While the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps can celebrate its centenary as a living legend, the AVUS is now just a legend that is gradually fading under the daily Berlin rush hour traffic. To keep the memory of the automobile traffic and practice road alive, the exhibition "AVUS 100: A fast-paced century" has been running in the PS-Speicher Einbeck since September 12.
The small, but fine special exhibition shows twelve automobiles and four motorcycles that once actually raced on the AVUS, including German racing classics such as the Auto Union Type C and Mercedes-Benz W196 Streamline as well as a charging pump DKW SS 250. The oldest exhibit is the NSU 6/60 PS from 1925, which finished fifth in the 1926 German Grand Prix.
The most recent exhibit is Manuel Reuter's 1995 ITC race car: an Opel Calibra V6 4x4 from Opel Team Joest. The BMW M3 in which Dieter Quester slid across the finish line on its roof in 1990 is unfortunately not in Einbeck, not even on all four wheels. But the race car of his colleague Armin Hahne is, along with its Mercedes and Audi rivals.
Photos and texts along the walls tell the story of the high-speed track from its beginnings in 1921 to the last race on May 3, 1998. The fact that only one Formula 1 race was held on it and Stirling Moss described the AVUS as "the worst racetrack in the world" does not detract from its fascination.
Further information on the exhibition and the PS.Speicher can be found on the museum website.
