Racing Silver Arrows: Mercedes-Benz Versus Auto Union 1934-1939

by Chris Nixon

Grand Prix racing between the German Mercedes-Benz and Auto Union teams during the six years from 1934 through 1939 was probably one of the greatest, most spectacular and most important era in motor racing history. The two German teams almost completely dominated Grand Prix racing, mainly because of their technical superiority. Vast sums of money was paid to them by the German government. The side effects were that while Mercedes-Benz developed and manufactured aero engines for the Luftwaffe, the Auto Union Group manufactured tanks and other armored vehicles for the Wehrmacht.

Genres: Nonfiction, History

350 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[Tony · Rating 5 out of 5]

In 1933 Hitler decided the German nation needed a winning motor racing team, and offered 500,000 Reichmarks to whoever would build him one. The resulting Mercedes and Auto Union racing cars, the eponymous Silver Arrows, would shock the racing world.

The 1930’s was a golden age of Grand Prix racing, a time of dangerous race tracks, shockingly fast cars, and colourful drivers - all brought to life by the excellent Chris Nixon. Like the proud Achille Varzi, who unwittingly benefited from race-fixing to win the 1936 Tripoli Grand Prix, after the fascists decided that an Italian driver had to win an Italian race. When he found out what had happened Varzi was furious, and later that night his girlfriend (the wife of a fellow racing driver...) offered him morphia to ease his pain. His addiction was to lead to the end of his career, and almost his life.

Nixon includes a short summary of each year, extensive interviews, biographies of the key people, some superb photographs, reprints of contemporary magazine race reports, maps and descriptions of the race circuits. The drivers’ post-war experiences are especially interesting and often poignant, as ageing drivers tried to reprise their racing careers after the war.

The final quote of the book, from Rodney Walkerley, writing for The Motor:

"By the time these gems of prose appear in print everything I have written about future motor racing may read as so much nonsense, what with politics and one thing and another. I merely hope that I shall be here to write and you to read these notes next week.”

Rodney Walkerley
The Motor
29 August 1939

An essential read for anyone interested in the subject.

[Peter Grimsdale · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is much more than an account of cars and races. Nixon - a highly accomplished motoring writer - approached his subject more like a social historian, travelling the world to interview all the survivors, widows et al, so the colour and texture of the time is just brilliant. It's one of those rare car books that is so good you don't have to be that interested in the subject to appreciate it - however his depth of knowlege and research is evident. When the day comes I have to thin out my motoring library this will be one of the very last to be let go.

[Emilio Vazquez · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is actually great.