat sports cars (or "sportautomobil").
Scania-Vabis buses
The company was involved in bus production from its earliest days producing Post buses in the 1920s. Post war the company introduced the B series of buses which were followed by the BF series in the late 1950s. Bus production continues today as a major part of Scanias production after the dropping of the Vabis name in 1968.Overseas truck production
Scania-Vabis and later Scania also manufactured trucks in ArgentinaArgentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, Botswana
Botswana
Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as "Batswana" . Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
, Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
, The Netherlands, Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
and (temporarily) in the USA.
Historic vehicles
Many examples of Vabis, Scania-Vabis and Scania commercial vehicles are in the Marcus Wallenberg-hallenMarcus Wallenberg-hallen
The Marcus Wallenberg-hallen is a vehicle museum in Södertälje, in the Swedish province of Sörmland.-Background:...
(the Scania Museum) in Södertälje.
The name Scania almost certainly derived from the name of the region in Sweden where the company originated: Skåne.