• Dual tone rally paintwork

• Recently registered in the UK

Made by Auto Union, this unconventional saloon from Germany first made an appearance in 1957. Powered by a three cylinder, two stroke engine this 1000cc car was available as a two door, four door, sports coupe and three door estate. Built in Düsseldorf, an impressive 171,008 Auto Union 1000s were produced during the six-year model run. The pretty 1000 Sp sports version continued in production for another two years, until 1965, notching up sales around 5,000 for the hard-top version and 1,640 for the cabriolet.

In 1963, the Auto Union 1000 gave way in Europe to its successor, the contemporary-looking DKW F102 - the last model to wear either the Auto Union or DKW badges before the company was acquired by Volkswagen and the dormant Audi brand was resurrected. Auto Union made a few waves in the rally world during its life, between 1954 and 1964 DWK drivers won more than 100 championship titles in various cars, one of them being the Auto Union 1000.

Little is known about its life but from the information provided by the previous owner this DKW was imported last year from a collector in Ireland, who acquired it from Holland. 

The car was then UK Registered and purchased through us, but the current owner has opted to re-sell the car due to not being for him.

The car will be sold with copies of the original registration, an English workshop manual, various tuning documents and a detailed list of all recent works including part numbers for replacement parts that have been fitted. The vehicle also comes with a current UK V5C.

The exterior two tone rally paint scheme looks great, the rally replica style really turns heads but it does have a few areas that would require attention. The front bumper has some paint damage, trim on the side of the car will need securing and there’s a deep scratch on the drivers side rear. 

There’s a few other age related blemishes around the car, mainly around the rear window and door handles. Inside the engine bay things are tidy, the two stroke engine sits comfortably, no signs of anything concerning.

Inside things look just as cool, the cream leather seats pair up the red and white door cards lovely! A white steering wheel sits in front of the black plastic dash and red needle gauges. The vendor points out to us that the interior does need some attention;

Areas that would need attention are the headlining which is hanging down and the rear ledges paint is cracked and flaked and the door cards do need some attention.

A red roll cage has also been fitted to add to the rally theme.

Over the years the car has had quite a lot of work done including a body off restoration. The chassis is very good and straight and shows no signs of rust or crash damage. The bodyshell has had repairs to the sills and wheel arch tubs which appears to have been done to a good standard.

There is no history of it competing in motorsport but it has a half roll cage and other rally equipment. There is a set of harnesses in the boot but they are very old so not fitted.

In its current ownership it has had the braking system overhauled including new front brake calipers (which were sourced from a Mercedes S280) The engine appears to be a later replacement and is fitted with electronic ignition. It has also been converted to 12 volt electrics with an alternator for reliability.

It has had 4 new tyres and the fuel tank was recently repaired. It also has a recent electric fuel pump when the original failed. The current owner has recently had the throttle and gear linkage repaired as well.   

Without question this is a rare, super cool vehicle that will put a huge smile on your face. The quirky looks and unique engine you’ll never get tired of! It is certainly not a restoration project as the vendor notes; it does need some general attention to the interior and exterior, but the engine and body seem sound.

The DKW 1000 is reducing in numbers yearly, so without question this is a great opportunity to own something fairly unknown to the modern generation and with a fair amount of work carried out there’s a good foundation for a future owner to take it to perfection.