Audi Tradition laid a wreath on a stretch of the autobahn on Monday to mark 70 years since the death of the Auto Union racing driver Bernd Rosemayer.

Rosemeyer was killed on January 28 1938 while trying to break the world record for the fastest flying kiolometre, on what is now the A5 autobahn between Frankfurt and Darmstadt, in an Auto Union Streamliner racing car.

As part of the memorial, the August Horch Museum, Zwickau, will organised a commemorative congress on the day.

Rosemeyer was travelling at over 240mph when he lost control of the car and crashed. He had been a works driver for Auto Union in Saxony since 1935 and had an impressive motor sport history.

He was also the first man to break the 400kmph mark on a public road and attempted, and broke, several other world speed records.