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NSU Trapeze
NSU Trapeze at 2024 Salon Epoqu'auto
Overview
Manufacturer	Bertone
Production	1973
Designer	Marcello Gandini (Bertone)
Body and chassis
Class	2+2 sportscar
Body style	3-door coupé
Layout	Rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive
Related	NSU Ro 80
Powertrain
Engine	497,5 x 2 - two-rotor Wankel, 115 PS (85 kW; 113 hp)
Transmission	3-speed manual with torque converter
Dimensions
Wheelbase	2,430 mm (95.7 in)
Length	4,080 mm (160.6 in)
Width	1,830 mm (72.0 in)
Height	1,100 mm (43.3 in)

The NSU Trapeze was a 1973 concept car designed by Marcello Gandini during his tenure at Bertone, inspired by patents of Jean Celle.

At the 1971 Turin Auto Show, Bertone showed its concept for the Lancia Stratos. Two years later, at the occasion of the Paris Motorshow in October 1973, Gandini had designed for NSU a concept car called Trapeze, that was inspired by the Stratos, which was visible in many styling choices of that model: very compact volumes, an enormous wrap-around windshield and side windows that did not continue to the rear. Also, the wedge shaped car shows similarities with the Autobianchi A112 Runabout, another design by Gandini for Bertone.

Strategy

The Trapeze was set up as a sports car with the engine positioned centrally in front of the rear axle. This solution was chosen to give the car an optimal weight balance. Bertone had set out to build this concept car with a clear strategy in mind. First of all, Bertone wanted to improve even further its relationship with Audi, in its competition with Ital Design that had just produced a coupé for the German brand, the Asso di Picche. But Bertone made a tactical move by working with Audi sisterbrand NSU. Also, Bertone wanted to show its innovative power by creating a small and elegant sporty car that would still meet the American DOT safety standards that were introduced around that time.

Trapezium shaped concept

The engine was the bi-rotor Wankel, from the NSU Ro 80. Thanks to the limited measurements of the engine, a 1,0-liter with an output of 115 PS (85 kW; 113 hp) and 158 N⋅m (117 lb⋅ft) torque, and the fact it was positioned lengthwise rather than the classic transverse way, Gandini had some space available for squeezing in two small back seats. That made the Trapeze the first sports car with central engine and room for four. However, the rear seats were not positioned in the traditional way, but towards the outside, left and right of the engine, while the front seats were set as much to the middle as possible, in front of the engine. When looking at the seating arrangement from above, one could see a trapezium shape -- for this reason the car is called Trapeze.

This setup was patented by Jean Celle in spring 1967, in which case the seats formed part of the chassis. When Celle had sent this concept to Nuccio Bertone, within weeks the Italian designer responded that this innovative setup went beyond what his firm could produce. When Bertone came with Gandini’s Trapeze six years later, it had one difference with the patent: the seats were not part of the chassis, but separate elements.

Thanks to this set up it was possible to reduce the distance between the two seating rows and to offer leg room to those sitting in the rear. On top of that, in terms of safety, the space between the front seats and the door established an element of protection in case of a side impact.

The Trapeze front had six rectangular headlights, that were folded away when not used. There was an almost bumper-like band running all around the car, a side protection which later made its way to many production cars.

Although the Trapeze was constructed with components that were ready for production, the car never went into production because of the enormous costs for further developing the Wankel engine by NSU, the high consumption, worsened by the fact that only a 3-speed manual transmission with automatic clutch was available, the energy crisis, all factors that led the entire car manufacturer to even go broke.

The Trapeze still exists in the Bertone collection and was on display during Époqu'auto in November 2024, together with 23 more Bertone concept cars.

Gallery

• Jean Celle Patent drawing
• NSU Trapeze interior at 2024 Epoqu'auto in Lyon
• NSU Trapeze rear at 2024 Epoqu'auto in Lyon
• Bertone designs, left bottom: NSU Trapeze

References

1. ^ "The NSU Trapeze by Bertone". carrozzieri-italiani.com. Archived from the original on 12 November 2024. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
2. Trapèze NSU, 1973 (PDF) (in French), 2024
3. ^ Vanderplaetsen, Arthur. "Eenmalig: 1973 NSU Trapeze: Concept" [One-off: 1973 NSU Trapeze Concept] (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 2021-08-29. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
4. Padeanu, Adrian. "1973 NSU Trapeze: Concept We Forgot". Motor1.com. Archived from the original on 12 June 2020. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
5. "1973 Bertone NSU Trapeze". archivioprototipi.it (in Italian). Archived from the original on 2024-11-12. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
6. ^ "Lyon: Bertone, toute la magie de l'Italie" [Lyon: Bertone, all the magic from Italy] (in French). Archived from the original on 2024-12-15. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
7. Tosi, Adriano. "NSU Trapeze, un po' Lancia Stratos, un po' Mazda RX-7" [NSU Trapeze, a bit of Lancia Stratos, a bit of Mazda RX-7] (in Italian). Archived from the original on 2020-06-12. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
8. Greggio, Luciano (1992). Bertone (in Italian and English). Vimodrone (MI): Giorgio Nada Editore. p. 323. ISBN 88-7911-066-7.

• NSU vehicles
• Bertone concept vehicles