There are roughly speaking two parts to the history of Audi: the early history and the modern era. Audi was formed by August Horch after he left the company that bore his name. Horch means Hark! which in Latin reads ‘Audi’.
In 1932 DKW, Wanderer, Horch and Audi joined forces to become Auto-Union. All four companies continued to produce cars under their own names until 1939. After the war, the former Audi factory in Zwickau (now in East Germany) restarted assembly of the pre-war models in 1949. They were renamed IFA. The factory in Zwickau manufactured the Trabant until closure in 1991.
Modern Era
Auto Union started up again in 1949, now based in Ingolstadt, building DKWs. In 1958 Daimler-Benz took over. In 1964 Volkswagen took a controlling interest in the company. Auto Union merged with NSU in 1969 to become Audi NSU Auto Union AG. The modern AUDI AG was formed in 1985.
Located in Hamburg city centre, the Protoyp Museum is housed in a historic factory building. The collection consists mainly of Porsche and VW passenger and sports cars. One of the highlights is the ‘Ur Porsche’ Type 63 built in 1939.
Original 1939 Porsche Type 631939 Pre-production split window VW Beetle2017 Porsche 919 Hybrid LMP1
The racing car section also contains the Jordan 191 F1 (1991), the car in which Michael Schumacher started his Formula 1 career.
1960 Wendler-Porsche W/RS-001Basement exhibition area
In the basement there is an art gallery and a lounge area with an exhibition devoted to the famous German racing driver Wolfgang Graf Berghe von Trips.
This is the private collection, assembled over the course of many years, of car enthusiast and businessman, Dr.-Ing. Hans-Jochem Steim. It is located in the heart of the Black Forest (Schwartzwald) in Schramberg. The museum contains about 130 cars from the turn of the century to more recent times.
1907 Ford Model S next to a 1911 Ford Model TThe Mercedes-Benz sectionFord ThunderbirdVolkswagen Type 166 Schwimmwagen and Type 83 Kübelwagen both from 1943The museum building in Schramberg
The museum works together with the other museums in Schramberg, including the Auto und Uhrenwelt, reviewed here.
This museum, located in the Black Forest (Schwartzwald) in Germany, has over 220 vehicles on display. It provides an excellent overview of cars produced in the Federal Republic of Germany from 1945 to 1960. There is an impressive collection of microcars (or bubblecars) and motorcycles. At various locations throughout the 3 floors of exhibition space there are period-correct scenes of domestic life: a 1950s kitchen, living room etc., all decorated with consumer goods typical of the period.
Lineup of Messerschmitt microcarsA trio of NSU Prinz models, including the rare Wankel-engined Sport Prinz (r)1950s German kitchenEarly VW BeetlesBrutsch Mopeta
Address:
Auto- und Uhrenwelt Schramberg Gewerbepark H.A.U. 3/5 78713 Schramberg
