MIDDENSTANDAARDSCHERM - T245525 - Tomos

Tomos

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The start

Tomos was a moped manufacturer based in Koper, Slovenia. Tomos acquired a production license from Puch to produce moped models under the Tomos name in 1954. Tomos had since produced various goods for the Eastern European market, including motorcycles, mopeds, outboard motors and Citroën cars for the home market. Tomos mopeds were also produced in Epe, Netherlands since 1966. A very good-selling model was the Tomos "4L", produced from 1969 until 1980. The Dutch development team was responsible for the introduction of models like the Colibri, Targa and Revival. Tomos was the last remaining moped factory in the Netherlands, surviving at least 36 others since 1966.

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The first motorcycle

Tomos had a first motorcycle called TOMOS Puch SG 250. In 1955 they made 137 of these motorcycles, scooters RL125 124 and 100 mopeds. The following years were mopeds accounted for the majority (1712) of the total number of assembled, followed by motorcycles (615) and scooters. Simultaneously with the licensed production Tomos began developing its own series models.

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The rise

At the end of the fifties, numerous variants of the moped Puch MS 50 were produced under the common name Colibri. The first Colibris were marked VS 50; later marks ranged from 01 to 013. In 1959, they produced more than 17,000 Colibris and signed a contract for the first major export to Sweden. One of the most successful Colibris was the type 12, while the version Colibri T 12, which was first presented in 1961 became the most popular moped in Slovenia.

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The success of Tomos

In the early 1960s, market research showed that interest in heavy motorcycles throughout Europe decreased, and Tomos adjusted its range of motorcycles and focused exclusively on the production of two-stroke engines of 50 cm3. The sixties was the most productive period for Tomos. the Netherlands emerged in 1960 as an important market. Tomos had so much success that one factory after another was built outside Slovenia in 1966 in the Netherlands. Until 2009 the factory produced for the Dutch market. Tomos became the longest-surviving moped factory in the Netherlands until production ended in 2009 due to the lower production and labor costs in Slovenia.

The Netherlands today remains the strongest market for Tomos.