July 16, 2009, marks the 100th anniversary of the day that August Horch founded August Horch Automobilwerke GmbH in Zwickau, Germany, after leaving his Horch & Cie. Motorwagen Werke due to a dispute with his supervisory board. Within a short period, he renamed the company after a variation of his last name – Horch means “Hark,” or listen, which translates to “Audi” in Latin - making it Audi Automobilwerke.
Early cars like the 1919 Type C were conventional for the day:
But Audi became known as a trend-setter early in its history with the introduction of Germany’s first left-hand drive car, the 1921 Audi 14/50 hp Type K.
Audiwerke AG became part of the DKW family in 1928, and Audi developed a small front-wheel drive DKW car for 1931. DKW would also be known for their motorcycles, like this 1939 250 SS racer:
The State Bank of Saxony requested that Audi, Horch and DKW merge to form Auto Union AG in 1932, and this merger included Wanderer’s automotive division; the symbol for this merger was the now-famous four interlocking rings.
Under Auto Union, Wanderer became known for its mid-sized cars, like the sporty W25K roadster:
While Audi built upscale mid-sized cars.
And Horch competed with Mercedes-Benz at the top of the German luxury market with models like the 1935-1940 853 Sport Cabriolet:
It was in the mid-1930s that Auto Union created the innovative “Silver Arrow” models to contest in Grand Prix racing.
After World War II ended, Auto Union found its Chemnitz premises in the Soviet-occupied zone, so it was relaunched in Ingolstadt with two-stroke DKW models. Cars like the stylish, Thunderbird-inspired SP 1000 were also sold with Auto Union badging:
Daimler-Benz AG acquired 88 percent of Auto Union’s shares in 1958, and Auto Union became a wholly-owned subsidiary of D-B in 1959.
A new Auto Union “Audi Type,” using Daimler’s four-cylinder, four-stroke engine, was introduced in 1965, and this was the first postwar car to wear the Audi name. Volkswagen purchased Auto Union from Daimler-Benz in 1965, and the first Audi, as we know it today, was introduced as the 100 in 1968.
The following year, VW merged Auto Union GmbH and NSU Motorenwerke AG, the maker of rotary-powered cars like the ultra modern Ro 80.
Innovation would become Audi’s hallmark once more through the creation of ‘quattro’ four-wheel drive in 1980.
The company underwent a change of name from Audi NSU Auto Union AG to AUDI AG in 1985, and since then, the company and the products it builds have shared the same name. Aerodynamic design, fully galvanized steel bodies, aluminum space frame construction and many other technical features have become the popular German brand’s hallmarks.
A tip of the hat to you, Herr Horch: Here’s to the next 100 years!
Related posts:
- VW Golf BlueMotion Diesel Will Achieve 52mpg
- w00t! The return of the Autoblog Podcast!
- 2010 Audi S4 to get a supercharged V6, increases fuel-economy
- Video: V8 Lamborghini Gallardo on The Nürburgring
- Phone booths? Bah! How many people can you fit inside a smart?
Related posts:
- Not great, but a figure that is hard to reach in any high-powered SUV with ...
- Best and Worst Car Ads of 2008
- BMW X5 M Sport
- The Caparo T1: An Engineer’s Dream Come True
- Stop Pumping Gas, Start Compressing Gas
0 коммент.:
Отправить комментарий