The Tatra, designed by engineer Hans Ledwinka was first introduced in 1923 as the Type 11. In 1934, Tatra introduced the new T77 also designed by Ledwinka that featured coachwork developed by aerodynamic pioneer Paul Jaray with a Cd (co-efficient of drag) of only .21. The advanced central backbone chassis was powered by a rear mounted air-cooled hemi-head V-8, in combination with a rear wheel drive transaxle with swing arm suspension. At one of our earlier posts you can learn the full details and view many period photos of the unique construction – The 1934 Tatra 77 – A Czechoslovakian Masterpiece.

This year at the 2014 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, the Tatra was a featured marque with approximately a dozen of the cars on display; four of the pre-war cars are featured here. The dark green Tatra T77 Aerodynamic Limousine seen here was shipped all the way from the Czech Republic by Pavel Kasik of Prague, just days after he finished a 20-year long restoration.

Kasik’s family briefly owned a Tatra in the late 1970s and from that time on he was determined to find a pre-war car to restore. In 1991, he found this car but had to endure nearly three years of negotiations while the owner constantly changed the conditions of the sale and increased the price. After persevering and competing with other, would be buyers he was finally able to take ownership.

His determination to perform a first-class restoration using only original parts lengthened the restoration time to 20 years. His hard work and patience paid off, for at the Concours his car won the Class K: Streamlined Tatra 1st place award. You can learn much more about the Czech automaker and see a great video about the Tatra here on The Old Motor. The photos are courtesy of Richard Michael Owen of Supercars.net and Steve Natale at fineartamerica. You can also learn more at TatraWorld.

Pavel Kasik’s 1936 Tatra T77A Aerodynamic Limousine on the Pebble Beach Tour d’Elegance.

This 1937 Tatra T77A Aerodynamic Limousine was bought new by industrialist Josef Barton from Tatra dealer Nachod in Czechoslovakia in 1937. It was shown by Kees Smit of Amsterdam, The Netherlands and received the 2rd In Class Award.

1938 Tatra T97 Aerodynamic Salon – This is a smaller version of the larger T87 that was produced from 1936 to 1939. It was powered by a 1.7-liter opposed-flat-four that produced 40 h.p. It was shown by the the Lane Motor Museum.

1940 Tatra T87 Aerodynamic Saloon – This model featured a 2.9-litre air-cooled 90-degree s.o.h.c. V-8 engine that produced 85 h.p. with a top speed of close to 100 mph. It was shown by Chris Ohrstrom of The Plains, Virginia and relieved the 3rd In Class Award.