NSU 1907ca 5PS

The company started as a knitting machine manufacturer ( Neckarsulmer Strickmaschinen Union) and went into the bicycle trade in 1886. It was a logic step to move into motorcycle production and in 1901 the first motorised NSU bicycle with Zédel clip on engine was produced. Soon the development and production of the company’s own engines were taken up and within a few years NSU was making its own power units and was one of the first manufacturers to fit two-speed transmission. Designed by its late founder’s son, Karl Schmidt, the first all-NSU model was presented in the Fall of 1903 and was powered by a 329cc engine rated at 2½hp. This model would turn out to be a huge success by the standards of the day; more than 2,000 were sold up to 1905. The make established a strong presence in foreign markets, being exported widely throughout Europe and other continents. Around 1906 NSU was already well-known in the United States and prior to WW1, it ranked second only to Indian among imported makes in the UK.

The first NSU V-twins are marketed by the end of the Summer of 1905. Two models are presented, in capacities of 450 and 662 cc. The rear cylinder is placed in an upright position and the front cylinder is tilted 60 degrees forward, to ensure proper cooling of both cylinders. The inlet valves are not mechanically controlled but rely on atmospheric pressure. The following years various capacities are offered in the V-twin range, with a 752 cc model topping the range in 1907.

The machine we present has been fitted with several practical extras that the company offered, namely leaf sprung front forks, 26-inch wheels and the famous NSU 2-speed gear and free engine clutch that is very practical on a veteran machine. Early NSU V-twins are rarely offered and this is a very well restored specimen that comes with current road registration, two brakes on the rear wheel, magneto ignition, bulb horn and Riemann Mod. 353 acetylene front lamp. For a number of years the motorcycle was regularly rallied, both in hte Netherlands as well as abroad.