Horch 8 History

Paul Daimler — son of Gottlieb Daimler — joined Horch as chief engineer and designed the Type 303, the first German series-production car powered by an eight-cylinder engine. Unveiled at the 1926 German Motor Show in Berlin, the reaction was immediately enthusiastic; contemporary observers stressed that this was a historic milestone for the German industry. The initial 3.1-litre engine produced around 60 hp.

The straight-eight lineup expanded through the late 1920s and early 1930s under subsequent type designations: the Type 350 and 375 (from 1928) used a 4.0-litre unit producing 80 hp; the Type 400 and 405 (from 1931) followed; larger-displacement variants — the Type 420, 450, and 470 — stretched to 4.5 litres and 90 hp. Body styles ranged from standard limousines and phaetons to long-wheelbase Pullman limousines.

Approximately 12,000 Horch 8 cars were built across the series' nine-year run. Even after the 1932 Auto Union merger — which brought Horch, Audi, DKW, and Wanderer together under one corporate roof — Horch continued as a distinct luxury brand within the group, sustaining the straight-eight lineage into the second generation of models.