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From YourSITE.com Miscellaneous Features
It’s been decades since any of those brands manufactured anything, much less motorcycles or bicycles, but that doesn’t lessen the magnitude of their rich heritage. Motorcycle racing legends such as H.P. Muller are known for their wins at the bars of an NSU, while Auto Union silver arrow ace Bernd Rosemeyer found his start with Auto Union racing motorcycles for DKW. Even today’s Audi TT traces its name back to the famed Tourist Trophy races in which NSU found success.
Wanderer Least known for motorcycles and probably least known of the four brands that make up the Auto Union four-ring logo, Wanderer actually found its start in the bicycle business officially as early as 1896. By 1902, the company also ventured into the motorcycle business with a single-cylinder entrant to this brand-new market, sporting 1.5-hp and the ability to hit a top speed of 50 km/h. Eventual upgrades such as a sprung suspension and a bump to 4.5-hp allowed the Wanderer motorcycles to reach a more lofty 80 km/h. By 1910, Wanderer motorcycles featured two-cylinder engines and niceties such as rear suspension, rear wheel brake and an optional kick-starter.
During the First World War, the Chiminitz-based company supplied just short of half of all motorcycles sourced by the German army. By 1918, the company had sold over 10,000 motorcycles and had also established itself in the burgeoning automobile market. Development progressed and through 1924, Wanderer sold then state-of-the-art motorcycles featuring two cylinder with built-in gearbox, kick-start and chain-drive. This would later evolve to a 4-valve setup, and base models with a similar single-cylinder setup were also sold. In 1929, Baron Klaus-Detlof von Oertzen, who sat on the company’s Board of Directors, arranged the sale of Wanderer’s motorcycle business to NSU. Even though a new 500cc shaft-driven model had just been developed, von Oertzen pushed for the money of the sale to be used to further modernize the automobile production, seeing more potential for the company in transportation of the four-wheeled variety.
DKW It may not have started as a manufacturer of motorcycles, but DKW landed in that arena with its introduction of an auxiliary engine made for powering bicycles in 1921. In 1922 the DKW trademark was registered for engines and motorcycles and by 1928, the DKW brand was the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world – a major player in a market where a middle class worn out by war relied heavily upon this cheaper form of transportation. In their motorcycle developement, DKW took great pride in its technical innovation, being an early player with two-stroke technology and later considerably refining it. Other innovations such as a combination starter motor and dynamo helped them to create motorcycles like the RT 125 – a model copied heavily by numerous competitors.
Two-stroke engines at the time were often thought of as unreliable, though inherent benefits such as ligheter weight, higher output and mechanical simplicity were enough to convince DKW to push its developmental energies toward use of the two-stroke. Such investment paid off, making the DKW offerings much more popular than their rivals. These advancements were not just used on DKW motorcycles. The company’s original product of add-on motors for bicycles flourished – the company selling ready-to-go units to other bicycle manufacturers as well. A bicycle fitted with the DKW motor could reach a speed of 40 km/h – a practical alternative for a budget-minded post WW1 family. The success of this product virtually pushed DKW into producting their own bicycles as well, as almost an accessory to their wildly popular engines. Technology wasn’t the only form of advancement that caused DKW’s rapid ascension in market presence though. The company was also one of the first to make use of factory authorized dealers, factory-trained technicians and most importantly, the company pioneered the practice of purchasing a motorcycle on credit. Then, in 1928, the German government created a situation where motorcycles under 200cc were exempted from road tax and could be driven without a license. Quickly jumping on the opportunity, DKW introduced their new E200 model – the first to take advantage of the new laws. They even put together a conversion kit for older models to bring them into compliance with the loophole. Demand for DKW product skyrocketed, and at one time up to 65 percent of all motorcycles were either DKWs or powered by a DKW engine. More than 60 German motorcycle manufacturers during that period sourced their engines from DKW, establishing it as a clear leader in the motorcycle industry bar none. Production jumped from 5,000 units to more than 65,000 units in that year alone.
Domination in production was only one of DKW’s priorities. The company also had a strong penchant for motorsport, having won its first race with an auxiliary bike engine at The Hague on September 20th, 1920. By 1925, a racing department had been established at DKW specifically for the task of designing vehicles to campaign in competition. The resulting racing bikes were so successful that the company’s advertising boasted of a thousand race victories in two years. The company’s success gained momentum, and car production began in earnest by 1928. DKW was so successful in fact that it acquired August Horch’s Audi firm and by 1931, DKW-branded automobiles were rolling off of the Audi line as well. By 1938 two thirds of the world’s supply of motorcycles came from German manufacturers. No less than one third of Germany’s output were made by DKW – selling a range of motorcycles from a base 123cc engine on up to its fastest 494cc SB500 model. War years caused an upheaval for Auto Union and in-turn for DKW as well. Most of the company’s assets and facilities were left behind the iron curtain when Germany was split up after the war, necessitating a remarkable restart of the company in Ingolstadt. However, by 1949 DKW was up and running out of Auto Union’s new Bavarian home and managed production of 500 RT 125 motorcycles. Within only two short years, the newly re-formed company had sold no less than 30,000 of the successful model, satisfying many postwar German families in need of affordable transportation. By the 1950s, the motorcycle business at DKW was flourishing. A range of models and engines were once again in production and designs included new technology such as a telescoping front suspension fork and a swinging fork at the rear.
Expanding the range, DKW launched its first scooter, the “Hobby”, with revolutionary automatic transmission in 1954. In 1956, the company also released the “Hummel”, a moped that was the first of its type to feature a three-speed transmission. Wanting to show it was back, DKW also returned to motorsport endeavours. By 1950, H.P. Muller had returned on a DKW and won the 125cc championship for DKW. Riders such as Ewald Kluge and Siegfried Wunsche also campaigned DKWs in the 250cc and 350cc classes respectively. Coming out of the gate strong, DKW was not able to keep the momentum and 1952 marked the first non war year racing season in 20 years that the company hadn’t taken home at least one championship. A newer 350cc three-cylinder offering from Ingolstadt put the marque back on the podium, though by 1956, a dwindling motorcycle market helped DKW and other motorcycle manufacturers to come to the decision that a tightening of the belts was in order, and DKW ceased its presence in motorcycle competition. Since its postwar reorganization, Auto Union earned most of its profit from the company’s two-wheeled offerings. This was a notable concern though, as rising demand for an enclosed automobile and affordable products from companies like Volkswagen brought about a 35 percent drop in the motorcycle market from 1955 to 1956. Recognizing such a reliance as a problem, the company sold off its motorcycle production facility to Victoria AG in Nuremburg shortly after Auto Union was taken over by Mercedes-Benz. With this action, DKW was effectively and most unceremoniously out of the motorcycle business.
NSU Just before the turn of the century, the manufacturer of knitting machines (of all things) made what might be less than the most obvious business expansion when it introduced its first bicycle in 1886. By 1892, NSU dropped out of the knitting machine business entirely and by 1901, the company had expanded into motorcycles as well. The earliest NSU motorcycles were powered by Zedel engines sourced from Switzerland, though the company began use of its own engines in 1903. Bicycles and motorcycles were sold side-by-side in NSU company-owned outlets throughout Germany and as far away as Zurich, Paris and Moscow. In fact, during the years prior to the first World War, NSU established itself as Germany’s number one exporter of motorcycles. Even the Citizen’s Guard in Sao Paulo, Brazil made use of NSU motorcycles. By 1905, the company expanded further with its first automobile, though bicycles and motorcycles remained a major component of the NSU business plan. Not unlike DKW, motorsport campaigns were extremely important to NSU and its growing popularity. Shortly after the introduction of its first motorcycle in 1901, NSU began to race… and win. One of the first women to take part in motorsport, Gertrud Eismann, managed to win the Eisenach-Berlin-Eisenach long-distance endurance race in 1905, piloting a 2-hp NSU motorcycle – gaining significant public relations for the Neckarsulm firm. Eismann would later go on to compete for another would-be Auto Union brand Horch behind the wheel of a car as well.
Following World War I, NSU managed to survive by building vehicles out of residual parts and component stocks. The first new motorcycles began rolling out again in 1920, and a motorbike made for the army was an anchor in that lineup, having proven its durability throughout the war. In 1924, the company introduced their first significant post-war model that included a new shock-absorbing front fork. Then in 1927 the company went one step further with a new single engine block that contained a three-speed gearbox as well as primary, magneto and oil pump drives. Standardized dimensions meant flexibility for use with a side-valve touring engine or an overhead-valve sportster setup. By 1931, the company had introduced their first two-stroke engine. Expansion soon followed, and by the 1936 International Automobile and Motorcycle Exhibition in Berlin, the company introduced a 100cc moped in both men’s and women’s frame configurations called the “Quick” of which NSU would sell over a quarter million units during its successful sales life. With its broad product range and growing popularity, NSU continued its sporting endeavours. Englishman Walter William Moore, who’d previously been at Norton, came over as chief designer in 1929, and one of his projects was the building of a new 500cc supersport bike. Moore coaxed fellow Englishman and reknowned rider Tom Bullus over to NSU, with which Bullus won the 1930 Motorcycle Grand Prix at the Nurburgring. Back on top, NSU with Bullus would go on to dominate the Solitude Circuit, Eifel, the Klausen Pass Hill-climb, the German Hill-climb Grand Prix, the Gaisburg Race and the International Grand Prix in Monza, making Bullus and his NSU one of the most successful rider combinations ever. In 1938 Moore left NSU, though his replacement Albert Roder quickly picked up where his predecessor left off, designing a supercharged 350cc bike to compete in sidecar races before the series was banned due to its dangerous nature. During World War II, NSU was credited with the development of the Opel-powered half-track motorcycle that served the German army. Like many other German companies, NSU was forced to rebuild somewhat after the war. Fortunately for the Neckarsulm-based company and unlike DKW, NSU found its factory on the Western side of the iron curtain, making restarting the company less of a chore. Just like the years following World War I, NSU used pre-war designs and stores of parts to get themselves up and going again. The company reintroduced its popular Quick moped, the 125 ZDB motorcycle and the 251 OSL motorcycle. Management also placed heavy emphasis on new motorcycle development and export to quickly rebuild the NSU business lost from the war years. By 1955, NSU hit their peak output of 50,000 bicycles and 300,000 motorized two-wheeled vehicles including motorcycles, mopeds and scooters – filling the void of cheap transportation for the masses of Germany and other parts of Europe. New motorcycles included the 100cc OHV four-stroke Fox, the 200cc two-stroke Lux, 350cc Konsul I and 500cc four-stroke Konsul II. Of these, the best known must surely be the NSU Max, introduced in 1952 with four-stroke OHV setup with a rod and crank valve system – a powerplant that set new noise suppression standards for motorcycles. Like Vespa in Italy, NSU found ample success in production in the sub-motorcycle category with scooters like the Lambretta under license from Italy, followed by the Prima in 1956. The Quick moped was also replaced with its successor, the Quickly. With only 50cc, pedals and weighing only 33 kg, the Quickly was legal to use without a driver’s license, helping fuel sales.
Steeped in a heritage of racing, NSU executives believed a return to racing was necessary for the rebuilding of the brand. A works team reentered competition for the 1949 season in both the 350cc and 500cc classes, as well as a 600cc sidecar campaign. By 1950, they’d reclaimed both the 350cc and 600cc sidecar classes. The company went on to dominate 125cc, 250cc and 350cc classes, and by 1953 champion rider Werner Haas won a twofold championship, winning both 125cc and 250cc classes in the same season. By 1954, the team had garnered so much publicity that several high-powered riders willingly came over to the NSU works team, including greats such as Hans Baltisburger, Rupert Hollaus and former DKW star H.P. Muller. NSU’s racing bikes based on the Fox and Max were fitted with new fairing designs that bestowed them with the “Dolphins” nickname. This now quite potent team’s most known win of that season was the fabled TT (the British Tourist Trophy), coming in first in the 125cc class and winning the top four places in the 250cc class.
Seasons progressed and the “Dolphin” fairings evolved into a more refined “Blue Whale” shape. In Monza, tragedy struck when star rider Rupert Hollaus suffered a fatal crash, though the team would persevere. Of its 24 starts that season, it took home the exact same number of victories, proving with authority that NSU was back! No one would have guessed that after such success, and two years winning the manufacturers’ title in the two smallest engine classes that NSU would pull out of racing, but that’s exactly what they did. The Neckarsulm-based company opted out, instead deciding to support privateers who chose to campaign the marque. While not a works effort, the bikes were good enough that H.P. Muller managed the first privateer world champion in the 250cc class.
Like DKW, NSU recognized that it could fall victim to the declining motorcycle industry as European tastes began to favor automobiles. The company returned to the automobile market in 1957. Faced with a changing business focus, NSU sold their bicycle production in 1963. Three years later two-wheeled production ceased, the last NSU Quick 50 coming off the production line in 1966. Production estimates suggest that NSU manufactured no less than 1,750,000 bicycles and 2,300,000 motorized two-wheeled products since its inception – a healthy sum to be sure. Photo Galleries Wanderer Bicycles DKW Motorcycles NSU Motorcycles Related Links NSU Team Czech Republic NSU Motorcycle Website Audi: A History of Progress (Book) Fourtitude Bike Week Links Bike Week Main Page Part I: A 2 Wheeled History of the 4 Rings Part II: Audi Moto Concept Part III: Bicycles from quattro GmbH Part IV: Unfair Advantage, the Sequel by Christini J.J. Lehto, Choppers and Cross-Country Cruising with Frank Biela
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