History of DKW
The Deustche Kraftfahrzeug Werke (German Motor Vehicle Works) was founded in
Berlin in 1919, by a Danish engineer, Jorgen S. Rasmussen. He conducted experiments in steam
in 1916 and also had interests in the development of electric cars. It is from this basis that the
two-stroke motor was derived. Rasmussen was also a shrewd businessman, acquiring several
less successful marquees until in 1932 he formed Auto Union, comprising of the little D.K.W.
cars, the luxurious Horch, and the middle sized Audi and Wanderer. The sign of the four
interlinked rings is still common as the badge of the current Audi models, though the ownership of
the firm has now come under the VW combine.
The first product of D.K.W., in 1920, was a small two-stroke engine, which could be
attached to a bicycle but by the mid-twenties, motor cycles of 175 and 250 cc. were being produced.
It was in the production of motorcycles that D.K.W. had its first success. When
D.K.W. first entered the racing field, in the mid-twenties, several other firms were already making
supercharged, two-stroke engines as well as "split-single" engines. The first D.K.W. racers were
conventional, unblown, two-stroke, water-cooled single piston motors developing 173 cc which
developed 12 to 14 b.hp. This machine won the European Grand Prix in Germany in 1927, in
Spain in 1929, and in Belgium in 1930. Other D.K.W. victories included the European Sidecar
Championship in 1937, 1938 Lightweight T.T., and the European Championship in 1938 and 1939. In
1939, they had to settle for a second place finish in the T.T. due to the wet weather upsetting the
tricky carbureation. In addition, it is said that these D.K.W.s by the used an ignition cutout
to decelerate in corners, to avoid disturbing the carburetor settings, which led them to
spray unburnt fuel on the road. D.K.W. never offered a road-going version of their
"superbikes," probably because of the difficulty of silencing them.
In the early twenties, Jorgen Rasmussen had interests in the production of a simple electric
car, the SB, which had an all-wood chassis-less construction. Though a small motorcycle engine
had been fitted to one of these as early as 1920, it was not until 1927, when a 584 cc twin-cylinder
engine, producing 16.5 hp. was used, that the experiment was regarded as successful
enough to put into production. The prototype was an ugly coffin-shaped tandem two-seater, but
the production model, designated the P 15, which was exhibited at the Leipzig Fair in 1928, was
a handsome side-by-side two-seater with a tall angular radiator like that of the contemporary
Morris cars. It was still of all-wood construction, with the engine and 3-speed gearbox in line with
the wheelbase, driving the rear axle. Some of these cars were entered in the Monte Carlo Rally
of that year. Sales during this time of economic stringency were satisfactory but in 1930, an entirely
new model, the F 1, was announced, with a steel chassis and body and a transversely placed 500
cc. twin cylinder engine driving the front wheels. It soon grew up into the 584 cc., 18 b.hp. at
3,500 rpm, model F 2. From 1935 to 1939, D.K.W. produced the model F 5 and F 7 and in
1939, they produced the F 8 model. After World War II, the Auto Union factories found
themselves in the Russian Zone. Some of the former staff migrated to West Germany and were
able to re-establish D.K.W. production by 1949, while the original factories also got back into
production of similar cars which became known as the I.F.A. Early in the war years, prototypes of a
three-cylinder D.K.W., the F 89, were being produced.
In 1953, the in-line three cylinder engine was at last ready. While the chassis was basically the same, the
bodywork now had a very large, "wrap round," rear window to distinguish it from the F 89. The
896 cc. three-cylinder engine delivered 34 b.hp. Thus the D.K.W. became a very competitive
car, even being entered in saloon car races. This new car boasted a top speed of 75 m.p.h.
This changed the character of the D.K.W. from a popular utility vehicle to a middle-priced
sporting saloon. Later enlargements of the engine size to 980 cc. and 55 b.hp. carried this
further. These cars had numerous rallying and racing successes. In 1959, the 980 cc.
engine became available in the Auto Union 1000 Coupe (pictured above). However, the 896 cc. D.K.W.
Sonderklasse "3=6" was still available. Also at this date, two-door models were changed to
front-hinging doors. By 1960 and a take-over by Mercedes-Benz, the 3=6 was dropped, and the 44 b.hp.
AU 1000 became the "cooking" model while the Coupe and four-door Limousine came with the
more powerful 1000s engine, of 55 b.hp. With customer dissatisfaction, slackening sales,
and heavy cost for warranty repairs, the Mercedes-Benz management opted to put a four-cylinder,
four-stroke engine into the D.K.W. F 192 and thus the modern Audi was born in 1966.
It had been rumored that a new and greatly improved two-stroke engine was being developed by
Auto Union, but by the time this engine finally appeared, in 1967, it was too late to save the
two-stroke D.K.W. car. Another firm was proposing to build the engine for fire pumps and such
applications, but little was heard of it subsequently.