Spider first, then Ro80 followed by bankruptcy for NSU

0 0 September 12, 2024 Edit this post

by David Burrell

NSU debuted the world’s first Wankel rotary-engined production car at the Frankfurt Auto Show in September, 1963 amid much publicity and anticipation.

Like all NSU cars to date, the engine was in the rear.

To showcase the engine, NSU created a convertible called the Spider.

Front disc brakes were standard and all-independent suspension added to the sporty vibe.

The rotary engine fascinated all and sundry at the time.

Its light weight, compact dimensions and fewer internal components predicted a great future.

In the December, 1963 edition of the long-gone Australian Motor Sports and Automobiles magazine, writer Simon Ford, predicted that:

“This will be an historical event for the motoring world, signifying the first real challenge that the reciprocating piston engine has faced during its 60-odd years of complete dominance.”

The rotary was the invention of Felix Wankel.

From the mid-1920s onwards, Wankel worked at Mercedes and BMW and obtained a series of patents for his engine ideas.

During 1935-45 Felix helped the German government, which is how some biographies explain how he spent his time back then.

The French were not impressed with his war time efforts and imprisoned Felix for a few months after the end of WWII.

He was not allowed to get back to his engine until 1951, linking with NSU.

A running protype of the engine was ready by 1957, and that’s when many companies started to take an interest.

Aviation company Curtiss-Wright secured the US rights to the engine in 1958.

In 1960 an NSU Prince became the first fully-driveable prototype.

Mazda signed up in 1961.

During the 1960s and '70s, GM, Ford, American Motors, Nissan, Mercedes, Alfa-Romeo, Rolls-Royce and Chrysler, all considered the rotary as a possible engine of the future.

Each of these companies was well aware of the rotary’s reliability problems and excessive fuel consumption issues.

But each had a belief that any problems would be easily fixed by the application of their technical prowess and money.

GM was especially confident it would overcome the rotary’s idiosyncrasies.

Its then president, Ed Cole, envisioned multiple rotor configurations powering GM’s vast range of cars.

Even Holden were gearing up to put one in a Torana.

But after spending close to a billion dollars in today’s money, GM gave it away as a lost cause.

All was not good at NSU, either.

Despite all the publicity and excitement about the rotary, sales of the Spider were not spectacular.

The engine’s unreliability meant plenty of warranty issues.

NSU pressed on and debuted its Ro80 sedan in 1967.

And we all know the story about its unreliability.

NSU was bankrupted by the Ro80 and the rotary’s problems.