The NSU “Uruguay”, the name by which this model was colloquially known in Neckarsulm, is one of the most exclusive and singular members of the NSU family. Between 1969 and 1971, the NSU importer in Montevideo manufactured about 500 units of this angular station wagon in its P6 and P10 variants.
It is a square model, as if drawn with a square and square. The NSU Uruguay did not fit the late 1960s NSU car design language at all.
This is how it happened. In 1968, the NSU importer in Uruguay, Quintanar, began to produce and market practically on its own a station wagon using technical sub-assemblies of the NSU Prinz 4 with a two-cylinder engine. By the end of that year, the company had sold 140 units. But the importer wanted more, especially a more powerful engine, preferably a four-cylinder.
In May 1969 a meeting was held at the Neckarsulm plant to clarify whether this was feasible. For this purpose, a sample bodywork of the NSU Uruguay was sent by plane to Neckarsulm, which the brand’s engineers used to manufacture a prototype.
In the end, the NSU Prinz 1000’s four-cylinder engine would not fit in the engine compartment without major modifications, but it would fit in the rear of the car. Quintanar’s representatives did not seem concerned about the considerable loss in cargo volume that the transformation would entail, nor about the long list of problems raised by the Neckarsulm Technical Development department. Apart from a few “easy-to-resolve complaints”, the Darmstadt inspection authorities gave the NSU station wagon a positive rating and gave it the green light.
Thus, between 1969 and 1971 some 500 examples of the P6 and P10 models left the assembly line in South America. In 1971, NSU withdrew from the Uruguayan market, which also sealed the fate of the “Uruguay”. Today, the NSU P10 prototype, the first and only of its kind to drive on German roads, is one of the most unique and distinctive models in AUDI AG’s collection of historic vehicles.
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