Company overview
VEB Barkas-Werke produced small delivery vans and minibuses, known as the B 1000, in East Germany. The factory operated from 1961 to 1991 and initially used DKW-derived engines. Production began on a site formerly occupied by the Framo car plant, which had been shipped to the Soviet Union as reparations. The B 1000 was available in various body styles for public service use, including flatbeds, panel vans, and passenger carriers. The B 1000’s design included a front-mounted engine, high loading capacity, and semi-trailing arm suspension. Engine changes occurred over the production period, starting with a three-cylinder two-stroke engine and later transitioning to a four-stroke engine licensed from Volkswagen. In the 1980s, some vehicles were equipped with a Ford diesel engine. A total of 175,740 B 1000s and 1,961 B 1000-1s were manufactured during this time.
