{"id":21068,"date":"2016-11-10T12:08:13","date_gmt":"2016-11-10T11:08:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.museonicolis.com\/en\/rsu-1971-ro-80\/"},"modified":"2024-07-12T12:04:35","modified_gmt":"2024-07-12T10:04:35","slug":"rsu-1971-ro-80","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.museonicolis.com\/en\/rsu-1971-ro-80\/","title":{"rendered":"NSU, 1971, RO 80"},"content":{"rendered":"

NSU \u201cRO 80\u2033, 1971<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The NSU<\/strong> (Neckarsulmer Strickmaschinen Union) was founded in 1873<\/strong> to produce knitting machines<\/strong>. In 1880 it began to produce bicycles<\/strong> and, by the end of the century, it was producing motorcycles<\/strong>. It began to make cars<\/strong> in 1905<\/strong> but production was interrupted in 1928 when the Hellsbronn factory was sold to Fiat<\/strong>. It was not until 1958<\/strong> that the German manufacturer re-started car<\/strong> production by presenting the famous Prinz<\/strong>, a small utility car which found considerable commercial success also in Italy.
\nIn the beginning of the 1950s, the NSU set up close relations with the engineer Felix Wankel<\/strong>, an all-time advocate of rotating piston engines<\/strong>. The result of this collaboration was the two-seater spider car, produced in 1964<\/strong>, with its precise and racy lines. Although it only had a 500cc engine<\/strong>, it could reach 150 km\/h<\/strong>.
\nWith the spider\u2019s good results, which had positively overcome the problems of wear and tear and reliability for which Wankel engines were renowned, the NSU proceeded by developing a medium-sized saloon, the RO 80<\/strong>, which was presented at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1967.
\n<\/strong>With its aerodynamic wedge-shaped lines<\/strong>, very low front and high and spacious boot, designed by Claus Luthe<\/strong>, and its optimal performances and smooth ride, enhanced by a lack of vibration from the rotating piston engine<\/strong>, the NSU RO 80 received a favourable welcome from the trade press, which nominated it as the Car of the Year<\/strong> in 1968<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\r\n\r\n \r\n