LAIKA 1000
The story of Laika begins in 1964, the year the company came into being. It was the age of space exploration and of discovering the unknown. The founder, Giovambattista Moscardini, was fascinated by those adventures, which opened up new horizons of knowledge. That is also why the company is named after the first dog sent into space. The logo chosen accordingly was the red winged greyhound.
1964 was also the year of the first caravan model, the little “500”. It was so small that it could be towed by a Fiat 500. The bigger sister was the LAIKA 1000.
The figures
Four berths. The body measures 3.65 m long and 2.00 m wide; overall, drawbar included, 4.50 m. In travelling position it stands 1.70 m high, raised 2.45 m. It weighs 550 kg.
The layout
By day: a dinette, a refrigerator, a wardrobe, the kitchen unit, a second smaller dinette and a bar cabinet.
By night: a double bed and bunk beds.
Raising and lowering it, the brochure promises, can be done alone and without effort.
What it cost
980,000 lire in the standard version. 1,180,000 lire as the «lusso» – oak-lined below and fitted with a refrigerator.
Where it was first shown
Its first outing was the Florentine show at Calenzano. Then came the Turin Salon, where Quattroruote described it in November 1965, noting that it had aroused remarkable interest.