In 1961, President Cemal Gürsel ordered 24 engineers working in different companies to build a fully accessible and popular car in Turkey. The car was to be shown during the Republic Day celebrations on October 29, 1961. After 130 days, engineers were able to produce four types of car prototypes in a workshop in Eskişehir, which could become a TÜLOMSAŞ factory. One was black and the other three cars were cream-coloured. The cars were named as Devrim (the Turkish word for revolution).
A black and one cream-colored car were sent to Ankara to celebrate Republic Day. None of the cars had gasoline as a safety precaution, and the cars were filled with a small amount of fuel, just for maneuverig. On the celebration day, President Cemal Gürsel got into the black car before it was refueled for the ceremony. After approximately one hundred meters, the vehicle stopped. The President moved from a black car to a cream car with which he drove to Anıtkabir. Then, both cars completed the ceremony without any problems. News headlines reported that Devrim was going only 100 meters and then fell apart. As a result, the car has become the subject of jokes for many years.
Devrim has never been manufactured in bulk. One of the reasons was that the cars were prototypes and the production process was not well documented, with almost no technical drawings left from the production phase.
It should be noted that thanks to Devrim it was believed that it was possible to produce cars in Turkey. It is necessary to believe in progress. Devrim represents the possibility of change. Devrim represents hope for the future.