Start with what the DKW Typ P is: a Convertible, Roadster with 584 , built from 1928 to 1933, the vintage years, when coachbuilders still shaped most of what was sold. What it meant takes a little longer. The shape is credited to Rudolf Slaby.
Where it came from
The DKW Typ P was the first motor car made by DKW. It was a light-weight design with a unit body made of wood and imitation leather. It was powered by a two stroke inline twin engine.
Under the skin
The engine is 584 . Drive goes through a 3-speed manual. The layout matters: the engine sits behind the driver and ahead of the rear axle, which puts the mass in the middle of the car and is why mid-engined cars change direction the way they do. The wheelbase is Typ P: 2590 mm / PS 600: 2400 mm. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
In context
In the DKW line-up the DKW Typ P has a clear place: the factory was Spandau (Berlin), Germany. The cars a buyer would have weighed it against include the Lancia Dilambda, the Fiat 525, the Mercedes-Benz W06. Nearby in the DKW catalogue sit the DKW 3=6 and the DKW CD Manzel.
Owning one today
MotorJury scores cars on the United States complaint and recall record, and the DKW Typ P has none: too old, too rare, or never sold there. Its value today is a collector's question, decided by provenance and condition rather than by a class average.