Forgotten Auto Union realised and debuts at the 2024 Festival of Speed

In 1932, Auto Union was formed from the merger of Audi, DKW, Horch, and Wanderer, the four-ring logo representing the coming together of those marques. The same year, the rules for the new 750kg formula in grand prix racing were published, and Auto Union commissioned the Stuttgart office of Ferdinand Porsche to develop a suitable racing car. Work began on the development of the Type 22 in March 1933. A year later, Hans Stuck set a world record driving the car at the Avus circuit in Berlin.

Auto Union was first to build a mid-engined grand prix car, and it would have blazed the same trail with street legal cars had the race car based Type 52 made it to production. Internal documents referred to the car as the 'Schnellsportswagen' (literally ‘fast sports car’), though it’s more akin to what we’d think of as a GT car today. Had the Type 52 come to fruition, it’s likely to have seen action in events like the Mille Miglia road race and endurance events such as the Le Mans 24-hour.

The first sketches were made in 1933 and it appears that the project was abandoned in 1935. Thankfully, much of the development trial was left in records. A ladderframe would underpin the car and it would use the 4.4-litre 16-cylinder engine from the Type 22. To allow it to run in regular fuel, the compression ratio would be reduced and the gear ratio of the supercharger would also be lowered. The result would be around 200PS (147kW) at just 3650rpm.

Suspension would differ between Types 22 and 52. The single-seater’s transverse leaf springs and friction dampers would be deleted in favour of longitudinal torsion spring suspension with hydraulic dampers. Other alterations included the relocation of the fuel tank. Being based on a single-seater, the Type 52 has a central driver’s seat with a staggered passenger seat on each side. 

To recreate the car, Audi Tradition turned to Crosthwaite & Gardner. Having previously constructed the Silver Arrows for Audi’s historic vehicle collection, the Sussex-based company was up to the task of custom-making and hand-crafting all the components from scratch, based on the documentation available.

Some details have been lost to time. Auto Union was dissolved during the Russian occupation following World War II, so many files and photographs didn’t survive. However, the remaining plans gave a clear vision of the goals the engineers were pursuing. Audi Tradition and Crosthwaite and Gardner were in constant communication about the finer details, and Timo Witt, the head of Audi’s historical vehicle collection, had to make the call on the finer details. In some cases, that meant altering the specification.

Witt says: “One insight that came out of our intensive exchange is that the developers in the 1930s would probably have had to adjust some of the technical details in the course of testing... We had to lengthen the Auto Union Type 52’s wheelbase compared to the original design documents because it was technically unavoidable in combination with other components such as the front suspension, engine, steering, and transmission.” Another deviation was to retain the Grand Prix engine in its race-going form. In 6-litre form, it produces 520PS (382kW).

With the build completed in 2023, the Type 52’s debut takes place at this weekend’s Goodwood Festival of Speed presented by Mastercard. Fittingly, one of the men behind the wheel will be Hans-Joachim Stuck, son of the man who made his name racing for Auto Union in the 1930s.

After his first drive of the car, he said: “When I occasionally drive the Auto Union Type C at Audi Tradition events, the excitement and fascination of the motorsport fans is palpable. It is a great honour and pleasure to drive the Auto Union Type 52 at Goodwood for the first time. The Schnellsportwagen is simply breathtaking. Its sound is incredibly sonorous – like it came from an orchestra. And the design of the Auto Union Type 52 will practically blow you away – it’s genius!”

It will also be driven by Le Mans legend Tom Kristensen.

The 2024 Goodwood Festival of Speed is underway, and you can watch every moment of the action on our live stream right here on GRR!

Goodwood photography courtesy of Jordan Butters.