Intended Advantage, Audi 200 quattro in the 1988 Trans-Am Series – Part 3: Can You Slow a Great Car Down?

by Steve Johnson, photos courtesy of Audi Tradition and the International Motor Racing Research Center

It’s been 35 years since Audi went road racing to improve an image tarnished by media stories on unintended acceleration. So we’re looking back at Audi’s run in the 1988 Trans Am (TA) series to see if Audi had an all-conquering car or just a big dose of racer’s luck. The cars were Audi 200  sedans pulled from the assembly line for conversion into race cars and then pitted against purpose-built racers from the likes of Chevy, Olds, and Lincoln-Mercury. Where we pick up the story, the 200 had won four races, wins that came despite weight increase and a turbocharger inlet size restriction. It’s now mid-July and TA competitors have grown tired of seeing an Audi taking the checkered flag.

Handicaps applied to slow the Audis weren’t having enough impact to please competing teams, so they formed an “advisory board” with owner/driver Paul Gentilozzi serving as president. Trans Am Series chief steward Dave Watson actually welcomed the board’s help as he previously suggested an organization of constructors should be involved in setting the rules. The National Speed Sport News reported that the board was established to “put the two all-wheel-drive Audis on equal terms” with the competition.  

Motorsports writer Laura Culley of ON TRACK magazine observed, “Half the fun of motorsports is the constant struggle between the rulesmakers trying to equalize a wide variety of technologies, and the engineers, whose mission in life is to thwart that process – in their favor, of course.”

Allegations of sandbagging were levied at Audi after they ran so well at Brainerd despite the handicaps. Other race teams claimed they simply couldn’t compete with quattro. Watson declared the SCCA had to get the “four-wheel-drive technology under control.”

July 23 – Emerson Radio/K-Mart Weekend at Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ

This 1.198-mile temporary street circuit was an oval-ish layout in the parking lot surrounding Brendan Byrne Arena. It had no tight corners where the Audis could shine under braking and acceleration. Hans Stuck qualified second with Hurley Haywood right behind him on the grid in fourth.  

From the race’s start, pole sitter Scott Pruitt led with a Corvette, Stuck’s Audi giving chase. Hurley Haywood was a few seconds back. Tire degradation was very high on the course, impacting Pruitt, and with 25 laps remaining Stuck took the lead. Other lead competitors also began experiencing failures. The course’s pavement was failing in several places, getting slicker by the lap, but the superior traction and tire saving capability provided by quattro brought Haywood up to second. At the finish line it was another Audi 1-2. Stuck shrugged-off fuel consumption worries and ran up front from lap 45 onward, taking the point for most laps led in the process. 

After eight races the driver’s title point standings were: Haywood 113.5, Stuck 62, and Röhrl 37. Haywood’s driver championship lead increased to 18.5 points. The manufacturer’s title standings were now: Audi 62, Olds 41, and Chevy 32.

August 6 – Escort Trans Am Weekend, Lime Rock Park, Lime Rock, CT.

Referred to as a ‘bull ring,’ Lime Rock is a 1.53-mile permanent road course with seven turns, only one of which is to the left. It is notoriously hard to pass. Qualifying saw Audi’s Walter Röhrl in third and Hurley Haywood back in 11th, but only one second off the pace. Actor Paul Newman qualified fifth at his home track.

A new set of restrictions were laid on Audi just four days prior to the race. One hundred more pounds of ballast was added, while tire width was narrowed by one inch. During a pre-race interview on the grid, Röhrl commented, “We get a lot of handicaps, our car is now nearly like a truck. Very heavy, small tires, it will be hard work.”

The race was dominated by Scott Pruitt who led every lap. The Group 44 Audis made the best of their new handicaps but the tires on Röhrl’s car started fading early in the race. Haywood made his way up through the field. Between Röhrl’s tire problems and running low on fuel (and possible team orders), Haywood was able to pass him on the last lap for fourth, leaving Röhrl to finish fifth.  

After the ninth race the driver’s title point standings were: Haywood 125.5, Röhrl 48, and Stuck 21. Haywood’s driver championship lead dropped to 15.5 points. Point standings for manufacturers were Audi with 65 points, Olds 45, and Chevy 38.

September 3 –  Red Roof Inns Trans Am Weekend, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, OH.

On this day, conditions were very rainy, making things easy for the quattros. Qualifying was on a dry track and Audi was relegated to the third row.

On race day the rain came down all race long. One would think that would make for another Audi 1-2 finish. Stuck had the lead by the end of lap 1 and stayed there to lead every lap. Haywood, on the other hand, had to make three pit stops attempting to fix his windshield wiper. That slowed Haywood, who still finished third. 

With only three races remaining, Stuck’s victory secured the 1988 T A manufacturer’s championship for Audi, whose 74-point total mathematically eliminated Oldsmobile. Haywood’s 21.5-point lead put him in a position to clinch driver championship before season’s end.  

September 10 – Briggs & Stratton 200 Weekend, Road America, Elkhart Lake, WI.

This 4-mile, 14-turn permanent road course with significant elevation changes is called America’s national park of speed, with long straights and fast corners that should not have favored Audi. Qualifying confirmed this with Stuck fourth and Haywood eighth on the grid.

Audi never led the race, though Stuck had an exciting battle for second place on lap 1, taking the place by the fifth corner but losing it by lap’s end. By lap eight the German passed again, fighting wheel to wheel for 10 more laps.

Haywood’s race was less exciting. After dropping two places at the start, he had more work to do. TV commentator Johnny Rutherford said of Haywood, “He waits until the last third of the race to push forward,” which Haywood did moving from ninth to fourth place where he would finish.

After 11 races, Audi’s driver point standings were Haywood 151.5, and Röhrl and Stuck tied with 37. Haywood enjoyed a healthy 33.5-point lead over the competition, meaning he could clinch the championship at the next race. Would his consistent driving style pay the big dividend or would his racer’s luck cash out?  Read about how the season ends in the final installment of Intended Advantage in your next issue of quattro Magazine.