Audi Type SS

Audi Type SS
Overview
Manufacturer Audi
Also called Audi Zwickau
Audi 20 / 100
Production 1929-1932
Assembly Zwickau, Germany
Layout FR layout
Powertrain
Engine 5130 cc 8-cylinder
(design Rickenbacker)
Dimensions
Wheelbase 3,500 mm (140 in)
Length 4,965 mm (195.5 in)
Width 1,780 mm (70 in)
Height 1,870 mm (74 in)

The Audi Type SS was a large, eight-cylinder-powered sedan/saloon car introduced by Audi in 1929 in succession to the Type R "Imperator".

Jørgen Skafte Rasmussen, the Danish-born entrepreneurial industrialist who had purchased Audi-Werke in 1928, had previously, in 1927, purchased the manufacturing plant of the bankrupt Detroit-based Rickenbacker business and shipped it home to Germany. He installed it in a factory he owned just outside Zschopau, near to Audi's own Zwickau plant. The plan was to build large, relatively inexpensive US-style "Rasmussen engines" for sales to other German auto-makers. The plan failed in that Rasmussen failed to secure any orders for the engines, so he instead produced a couple of models of his own which used them. The Audi Type SS (Zwickau) was one of these.[1]

The 5,130 cc straight 8 engine developed a maximum output 100 PS (74 kW; 99 hp) at 3,000 rpm, which was relayed using a four-speed transmission through to the rear wheels and converted into a claimed top speed of 110 km/h (68 mph).[2]

The car had two leaf-sprung solid axles and hydraulically controlled brakes which operated on all four wheels.[2] The usual body configurations were available, including a four-door cabriolet and, with a manufacturer's recommended price of 12,950 Marks, a "Pullman-Limousine".[3]

Approximately 400 Audi Zwickaus were produced between 1929 and 1932, which for this size of car was a reasonable tally.[4]

Specifications

Production 1929-1932
Engine 8 Cylinder, 4 Stroke
Bore x Stroke 82.55 mm (3.3 in) x 120.65 mm (4.8 in)
Capacity 5130 cc
Power 100 PS (74 kW; 99 hp)
Top Speed 120 km/h (75 mph)
Empty Weight 2,100 kg (4,630 lb) (Chassis)
Electrical 12 Volt
Wheelbase 3,500 mm (137.8 in)
Track Front/Rear 1,440 mm (56.7 in) / 1,480 mm (58.3 in)

Sources

  1. Oswald, p. 42
  2. 1 2 Oswald, p. 45
  3. Oswald, pp. 44 & 45
  4. Oswald, pp. 42–43
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