NSU Ro 80

The NSU Ro 80 was a technologically advanced large sedan-type automobile produced by the German firm of NSU from 1967 until 1977. Most notable was the powertrain; a 115 bhp (86 kW), 995 cc twin-rotor Wankel engine driving the front wheels through a clutchless semi-automatic transmission. It was voted Car of the Year for 1968 by European motoring writers. NSU Ro 80. ... NSU Ro 80. ... This article is about the type of car. ... A small variety of cars, the most popular kind of automobile. ... NSU Motorenwerke AG (normally just NSU) was a German manufacturer of cars and motorcycles. ... 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For the album by Ash, see 1977 (album). ... Wankel Engine in Deutsches Museum Munich, Germany The Wankel rotary engine is a type of internal combustion engine, invented by German engineer Felix Wankel, which uses a rotor instead of reciprocating pistons. ... Front wheel drive is the most common form of engine/transmission layout used in modern automobiles, where the engine drives the front wheels. ... Semi-automatic transmission, or clutchless manual transmission, is a system which uses electronic sensors, processors and actuators to do gear shifts on the command of the driver. ... Car of the Year is a phrase usually considered to have been invented by Motor Trend magazine in the 1950s for their annual award for best automobile. ...

Also the body design was bold: Ro 80 doesn't definitely look a typical 40-years old car.

Unfortunately for NSU, the car developed an early reputation for unreliability it could never escape. The Wankel engine in particular suffered from heavy wear on the rotor tip seals, among many other problems, and some early cars required a completely rebuilt engine before 30,000 miles (50,000 km). Poor understanding of the Wankel engine by dealers and mechanics did not help this situation. By the 1970 model year, most of these problems were resolved, but the damage to the car's reputation and NSU's financial situation were irreparable. NSU were acquired by Volkswagen in 1969. 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... The model year of a product is a number used to describe approximately when a product was produced. ... Volkswagen [literally: peoples car] (also known as VW) is an automobile manufacturer based in Wolfsburg, Germany. ... 1969 (MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday For other uses, see Number 1969. ...

NSU Ro 80 club meeting in Antwerp, 1993

Other technological features of the Ro 80 aside from the powertrain were the four wheel disc brakes, still a rarity among cars of its class at the time. The front brakes were mounted inboard, reducing the unsprung weight. The suspension was independent on all four wheels, with MacPherson struts at the front and semi-trailing arm suspension at the rear, both of which are space-saving designs commonly used today. Power assisted rack and pinion steering was used, again foreshadowing modern designs. Image File history File links NSU Ro 80 club meeting in Antwerp in Belgium, 1993. ... Image File history File links NSU Ro 80 club meeting in Antwerp in Belgium, 1993. ... Unsprung weight is a term used to describe that part of a vehicles mass that is directly connected to the wheels, and not isolated through the suspension. ... A simple MacPherson strut suspension on the left front wheel of a rear-wheel drive vehicle. ... A trailing-arm suspension is an automobile suspension design in which one or more arms (or links) are connected between (and perpendicular to) the axle and the chassis. ... A rack and pinion is a pair of gears which convert rotational motion into linear motion. ...

The styling, by Claus Luthe who was head of design at NSU and later BMW, was considered very modern at the time and still holds up well; the Ro 80 has been part of many gallery exhibits of modern industrial design. The large glass area foreshadowed 1970s designs such as Citroën's. The shape was also slippery, with a drag coefficient of 0.355 (practically unequalled for the era, although average for modern cars). Citroën is a French automobile manufacturer, started in 1919 by André Citroën, today part of PSA Peugeot Citroën. ... The drag coefficient (Cd or Cx) is a number that describes a characteristic amount of aerodynamic drag caused by fluid flow, used in the drag equation. ...

Series production started in October 1967: the last examples came off the production line in April 1977. Only 37,400 vehicles were produced during a ten year production run.

External links

• http://www.ro80.nl/framemainengels.htm