Audi Celebrates Uruguay And It Has Nothing To With The Country

When most people think of NSU, it'sthe Ro 80that comes to mind. This rotary-engined executive sedan isn't the only vehicle to come from the defunct brand, though. To celebrate past models, Audi Tradition is putting the spotlight on the NSU Uruguay, a unique model sold exclusively in the country it was named after.

我t all started in 1968 when Quintanar, the official NSU importer in Uruguay, started to produce and market a station wagon without the company's permission. The vehicle used the subassemblies from the NSU Prinz 4 and rather unusual exterior styling. Despite this, the vehicle managed to sell 140 units in less than a year.

Encouraged by this success, the importer reached out to NSU to enquire about fitting a more powerful four-cylinder engine into this station wagon. Quintanar shipped a sample body over to Germany to find out if this was possible but sadly, the four-pot wouldn't fit inside the compact engine bay without extensive modifications.

However, the engine could easily be fitted into the rear of the car. NSU representatives provided the importer with a long list of issues, including the fact that the engine would rob the vehicle of all practicality, but Quintanar was not bothered. Aside from minor grievances, company inspectors gave the South American branch their blessing, and the vehicle was pressed into production.

Over two years (1969-1971), Quintanar produced just 500 examples with the four-cylinder engine. Sadly, in the final production year, NSU decided to exit the Uruguayan market for good, effectively killing the quirky station wagon off too. During this period, the Volkswagen Group purchased Auto Union from Daimler-Benz and revived the Audi brand. NSU was acquired just a few years later and merged with Auto Union, creating theAudi brand we know today.

The vehicle pictured above is a prototype model and remains tucked away in Audi's private collection of historically significant motorcars.