A 1936 ex-works 250 bought to Australia in 1937 as a practice bike by German Ewald Kluge (a DKW team rider 1936-53), it remained in a Victorian DKW dealership awaiting the arrival of a 1938 customer racer (see the second bike) for a return racing campaign the following year - however the war intervened.

The bike was eventually discovered in poor condition in Adelaide in 1960 and finally restored over 20 years later. This model was the first motorcycle to feature an all welded frame and used "rubber in tension" front suspension. The watercooled, 2-stroke motor is a supercharged split-single design with a third, horizontal piston providing the compressed charge. The bikes were noted for being incredibly loud (being heard at a distance of 13 km) and thirsty. They were excellent racers however winning many pre war championships, and most notably, Kluge's victory in the 1938 Isle of Man Lightweight - the first foreign bike/rider combination to do so. Photographed in the Southern Highlands, NSW. 2012.

Editor's Note: Apparently they could be heard from the mainland when racing on the IOM.

Fine photography by Phil Aynsley