Yesterday our dream car was a 2012
Audi R8. What if you are Audi? It turns out Audi's dream car was a famous
1939 Auto Union twin-supercharger Type D that it was finally able to buy a few
weeks ago.
The price? Undisclosed.
The car in question was expected to fetch over $10 million
when it was last up for auction a few years ago. It was eventually sold to an
unnamed private collector who presumably just sold it to Audi.
Audi now owns three of the five remaining Auto Union race
cars that have survived out of the 20 or so originally built in the 1930s.
"This is one of the most emotional moments in our heritage work for Audi AG
– we have come full circle," says Thomas Frank, Head of Audi Tradition.
"20 years ago we would never have dreamed that such a thing would be
possible!"
The Audi R8 can rightly claim to be a direct descendent of
the famous Auto Union race cars. The Auto Unions were highly advanced
rear engine Grand Prix cars that were designed by Professor Ferdinand Porsche. And, it was his
grandson, Ferdinand Piëch, who helped inspire the Quattro system that is a key
part of the R8's success.
The history of the 485 horsepower, 3-liter V-12 1939 Auto
Union twin-supercharger Type D, which has a top speed of 205 mph, is
fascinating. After World War II most of the race cars were carted off to Russia
as Auto Union's headquarters were in East Germany. They then disappeared or
were stripped for parts or used for research. Paul Karassik, a Russian
immigrant living in Florida, had been a spectator in Belgrade at the last Grand
Prix before the war. During the 1970s his dream was to find the Auto Unions in
the USSR. It took the better part of a decade, but he was able to track down
two surviving Auto Unions and after much negotiation he was able to get the
parts out from behind the Iron Curtain.
Audi helped with the restoration of the two cars by
Crosthwaite & Gardiner in England. They had to be fitted with new bodies,
built from scratch, as most of the original body panels were missing. Eventually
Audi purchased Karassik's 1938 Type C in 1998. Karassik sold the Type D in 1999
to a private collector who then put it up for auction a few years ago.
Audi plans to display the Auto Union Type D at the Audi
museum in Ingolstadt. But first of all, Audi's newest "dream car"
makes a guest appearance at the Goodwood Revival in
England, from September 14 to 16. Despite their age, these cars are still one
of the most exciting race cars to listen to and watch.
source: http://www.roadandtrack.com/go/news/classic-cars/audi-buys-their-dream-car-1939-auto-union-type-d-37850
http://www.boscheuropean.com
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