Tomos (, "Motorcycle Factory Sežana") was a Slovene manufacturer of<!-- bicycles, scooters and << Needs verification. --> mopeds based in Koper. It was founded in 1948. 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 Central and Eastern European market, including motorcycles, mopeds, outboard motors and Citroën cars for the home market.

Tomos mopeds were also produced in Epe, Netherlands, starting in 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. Tomos mopeds were sold in the U.S. from 1976 to 2014 and also exported to Canada. In 2017 Tomos was also selling mopeds in the United Kingdom.

Tomos went bankrupt on January 3, 2019. After 1991 on all products there was 'Made in Slovenia' label.

History

Establishment

thumb|right|250px|[[Josip Broz Tito and Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie at Tomos factory - 1959]]

After World War II, the Yugoslav government sought to develop new industries. A company to produce two-wheelers was established in Sežana in July 1954, and soon a license agreement was signed with the Austrian company Steyr-Daimler-Puch. Puch had economical and robust motorcycles suitable for gravel roads and steep terrain characteristic of the region, and Puch also offered favorable licensing terms and conditions, as it doubted that the factory would ever be able to operate independently. The very next month, the name TOMOS (TOvarna MOtornih koles Sežana) appeared in the company documents for the first time. In October 1954, the Yugoslav government started to build the Tomos factory in Koper, the seaside industrial center of Slovenia.

Production in temporary facilities started in 1955 and the factory was officially opened in 1959 by Josip Broz-Tito, the President of Yugoslavia. The Netherlands remains the strongest market for Tomos today.

License production - automobiles

Beginning in 1959, Tomos began producing Citroën automobiles under license at the Koper plant, and selling them in the Yugoslav market. The Yugoslav automobile market was closed, so this joint venture with a local firm allowed Citroën to access the market.

thumb|right|170px|Cimos Geri

In 1972 Tomos, Iskra, and Citroën formed a new company, Cimos (Citroën, Iskra, Tomos), for the manufacture and export of cars and car sub-assemblies. Iskra was a manufacturer of automotive components, especially generators.

Cimos was half owned by Citroën and half by the Yugoslav government.

References

  • Company website
  • American Distributor website
  • [https://www.tomoshop.nl/nl-nl/kies-tomos-model/]