Audi hasn’t had a proper mid-engined supercar in its lineup since the R8 got the axe in 2024, and the brand’s promised electric successor still feels a long way off. So in the meantime, Ingolstadt has reached way, way back into the family vault for something far more interesting than just another old EV concept.
This is the Auto Union Lucca, a faithful one-off recreation of the streamlined 1935 record-breaker that hit 203 mph on a stretch of Tuscan public road and then promptly disappeared from history. And yes, it runs.
Why Lucca?
The original Lucca was born out of an arms race. In late 1934, Mercedes-Benz set a flying-mile record on a Hungarian highway at just under 197 mph, and Auto Union, the four-brand conglomerate that would eventually become modern Audi, couldn’t just let that stand.
Their answer was to take the open-wheel Type A grand prix car, bore its V16 out to 5.0 liters, and wrap the whole thing in some of the most outrageous streamlined bodywork the era ever produced. Picture a silver Batmobile that’s been put on the rack and stretched a few extra feet, with fully enclosed rear wheels and a cab-forward cockpit barely big enough for a driver.
And, on February 15, 1935, racing legend Hans Stuck pointed it down a closed stretch of autostrada near the Tuscan town of Lucca and clocked 203.17 mph. The town gave the car its nickname, and the record stood as the fastest anyone had ever traveled on a public road.
Then came the war. Both Lucca prototypes vanished, possibly scrapped for parts, possibly hauled off as Soviet war spoils in 1945. Either way, they were gone to the history books.
A Three-Year Labor of Love
Audi Tradition, the brand’s heritage division, commissioned British classic motorsport specialists Crosthwaite & Gardiner to build the recreation from scratch using period photos and archival blueprints. Three years and an unspecified seven-figure bill later, the Lucca exists again. The same shop also handled Audi’s 2024 Type 52 revival, so this is becoming something of a pattern, and we’re not mad about it.
Every panel is hand-beaten aluminum, formed over an intricate wood frame the old-fashioned way. The paint is something called Cellulose Silver, a modern formulation meant to mimic the original’s delicate texture without the lung-destroying side effects of 1930s pigments. Even the open-gate manual shifter has been polished to a mirror finish.
Sixteen Cylinders, Zero Synchromesh
For the powertrain, Audi made one notable concession to longevity. Rather than the period-correct 5.0-liter V16, the recreation uses the later 6.0-liter spec from the Type C race car, which still makes a stout 513 horsepower running on a methanol, premium unleaded, and toluene cocktail. That’s nearly 175 more horses than the original.
It’s mid-mounted, supercharged, and sends power to the rear wheels through a five-speed non-synchronized manual gearbox, meaning the driver has to actually rev-match every shift or grenade the gears. With a curb weight of just 2,116 pounds and a 0.43 drag coefficient (genuinely impressive for a car designed nearly a century ago), this thing should absolutely fly.
The One Mystery Audi Couldn’t Solve
Here’s the catch. Audi has no plans to chase any speed records with the recreation, and not just because of the obvious lack of seatbelts and crash structure. Apparently the original engineers’ method for keeping the fighter-plane-style canopy locked down at 200 mph has been completely lost to history. No drawings, no notes, nothing. Send it now and there’s a real chance the thing ejects its roof somewhere past 150.
Instead, the Lucca will make its dynamic debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed from July 9 to 12, where it’ll run up the hill climb at a much more reasonable pace.
Spec Sheet
Model: Auto Union Lucca (Recreation)
Original Year: 1935
Builder: Crosthwaite & Gardiner (commissioned by Audi Tradition)
Engine: Supercharged 6.0L V16
Power: 513 hp
Fuel: Methanol, premium unleaded, and toluene blend
Transmission: 5-speed non-synchronized manual
Drivetrain: Rear-wheel drive
Weight: 2,116 lbs
Drag Coefficient: 0.43
Bodywork: Hand-beaten aluminum over wood frame
Build Time: 3+ years
Production: One-off
Pricing & Availability
The Lucca isn’t for sale. It’ll live out its days as part of Audi’s heritage collection, with occasional public outings for demonstration runs. The first of those happens this July at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.
Recap
Audi Auto Union Lucca Recreation
Audi Tradition rebuilt the long-lost 1935 Auto Union Lucca, a 203-mph V16 streamliner once driven by Hans Stuck, as a one-off heritage piece set to make its public debut at Goodwood this July.
