The German automobile brand Audi was founded in 1909 by August Horch and looks back on a varied company’s history. The first car of the Saxon brand, which now has its headquarters in Ingolstadt, entered the market in 1910.
The history of Audi
Due to a competition, the number "one" adorned the radiator of all vehicles of this make until 1939. In the tough economic times of the early 1930's the company united with Walker, DKW and Horch to form “Auto Union”. After the war, Auto Union was re-established in West Germany. Before the majority of the company was transferred to Volkswagen in 1964, Daimler-Benz had the majority rights in the company. In 1965, the brand name Audi was re-introduced, and four years later, the Automobile Works of Neckarsulm (NSU) were added. The Audi NSU Auto Union AG (public company) was finally converted to the Audi AG in 1985.
Audi, the Sports Make
Very early on, Audi acquired a good reputation in producing sports and touring cars. Audi made the headlines after participating in an Alpine trip. The Audi Type C acquired the nickname "Alpine Victor" due to the success in the years 1912 to 1914. The year before, the Audi type B was able to do the Alpine Rally. Furthermore, the Grand Prix racing cars of this traditional make successfully took part in motor sports events in the 1930’s.
The classic car models of Audi
The Audi Front (Type UW) is considered the first European car of the upper middle class and it was built from 1933 to 1944. In the 1970’s, another Audi classic car was put on the market, the small Audi 50 (Type 86). It was during the oil crisis when this classic car became a bestseller since it had a smaller engine than was usual at that time. The Audi 100 C2 was also very successful; it had the world's first five-cylinder gasoline engine. From 1976 to 1982 about 950,000 vehicles were produced. Experts divide Audi classic cars into two groups: the classic cars built before the war and post-war models. The latter, in contrast to the older models, are still widespread and mostly privately owned.