The picture shows a yellow Horch 853 from the front.

Silently Driving Into the Luxury Class

Few car brands are as strongly associated with automotive sophistication and nobility as Horch. Founded in 1899 in Cologne, the brand quickly grew into a successful company and was one of the first to use ZF's Aphon transmission.

Author: Janine Vogler, 2024-09-05

The founder of the brand, August Horch, was one of the pioneering engineers in automotive engineering. Even before the turn of the century, he was developing solutions to the automobile’s first problems. He made significant contributions to the field, such as being the first to use aluminum for the crankcase. He also introduced the cardan drive and pioneered the use of high-strength steels in gearbox construction. His engineering work primarily focused on making the automobile easier to use by developing necessary improvements.

The picture shows a black Horch from behind, facing another one from the front.

Horch was the undisputed leader in the luxury segment: nobility, high-ranking military personnel, film stars and sportsmen all drove Horch cars.

The birth of a legend

After working as an engineer in engine construction, August Horch was initially employed by Benz & Cie in Mannheim. In this hub of industrial automobile construction, Horch gained insight into the growth and development problems of motor vehicles. With his knowledge and experience in a managerial position, he set up his own workshop in 1899 and before long, he was designing his first automobile. He quickly developed a new engine in which two cylinders shared a common combustion chamber to compensate for the disadvantages of the single-cylinder engine, which pounded in the direction of travel, and the unsatisfactory contra-cylinder engine. Horch called it the “bumpless engine.”

A yellow Horch 853 is parked in front of an orchard.

The Horch 853 represented the pinnacle of the brand's sports cabriolet tradition.

In 1904, he founded the A. Horch Motorenwagenwerke in Zwickau. In the following years, he developed and expanded on new ideas. He was convinced of the great importance of light metal in reducing weight and made the crankcase, gearbox, and differential housings from light metal. Horch was also one of the first designers to arrange the intake valves in a suspended position. His four-cylinder cars were initially available with 22 and 40 hp, with displacements of 2.6 and 5.8 liters, respectively. The cars were characterized by sophisticated equipment and robust technology. The first trucks were built at Horch before the First World War and the first Horch commercial vehicle was an ambulance in 1910. Interestingly, work machines, such as chipper cutters, were also offered on car chassis.

“I endeavored under all circumstances to build only big, powerful and reliable cars.”

August Horch

The plate synchronization was implemented between the helical gears and their shafts and ensured particularly smooth running.

Stately: the Horch 853 measures 5.35 m in length.

Horch's radiator mascot is the globe with wings.

The Horch 853 was fitted with the ZF Aphon Gn 35 gearbox.

Group photo: The Horchclub meeting took place at Lake Constance in 2008.

Burl wood and golden applications: The Horch interior is also only the finest.

Even the pedals are adorned with the noble logo.

The four Saxon automobile companies Audi, DKW, Horch and Wanderer - represented by the four rings - merged in 1932 to form Auto Union AG.

The separation

August Horch left his own factory in 1909 due to internal political disputes, but ambitious engineers soon followed in his footsteps. The chief designer in the 1920s was none other than Paul Daimler, the son of Gottfried Daimler. By the end of the 1920s, the Horch brand had become synonymous with quality and symbolized a top product of the German automotive industry. These cars had a reputation for particularly smooth running and high-quality workmanship. For example, Horch was one of the very first car manufacturers to machine all highly stressed parts, such as crankshaft bearings, with diamonds. Towards the end of the 1920s, almost exclusively eight-cylinder cars were built. By 1929, around 7000 had been produced - a figure that German competitors could only dream of. Still, perhaps the biggest sensation was the car presented at the Paris Motor Show in 1931, which boasted a twelve-cylinder V-engine with a displacement of 6 liters. This car was intended to meet the highest standards of automotive culture.

A drawn advertising poster of the ZF Aphon transmission on a blue background.

An advertising brochure for the Aphon gearbox from 1938.

Before long, ZF products also found their way into the impressive luxury-class cars. ZF Gemmer steering systems were already installed in Horch cars from the beginning, and the use of the ZF Aphon transmission, which was new at the time, was almost mandatory for the quietness of the cars. The Aphon transmission was one of the first in Germany to have a low-noise second gear. “Aphon” means “without sound” - this transmission model was built from 1929 in three sizes for passenger cars and four sizes for trucks. They were characterized by particularly smooth running and durability. Ground helical gears were used for ZF Aphon transmissions for the first time. The individual bearings of the gears also improved running smoothness. With this transmission type and the introduction of helical gearing, ZF consolidated its leading position in transmission construction.

August Horch had, in fact, had nothing to do with the luxurious automobiles that bore his name since 1909. From the Horch factories he founded, however, his work has since become a household name under the Audi brand—and is symbolized by one of the four Audi rings.

Overview of Horch Vehicles With ZF Products

Vehicle Type	Construction Period	Quantity	Cylinder/Performance	ZF Products
400	04/1930 - 05/1932	953	8 cyl. in a row 80 hp	Ross steering
405	12/1930 - 10/1931	105	8 cyl. in a row 80 hp	Ross steering
410	01/1931 - 08/1933	258	8 cyl. in a row 80 hp	Ross steering
420	02/1931 - 08/1933	256	8 cyl. in a row 90 hp	Ross steering
430	09/1931 - 05/1933	205	8 cyl. in a row 65 hp	Ross steering
440	07/1931 - 10/1932	87	8 cyl. in a row 80 hp	Ross steering
450	01/1931 - 04/1932	238	8 cyl. in a row 90 hp	Ross steering
470	02/1931 - 03/1932	298	8 cyl. in a row 90 hp.	Ross steering, Gb 35
480	11/1931 - 08/1932	54	8 cyl. in a row 100 hp	Ross steering
500/500 A	09/1930 - 03/1932	309	8 cyl. in a row 100 hp	Ross steering
500 B	03/1932 - 06/1935	381	8 cyl. in a row 100 hp	Ross steering, Gb 35
600	01/1932 - 10/1932	20	12 cyl. in V arrangement 120 hp	Gb 35
670	09/1931 - 03/1934	60	12 cyl. in V arrangement 120 hp	Ross steering, Gb 35
710	04/1932 - 11/1933	125	8 cyl. in a row 80 hp	Ross steering, Gb 35
720	04/1932 - 11/1933	97	8 cyl. in a row 90 hp	Ross steering, Gb 35
750	10/1932 - 11/1933	213	8 cyl. in a row 90 hp	Ross steering, Gb 35
750 B	01/1934 - 02/1935	368	8 cyl. in a row 90 hp	Ross steering, Gb 35
780	03/1932 - 02/1934	223	8 cyl. in a row 100 hp	Ross steering, Gb 35
780 B	02/1934 - 11/1934	80	8 cyl. in a row 100 hp	Ross steering, Gb 25
830	02/1933 - 11/1934	1.861	8 cyl. in V arrangement 62 hp	Ross steering, Gb 25
830 B	11/1934 - 02/1935	124	8 cyl. in V arrangement 70 hp	Ross steering, Gb 25
830 BK	01/1935 - 01/1937	1.414	8 cyl. in V arrangement 75 hp	Ross steering, Gn 25 / Gb 35 fast gear
830 BL	01/1935 - 04/1940	6.123	8 cyl. in V arrangement 75/82/92 hp	Ross steering, Gb 25 w/wo fast gear, AK 4 S 20
850	12/1934 - 06/1939	432	8 cyl. in a row 100 hp	Ross steering, Gn 35
851	12/1934 - 01/1937	243	8 cyl. in a row 100 hp	Ross steering, Gn 35
853	02/1935 - 12/1937	681	8 cyl. in a row 100 hp	Ross steering, Gn 35
853 A	01/1938 - 01/1940	342	8 cyl. in a row 100 hp	Ross steering, Gn 35, AK 4 S 30 Long Distance
855	02/1935 - 06/1939	7	8 cyl. in a row 100 hp	Ross steering, Gn 35, AK 4 S 20 Long Distance
930 V	01/1937 - 01/1940	2.060	8 cyl. in V arrangement 82/92 hp	Ross steering, Gb 25, AK 4 S 20
951	11/1936 - 10/1937	146	8 cyl. in a row 100 hp	Ross steering, Gn 35, AK 4 S 30
951 A	12/1937 - 09/1940	365	8 cyl. in a row 120 hp	Ross steering, Gn 35, AK 4 S 20

Note: ZF 4-speed Aphon gearbox with/without high gear, Gb = Aphon gearbox with brake, Gn=Aphon gearbox new version

Janine Vogler Vintage cars related to ZF-products have been at the heart of the journalist. Outside of work, she enjoys to ride motor bike or to be accompanied in nature by her dog.