with strengthened floor panel - other Syrenas at that time used traditional steel ladder frame. The stylish body of the car was moulded in fibreglass, which was the first such attempt at FSO. Syrena Sport also had a new independent rear suspension with trailing arms and torsion bars designed by Antoni Drozdek. Some other systems were built and tested, such as FSO’s first floor shifting mechanism and hydraulic-controlled clutch. Naturally, many mechanical and electrical parts were taken directly from other versions of the Syrena, including transmission, headlights, dials, etc. As the young designer team were largely given free hand in realising their aspirations, the effect of their work was a surprisingly beautiful car. Chief designer Cezary Nawrot admitted being inspired by various Ferrari models and Mercedes-Benz 190SL. After its presentation on the Labour Day, (1 May) the car quickly became a sensation, and was widely described in the automobile press of the day – especially the "Motor" weekly. At least once the car featured in the daily TV news programme "Dziennik Telewizyjny" (TV Journal). A short mention and a photo of Syrena Sport appeared in the prestigious Swiss yearly Automobile Year 1960-1961, and in May 1960 the Italian nationwide daily newspaper "Il Giorno" described Syrena Sport as "the most beautiful car built behind the Iron Curtain". Contrary to initial plans, the Polish press and the general public pressed for the production of the Syrena Sport. Two state-owned companies even declared readiness to manufacture fibreglass bodies. This was in turn an uncomfortable situation for the management of the FSO and the government, which never intended to mass-produce the Sport. A frequently quoted (although not fully substantiated) story says that either the Prime Minister Józef Cyrankiewicz or the First Secretary of the Communist Party Władysław Gomułka personally called the factory and ordered to moth-ball the project. Until that moment, the car had driven some 29,000 km on the factory test track and on public roads outside of the FSO, and generally proved to be adequately designed. After that intervention, tests were abandoned and the car was stored in a garage at the Development Centre in Warszawa-Falenica. Following a mindless decision, it was purposefully destroyed in the late 1970s together with a number of other FSO prototypes, in order to free up garage space. The surviving historical material are a few dozens black and white and hand-coloured photographs, press articles and plans drawn