Škoda Auto does not build many cars like the Škoda 1201: a 3- or 5-door estate, 4-door saloon, 3-door panel van with 1.2 L I4, built from 1954 to 1961 at the height of the post-war boom.
Where it came from
The Škoda 1201 was a family car produced by Czechoslovak automaker AZPN (Škoda Auto) at their plant in Mladá Boleslav. Saloon and estate versions were offered along with a panel van. The car was released in 1954 as a successor to the Škoda 1200. It inherited its predecessor's steel ponton format body. One difference was the fitting of flashing turn signal indicators, whereas the 1200 had incorporated semaphore style trafficators in its front wings: subsequent retro-fitting of flashing indicators to old 1200s has left this as an imperfect method for distinguishing between the two models, however. The car was powered by a four-cylinder 1221 cc ohv water-cooled engine producing at maximum power 33 kW (45 PS) at 4,200 rpm.
The four-speed gear-box included synchromesh on the top three ratios, power being delivered to the rear wheels via a jointed prop shaft. Top speeds of between 90 km/h (56 mph) and 105 km/h (65 mph) were quoted. The 1201 was available as a four-door saloon and as a three- or five-door station wagon. A panel van (light delivery van) and pick-up truck version were also produced. Production ended in 1961, which was also the year in which production began of the successor model, the Škoda 1202. It was widely exported to western nations; most cars remaining in Czechoslovakia went to government or taxi usage, with a very small number being sold to private owners.
Under the skin
Under the skin sits 1.2 L I4. The layout matters: a front engine drives the rear wheels, the classic proportion — long bonnet, cabin set back — that most people picture when they picture a sports saloon or a grand tourer. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
In context
Where it sits in Škoda Auto's history is not in doubt: the Škoda 1200 came before it; the Škoda 1202 followed it. On a showroom list of its day it stood against the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL, the Chevrolet Corvette. Nearby in the Škoda Auto catalogue sit the HZS-1 and the Trekka.
The money
MotorJury scores cars on the United States complaint and recall record, and the Škoda 1201 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.