1958 Denzel 1300WD

The Denzel Sports Roadster arrived in 1948 and was built in a small workshop in Vienna, Austria, approximately 100 miles from Gmund, Austria, where the Porsche 356 was built in a small sawmill. Wolfgang Denzel and Ferry (son of Ferdinand) Porsche introduced their vehicles around the same time, coincidentally having similar configurations and designs. While Porsche would ultimately build over 78,000 examples of its 356, Denzel would build just 62 roadsters.

Through 1954, the Denzel-built roadster was known by the name WD, with models having several different designations, including WD Sport, WD Sport International, WD Super Sport, and WD Serien Sport. Early built examples had bodies formed from plastic, then steel, and ultimately lightweight aluminum. A Volkswagen chassis was used through 1952 when a Denzel-built chassis was introduced. Engine displacement varied throughout the years, growing from 1,086cc to over 1500cc. Early examples had Volkswagen-sourced 1,086cc or 1,131cc units modified with twin carburetors and larger intake valves. By the close of 1954, a 1,500cc Denzel-tuned engine was available with approximately 85 horsepower.

Many 'Sport International' variants were used in competition, racing in hill climbs, road and circuit races, and rallies. In 1954, a Denzel won the Alpine Rally. Over its racing career, the Denzel would achieve over 30 class victories.

by Dan Vaughan

Roadster
Chassis number: DK158
Engine number: 0173

Soon after World War II in 1948, racing driver and engineer Wolfgang Denzel began to build wooden-bodied sports four-seaters on war-surplus Volkswagen Kubelwagen chassis in Vienna, Austria. Soon Denzel progressed to good-looking compact sports cars built with a modified Volkswagen engine and tuned with twin carburetors. The chassis was a twin box section with tubular reinforcement. Volkswagen suspension was used and most had three-seater open bodies, although some had narrower two-seat bodies. At 82.5-inches, the wheelbase was a foot shorter than the rival Porsche and the car was lighter. In the mid-1950s Denzel appeared in some international rallies and performed well in some events but on the whole, they were little known outside Austria. By 1960 when production stopped, Denzel had built about 65 sports cars and 28 are currently accounted for.

The first Denzel appeared in 1949 and was based on the chassis of the 'Kubelwagen', the Volkswagen-based military all-terrain vehicle which was used by the German army during the war and was around in abundance during the post-war era. It was fitted with a simple, streamlined open body made of wood and vinyl. A small experimental series of 12 cars were manufactured which attracted attention for its surprising performance thanks to the extremely lightweight construction. This promising start led to a production model being built in 1950, now with an all-steel body and the added luxury or doors. Still, on the second-hand Kubelwagen chassis, it was powered by a rear-mounted and air-cooled 1100cc 4-cylinder boxer engine which was tuned by Denzel to produce 33 horsepower and propelled the 930 kg car to a maximum speed of 135 KPH. This car near to what the contemporary Porsche 356-1100 had to offer, though that was a closed and more luxurious design.

Volkswagen didn't approve of the competition to the Porsche and refused to offer complete components to Denzel. So as a next step-up, Denzel needed to develop its own chassis, which was introduced in 1952 as the new 1300 Sport model. To many, this model is regarded as the first true Denzel, as the previous models were more like coach-built Volkswagens. It had a rigid tubular chassis with a tuned 1300cc Volkswagen engine in the rear. At first, the attractive open body was made of steel but soon it was replaced by an aluminum version to reduce weight. At 580 kg and 53 horsepower at 4750 RPM it could reach a top speed of 150 KPH and offered the Porsche 356-1300 some serious opposition. The following year an even more potent version appeared: the 1300 Super Sport (or Serien Super) of which the engine was extensively revised by Denzel. It now produced 65 horsepower at 5400 RPM and pushed the car to 160 KPH, similar to the performance of the Porsche 356-1300 Super.

This car, chassis number DK158 is one of the last made. It is a 1.3-liter version imported by Frank Wagenhofer of Montgomery, New York, and sold to Davis Moorhead of Philadelphia. He traded in his 1951 Porsche Cabriolet at the time of purchase.

Moorhead race and auto-crossed it extensively, including the Duryea and Hershey hill climbs, winning his class championship in 1959. By the mid-1960s, Moorhead focused on family matters and sold the car in 1969. It has recently been restored to its original condition including the original Denzel engine. It is believed to be one of nine Denzels currently residing in the United States.

by Vehicle Owner - 2013 Carmel By Sea Concours

Roadster
Chassis number: DK157

Austrian-based Wolfgang Denzel was the owner of a garage that started building sports cars in 1949 using Volkswagen parts. He introduced his cars at the Geneva Auto Salon under the name of 'WD.' The name was changed to Denzel in 1957.

The main customer criticism about these Wolfgang Denzel-built cars was their lack of power. In response, Denzel switched to Porsche engines. One of his Porsche-powered cars, driven by Denzel, won the Rally of Alps in 1954. This victory earned Denzel much attention, praise, and publicity.

Denzel would continue in the sports car business for several years but would later close to focus on his garage business. By the 1980s, Denzel had grown his business to include showrooms and garages in many towns and cities throughout Austria. He would become the importer for BMW, Mitsubishi, Ferrari, and Volvo, along with several other automakers.

This Denzel 1300WD is powered by a Volkswagen engine offering 64 horsepower. The aluminum bodywork rests on a tubular steel frame chassis. The top speed is in the neighborhood of 105 mph.

by Dan Vaughan

Roadster
Chassis number: DK158
Engine number: 0173

Wolfgang Denzel built his first sports car in Vienna, Austria, in 1948 using a wartime Volkswagen chassis and its 1.1-liter air-cooled flat-four as a basis. Denzel gradually morphed to a chassis of his own design with aluminum bodywork and with engines growing as large as 1,500cc using specially made cranks, rods, pistons, and valvetrain. Denzel achieved reasonable success in European rally and hill climb events, and the company produced roughly 65 cars between 1948 and 1960.

Denzel DK158 is one of the last Sport Super models built. It was imported by Frank Wagenhofer of Montgomery, NY and sold to Davis Moorhead of Philadelphia. (Moorhead traded his 1951 Porsche Cabriolet at the time.) He raced and auto-crossed it and entered it in the Duryea and Hershey hill climbs during the 1950s. As it was a foot shorter and much lighter than a Porsche, it competed strongly in these events. The 1300cc engine produced 65 horsepower and could reach a top speed of 150 kph. It was restored by its current owner and retains its original engine which has been rebuilt to factory specifications. Denzel models were produced until 1960.

The engine is based on a Volkswagen engine case, but 'tuned' with Denzel-specific heads, cylinders, crankshaft, connecting rods, push rods, oil filter, and muffler. The engine was rebuilt to factory specifications by Ray Schubert at the time of the restoration.