However, audi didnt give up and began assembling prewar models in 1949. From auto union to audi, a story of partnership classic. Therefore, in 1945, the us army raid caused great damage to audis plant and a few years later auto union ag was removed from the commercial register. Union grand prix racing cars, the legendary quattro, the tt. Feb 17, 2017 auto union was bought by daimlerbenz in 1958, encountered more financial troubles, and was sold to volkswagen in 1964. The auto union grand prix racing cars types a to d were developed and built by a specialist racing department of auto unions horch works in zwickau, germany, between 1933 and 1939 of the 4 auto union racing cars, the types a, b and c, used from 1934 to 1937 had supercharged v16 engines, and the final car, the type d used in 1938 and 1939 built to new 1938 regulations had a supercharged 3l. Audi history, fun facts, motorsports and finance autowise. Automobile company wanderer was originally established in 1885, later becoming a branch of audi ag. Audi added to the list of every increasing early adopters when they used the same technology to make 1. Browse the amazon editors picks for the best books of 2019, featuring our. Audi history, profile and history video audi has been majority owned by volkswagen for more than 40 years.
Audi ag the last nsu left the production line in march 1977, and from then on the company manufactured exclusively audi cars. Covers the complete history of audi from 18992009, in fascinating text and 1,000 illustrations. Its an extremely rare vehicle imported from germany from the brand that would later turn into audi. That year, volkswagen bought a 50 percent stake in the company and subsequently bought auto union outright in 1965. The first audi 100, developed by volkswagens very much subsidiary auto union at. In fact, more than a million models were created and sold over a sixyear period. This racing car developed by ferdinand porsche wrote racing history right away like almost no other racing car had done before.
This detailed walk through audis accomplishments covers all of the companys changes through the years. A brief history of the four rings audiworld audi news and. The auto union grand prix racing cars types a to d were developed and built by a specialist racing department of auto union s horch works in zwickau, germany, between 1933 and 1939 of the 4 auto union racing cars, the types a, b and c, used from 1934 to 1937 had supercharged v16 engines, and the final car, the type d used in 1938 and 1939 built to new 1938 regulations had a supercharged 3l. A brief history of the four rings audi news and discussion. Like many german manufacturers, auto union plants became a target for allied bombing during the second world war. Excluding the era prior to the second world war, including the legendary grand prix cars of auto union in the 1930s, audis motor racing heritage began with the. If youre an auto union fan, this book is a musthave. The merger led to the creation of the four interlocking rings. The audi story presents the history of audi comprehensively and in a stimulating, highly informative manner, and includes company and product history data.
Covers the complete history of audi from 18992009, in fascinating text and 1, 000. Search for all audi dealers in union, nj 07083 and view their inventory at autotrader. Shortly after the vw takeover, auto union began selling cars under the audi. Its one of the most multifaceted stories ever told in the history of the automobile. Happy 100th birthday audi history of audi and auto union. Volkswagen relaunched the audi brand with the 1965 introduction of the audi f103 series. As well as acting as an umbrella firm for its four constituent brands audi, horch, dkw, wanderer, auto union is widely known for its. Audis modern motor racing heritage began with the quattro. Sep 16, 20 covers the complete history of audi from 18992009, in fascinating text and 1,000 illustrations from the very start, the four interlinked rings were the brand emblem of auto union ag, the secondlargest german motorvehicle manufacturer when the company was formed in the town of chemnitz in 1932. The reader will be taken on a journey through a century of modern history and will experience the profound economic changes that occurred during this period. In 1945, after the war had ended, auto union ags premises were located in the zone occupied by the soviet forces, who expropriated its assets, dismantled the plant and had the company removed from the commercial register of the city of chemnitz in 1948. Dkw and audi opted out into the west and took with them the auto union.
It symbolizes the amalgamation in 1932 of four previously independent motor. In the 1930s, audi was one of four brands that made up germanys auto union car company. The first audi vehicle to gain notice in the united states was the audi fox. These four marques merged in 1932 to form auto union ag. Since 1909, and all throughout its eventful history,the company with the four rings as its symbol has consistently produced cars that excite drivers. Auto union merged with nsu, worlds largest manufacturer of motorcycles, in 1969 and hence, was renamed as audi nsu auto union ag. Before world war ii, auto union ag used the four interlinked rings, only on auto union racing cars in that period. The new company bearing the name audi nsu auto union ag, with its head offices in neckarsulm, was created retrospectively as of january 1. Launched under the auto union brand in 1965, the company decided to revive the audi brand for its first postwar fourstroke car. Auto union was the result of the amalgamation of four companies. Auto union was bought by daimlerbenz in 1958, encountered more financial troubles, and was sold to volkswagen in 1964. Auto union type c race car replica 3d printed by audi. By 1958, daimlerbenz had already acquired a whopping 87% of the auto union but its investment quickly became property of volkswagen, the company having bought the.
The audi 100 and audi 200 are fourdoor, frontengine, front or allwheel drive. The four rings of the audi badge symbolize the brands audi, dkw, horch and wanderer. A presentation of all the rally cars that audi has launchedfrom the audi 80 to the quattros and the coup s2, as well as a comprehensive statistics sectionmake this a book that everyone will. May 01, 2015 like many german manufacturers, auto union plants became a target for allied bombing during the second world war. In a joint effort with audi tradition over the past three weeks, we have completed considerable additional research on the race history of the 1939 auto union d. In 1932 auto union gmbh was formed, comprising struggling auto manufacturers audi, dkw, horch and wanderer. Most were negatives and all were in excellent condition. Throughout the long history of audi, each car has been inspired by a core philosophy of beautiful design, intelligent, stateoftheart technology, topoftheline performance in every detail without a single compromise in quality. The audi book offers a fascinating overview of more than a hundred years of automotive history as. The entire audi family tree is examined in detail wanderer, dkw, horch, audi a697, auto union, nsu their participation in motor sports, and biographies of the people who made the company what it is. These values continue to drive audi into the future. Audi logo, history timeline and list of latest models. Rare 1960 auto union sp coupe is available at auction.
The history of the 485 horsepower, 3liter v12 1939 auto union twinsupercharger type d, which has a top speed of 205 mph, is fascinating. Covers the complete history of audi from 18992009, in fascinating text and 1,000 illustrations from the very start, the four interlinked rings were the brand emblem of auto union ag, the secondlargest german motorvehicle manufacturer when the company was formed in the town of chemnitz in 1932. After world war ii most of the race cars were carted off. The new merged company was incorporated on 1 january 1969 and was known as audi nsu auto union ag, with its headquarters at nsus neckarsulm plant, and saw the emergence of audi as a separate brand for the first time since the prewar era. In 1932, audi merged with horch, dkw and wanderer, to form auto union ag. In this highquality book are beautiful, and some of them previously unpublished, pictures. With this merger, audi emerged as a separate brand. From the very start, the four interlinked rings were the brand emblem of auto union ag, the secondlargest german motorvehicle manufacturer when the company was formed in the town of chemnitz in 1932. Wikimedia commons has media related to wanderer motorcycles. Jul 15, 2009 1985audi nsu auto union ag is renamed audi ag. After the end of the war, auto union ags production facilities were expropriated and dismantled by the occupying soviet forces. Another company, nsu, which also later merged into audi, was founded during this time, and later supplied the chassis for gottlieb daimlers fourwheeler on 14 november 1899, august horch 18681951 established the company a.
The audi emblem with its four rings identifies one of germanys oldestestablished automobile manufacturers. In 1969 auto union became audi nsu as it merged with nsu and finally became audi in 1985. The first car of this merger was the audi 100, which was soon followed by the audi 80fox in. A history of progress contains hundreds of rare factory photos and illustrations, presenting audis past and present in a beautiful hardcover, high quality book. Aug 10, 2012 the history of the 485 horsepower, 3liter v12 1939 auto union twinsupercharger type d, which has a top speed of 205 mph, is fascinating. Mar 10, 2007 audi tradition is a branch of audi that researches the brands history and heritage. Under auto union audi built highend cars, which sold poorly during the economic downturn. Whether you are an audi owner, enthusiast or automotive historian, audi. It is the immediate predecessor of audi as it is known today as well as acting as an umbrella firm for its four constituent brands audi, horch, dkw, wanderer, auto union is widely known for its racing team auto union rennabteilung, based at. But also it was fairly important when in 1985 audi nsu auto union ag, was simply shortened to audi ag and meant a unique brand was back and ready into the market. These four brands came together in 1932 to form auto union ag, the second largest motorvehicle manufacturer in germany in terms of total production volume.
Rumours concerning the new auto union were circulating as early as 1933 and the car was unveiled to the public in march 1934 at a. Research, compare and save listings, or contact sellers directly from 1588 audi models in union. By now the audi 100 had become the most commercially successful model in the companys history. Audi s modern motor racing heritage began with the quattro. The car was developed from ferdinand porsches pwagen by using light weight materials the auto union was able to have a 4. In a joint effort with audi tradition over the past three weeks, we have completed considerable additional research on the race history of the 1939 auto union d type v12 grand prix racing car.
By 1964, the other three companies forming auto union were deadonly audi remained. Schrader has brought out a very interesting book on the history of auto unfon. The rally history in this highquality book are beautiful, and some of them previously unpublished, pictures. At the moment the brand auto union gmbh is a subsidiary of audi ag who tries to keep the heritage of all the audi cars and anything related to the history of auto union. It was then that the audi brand was introduced to the united states. Then, in 1972, the audi 80 was released and also become a hit. Volkswagen introduced the audi brand to the united states for the 1970 model year. This 1960 auto union sp coupe is currently up for auction on bring a trailer. A history of progress chronicles the fascinating history of the audi ag, from its. The audi logo came about after a merger of four companies. Dkw, horch, audi, auto union, nsuwith the models built by each manufacturer.
A presentation of all the rally cars that audi has launchedfrom the audi 80 to the quattros and the coup s2, as well as a comprehensive statistics sectionmake this a book that everyone will want on their shelf. Audi announced plans in 2012 to build its first north american production facility, which will be based in san jose chiapa, mexico. Audi has motored down a long and winding road to its centennial this year. May 11, 2020 by 1958, daimlerbenz had already acquired a whopping 87% of the auto union but its investment quickly became property of volkswagen, the company having bought the factory and and the brands in 1964. The 16 cylinder autounion c type of 1936 developed 520 bhp from its 6006cc engine. The rebirth of the audi brand in 1965 and the merger of auto union and nsu in 1969 added new significance to the topic of motorsport. Sep 25, 2017 auto union 16 zylinder hillclimb racecar typ cd 1939 international grossglockner grand prix 2017 austria driver. It is the immediate predecessor of audi as it is known today. Fifteen years after researching and writing the monumental racing the silver arrows, racing historian chris nixon learned a stash of previously unpublished photos had been discovered, of mostly auto union gp cars from the 1930s. Auto union ag, chemnitz, was an amalgamation of four german automobile manufacturers, founded in 1932 and established in 1936 in chemnitz, saxony. In 1969, audi joined with nsu to create the audi nsu auto union. Audi toolmaking unit which is a division of the german automobile manufacturer has made a 3d printed replica of their auto union type c which was a. History of audi about audi fawvolkswagen audivorsprung. Auto union ag was the behind numerous technical developments, research findings and ideas that played a pioneering role in the creation of the modernday car.