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  #16  
Old 01-09-2004, 11:05 AM
Winterfjord
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OK, I'm not going to stick to the subject of this tread, but I cant't help myself when someone pushes my "talk about cars"-button...

The DKW's are a very rare sight in Sweden nowadays, although the guy who sold me the Saab actually had two F102's, the last model before DKW turned into Audi. They had 1200cc three-bangers, actually the biggest displacement for any production two-stroke car engine. I also did see one of the earlier "soap bar" models on the parking lot at my college once, but that's about it.

Did you import your DKW's yourself, or were they sold new in the US? It's quite interesting when you read Car&Driver's test reports of Saab in the early 60's (Saab and DKW were not all that different). Even though the average american car had ten times the displacement and could fit a Saab in the glove compartment (OK, so I'm exaggerating a bit), they seemed really impressed with the handling of the little 40-hp Saab.

Don't get me started on the sound of racing two-strokers... I attended the Saab Festival in Sweden this summer, and it was totally intoxicating (literally) to hear and smell a huge crowd of two-strokers revving up...

Mark, I see you're located in Alexandria. Gotta say that's a lovely town, I had a summer employment there for two summers. To sum this up, I'll add a pic of my '62 Saab 96 DeLuxe, which I owned until recently. Gotta find me a MB soon.... Apologize again for stepping away from the topic.

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  #17  
Old 01-09-2004, 12:24 PM
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LOL. My family had two SAAB three-bangers in the early '60s -- one that worked great and another that never ran right.
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  #18  
Old 01-09-2004, 01:04 PM
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Winterfjord,
Both of my DKWs were sold new in the US, one in Falls Church, Virginia and the second in Sacramento, California.
My first DKW, a 1964 F12 convertible, was given to me by the second owner, an elderly friend, who was selling his house and couldn't take it with him. It runs but isn't driveable and the body is a rusty basket case from being parked in my friend's overgrown yard for 15 years. It took me two days to drag it out of the weeds, but I saved it from the scrapyard.
My second DKW is a 1957 3=6 Sonderkasse 'Panoramic' Coupe with a solid body and original paint. I bought it at auction in Oklahoma City in 1997. It's in decent condition but the tempermental two-stroke is really best suited for short trips around the neigborhood and will never be a racer. However, at the races, I get to live vicariously through the vintage Saabs (WOW, racing on 3 cylinders and a column-shift!)

Incidentally, from 1957, Auto-Union/DKW was owned and marketed in the US by Daimler-Benz until Volkswagen bought Auto-Union in 1965.
The first postwar Audi was the final FWD DKW F102 body, powered by a Mercedes designed pushrod slant 4, and marketed by Volkswagen. And I have one of them too, a 1971 Audi Super 90 Variant (Wagon).

Two years ago, my '57 DKW was replaced by a 1960 Fintail 220S as my daily vintage car.
It's somewhat weathered and rusty, but still a superb driving automobile.

Happy Motoring, Mark
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Last edited by Mark DiSilvestro; 01-11-2004 at 09:09 AM.
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  #19  
Old 01-09-2004, 01:23 PM
Winterfjord
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Mark, I realize just how little I know about DKW's. Shame, being a European and all. I guess you know that it was the pre-WW2 DKW's that inspired airplane manufacturer Saab to build cars. I think the first prototypes of the Saab 92 were powered by DKW's 2-cylinder engine.

Racing with an old Saab is probably hilarious, but I find it's best enjoyed on a winding dirt road on a summers day. Put the column shift in second, bury the throttle and enjoy the perfectly balanced chassis that puts lot of sports cars to shame. I've never driven an SL though, so I won't say anything about that.
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  #20  
Old 01-11-2004, 09:27 AM
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Winterfjord,
I did read an article several years ago, about the prototype Saab being built around a salvaged pre-war DKW 2 cylinder drivetrain - supposedly DKW was the first manufacturer to volume produce a front wheel drive car, starting in 1931.

A nearby friend owns a pre-war two cylinder DKW - a 1937 Meisterklasse Cabriolet. It came from a museum in Montevideo, Uruguay. He's put alot of work into getting it driveable and it runs better than mine. It's a beautiful car. (But, now, he wants to buy 'Miss Daisy' - my rusty Fintail. She drives better than both our DKWs!))

Happy Motoring, Mark
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Last edited by Mark DiSilvestro; 01-11-2004 at 09:33 AM.
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  #21  
Old 01-22-2004, 01:04 PM
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UPDATE

Thanks for all your suggestions. It turned out to be a wire which had melted on the exhaust and must have been grounding. Once I found that and moved it away the car fired right up. What a relief. I was getting ready for removal of the starter but thank god I didn't have too. What a nightmare.

DKW tangent was pretty interesting. Winterfjord thanks for your pics (the Bambulance was super nice too). I think I have seen a few around here. Didn't Saab make some cars in the 60s? that looked like the DKWs? I almost sure that I saw body like that with Saab markings too.

Relieved and
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  #22  
Old 01-22-2004, 02:22 PM
Winterfjord
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mzsmbs,
Glad you liked the stuff. Saabs were imported to the US starting in the late fifties. Look closely at the radiator of the blue/white car and you'll see the Saab badge. It does look a whole lot like a DKW though.
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  #23  
Old 01-23-2004, 02:32 AM
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Quote:
Originally posted by Winterfjord
mzsmbs,
.... Look closely at the radiator of the blue/white car and you'll see the Saab badge. It does look a whole lot like a DKW though.
I can't really tell from the pic but I bet that's what I've seen around here then. I remember not being able to see the badge either and it shure looked like the pic you posted (1 color.)

I see you picked up a 114/130 just like mine. How do you like it so far? Is it in good condition? Color? etc...

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  #24  
Old 01-23-2004, 06:59 AM
Winterfjord
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My new 250/8 is discussed in this thread:
Finally bought my first MB
I'm very happy with it so far, it could use some adjustments of the carburators though, since it's reluctant to run idle. But still, what a great car! Feels solid as a safe!
I assume that Saabs were a more common feature than DKW's (Dr DKW may disagree and I'm just guessing) in the US. They got surprisingly good ratings when tested by Car&Driver, considering that the average american car in the early sixties hardly was compact nor had a three-cylinder engine...
I'll just add a better view of my old Saab here. This was my first car, that I had for about one year. Boy, did that 40 hp engine go...
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  #25  
Old 01-23-2004, 12:45 PM
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The early Saabs used to be much more common than the DKWs here. For one thing the DKWs were more expensive. But none of the 2 stroke imports were as popular here as the VW Beetle. I see a red Saab 96 V4 around here occasionally - with the final version of the early body powered by a 4 stroke German Ford engine. Some call the early Saabs ugly, but I think the 'ugly' Saabs were better than the later 'stylish' ones. A friend had a troublesome '76 Saab 99 and it was a pain to work on.

Happy Motoring, Mark

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