One of A Kind 1955 DKW Schnellaster Pickup Headed for Gooding & Company Arizona Auction

[JHF]

There’s no doubt that the Arizona auctions each year are a hotbed to pick up some seriously cool old cars. Usually, blocks from auctioneers like Gooding & Company are filled with muscle cars, classics or vintage sportscars. DKW Schellasters… well, they’re not quite so common.

What you see here is a pickup version, a 1955 DKW Auto Union Schnellaster Tieflader 3=6 to be precise. Here’s what Gooding & Company says in this car, set to be sold as Lot [HASHTAG]#110[/HASHTAG] in their Scottsdale 2015 auction.

More Information & Photos: Gooding & Company

Estimate: $90,000 – $120,000 | Without Reserve

Chassis: 22507185

Highlights:

• Fully Detailed Restoration Completed to Show Standards
• Innovative 2-Stroke 3-Cylinder Engine and Rack-and-Pinion Steering
• Known Early History from Audi Archives
• Striking Original Javabraun Exterior Livery
• The Sole Fully Restored Example Known to Exist

Technical Specs:

• 896 CC Inline 2-Stroke 3-Cylinder Engine
• Solex 40 ICB Downdraft Carburetor
• 36 BHP at 4,000 RPM
• 4-Speed Manual Gearbox
• 4-Wheel Hydraulic Drum Brakes
• Independent Front Suspension with Transverse Leaf Spring
• Independent Rear Suspension with Trailing Arms and Torsion Bars

About this Vehicle:

The Schnellaster, or Rapid Transporter, was launched by West Germany’s DKW Auto Union in 1949. The Tiefader model, or Low Loader truck model, highlighted the Schnellaster’s versatility, with its ultra-low 16” deck height.

This 1955 DKW Schnellaster Tiefader is from the inaugural model year for the two-stroke, three-cylinder, roller-crank, “3=6” engine. Accompanied by a copy of its original laufkarte, or build sheet, from the Audi Archives, it was assembled at Ingolstadt, Germany, on March 9, 1955, and shipped directly to Peter Satori Motors in Pasadena, California. After removal from service in 1960, the Tiefader was stored in an industrial warehouse until it was discovered in Sacramento in 2012 by the current owner, a noted marque restorer. The consignor, who is known for tackling challenging European curios of the 1950s, commenced its frame-off restoration in late 2013. Numerous NOS and original parts were sourced from around the world, and thousands of hours of impassioned effort went into the show-quality restoration. The consignor reports that this is not only the only known Schnellaster Tiefader in North America, but it is also the only known fully restored example in existence.

Fresh, distinctive, and rare, this Tiefader is presented in its originally specified Javabraun (Java Brown) livery, rich with countless fascinating details, and ready to show and enjoy.

http://fourtitude.com/news/vintage-...ickup-headed-gooding-company-arizona-auction/

http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/...llaster-tieflader-36-pickup-heads-to-auction/

 

[Deleted member 1071]

Ah...leaves me recalling memories of my youth. Many of these populated German roads up until the late 1960s'. They have since become very rare.

 

[Mr Robert]

How did it look before this restoration? Some cars actually depreciate because of "fix-ups".

 

[JHF]

“DKW Elektro Wagen” Returns to Audi

• Restored one of two remaining DKW electric Schnellaster
• Small bus once in use on the North Sea island Wangerooge

Audi Tradition has added an outstanding new addition to its historical collection: a 1956 “DKW Elektro Wagen”. Between 1955 and 1962, the Auto Union GmbH in Ingolstadt produced the DKW Schnellaster van and roughly 100 of them as electric cars that the company mainly sold to energy companies , public utilities or battery manufacturers. Now, after an extensive restoration, one of these vans has enjoyed a homecoming of sorts. This particular DKW had spent its life on the North Sea island of Wangerooge, where cars with internal combustion engines are banned.

Normally, the DKW Schnellaster was equipped with a two-stroke engine. However, the “elektro wage”, however, was fitted instead with a five-kilowatt (kw) electric motor. Lead-acid batteries mounted laterally in two boxes had a nominal voltage of 80 volts and a capacity of 200 ampere-hours (AH).That was enough for a driving distance of up to 80 kilometers.At a speed of 40 km / h short distances were the main area of application in the city.

The whereabouts of only two of the approximately 100-built electric Schnellasters are known today.The newly introduced specimen from Audi Tradition was extensively restored over several years and continues to MOT testing again in working order.In this case, this e-DKW comes from the North Sea island Wangerooge, where it performed its reliable service for many years where, on the “car-free” island, transportation services were limited to only traditional zero-emission electric cars.

http://fourtitude.com/news/vintage-audi-news/dkw-elektro-wagen-returns-audi/

 

[Rainer271]

It's wonderful that such cars are still existing in the present and there are people who keep this car alive.