Seems like lots of minor inaccuracies; starting with the fact the Trabi was not the only East German car.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wartburg_(marque)
East Germany was never actually Communist, not even really Socialist. Closer to a dictatorship.
Not sure what's with the "can't lift in any gear but 4", no one mentioned that when I was there.
And he missed a few things; like it did have a crude fuel gauge : When you got low on fuel, the engine quit until you twisted the fuel knob on the dash. Very similar to the original Volkswagen (and my Ferguson tractor with the Standard engine). Just don't forget to twist it back after filling up!
As well as my favorite feature : the body was not made of steel, not even metal! It was actually closer to Masonite, basically ground up cotton waste compressed with a phenol resin into molds. After the wall fell, the unified German government quickly decided the binder was toxic and the car was literally declared toxic waste. It cost more to dispose of than the car was worth in running condition! As a result, there were hundreds of them simply abandoned on the side of the road (I presume after having the numbers removed).
I've driven "4 on the tree" (on a Peugeot, not a Trabi), it's not so bad. You don't "look" at the lever to tell what gear you're in, you have to feel your way.
Another fun fact : New Trabis were incredibly cheap, but the supply was so limited that you could wait 10 years or more to get one. As a result, used Trabis routinely sold for more than new! And since the East German mark was so nearly worthless, there was a brisk underground economy in Trabi parts.
All in all, a fitting vehicle for a country that put up a minefield and armed guards just to keep its citizens from leaving! I got one of the gun slits (guard tower window) from the Berlin wall (technically a few days before the wall officially came down), but unfortunately it got thrown away before I could get home with it. One of the Indians apparently threw it overboard, thinking it was trash.
If you're ever in Berlin, be sure to see the Checkpoint Charlie museum. It's just amazing, the things people tried to get out of East Germany.