The NSU Rennfox Dolphin and the Rennmax Blue Whale are two motorcycles specially optimized for the best aerodynamic performance, which achieved numerous prestigious victories in the 1950s. The Neckarsulm-based NSU company conducted its first aerodynamic research in the wind tunnel and applied them in competition and record races. On the occasion of NSU's 150th anniversary, Audi Tradition presents some of these special vehicles.
Aerodynamics at NSU: In the late 1960s, the NSU Ro 80 became famous for its futuristic and aerodynamic shape, with a wedge body that offered a drag coefficient of 0.35. The Ro 80 set a new milestone among production cars and was voted “Car of the Year” in 1967, among other things for its design and its innovative Wankel engine.
But two decades earlier, NSU motorcycles already featured highly aerodynamic designs, achieving notable victories on international circuits and setting numerous world records.
One of the drivers of the record-breaking ambitions that were forged in Neckarsulm was Wilhelm Herz, an experienced motorcycle racer who had already worked for NSU for several years, achieving numerous successes with the brand. In 1948, he finally convinced NSU development officials to support his record-breaking plans with a design by aerodynamics pioneer Reinhard Freiherr von Koenig-Fachsenfeld. Due to its unique shape and unusual length, Fachsenfeld's vehicle received the nickname “record cigar” at NSU.
His promising design underwent extensive testing, but the company halted plans to break the record when Herz suffered an accident. Since no other NSU pilot wanted to fly the “record cigar”, Walter Froede, then head of the NSU development department, stopped the project. But the plans were not canceled completely. The company's approach and other aerodynamic concepts bore fruit in other areas: in April 1951, NSU motorcycles took part in drag races on the Munich-Ingolstadt autobahn.
Herz drove an NSU with a supercharged 500 cubic centimeter engine and a unique fairing whose distinctive pointed front clearly recalled the sea creature that originally inspired aerodynamic engineers. With the Dolphin I, Herz reached a top speed of 290 km/h (180 mph), a world record! The year 1951 was an impressive one for NSU, as the brand set eight new world speed records.
It was that same year when graphic designer Gustav Adolf Baumm contacted NSU. Baumm presented his own record-breaking vehicle project, which went far beyond Fachsenfeld's concept and placed the rider lying on his back, allowing the motorcycle to have a height of only 75 centimeters. Using a modified ironing board, Baumm convinced Froede of the workability of his design and received financial and technical support from NSU. After successfully introducing its first motorcycle, known as the “Baumm deckchair” or “flying lawn chair”, NSU awarded a contract to Baumm in 1952 and, together with the technical department, developed the “Baumm I” and the “Baumm II”, with which they achieved excellent results in terms of air resistance coefficients. The “lawn chairs” (in Spanish, “hammocks” or “loungers”) did not meet many of the most common requirements of a motorcycle, starting with comfort; and were totally unsuitable for relaxing in the garden. However, they broke records, and that is why they received the nickname “flying lawn chairs.” As a designer and pilot, in 1954 Baumm managed to set a total of eleven world records in the categories from 50 to 175 cubic centimeters.
While Baumm's “flying lawn chair” was designed primarily for breaking speed records, NSU used other aerodynamic concepts in racing. In 1954, NSU won all the races in which it participated with the NSU Rennmax Dolphin model in the 250 cubic centimeter category, achieving doubles, triplets and even reaching the first four positions. That same year, at the Solitude race near Stuttgart, the full fairing known as the “Blue Whale” was used for the first time. Compared to the Rennmax with Dolphin fairing, the Blue Whale fairing allowed for even higher speeds. In the first race, drivers Werner Haas and Rupert Hollaus took first and second place, respectively. In 1954 Haas won the World Championship and the German Championship of 250 cc with a “Blue Whale”, while in the 350 cc category, Hermann Paul Müller won the title of German champion for NSU with a Rennmax Blue Whale modified with 288 cubic centimeters of displacement.
In the summer of 1956 NSU continued its streak of speed records. The famous salt lake Bonneville Salt Flats, located in Utah and known for being one of the most emblematic places for speed tests, provided the ideal setting for the brand's exploits, which prepared a 22-meter-wide track.
HP Müller set several speed records with a Baumm II and reached a speed of 242 km/h (150 mph) with a 125 cc NSU Rennfox. That same year, Wilhelm Herz piloted a Baumm IV and a Dolphin III. The fully faired Dolphin III, with its characteristic rear fin, had a special mission: Herz wanted to drive it faster than anyone had ever driven a motorcycle and, despite less than ideal conditions and a series of adversities that forced To make on-the-spot changes to the motorcycle, Herz set out to break the record on August 4. NSU General Manager Gerd Stieler von Heydekampf and Technical Director Viktor Frankenberger had accompanied the team, and a radio station was reporting on the ground from Utah. The effort paid off: Herz reached a top speed of 339 km/h, setting a new world record and impressively demonstrating Neckarsulm's expertise in motorcycle construction and its mastery of aerodynamics.
“Windschnittig”: new exhibition at the Audi museum mobile
The maximum performance in terms of speed and the best values in fuel consumption are just two aspects directly related to aerodynamics. In its current exhibition “Windschnittig” (Aerodynamics, in German), Audi Tradition takes all those interested in technology on a journey through the history of aerodynamics. The new special exhibition at the Audi museum mobile in Ingolstadt, which can be visited until June 9, 2024, presents the basic aerodynamic concepts of the time up to 1945 and introduces the pioneers of aerodynamic research.
Edmund Rumpler, Paul Jaray and the aforementioned Reinhard Freiherr von Koenig-Fachsenfeld are names that anyone who studies the history of aerodynamics cannot ignore. At the beginning of the 20th century, these three engineers began to adapt the shapes of automobile bodies to the flow of air.
Visitors to the “Windschnittig” exhibition will find more than a dozen great pieces, including rare and unique vehicles. The second part of the exhibition, entitled “Form vollendet” (Perfect Form, in German), tells the history of aerodynamics after the Second World War and is currently on display at the August Horch Museum in Zwickau. It will arrive at the Audi museum mobile in July 2024.
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