NSU Sport Prinz Coupe

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The NSU Sport Prinz Coupé was an attractive mix of Italian styling and German engineering and should have sold better than it did.

Powered by a clever twin-cylinder 583cc ohc engine (with the cams driven by their own connecting rods), the car was not much slower than the 850cc Mini but sales never really took off – total production being around 21,000 – and NSU moved on to conquer the world with the mighty Wankel-engined RO80.

This 1967 RHD Coupé is a late production model that is basically very sound, but in need of some TLC. It comes with a stack of spare parts including two engines (one thoughtfully dismantled for inspection of the cam-drive arrangement).

The car looks scruffier than it really is and it should not take much to make it a going concern again. The new owner may wish to restore it to standard, but it would make a wonderful basis for an all-out classic hill-climb and race-car.

Andrew’s father bought the car in 2007 and entered the long distance Liege-Brescia-Liege Rally the following year, proving that this is a small car with a mighty heart. And if you are wondering whether you would fit in it, the Andrew’s father was 6’4”, built accordingly, and he had no problems with it.

The Sport Prinz has a small, but enthusiastic following in this country and – natürlich - in Germany, where a wide variety of parts are available. As well as the hoard of spares that come with the car there is an original owner’s handbook (in English), various sales brochures, extracts from manuals and spares catalogues, invoices, correspondence with other Sport Prinz enthusiasts, and 12 past MOTs.

In 2001, the car had an engine rebore, new drive-shafts, gear-linkage bushes, front wheel bearings, brake cylinders, master cylinder, brake pipes, re-conditioned steering rack and some welding, costing over £2,000.

The car’s last MOT took place in 2015, when it passed with only minor advisories, and it has had little use since, being now MOT exempt. The mileage, under 72,000, is believed to be original, with the car having covered around 12,000 miles in the last 20 years.