Hans-Dieter Dechent (born June 13, 1940 - September 20, 2014 in Saarbrücken) was a German entrepreneur, racing team owner and racing car driver.
When Hans-Dieter Dechent was born in 1940 in the middle of World War II, the Dechent dealership in Saarbrücken had already existed for 19 years. The company was founded by Hans Dechent, who was married to a sister of Fritz von Opel. The company grew very quickly. With the financial support of his brother-in-law, one of the most modern car dealerships in southern Germany was established in 1923 on Mainzer Strasse with an area of 6000 square meters. Between 1919 and 1923, the company had sold 100 Dixi in four years. By 1935, Dechent had expanded to a total of 4,500 new vehicles from the Delahaye, Donnet-Contin and Chenard & Walcker brands. Through the general agency ofFrom 1935, Opel sold 1,000 units per year.
Subject ID: 54301
MoreHans-Dieter Dechent (born June 13, 1940 - September 20, 2014 in Saarbrücken) was a German entrepreneur, racing team owner and racing car driver.
When Hans-Dieter Dechent was born in 1940 in the middle of World War II, the Dechent dealership in Saarbrücken had already existed for 19 years. The company was founded by Hans Dechent, who was married to a sister of Fritz von Opel. The company grew very quickly. With the financial support of his brother-in-law, one of the most modern car dealerships in southern Germany was established in 1923 on Mainzer Strasse with an area of 6000 square meters. Between 1919 and 1923, the company had sold 100 Dixi in four years. By 1935, Dechent had expanded to a total of 4,500 new vehicles from the Delahaye, Donnet-Contin and Chenard & Walcker brands. Through the general agency ofFrom 1935, Opel sold 1,000 units per year.
During the Second World War, the company was relocated from Saarbrücken to St. Wendel and Homburg. After the end of the fighting they returned to the old location. The dealership continued to expand until the 1970s. The brands Renault and Alfa Romeo and the general agency of General Motors joined Opel. Later came Volkswagen, Audi and Hyundai added. The branch network was expanded beyond the Saarland.
Hans-Dieter Dechent was involved in the management in the 1960s; In 1969 he left the company. He financed the racing activities of Martini Racing with the share of the inheritance paid out. Through his racing career, he met Jack Brabham in the mid-1960s and took over his German racing car sales. Brabham's Formula 3 and Formula 2 racing cars were sold to private drivers through the dealership. One product of the collaboration was the Brabham Kadett B, an Opel Kadett with improvements to the chassis, engine and transmission.
Hans-Dieter Dechent's driver career began in 1962. Until the end of his active time in 1970, he financed all of his racing participation with his own funds. In the workshops of his car dealership in Saarbrücken, he ran a racing team from the start, in which the emergency vehicles were prepared. He drove his first races in 1962 with an Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Speciale at GT races in West Germany. He had his first international start at the 1000 km race in Paris in 1962, where he and Ernst Furtmayr finished fifteenth in the overall standings. In the following years he registered racing cars, especially in the German Circuit Championship and atHill climb. For the Scuderia Lufthansa from Robert chicken he started in the World Sportscar Championship. In 1964, 1965 and 1966 he competed for Huhn in the 1000 km race on the Nürburgring.
In 1967 he joined Scuderia Lufthansa as a partner and supported the team with generous financial resources. This year, the cooperation between Dechent and was Porsche's racing department. In 1967 Scuderia Lufthansa’s fleet included a Porsche 911 and the sports car models 906 and 910. In the 1000 km race on the Nürburgring in 1967, the duo Huhn / Dechent in the Porsche 906, two laps behind the winners Udo Schütz and Joe Buzzetta, who drove a 910, achieved sixth place in the overall standings.
Dechent remained active as a driver until the end of the 1970 racing season. His last race start was at the 100 km race in Mainz-Finthen in 1970, where he finished second overall in a Porsche 908/03 behind Jürgen Neuhaus, who drove a Porsche 917. Between 1967 and 1970 he was regularly reported world championship sports car in. Together with Gerhard Koch ( Porsche 907 ) he finished third overall in the 1000 km race in Monza in 1969 and in the Porsche 908/02 in the 9-hour race in Kyalami. His latest sports car racing was the 1000 km race at Spa-Francorchamps 1970, where he and Helmut Marko finished eleventh in the overall ranking.
Subject ID: 54301
Subject ID: 54301