Ludwigsfelde lies at least 60 miles (97 km) from Ravensbrück, so the forced labourers were housed near the factory in a subsidiary concentration camp called the Deutschlandhalle.

Brandenburg was part of the Sowjetische Besatzungszone (SBZ or Soviet occupation zone) from 1945 and the Deutsche Demokratische Republik (DDR or German Democratic Republic) from 1949.

In 1960 VEB Flugzeuge Dresden was building 20 aircraft to enter service with Deutsche Lufthansa der DDR (which in 1963 became Interflug), for which IWL had begun series production of the Pirna 014.

The new scooters found a market among customers who could not obtain or could not afford a car but wanted a machine that was cleaner, simpler and gave more weather protection than a motorcycle.

Both Piaggio and Innocenti fitted specially designed engines mounted on one side of the rear wheel, which kept the wheelbase short and maximised urban maneuverability.

[1] August Falz of Döbeln in Saxony had built a primitive motor scooter in 1950, and by 1954 had developed a prototype with streamlined bodywork and powered by a 174 cc ČZ engine imported from the ČSSR.

[4] However, in the wake of the June 1953 uprising the DDR government was in a hurry to implement its Neue Kurs ("New Course") policy to improve the supply of consumer goods.

[4] However, IWL followed West German practice in mounting the engine in front of the rear wheel instead of beside it, thus giving the Pitty a much longer wheelbase than its Italian counterparts.

[6] At the beginning of 1955, reporters from the East German Der deutsche Straßenverkehr magazine tested the Pitty and gave IWL numerous suggestions to improve it.

[10] Despite customer complaints, the Wiesel retained its predecessor's hard upholstery, lockable fuel tap flap and lack of a steering lock.

[7] It was easy for a thief to force the flap, and Der deutsche Straßenverkehr's testers were astonished that IWL had not rectified this fault from the previous model.

IWL specially requested that the version of the RT 125/3 motor made for the scooter be bored out[7] to 143 cc, which increased power output to 7.5 bhp.

[12] Although IWL projected the Berlin as a "town scooter", new private motor vehicles were in such short supply in the DDR that customers made no such distinction.

[13] The Berlin was capable of longer journeys, including holidays, but a scooter has far less luggage capacity than either a small car or a motorcycle and sidecar combination.

[13] IWL made the Campi's chassis, including a tubular steel towing link that connected to the scooter behind the pillion seat and above the rear light.

[12] This made it light enough for a Berlin's 7.5 bhp engine to cope with the combined weight of its rider, passenger, trailer and luggage, albeit at markedly less speed than when being ridden solo.

[14] However, in December 1962, during the Troll 1's development, the Ministerrat der DDR ("Council of Ministers of the GDR") had announced that the factory would switch to making a new model of IFA truck.

In 1962 MZ had introduced the ES 150 motorcycle, and the scooter version of its 143 cc engine supplied for the Troll 1 had its power increased to 9.5 bhp.

[8] IWL revised the bodywork, giving a tail unit like that of the Heinkel Tourist model A2[18] and quickly detachable side panels[19] like a Dürkopp Diana.

[18] Each side panel is secured by a central bayonet lock and is simple to undo and light to remove,[19] easing access to the engine, gearbox and rear chain.

[18] In 1964 East Germany's annual book Motor Jahr circumspectly observed "Diese Vorderradhaube liegt jetzt zwischen den Federbeinen, was vielleicht nicht jedermanns Geschmack trifft, aber deren gute Zugänglichkeit gewährleistet".

However, in February 1963 Der deutsche Straßenverkehr magazine had been more outspoken: "Uns konnte diese ›Linie‹ nicht sonderlich begeistern, und wir beneiden das Institut für industrielle Formgebung keinesfalls um seine Mitarbeit".

[18] In March 1964 Der deutsche Straßenverkehr strongly criticised this shortcoming, but in the same year Motor Jahr played it down by claiming "Die Seitenwindempfindlichkeit des „Troll“ liegt in normalen Grenzen.

Er reagiert auf Seitenböen nicht anders als durchschnittliche Zweiradfahrzeuge und is deshalb trotz seiner etwas höheren Schwerpunktlage auch in solchen Situationen risikilos zu fahren.".

It reacts to side gusts no differently than average two-wheeled vehicles and therefore despite a somewhat higher centre of gravity it is safe to ride in such conditions.")

[23] However, with less weight and a shorter wheelbase than any IWL model, the Tatran's power-to-weight ratio was practical and at last offered East Germans a real "town scooter".

[41] The L 60 was finally unveiled to the public at the Autumn Leipzig Trade Fair in September 1986 and its series production began at Ludwigsfelde in June 1987.

[27][26] IWL needed a more competitive product, and in the second half of 1989 it held exploratory talks with the West German commercial vehicle builder MAN.

[2][42] The IFA-Kombinat Nutzkraftwagen ("IFA Goods Vehicle Combine") was broken up and in June 1990 a separate IFA-Automobilwerk Ludwigsfelde GmbH was founded under the Treuhandanstalt.

[44] Between December 1999 and 2001 DaimlerChrysler (the parent company between 1998 and 2007) invested in the order of 500 million Deutsche Mark to redevelop the Ludwigsfelde plant and prepare it to make the W414 Vaneo.