FSO Syrena

The idea to produce the Syrena came from the then Presidium of the Government in 1953. The intention was to create an efficient and economical car for cadres and representatives of the intelligentsia of the time. In 1956, the production documentation for the Syrena was finally completed, so that in 1957, the assembly lines of the Fabryka Samochodów Osobowych (Passenger Car Factory) could start running at full capacity.

The Syrena, whose name evoked the Warsaw Mermaid, was a car frequently seen in the capital. Its elegant body with streamlined curves and round headlights made it resemble Western cars, in which beautiful women in headscarves sped along the French Riviera. And although in the People's Republic the background for driving the Syrena was less picturesque – though, thanks to the Palace of Culture, equally iconic – its users must have felt distinguished and derived sufficient pleasure from driving it.

Production of the Syrena ended in 1972. The total number of units that hit the roads over those fifteen years exceeded half a million. The car also received a lot of critical opinions – it was accused of generating a lot of noise, an inefficient cooling system, lack of corrosion resistance, and high fuel consumption in winter due to the thermal inertia of the engine. Despite this, today we remember the Syrena with fondness, and the sight of it immediately puts us in a nostalgic mood.

The author of the drawing is Wrocław artist Paweł Grabowski.