LOT 104

1966 NSU Wankel Spyder Coachwork by Carrozzeria Bertone Chassis no. 5601727 Engine no. KKM 502

Sold for CHF9,775 inc. premiumLot to be sold without reserve

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Lot 104

1966 NSU Wankel Spyder

The Bonmont Sale|29 June 2025, 14:00 CEST|Chéserex, Switzerland

1966 NSU Wankel Spyder
Coachwork by Carrozzeria Bertone
Chassis no. 5601727
Engine no. KKM 502

• First rotary-engined production car
• Present ownership since 2022
• Offered from a significant private collection
• Registered in Switzerland
• A rare survivor

With the launch of the Ewald Praxl-designed Prinz in 1957, NSU had re-established itself as a car manufacturer in its own. Only a few years later, the German firm would stun the motoring world when it introduced the first rotary-engined production car: the Wankel Spider. Launched in 1963, the Spider was the first motoring application of Dr Wankel's rotary 'piston' concept, which used a rotor with three convex sides rotating eccentrically in a figure-of-eight-shaped chamber. Its first application was as a compressor or supercharger, the first actual engine being tested in 1957. This new power unit went into a roadster version of the Bertone-styled Sport-Prinz.

Sadly, Wankel's concept was ahead of the available technology, and the engine was bedevilled by rotor tip sealing problems. Subsequent developments by Mazda would see these largely overcome, and the latest tip-seal technology has been incorporated into this car's engine. Modern improvements mean that rotary engines are now regularly running for 100,000 miles. In three years of production, NSU sold somewhere between 2,000 and 2,500 Wankel Spiders; survivors are relatively rare today.

Beautifully finished in red with a red/black vinyl interior and black hood, this very rare NSU was purchased for the vendor's stunning collection in 2022. A real head turner, the car is offered with Swiss registration documents.

Footnotes

1971 NSU Wankel Spyder
Carrossé par la Carrozzeria Bertone
Châssis n° 5601727
Moteur n° KKM 502

• Première voiture de série à moteur rotatif
• Propriété de son vendeur depuis 2022
• Issue d'une importante collection privée
• Immatriculée en Suisse
• Une rare survivante

Le lancement en 1957 de la Prinz, due à Ewald Praxl, fut pour NSU l'occasion de redevenir un constructeur automobile à part entière. Quelques années plus tard, la firme allemande stupéfia le monde de l'automobile en lançant la première voiture de série à moteur rotatif : la Wankel Spider.

Présentée en 1963, la Spider était la première application automobile du concept du Dr Wankel, un moteur à piston rotatif utilisant un rotor à trois faces convexes qui tournait de façon excentrée dans une chambre en forme de huit. Initialement utilisé pour des compresseurs, le concept du Dr Wankel fut par la suite employé sur un premier moteur qui débuta ses essais en 1957 avant d'être monté sur une version décapotable de la Sport-Prinz dessinée par Bertone.
Malheureusement, le concept de Wankel était trop avancé pour la technologie du moment et son moteur pâtit de défauts d'étanchéité de sa segmentation. Des développements postérieurs menés par Mazda résolurent l'essentiel de ces problèmes. Le moteur de la voiture que nous proposons ici est équipé des toutes dernières techniques de segmentation. Grâce à ces améliorations, les moteurs à piston rotatif résistent désormais pendant 160 000 km. En trois ans de production, NSU vendit quelque 2 000 à 2 500 Wankel Spider, dont seuls quelques rares exemplaires ont survécu à ce jour.

Arborant un magnifique rouge, un intérieur vinyle rouge et noir et une capote noire, cette très rare NSU, ne manquera pas d'attirer l'attention sur elle. Cette auto fut achetée en 2022 pour être ajoutée à la remarquable collection de son vendeur. Elle est munie de ses documents d'immatriculation suisses.

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