Dannenhauer & Stauss

Dannenhauer & Stauss was founded by Gottfried Dannenhauer, a German coachbuilder. He had been employed by Karosseriewerk Reutter based in Stuttgart. Whilst there, he was communicating with Volkswagen before World War II. From 1950 to 1957 Dannenhauer & Stauss manufactured about 100 convertibles, mostly based on the Volkswagen Beetle. The sales price was 8,892 DM. The body was handmade by tapping metal sheets on a template. Other companies like DKW were supplied. When in 1955 the Karmann Ghia was mass-produced, the company could no longer compete, and its product was discontinued. The amount of production was limited, but precise numbers are uncertain.^[1] Changing their business model to rebuilding vehicle bodies allowed the company to survive at the address in Augustenstraße, Stuttgart where Reutter had been.

Logo

1951 Dannenhauer & Stauss

1954 Dannenhauer & Stauss

1951 Dannenhauer & Stauss rear

About 15 of the DKW Monza cars were made by Dannenhauer & Stauss. Ostensibly, a grand total of about 80 of the DKW Monza cars were made, albeit by different companies.^[2]