Unforgettable Car Geniuses: Paul Jaray

From February 20, we enter the sign of Pisces, and here is an unforgettable genius of that zodiac sign: the wizard of aerodynamics, Paul Jaray, an Austrian from Vienna born in 1889. As a young man, he wrote poetry, drew, and composed music. He became an engineer, following the avant-garde spirit of the time, which promoted a universalism where arts and sciences should unite in the name of progress.

With the end of World War I and Germany's defeat, the young engineer Paul Jaray, who had worked at Zeppelin, contributing ideas and working in the wind tunnel to optimize the efficiency of German airships, found himself without clear horizons. He decided to bring his expertise to the automobile industry.

Paul Jaray brings the knowledge gained from Zeppelin airships into the automotive world, developing aerodynamic solutions.

His approach was pragmatic: just as all airships were more or less identical for efficiency reasons, automobiles could also be built following a well-defined aerodynamic scheme and, inevitably, look very similar! Based on this idea, he created a kind of “Jaray Code”, which defined the optimal shape for different parts of a car to achieve a low drag coefficient (CX).

It is essential to remember that, at the time, automobiles were the opposite of aerodynamic—featuring large radiators, wide fenders, and a boxy cabin that acted like a wall against the wind. The proof of Jaray’s efficiency came with the Audi Type K: compared to the production model, which had a top speed of 95 km/h, the same chassis, when bodied by Jaray, reached 130 km/h while consuming significantly less fuel!

Paul Jaray’s transformation of the Audi Type K introduced aerodynamic shapes that improved performance and fuel efficiency.

However, this example, like that of the Dixi, was not enough to convince the market that aerodynamics were essential for the future of automobiles. Jaray’s ideas were more readily adopted in racing cars than in road cars, but with little financial reward for the Austrian engineer of Hungarian origin.

What did the “Jaray Code” state? That any type of car body should be divided into a lower section resembling an airfoil (technically a "thick wing") and an upper section inspired by the gondola of an airship, modified according to the type of vehicle.

The Auto Union Type B designed by Paul Jaray, which set a speed record on the Florence-Mare highway in Italy in 1935. It was the first car in history to exceed 300 km/h.

As often happens, those who see too far ahead do not reap the rewards of their work. Jaray tried to sell patents and establish collaborations with manufacturers, but things proved more difficult than expected. The tastes of the era favored monumental, boxy cars, and Jaray’s unconventional shapes were not reassuring.

The paradox of an unrecognized genius never left him. However, over time, manufacturers gradually oriented the market toward models with improved aerodynamics, ultimately confirming that Jaray’s principles were correct.

Paul Jaray during a hearing at the Swiss Museum of Transport.