Motorsport in transition
Exciting touring cars
The Audi Super 90 was among the first models of the new generation that private drivers modified on their own to compete in motorsport. Soon after, the new Audi 80 that was launched in 1972 provided a suitable, extremely lightweight and powerful touring car – especially with the GTE version that was introduced later. The Audi 50 was also popular. This small car was not only a hero in the touring car classes for lower engine displacements, but it also achieved countless successes in slalom and hill climb events.
The Abt team’s Audi 80 at the 1975 Spa 24 Hours
The Audi 80 of Willi Bergmeister and Hans-Joachim Nowak at Vallelunga during the 1980 European Touring Car Championship
The Audi 80 of Willi Bergmeister and Hans-Joachim Nowak at Vallelunga during the 1980 European Touring Car Championship
Support and development
Audi not only took note of the growing customer racing activities but also quickly rewarded the achievements. From 1973, the company organized an annual in-house one-make trophy competition in which private Audi drivers with front-wheel-drive race cars could participate. A few years later, the next step followed: Jürgen Stockmar, head of Audi Sport Support, began developing teams and building a dedicated department. In 1977, Freddy Kottulinsky, Harald Ertl and Hans-Joachim Nowak competed in the European Touring Car Championship under the Abt banner. In 1978, the Audi 80, in its Group 2 configuration, made its debut in the German Rally Championship with Joachim Knollmann and Klaus Hopfe. Later, targeted entries in the World Rally Championship followed. In 1980, Audi even won the manufacturers’ title in the European Touring Car Championship. But behind the scenes, the groundwork had long been laid for an international factory program: the Audi quattro was ready to revolutionize rallying.
Harald Demuth and Arwed Fischer in an Audi 80 at the Sachs Baltic Rally during the 1979 German Rally Championship
Gallery
