In Autumn 1938 MAN Nutzfahrzeuge AG assembled four trolleybuses on a prototype MPE I chassis which were designated initially for Berlin. The body was also manufactured by MAN. Before 1948, when MAN mastered a monocoque heck-motor bus body which was later used for MKE trolleybuses, the plant mainly manufactured trolleybus chassis (the range of bodies included superstructures by Schumann Werdau Gmbh, Kassbohrer, Lindner, Pekol and others).

The depicted trolleybus had a length of 8,70m and a 5,25m wheelbase. The prototype '1938 chassis was identical to Zwickau trolleybuses notable for a sole bipolar pantographs in the first years of their lives. One vehicle with Siemens electric equipment was presented at Wagenschau Dusseldorf in November 1938 (one of the two sole-pole Zwickau trolleybuses was also there). However, Berlin rejected the small trolleybuses. The reason is not precisely known but I assume the city demanded bigger vehicles to fulfill the passenger flow adequately. Actually, the city planned to purchase 6 ambitious double-deck trolleybuses with Henschel and Daimler-Benz chassis (one source states 4 Henschel and 2 Daimler-Benz, the other - 3 and 3 appropriately) with Gebrüdern Credé & Co bodies, so I guess this small vehicle was too shallow for the plans.

Before the MAN trolleybuses were delivered to Chernivtsi in mid-January 1939, they had been working as training vehicles for about a month. They operated in Chernivtsi until 1944.

Two trolleybuses had Siemens electric equipment while two others had Brown, Boveri & Cie powertrain. The former ones had automatic master controller and Siemens D602a motor with a 90kw output. The latter presumably had the same powertrain as the Zwickau vehicles. The driveline featured a rigid MAN drive axle and the differential offset to the left stub axle with a lead bevel gear and a presumable gear ratio of 1:9,94. The passenger seats were originally made of plush (while Zwickau vehicled had leather ones), which were replaced by wooden stools in Kiev.

If you have any questions regarding this vehicle, do not hesitate to ask me.

All the best,
Serious Sam