Well, this is a turn up: a tunnel. The car is detonating sound. like buckshot. You W swear you can hear every firing stroke, but then so can the poor office workers who are decamping to see what is causing the commotion. Oh, and it's getting a bit smoky in here, and this black vinyl is hotter than the sun. Our NSU 1000TTS wants to bolt, initial hesitation leading to a pronounced lunge with only a few millimetres of throttle travel. This is an angry buzzbomb when prodded. Just one more run, the snapper suggests, you know, to go with the last half a dozen 'one last runs'. Sorry everyone, please don't judge.
Out come the phones to record the moment, each onlooker seemingly astounded that something so small can make so much noise. That and perhaps marvelling at the driver who appears to have taken a turn for the salmon pink and sprung a leak. Yeah, sure, heaven forbid we should have the windows down for the photography. That would be awful. Just 10 minutes in and it's as though you have been mainlining espresso. We're buzzing, but so far we haven't left the environs of an industrial estate somewhere in Lisbon, Portugal, its exact whereabouts, we are afraid, top secret (except to those who work nearby, obviously).
What is telling is that on our arrival this car is the one nearest the door. It belongs to a candidate for 'world's nicest man', Manuel Ferrão, a publishing magnate whose collecting instincts stretch to the obligatory Ferraris, Astons, Maseratis and the like. He also has a Cobra 427, a Ford GT40, assorted Lotus and Lola sports-racers, Group B rally cars (with works warpaint and without) and lots and lots of Abarths. The point is that this isn't a car you would associate with someone whose cache is dripping with exotica, but, as he is quick to point out, it's fun. Think of the NSU as a German Abarth - a car whose praises are rarely sung outside its homeland, but which deserve to be.
Esta historia es de la edición June 2023 de Classic & Sports Car.
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Esta historia es de la edición June 2023 de Classic & Sports Car.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
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RAY HILLIER
Double-chevron oddity proves a break from the norm for this Crewe specialist
SHORT BACK & GLIDES
Eccentric enthusiast Captain RG McLeod's series of Manx-tailed Bentley Specials reached its zenith with this unique S2 Continental.
People's choice
The diminutive but multi-million-selling Fiat 850 packed a remarkable diversity of form and function into its compact footprint
PLASTIC BREAKS FROM THE NORM
Glassfibre revolutionised niche car-body production, but just occasionally strayed into the mainstream.
A SENSIBLE SUPERCAR
The cleverly conceived four-seater Elite secured Lotus a place at the big players' table, but has it been unfairly maligned since then?
"I had a habit of grabbing second place from the jaws of victory"
From dreams of yachting glory to the Le Mans podium, via a stint at the top of the motorsport tree, Howden Ganley had quite the career
Still going strong
Herbert Engineering staked its reputation on the five-year warranty that came with its cars. A century on, this Two Litre hasn't made a claim
One for the kids
General Motors was aiming squarely at the youth market with the launch of the Pontiac GTO 60 years ago, and its runaway success popularised the muscle-car movement
A NEW BREED OF HERO
Launched at the turn of the millennium, the GT3 badge has already earned a place alongside RS, CS and turbo in Porsche lore.
Brits with SIX appeal
The straight-six engine is synonymous with a decades-long legacy of great British sports cars. Six variations on the sextet theme convene for comparison
