Family Silver, Auto Union VS. Mercedes Benz

An extremely interesting exhibition will open its doors on December 2, at the Audi Forum Ingolstadt. Called "Family Silver – the Auto Union Silver Arrows and their Rivals,” Audi's show of might will feature, all the way until the end of March 2010, seven Auto Union Silver Arrows and three original Mercedes-Benz racing cars, all under one roof...

“The striking looks of these cars need no additional emphasis from us. The exhibition setting remains in the background and does not outshine the cars. It is purist and elegant just like the cars themselves. The Silver Arrows are sculptures that have to be seen on a pedestal like works of art,” Stefan Felber, the shows responsible said in a release.

The Silver Arrows to be displayed include Type C 16-cylinder (in which Bernd Rosemeyer took the European championship title), the 1937 Type C 16-cylinder (which set a new world speed record) and the 1939 Type D 12-cylinder.

"Until the Second World War broke out in 1939, there were very few events in which the Auto Union and Mercedes-Benz drivers, at the wheel of cars with power outputs of up to 500 horsepower, failed to triumph," Audi explains the reason behind the exhibition.

"These silver-painted cars with their futuristic looks were so far ahead of their rivals that a legend soon developed: the era of the Silver Arrows was born."

That era turns 75 this year and this spectacular display of supercharged engines in they silver guise is the way in which Audi decided to celebrate.