This car was found in the late 1980s in a warehouse in the industrial area in Frankfurt. The warehouse was rented by nine DKW lovers and filled to the ceiling with DKW parts and cars. A few of the DKW-friends had given up their hobby, leaving the others with a rent they couldn’t pay any longer. They had to rent a smaller warehouse. From lack of space, some DKW's and parts including this Coupe had to be sold. The previous owner, Mr. W., had begun the restoration but did not make much progress.

The Dutch DKW-fan Mr. V. bought the car, despite the advice of a friend. First, many parts had to be bought or made, in order to be able to build off the bare bodywork. Secondly, the model was completely unknown. Despite the doubt, the car was bought for DM 2,750,-- and brought to the Netherlands. For this price the risk was minimal because the loose parts would yield enough to cover the costs.

Arrived in the Netherlands the car was critically examined. The headlights came from a NSU and the grill was made of perforated sheet. The Coupe had a 2 stroke race engine. The bodywork showed that the car was intensely used and full of dents and scratches. The car started live at the technical college Kaiserslautern in 1968. The base for the construction of the Coupe is a DKW 1000 S De Luxe (model 62) built in 1963.

To reduce the body in its original state was not easy. On the pictures you couldn’t see much more than a bare body shell, where the flowing Coupe line was barely recognizable. Mr. V. used the nose and the bumper of a Audi 60, which fitted properly. For the rear lights round Hella lamps were used. This round lamps adapted better in the design than the original rectangular lamps. Recently round headlights were mounted also. Further used components are the front window of a Porsche, rear window from a Fiat 850 Sport, fitted upside down and the fuel filler cap of an NSU Sport. Because the non-original items were selected with care, the design of the 1.83-metre-wide car was not spoiled and became a beautiful balanced design.

The car is by Mr. V. sandblasted and repainted in the original red color. Also the original engine was built in, but Mr V. didn’t like it. The Coupe had a top speed of 185 km/h and was for daily use just too restless. Stationary the engine turned 3,500 rpm. With the now built-in standard engine the car has a top speed of 125 km/h.

Source: Auto Union Veteranen Club; Club-Nachrichten; Nr. 58; Oktober 1989

More information about the history :Auto Union 1000 Sport Coupe