Rudolf Schleicher

Rudolf Schleicher (born August 2, 1897 in Basel , † October 24, 1989 in Munich ) was a German engineer and motorcycle racer .

Life

Rudolf Schleicher was born in Basel to German parents. He served in the First World War in the Bavarian Automotive Company on the Western Front .

After the end of the war he studied at the Technical University of Munich and graduated as a graduate engineer. From September 1, 1922, he worked for the Süddeutsche Bremsen-AG in Munich; In the course of the transactions between BMW AG, BFW AG and Süddeutsche Bremsen AG, it was taken over by BMW in November 1922.

From 1927 to 1931 he was employed by Horch , Zwickau , as head of engine testing. During this time he was involved in the development of the Horch 8-cylinder engines together with Fritz Fiedler . He then worked again for BMW until 1945.

After 1945 he founded the company Schleicher Fahrzeugteile KG in Munich, which was later run by his two sons Rudolf (Rolf) and Hans Schleicher. The company offered car repairs and the manufacture of spare parts (including camshafts ).

From October 24, 1956, Rudolf Schleicher returned to BMW as a consultant for the development and testing department.

Works

In 1924 Rudolf Schleicher played a leading role in developing the engine for the BMW R 37 , the first sports model from the young motorcycle manufacturer BMW. On his ninetieth birthday, he had himself photographed driving an R 37 on the Mittenwalder Steige.

In 1933 the BMW 303 came on the market with the first six-cylinder engine from BMW. Rudolf Schleicher designed the trend-setting engine.

Sporting successes

Rudolf Schleicher achieved the first motorsport success for BMW on a BMW R 32 at the ADAC winter drive from February 1st to 3rd in Garmisch-Partenkirchen . With the BMW R 37 he developed, he won the first gold medal for Germany at the International Six-Day Race in 1926 ; at the same time it was the first international motorsport success for BMW.

Awards

In 1984 he was awarded the Federal Cross of Merit on ribbon.

References

literature

• Steffen Ottinger: Around Zschopau. The story of an off-road motorcycle ride . tape 1 . Druck- und Verlagsgesellschaft Marienberg, Marienberg 2004, ISBN 3-931770-49-4 , p. 8 .
• Steffen Ottinger: Around Zschopau. The story of an off-road motorcycle ride . tape 2 . HB-Werbung und Verlag GmbH & Co. KG, Chemnitz 2011, ISBN 978-3-00-036705-2 , p. 13 .
• Steffen Ottinger: International Six Day Trip 2012. The story since 1913 . HB-Werbung und Verlag GmbH & Co. KG, Chemnitz 2012, ISBN 978-3-00-039566-6 , p. 14th ff .
• Siegfried Rauch; Frank Rönicke: Men and motorcycles - a century of German motorcycle development. Stuttgart: Motorbuch-Verlag 2008, ISBN 978-3-613-02947-7 , pp. 188-195
• Hans Christoph Graf von Seherr-Thoß:  Schleicher, Rolf. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 23, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 2007, ISBN 978-3-428-11204-3 , p. 52 ( digitized version ).

Web links

• Schleicher, Rolf (actually Rudolf) in the German biography , accessed on May 5, 2019.
• Rudolf Schleicher. In: BMW history. BMW AG, accessed on July 26, 2016 (dossier on Rudolf Schleicher in the BMW Group Archive). 

Individual evidence

1. ↑ history. Schleicher Vehicle Parts, accessed on July 26, 2016 : "Camshafts are our business"  
2. ↑ BMW R 37 with Rudolf Schleicher. In: BMW history. BMW AG, 1987, accessed on May 5, 2019 (CV in the BMW Group Archive). 
3. ↑ Cross-section of the six-cylinder M78 engine. In: BMW history. BMW AG, 1933, accessed on May 5, 2019 (document in the BMW Group Archive): "Cross section of the six-cylinder engine designed by Rudolf Schleicher" 
4. ^ ADAC Winterfahrt 1924 in Garmisch Partenkirchen. In: BMW history. BMW AG, February 1924, accessed on March 21, 2018 : "Daily record for all classes on R 32" 
5. ^ Rudolf Schleicher's victory in the six-day race in 1926. In: BMW history. BMW AG, 1926, accessed on July 26, 2016 (document in the BMW Group Archive).