Camilla Jessen
Known for its rare, high-performance cars, the cult German carmaker has filed for bankruptcy.
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On April 11, the German automaker Isdera AG, best known for building ultra-rare sports cars, filed for bankruptcy at the district court in Saarbrücken.
Once a cult favorite among car enthusiasts and collectors, Isdera’s journey from engineering marvels to financial insolvency marks the end of an era in European car craftsmanship.
Founded in 1982 by Eberhard Schulz, a former Porsche engineer, Isdera stood for “Ingenieurbüro für Styling, Design und Racing.”
The company built fewer than 100 cars in its lifetime, priding itself on bespoke design and technical excellence.
But as Bild reports, the brand simply became “too small to survive.”
From Supercars to Bankruptcy
Isdera made a name for itself with legendary models such as the Imperator 108i and Commendatore 112i, both equipped with modified Mercedes-Benz engines.
Introduced in the mid-1980s, the Imperator was limited to just 30 units and could reach top speeds of up to 310 km/h (193 mph). Powered by a V8 engine producing up to 410 horsepower, it was both rare and powerful.
In 1993, Isdera pushed further with the Commendatore 112i, a sleek, futuristic supercar powered by a 12-cylinder Mercedes engine with 620 horsepower. Only one was ever made.
At the time, prices ranged from €100,000 to €400,000 ($107,000 to $428,000). But despite the eye-watering price tags, Schulz admitted to WirtschaftsWoche that he never made a profit on the cars.
It was pure passion,
Revival Attempt Falls Short
In 2016, Schulz sold Isdera AG to Sinfonia Automotive AG, which partnered with Chinese investors to revive the brand. Together, they developed the Commendatore GT, a modern electric sports car inspired by Isdera’s earlier designs.
But the new venture failed to capture market interest, and the brand has been mostly silent since.
The bankruptcy filing has raised concerns for the company’s employees, though it remains unclear how many people will be affected. Attorney Thomas Becker from the firm Thimmel and Partner has been appointed as the provisional receiver, bringing experience from similar insolvency cases.
So far, neither Isdera nor Becker have provided comments to the media.
The full scope of the impact—and whether the Isdera name might be saved—remains unknown.
Despite the company’s financial woes, Isdera cars have skyrocketed in value. In 2021, the one-off Commendatore 112i was sold at auction for €1.2 million ($1.28 million).