Winningen

Winningen is a German car maker, known for their prowess in motorsports for creating the first all-wheel drive rally car, and later for their premium and luxurious vehicles. It is part of Erin FG since 1965.

History

The origins of the Germany-based Winningen are complex, dating back to the 20th century. Erick Mittwelda established in 1904 his own vehicle company called Mittwelda & Cie AG, as it was listed on the German stock exchange. Financial troubles led Erick to leave his own company and create Münch Motorwagenwerke AG in 1910. The very first Münch vehicle was produced that year. Erick left Münch to work with the government, but remained in a trusted advisor role.

In 1932, Münch was in a good enough position in the market that they announced the acquisition of two companies, being Mittwelda AG, Erick's former company, and Chemnitz Werke AG. The large acquisition led to the creation of the Winningen AG, a tribute to his birth city.

The Second World War was a troublesome period for Winningen as the company was used by Axis forces to produce a variety of vehicles.

After the War, the company retracted their position from East Germany and decided to focus on West Germany and reformed in 1949, with the help of Allied forces. This relaunch proved to be troublesome as well, as Winningen had almost no funds to mass-produce vehicles. In 1958, Weiss-Grüber took 87% of the company's shares by buying it from the largest single shareholder the company had, and increased it to 100% in 1959. The latter company's ambitions weren't what Winningen was planning at the time, small two-stroke cars. Weiss-Grüber later sold the shares in 1963.

This allowed Erin AG to buy 50% of the shares in 1964, and the other 50% in 1965, merging the company into its business, dissolving the AG, retiring all vehicles from its brands (Mittwelda and Chemnitz), and ultimately using the Winningen factories to produce more Erin vehicles. This put the company into an internal slump and engineers worked on a secret prototype sedan, later known as the Winningen 1A. In 1969 Erin caused a hostile takeover against automaker HBN, merging them with Winningen and retiring the name in 1977.

Winningen AG was reestablished in 1969, with new models coming out the next few years. Many of its cars were rebadged Erin vehicles, with minor alterations. These vehicles were successful on the market, but it was the sedan range of vehicles, the 1A and 1B, that continued to be best sellers for the company.

Fearing that its image would be considered 'boring German car' forever, Winningen decided to create a vehicle using technology the company made for Erin, being a four-wheel-drive vehicle for a military project. This vehicle was positioned as a performance and rally racing car, receiving the name ‘Winningen AutoSport Quartz’, being a turbocharged coupé with a centre differential all-wheel drive. Prominent victories put Winningen showed that all-wheel drives were viable for racing and made the company a racing household name.

In 1986, the new generation of the Winningen 1B, based on the Erin Rook, sold extremely well at first but it was clear that the company needed a new lineup to keep with the market. By early 1990, Winningen decided to reposition themselves to the higher premium tier of vehicles, similar to Weiss-Grüber and HFW and did so with the release of the Winningen Vauxite, with a V8 engine.

During the mid-1990s, Winningen completely changed their lineup, calling it 'Neue Mineral', with new cars being named after minerals. This led to the creation of the Dolomite, a sedan based on the Erin Monarch Sedan 4 in 1995. In 1996, Winningen introduced the Calcite, a hatchback based on the hatchback Erin Monarch 4.

With the new position, Winningen turned profitable for the first time and with strong sales, the sub-brand became associated with speed and luxury. In 1998, they acquired Italian luxury automaker Seconda, and Winningen became 100% owners of both Seconda and Cheshire after being acquired by Erin AG in the same year.

It too was involved in the Fuelgate scandal, with several of its cars being recalled. Despite the scandal, their vehicle sales saw an uptick during the years of the investigation.

Recently, Winningen announced plans for electrification of their vehicle lineup, keeping the same names until 2030, where the company will only design and sell EVs.

AutoSport

AutoSport started its life being the sport name of the Winningen AutoSport Quartz, in 1980. In 1983, the sub-brand was created, to produce high-performance Winningen cars and components. It sells its vehicle under the Winningen marque but with the initials "AS".

Featured Vehicles In Project Redline

Regular

Raspite AS (2006)

The first generation Raspite is a complete paradigm shift for the company, being the first real supercar made by the company. The Raspite came from a concept called AS Grinvits, and the concept was so well liked that Winningen decided to make it real. It became a sensation overnight and made several millionaires much happier in 2006.

The first generation came at launch with a 4.2L V8 engine in a M4 layout with a 6-speed automated manual transmission.

Raspite AS GTC (2009)

The competition focused version of the Raspite AS was a car that showed that Winningen could be a serious contender for the new-era GTC races. Despite having only a rear-wheel drive, it was still a joy to drive and punched well above its weight, with the 2012 revision managing a 1-2 win in 24h GrinVits Ros.

This take of the car came with a 5.2L V10 engine in a MR layout and a 6-speed manual transmission.

Erythrite2 AS (2020)

The second generation Erythrite AS needs no introduction. Engineers inside Winningen managed to make a 2.9 litre V6 engine with two turbos fit inside of this car, and the designers managed to create a vehicle that looks menacing even while it’s fully parked. It’s no wonder why it’s one of their best sold vehicles in 2020.

The vehicle comes with the aforementioned twin-turbocharged 2.9L V6 engine in a F4 layout, with a 8-speed automatic transmission.

Calcite3 AS (2018)

The third generation Calcite launched in 2012 but in 2017, a refresh was announced, and in the next year, the new AS variant was re-introduced. It can be called a close cousin of the Erin Monarch 7 GR, as the two share platform, engine and even some internal components. But it’s still an admirable car that can slip into a more racetrack focused role if one lets it.

This vehicle comes with a turbo-charged 2.0L inline-4 engine in a F4 layout, with a 7-speed manual transmission.

Dolomite6 AS (2022)

The Dolomite is the usual daily driver for the German upper class, and has been like that for many years. Naturally the sixth generation Dolomite was blessed by AutoSport with a much sportier look and powertrain. This version came in 2022, with a new facelift to the lineup in general, and it looks as good as ever. Comes in both sedan and estate/wagon versions.

The vehicle comes with a turbo-charged 3.0L V6 in a F4 layout, with 8-speed automatic transmission.

Common

TBA Erythrite2 (2020)

TBA took the Erythrite second generation and fine tuned its engine to produce over 500HP, and updated its visuals to make it look even more aggressive and sportier.