Rear-mounted, air-cooled cars are a common site at racetracks, persistently challenging their conventional, front-engine, water-cooled competition often with great success. We could be referring to Porsche of course, but in this case no. What was buzzing around Laguna Seca that caught our eye last August was another German air-cooled wonder—a 1967 NSU 1200TT. These diminutive, boxy cars are more common in Europe than in California and not much is known about them on this continent. With interest peaked, I investigated this interesting car to satisfy my curiosity.
NSU’s roots can be traced back to Riedlingeb, Germany, where in 1873, Christian Schmidt founded the company for the purpose of manufacturing knitting machines. In 1880, the company’s operations were relocated to Neckarsulm where in 1886 they started to produce bicycles that would be the first vehicles to be branded as NSU, around 1892 when knitting machine production ceased. In 1901, the company would introduce its first NSU motorcycle, and would participate in the very first Tourist Trophy race on the Isle of Man in 1907. Then, in 1905, the first NSU automobile was produced.
Unable to sell enough cars to become a volume manufacturer and under pressure from Dresdner Bank, NSU sold their recently completed factory in Heilbronn to Fiat in 1932, which assembled Fiat brand cars to be sold in Germany. Motorcycle production continued, however the NSU production facility in Neckarsulm was destroyed during World War ll. After the war, production of motorcycles resumed in the remains of their bombed-out facility as they rebuilt the building. Remarkably, the company would rise from the ashes of the war to become the largest manufacturer of motorcycles in the world by 1955, also making their mark in the post-war world by capturing four world speed records in 1951, 1953, 1954 and 1955, as well as successfully competing in TT (Tourist Trophy) races during the 1950s. In addition, Wilhelm Herz became the first man to break 200 mph on a motorcycle riding a supercharged NSU named the Delphin lll at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah in August of 1956.
The great success NSU was enjoying in the motorcycle industry allowed them to develop a car and re-enter the burgeoning European automobile market in the mid-1950s. At the Frankfurt Motor Show, in September 1957, NSU revealed the Prinz 1, promoting the new car with a marketing slogan of “Fahre Prinz und Du bist Konig” translated to “Drive a Prince and you are a King.” A small run of about 150 cars were built in 1957 before regular production of the Prinz 1 commenced in 1958. Only available as a two-door sedan, the Prinz 1 utilized a rear-mounted, 600-cc, two-cylinder, 20 hp, air-cooled engine.
In 1959, the Prinz ll was introduced, equipped with a 4-speed all-synchromesh transmission, replacing the crash-box used in the previous model. A year later brought the Prinz lll with a more powerful 30-hp engine and a new rear stabilizer bar. In 1958, NSU also released the Sport Prinz. This sporty variant was clothed in attractive Italian bodywork design designed by Franco Scaglione for Bertone and remained in production until 1968.
In 1961, NSU introduced the Prinz 4. Wearing an all-new body, it was shown for the first time at the 1961 Frankfurt Motor Show, in September of that year. Again, only available as a two-door sedan that was 149-inches long, riding on an 89-inch wheelbase. The styling cues resemble the 1960 Corviar, only on a smaller scale. Priced to compete with the Fiat 600 and the Austin Mini 850, standard equipment included an electric clock, a heater and parking lamps. The rear-mounted, 2-cylinder, 30-hp engine design was still influenced by NSU’s motorcycle technology, utilizing a camshaft driven by an eccentric rod with the engine and transmission sitting on top of the same housing. It also featured a clever Dynastart system that combined the starter and generator built into the crankcase.
For 1964, the Prinz 1000 was released and sporting a new engine. The new powerplant was a 1.1-liter, air-cooled, inline 4-cylinder SOHC unit producing 50 hp. In 1965, a new performance model added to the Prinz line up, the 1000 TT. A nod to NSU’s great motorcycle racing victories in the TT (Tourist Trophy), it featured a 55 hp powerplant that delivered lively performance combined with excellent handling, solid reliability and good gas mileage. The 1000 TT distinguished itself from the other Prinz models with quad headlights, a black band of trim on the front and a TT call out in the rear. NSU TT models became popular on racetracks and proved to be real competition for Gordini-tweaked Renaults, Abarth-Fiats, Mini Coopers, BMW 700s and others.
NSU On Track
There had been racing successes for NSU before World War II: The 1.3-liter 5/20 and the six-cylindered 1.6-liter 6/30 PS sports models were light and nimble enough (despite their side-valve engines) to perform quite respectably, and their racing successes gained them some attention. The 75 mph win of the 5/15 NSU in the 1923 Avusrennen, in which a team of three cars from the Neckarsulm factory finished in a space of only 42 seconds apart after more than an hour’s racing, generated accolades and attention particularly.
The 6/30 also performed well on the Avussrennen track in 1926, where the German Grand Prix was held. NSU swept the small class finishing first, second, third and fourth. The winning car of Kloeble averaged 78.3 mph, only six less than the legendary Caracciola achieved with his straight-eight supercharged Mercedes in the larger class. The 6/30 was also available from the factory in supercharged 6/60 form with a Roots blower.
NSU dropped the “Prinz” moniker from the 1000 in 1967, in favor of just naming it the NSU 1000. The big news for 1967 was the new 1200TT, fitted with a more powerful 1.2-liter engine putting out 65 hp.
The editors at Motor Magazine were impressed, expressing their thoughts in their September 1967 issue:
N.S.U.’s recent addition to their range, the 1200TT, is a well-finished car with a very lively performance. It is a logical development of the line, using the 1000 series bodywork with a modified version of the 1100SC air-cooled engine. Really, it is this motor which gives the car its appeal, for without its sparkling performance the 1200TT would be just another good, small car. It is a little more than that.
For a car of its size it is very nippy. From the inside the engine noise is quite low, although we were told that it sounded very noisy from the outside when accelerating hard. Making the motion is the tuned s.o.h.c. 4cylinder 1,177-c.c. engine, but the gilt on this gingerbread consists of a couple of downdraught Solex 34PCI carburetters. The engine uses an alternator and has the compression ratio upped to 9.2 to x, while the other modification is an oil cooler located just inside the near-side rear air vent. Breathing deeply through the Solexes, 65 b.h.p. (DIN) at 5,5oo r.p.m. (78 S.A.E.) are developed. Obviously such a tweeky engine is not going to develop loads of excess torque but at anything approaching 4,000 r.p.m.—it revs freely to seven—the punch really comes in. It would be interesting to know just what percentage of the car’s £847 price tag is spent on the engine and gearbox.
In 1969, NSU was merged with Volkswagen into Auto Union AG forming the Audi Auto Union AG. Production of the NSU Prinz ceased in 1973, after more than half a million of the little cars were produced, (as well as some fascinating rotary-powered cars, but that is another tale to be told).
The NSU earned a reputation as “Giant-Killers” in circuit racing, and Per Eliasen, the owner of our feature car, witnessed NSUs—with their trunk lids half-open for more fresh air to cool their engines—blazing around tracks of his native Denmark as a teenager. “I took automotive lessons when I was a teenager,” recalls Eliasen “and as it turned out, my teacher was road-racing an NSU TT at the time. He focused a lot of his teachings on the engineering of the NSU engines, which gave me my first taste of NSUs.”
In the 1970s, Eliasen bought a BMW 2002 that he was auto-crossing on dirt roads and in gravel pits, but had not gotten into road racing. Later, he moved to Colorado where he acquired another BMW 2002, participating in various driving schools and track day events. On a trip back to Denmark in 2007, he attended a historic/vintage racing event in downtown Copenhagen. There he saw a number of NSUs racing and what Eliasen says were “exhibiting fantastic performances.” Perhaps it a was a feeling of nostalgia, but sight of these “little boxy cars with big windows” tearing around Copenhagen reignited the spark for an NSU racecar and he was totally smitten.
1967 NSU 1200 TT
Back home in Colorado, his son suggested he buy an NSU and get into racing. “Son, I’m a gearhead, but I have never heard of any NSUs making it to the USA,” replied Eliasen. The idea of finding an old NSU in the U.S. seemed unlikely, but he gave it a shot anyway. “That Summer (2007), I asked my car friends if anyone knew of any NSUs for sale in the U.S,” Eliasen remembers. “To my big surprise, I quickly found a couple of NSU 1200TTs for sale in the Denver area, plus a great stash of parts.” Both of the 1200TTs were too rusty and in very poor condition overall to be restored or create a racecar, so the search was on for a car with a solid body.
About 25 years ago when he was racing his BMW 2002, Eliasen got to know fellow racer and BMW repair shop owner Art Krill. Krill sold his shop, in Boulder, about 15 years ago and moved to South West Colorado. After losing touch with Krill, they reconnected through the RMVR (Rocky Mountain Vintage Racing) Club. While they were both attending a club race in 2009, Eliasen told Krill about his desire to go racing with an NSU and about his desire to acquire a clean body for his project. Krill owned two NSUs, including one with a clean body that he was also going to use as racecar, but had too many projects and so agreed to sell it to him. The car, a 1967 1200TT, was basically just a shell with no engine or interior, but the body was excellent. Finally, it was time to start the project.
Armed with a clean body shell, two complete parts cars, a substantial collection of spare parts and a lot of enthusiasm, the build began with the installation of a roll bar and sourcing performance parts from some NSU parts specialists in Europe. High compression Mahle pistons and a hot cam were obtained from a fellow NSU driver in Denmark, who advised him on the best way to set the car up for racing.
During the build process, Eliasen was fortunate enough to get to know Danish racing legend Leif Pedersen. Pedersen has 8 or 9 Danish Championships to his name, running a pair of NSU TT, TTS cars in the 1000-1300-cc engine class back in the 1970s and was able to offer his advice on the build and provide some race parts. Eliasen has also attended several NSU Treffens in Germany and Denmark.
Since the 1970s, the NSU 1000, 1000TT and 1200TT have been widely used for hill climbs, road racing and auto-cross. Currently there is a group of racers in Germany calling themselves “Kamp der Zwerge” (Fight of the Dwarfs) that race NSU, Mini, Fiat Abarth and Renault 8 amongst other in their class.
NSU cars have a large and loyal following in Europe and the 3-4 day NSU Treffens are well attended and he was able to source some great parts and network with other NSU racers and restorers. Eliasen reports that the 2012 NSU Treffen, held at NSU’S hometown of Neckarsulm, had over 500 cars as well as a great number of NSU motorcycles and scooters at the event. On one trip back to Denmark, Eliasen purchased a semi-close gearbox which he stuffed in his suitcase and flew home with. (The gearbox was small and only weighed 20 lbs).
In 2012, after three years of parts gathering and restoration, the car received a new paint job and reassembly was completed. Eliasen obtained his competition license from the RMVR in Colorado the same year. “It took from around 2012 to 2016 to really get the car fine-tuned like it is today,” Says Eliasen. “It took awhile to find someone to work on this weird little car, but I did find someone. I did some work myself and sourced nearly all the parts, but full credit goes to my race tech Pete Christensen of Total Precision Engines in Fort Collins, Colorado. Without his skill and expertise, I could not have gotten the car to where it is today.” The finished car weighs in around 1,200 pounds. The 12:1 compression, 1241-cc engine, feed by two double sidedraft 40-mm Webers, delivers 104 hp at 7,500 rpm measured at the rear wheels.
As of 2018, it will be Eliasen’s sixth year racing his 1967 NSU 1200TT and he says it is a real blast to drive. He ran the car at the 2018 Rolex Motorsports Reunion and Pre-Reunion, where we caught up to him to talk about the car and do a photo shoot.
When asked what it was like to drive on the track, he described it like this:
“On the track, the NSU resembles racing a go-cart! With its independent suspension and dialed in with aggressive negative camber in all four corners, the car corners like a Porsche 911. You don’t lift in the corners but rather, you step on the gas and the TT hunkers down like running on rails! Surely you can provoke oversteer, but with the engine placed almost above the rear axle, it is more forgiving than a 911. It is almost like you ‘dance’ with the car when you lift a bit going into a corner and thereby have the rear-end start coming around – but then you catch it again by nailing the gas, and voila! – the car hunkers down and goes where you point it to go! Conversely, with the majority of the weight in the back and with the braking biased towards the rear, I am able to brake very late when approaching a corner. Faster cars will pass me on the straights but once we get to the corners, I catch up and stay with them through the corners until the next straight-away. Then we repeat the procedure! Absolute a hoot to drive!”
SPECIFICATIONS
Engine modifications:
Balanced, Alu-flywheel
Balanced crankshaft
Balanced con-rods
12:1 compression Venolia pistons (after burning a hole in my Mahle pistons a few years ago…..)
Sälzer Motorsports 336 degree camshaft
Carburetion: 2x double side-draft Weber 40mm, using factory U-shaped intake manifold
Sälzer Motorsports valve springs (good up to 9,000 RPM)
Modified cylinder heads, with 40mm intake valves/36 mm exhaust valves
Exhaust: Custom 4-2-1 exhaust header
Spiess all-aluminum oil pan (Spiess was the very first company to produce race parts for NSU cars & still produce select race parts for NSUs)
Extra-large front-mounted oil cooler was installed to keep the oil temps below 220 degrees
Engine size: about 1,250cc (born with about 1,188cc)
Fuel: 110 Octane/leaded
Engine output: 104 HP @ 7,500 RPM, as measured on the rear wheels
Suspension/brakes:
Bilstein shocks
Sälzer coil springs
3 degree negative camber/front & 1.0 degree negative camber/rear
Stock disk brakes/front
Stock drum brakes/rear – Finned, aluminum drums with steel liner – pretty advanced for an economy car!
Modified rear axle stubs
SS brake lines
Wheels: 7×13” Maxi Lite Alu-wheels (Made in Germany) w/staggered off-set for the rear wheels
Tires: AVON Historic / Hoosier TD
Weight: Appox 1,200 lbs
