1947 Veritas Großmutter

From The Aumann Collection

Offered Without Reserve

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  • The first Veritas built, thought to have been first constructed in 1945 with its race debut in 1947
  • One of the most significant early post-war German race cars in existence
  • Raced by Eugène Chaboud, Georg Meier, Toni Ulmen, and Hans Herrmann
  • Competed in 30 races from 1947 to 1953, aiding German Sportscar Championship wins for Georg Meier and Toni Ulmen in 1948, 1950, and 1951
  • Part of The Aumann Collection for over 30 years
  • Highly eligible for historic racing events, accompanied by a 1988 FIVA Passport
  • Presented with a fantastic history file, containing immense details on Veritas race cars in the early post-war scene
  • Der erste Veritas, produziert 1945 mit erster Rennteilnahme 1947
  • Einer der bedeutendsten deutschen Rennwagen der Nachkriegszeit
  • Gefahren von Eugène Chaboud, Georg Meier, Toni Ulmen und Hans Herrmann
  • Teilnahme an 30 Rennen von 1947 bis 1953 mit Siegen in der deutschen Sportwagenmeisterschaft 1948, 1950 und 1951 mit Georg Meier und Toni Ulmen
  • In der Aumann Collection seit 30 Jahren
  • Außergewöhnlich gut geeignet für die Teilnahme von historischen Rennen; mit FIVA Paß von 1988
  • Mit einer fantastischen Geschichtsdokumentation; immense Vielfalt an Informationen über Veritas Rennwagen in der Rennszene der frühen Nachkriegsjahre

Following the Free France forces taking the region of Sigmaringen in April 1945, it came under French control following the collapse of the Vichy government. Later that year, the former head of BMW Works’ racing department, Ernst Loof, along with motorcycle racing legend Georg Meier and Lorenz Dietrich—a former BMW engineer—built their first car in the post-war era. It was built around a BMW 328 chassis. Dietrich, as he recalled in a 1975 interview, still had strong ties to BMW, and sought to name their new creation as a “BMW-Veritas”. However, this was prevented as BMW’s new representative in American occupation forbade the use of the manufacturer’s name. The “BMW” part of the proposed name was dropped, thus creating the Veritas sports car company.

Nameless at its time of construction, the car was nearly taken by the American Military Police. It assumed the identity “85335”, associated with a NSKK Works BMW 328, and was the first Veritas to be built. By 1950, it had earned the name Grossmutter, or Grandmother in English. It was powered by a tuned 2.0-litre BMW 328 engine—with a cylinder head designed by Loof—that had twin-camshafts, thus meaning the car had three camshafts including the one in the engine block, and generated a reported 140 horsepower. The bodywork was constructed from French supplied aluminium—sourced by Dietrich—in a “pontoon” style of what later would become known as the Veritas RS.

While German-produced cars could not compete in French racing, the Grossmutter had been built in French-controlled Germany with French funding and materials. Eugène Chaboud visited Loof’s workshops in June 1947 and was impressed by the Grossmutter after testing. Loof offered him a Works drive, believing it would please the French authorities to see a French driver behind the wheel of his creation. However, when Chaboud arrived with the car at the second Alsace Grand Prix in Strasbourg, the French race director realised crowds could not be fooled, and after a few laps they were ordered to remove the Grossmutter and were escorted off the circuit by military police. Chaboud continued the remainder of the race with his Delahaye 135 S.

Tucked away as a Veritas test car following the Alsace Grand Prix, Georg Meier would begin to race this Veritas for the 1948 German Formula 2 season. Chaboud returned to Reims that year and finished 2nd in a Formula 2 race at the French Circuit. The car was entered under the name of M.E.T.E.O.R., a French-based company that masked its identity as a German vehicle. Meier ended up driver winning the German Formula 2 Championship in 1948, having scored a total of five races.

For 1949, Meier continued to race the Grossmutter, but he was slower than Karl Kling and not happy with the car. Loof had discussions with racer Toni Ulmen and following Meier’s last race as a factory driver in Nürnberg, Ulmen acquired the car. Ulmen recounted in a 1975 interview that he first had Loof modify his personal BMW 328 to be a Veritas RS, and that in 1949 he struck a deal with Ernst Loof and acquired the Grossmutter in exchange for a lathe.

First racing at the Eifelrennen Nürburgring and the first Riemer Flugplatzrennen with the Grossmutter, Ulmen went on to place 2nd in the 1949 German 2-Litre Sports Car Championship. He raced seven times that season, winning twice and coming 2nd on three occasions.

In his interview Ulmen mentioned that for 1950 he felt a single-seater monoposto would be more effective than the “pontoon”-style body. A design of his own, it reduced the weight by 50 kilograms and he commissioned Karosseriewerke Joseph Hebmüller Söhne to fabricate this new body. Photos of the work from Ulmen can be viewed on file. Running in seven known German Formula 2 races, Ulmen scored 13 points and became the German Formula 2 Champion in 1950.

For the 1951 season, Ulmen opted for further body modifications, and transformed the Grossmutter into a two-seater open-wheel race car (as the car is configured today). This year, Ulmen would race the Grossmutter, but also his Veritas RS in the German 2.0-Litre Sportscar Championship, which he became the Champion in 1951. He used the Grossmutter to compete in five events.

For 1952, sports car racing requirements changed and Ulmen had removable cycle wings fitted to the car, these were used in a handful of races. Following his crash in 1952 at the fourth Sachsenringrennen in testing, he was thrown from the car and unhurt. Ulmen decided after the final race of the season to retire for good. He finished his career being 2nd in the German 2.0-Litre Sportscar Championship in 1952.

He sold the Grossmutter wreck to German team owner Hans Klenk, who rebuilt the car as per Ulmen’s two-seater open wheel configuration, and sold the it to his team driver Hans Herrmann. On file is a copy of a 1953 invoice from Klenk to Herrmann for preparation of the Grossmutter and delivery to the Nürburgring. Hermann raced the car twice, achieving a 4th-place finish at the IX Internationales AvD Avusrennen. Klenk reportedly sold this Veritas to a German dentist, which Ulmen recounted in his 1975 interview, where he said that this dentist still had the Grossmutter. A detailed race chart can be seen on file and it contains information for each of the 30 races the Grossmutter took part in.

In 1983, a Veritas enthusiast Gehard Ulmer discovered the Grossmutter in a German estate, likely the dentist who had bought the car some 30 years prior. Despite having no engine, Ulmer purchased this significant race car and began a restoration. Completed sometime in 1986, he took the car to a Veritas meet in 1987 outside the old flour mill in Hausen am Andelsbach, where Loof, Meier, and Lorenz had built the Grossmutter 40 years earlier.

Norbert Nowak was the next owner of the car, obtaining a FIVA passport in 1988. It is believed that following his acquisition of other Veritas, that Dieter Aumann then purchased the Grossmutter, carrying out some minor changes to the nose in the early 1990s. Mr Aumann spent over 20 years researching the history of the Grossmutter and the car is accompanied by an impressive history file detailing all his findings. There are numerous period photographs on file and interested parties are encouraged to view these fantastic images.

The Grossmutter is the first car that Veritas built, and it is highly likely that it is the first German-built race car constructed following World War II. It has an impressive race record, driven by some of German’s greatest drivers in the early post-war years and it helped to secure three German Championships in 1948, 1950, and 1951.

Presented today in restored condition, the Grossmutter is in its final body configuration as a two-seater open-wheel sports car which Toni Ulmen had designed for the 1951 season. For all collectors of post-war German race cars, the Veritas Grossmutter would the focal point of any collection and is highly eligible for a variety of historic racing events.

DateEventDriverEntrantRace NumberResult
August 3, 1947II Grand Prix de l'AlsaceEugène ChaboudErnst Loof4DNF Lap 2
May 9, 1948II Maipokalrennen HockenheimGeorg "Schorsch" MeierVeritasUnknown1st
May 30, 1948I Kölner KursGeorg "Schorsch" MeierVeritas643rd
July 18, 1948II Coupe des Petites Cylindrées @ Reims-GueuxEugène ChaboudEcurie Lutetia203rd
August 15, 1948XVI Rund um SchottenGeorg "Schorsch" MeierVeritas612nd
September 5, 1948II Eggbergrennen HillclimbGeorg "Schorsch" MeierVeritasUnknown3rd
September 12, 1948NürnbergGeorg "Schorsch" MeierVeritas10Unknown
 Georg "Schorsch" Meier is German Formula 2 Champion for 1948 with 18 Points    
May 22, 1949Eifelrennen NürburgringToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft2DNF (oil leak)
June 5, 1949I Riemer Flugplatzrennen Riem-München Toni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft22nd
July 31, 1949Schauinsland-Freiburg HillclimbToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft22nd
August 7, 1949Nürburgring Grand PrixToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft23rd Overall & 1st in Class
September 11, 1949II DMV GrenzlandringrennenToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft2DNF (rear axle)
September 18, 1949I SolituderennenToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft22nd
October 2, 1949II Kölner KursToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft21st
 Toni Ulmen alongside Fritz Riess have 7 points and is 2nd in the 1949 German 2-litre Sports Car Class    
May 7, 1950I Preis der Ostschweiz-ErlenToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft203rd
June 11, 1950XIV Internationales ADAC EifelrennenToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft1252nd
August 6, 1950Schauinsland-Freiburg HillclimbToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft1253rd
August 13, 1950II SolituderennenToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft125DNF Lap 4
August 20, 1950XIII Grosser Preis von DeutschlandToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft664th
August 27, 1950II SachsenringrennenToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft1251st
September 17, 1950III DMV GrenzlandringrennenToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft1252nd
 Toni Ulmen is German Formula 2 Champion for 1950 with 13 Points    
August 5, 1951Schauinsland-Freiburg HillclimbToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft21st
August 12, 1951II Preis der Ostschweiz-ErlenToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft14DNF Lap 18
August 31, 1951IV DMV GrenzlandringrennenToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft1251st
September 2, 1951NorisringToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft2DNF
September 30, 1951III SachsenringrennenToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft125DNF
 Toni Ulmen is German 2-Litre Sportscar Champion for 1951    
May 10, 1952BRDC International TrophyToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft3911th
May 17, 1952III Preis der Ostschweiz-Erlen Toni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft4DNF Lap 5 fuel leak
May 25, 1952XVI Internationales ADAC EifelrennenToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft22nd
August 3, 1952XV Grosser Preis von DeutschlandToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft21st in Class
August 10, 1952Riemer Rundstreckenrennen München-RiemToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft22nd
September 7, 1952IV SachsenringrennenToni UlmenUlmen Renngemeinschaft125Crash in testing
 Toni Ulmen is 2nd in the German 2-Litre Sportscar Championship for 1952 & Retires from Racing    
May 31, 1953XVII Internationales ADAC-EifelrennenHans HerrmannHans Klenk31DNF
July 12, 1953IX Internationales AvD AvusrennenHans HerrmannHans Klenk214th
August 2, 1953 XVI Grosser Preis von DeutschlandErwin BauerHans Klenk31DNF

Einer Geschichte aus einem deutschen Rennsportmagazin von 1950 nach war der erste Veritas zum Zeitpunkt seiner Entstehung 1945 noch ohne Namen. Lediglich „85335“ genannt, hatte der Wagen fünf Jahre später den Spitznamen Großmutter bekommen. Angetrieben von einem Zweilitermotor aus einem BMW 328 mit Doppelnockenzylinderkopf, dem eine Leistung von 140 PS nachgesagt wurde. Die Form der Karosserie aus französischem Aluminium sollte später als Veritas RS bekannt werden.

Beim Renndebut beim 2. Großen Preis von Elsass 1947 ließ der Renndirektor die Großmutter nach ein paar Runden vom Rennen sperren, da 85335 ein deutsches Automobil war. Der deutsche Motorradrennfahrer und Sieger der Tourist Trophy von 1939 Georg „Schorsch“ Meier wurde mit dem Wagen 1948 deutscher Formel 2-Meister. Nach Meiers letztem Rennen mit der Großmutter in Nürnberg 1949, erklärte sich Veritas-Mitbegründer Ernst Loof bereit, den Wagen an Toni Ulmen zu verkaufen. Dieser fuhr mit ihm 1949 in der deutschen Zweiliter-Sportwagenmeisterschaft, von insgesamt sieben gefahrenen Rennen gewann er zwei.

1950 beauftragte Ulmen die Karosseriewerke Josef Hebmüller Söhne mit dem Bau einer Einsitzer-Karosserie, mit der die Großmutter anschließend an sieben deutschen Formel 2-Rennen teilnahm, soweit man weiß. Für die Saison 1951 ließ Ulmen die Großmutter in einen zweisitzigen Rennwagen mit offenen Rädern umbauen, mit dem Ulmen im gleichen Jahr die deutsche Zweiliter-Sportwagenmeisterschaft gewann. Heute präsentiert sich der Wagen in dieser Konfiguration.

Für die Saison 1952 wurden die Regeln geändert, und Ulmen ließ abnehmbare Schutzbleche wie bei einem Motorrad montieren. Nach einem Unfall beim Freien Training vom 4. Sachsenringrennen zog sich Ulmen vom Motorsport zurück, beendete die Saison 1952 dennoch als Zweiter in der Zweiliter-Sportwagenmeisterschaft. Das Wrack der Großmutter verkaufte er anschließend an Hans Klenk, der den Wagen wieder aufbaute und dann an die Rennlegende Hans Hermann. Hermann, der Jahre später auf einem Porsche 917 die 24 Stunden von Le Mans gewinnen sollte, fuhr 85335 zweimal und verkaufte ihn dann an einen Zahnarzt. In den Unterlagen zum Fahrzeug befindet sich eine Rennübersicht, aus der sich jedes der 30 Rennen ersehen lässt, an dem die Großmutter teilgenommen hat.

1983 entdeckte Gerhard Ulmer den Rennwagen, wahrscheinlich noch immer im Besitz des Zahnarztes, der den Wagen 30 Jahre vorher gekauft hatte. Ulmer ließ den Wagen über drei Jahre restaurieren und nahm dann 1987 an einem Veritas Treffen teil. Der nächste Besitzer des Autos war Norbert Nowak, der 1988 auch einen FIVA-Paß ausstellen ließ. Herr Aumann erwarb die Großmutter für seine Sammlung Anfang der 1990er Jahre und verbrachte die nächsten 20 Jahre mit der intensiven Recherche der Historie des Rennwagens, zu dem nun eine umfangreiche Dokumentation existiert.

Die Großmutter ist wahrscheinlich der erste nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg in Deutschland gebaute Rennwagen. Sie hat eine eindrucksvolle Renngeschichte und half 1948, 1950 und 1951 gleich drei Deutschen Sportwagenmeisterschaften zu gewinnen. Der Wagen präsentiert sich nun in restauriertem Zustand in seiner letzten Konfiguration als Zweisitzer mit freistehenden Rädern. Für Fans deutscher Automobilrennen der Nachkriegszeit wäre diese Veritas Großmutter der Kern jeder Sammlung und in höchstem Maße geeignet für eine Reihe historischer Rennevents.

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