August Horch was the pioneering German engineer who founded Audi in 1910. In his early life Horch trained as a blacksmith and a shipbuilder, with a keen interest in Motors. He gained a degree in engineering and took a job working for Karl Benz (co-founder of Mercedes-Benz) for 3 years, before leaving to start his own company A. Horch & Co. in 1899. In 1901 the company manufactured its first car, but only 8 years later he left the company over a dispute. He founded a new business named Horch-AutomobilWerke; however, he lost the rights to the Horch name after a court case with his old rival company. It was then that Horch renamed his company Audi, the Latin for equivalent of Horch, as both mean ‘Hark’ or ‘listen’ in their respective languages. Audi found early success, with an initial range of four-cylinder models and a subsequent six-cylinder model in 1924. Horch left the company in 1920, going on to publish an autobiography and become an honorary professor.
Under Nazi control, Audi joined the Auto Union consisting of the original Horch Company, Dampf-Kraft-Wagen (DKW) and Wanderer. The four ringed emblem of Audi is a tribute to these four companies, linking together to form a stronger entity, headed by leaders of the industry, including August Horch. During the Second World War the Auto Union concentrated on producing armoured cars and transport vehicles for the Nazis, whilst producing a range of small cars, suitable for the economic climate of the time. When Germany fell to the allies, most of the Auto Union’s factories were destroyed. The Union itself broke as the country divided and DKW became the most influential brand, having bought most of the shares in Audi prior to the war. This run was short lived, as DKW couldn’t compete with Volkswagen which thrived in economic boom in the early 60s. Bought-out by its rival, the DKW name and their two-stroke engine was dumped in favour for Audi and the new four-stroke engines.
The modern era of Audi had arrived, as the brand grew to encompass the early saloon cars of America in the 70s, the rallying success of the Quattro in the 80s and the iconic sport cars of the 90s.