NSU Motorenwerke AG

NSU Motorenwerke AG (normally just NSU) was a German manufacturer of cars and motorcycles.

History

NSU began as a knitting machine manufacturer, established in the town of Neckarsulm in 1884 as the Neckarsulmer Strickmaschinenfabrik (Neckarsulm Knitting Machine Factory). The firm soon began making bicycles as well, and by 1892, bicycle manufacturing had completely replaced knitting machines. At about this time, the name NSU (from letters in Neckarsulm) began to be used.

Related Topics:
Knitting machine - Neckarsulm - 1884 - Bicycle - 1892

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In the early years of the 20th century, NSU motorcycles appeared, as a natural continuation of the bicycle business. 1905 saw the first NSU car. In 1969, the company was taken over by Volkswagen, who integrated NSU with Auto-Union, which owned the famous Audi brand. The new company was called Audi NSU Auto-Union A.G, the management of the firm moving to Audi's headquarters in Ingolstadt. The Neckarsulm factory survives to the present day as the second principal production plant for Audi vehicles.

Related Topics:
20th century - 1905 - 1969 - Volkswagen - Auto-Union - Audi - Ingolstadt

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NSU is primarily remembered today as the first licensee, and one of only three automobile companies, to produce cars for sale with Wankel engines. The company equipped their NSU Spider with a 498 cc single-rotor engine before licensing the technology to many companies. The NSU Ro 80 was the second mass-produced two-rotor Wankel-powered vehicle, though it was known for its poor reliability. In 1967, NSU and Citroën set up a common company, Comotor, to build these engines.

Related Topics:
Wankel engine - NSU Spider - NSU Ro 80 - 1967 - Citroën - Comotor

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Despite all the licenses, only Mazda continued the work. That company went on to perfect a durable Wankel engine family and a long-lived series of automobiles.

Related Topics:
Mazda - Wankel engine family

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