Sauber SHS C6

The Sauber SHS C6 was a Group C prototype racing car built by Swiss manufacturer Sauber and engineering firm Seger & Hoffman (hence the unique SHS designation), intended for competition in the World Sportscar Championship and Deutsche Rennsport Meisterschaft series. Seger & Hoffman left the project later in 1982, leaving the car completely under Sauber's control.

Following Sauber's return to sportscar racing with Group 5 BMW M1s, Peter Sauber decided to return to the top echelon with the creation of a new scratch built sports car in association with Team GS-Sport, who would run the team. Among the more notable features of the SHS C6 was the large "whaletail" rear wing, centrally mounted on the chassis.

Initial racing history

Launched in the 1982 season, the SHS C6 first ran at the World Sportscar Championship 1000km Monza where it unfortunately failed to finish due to fuel pump failure. Following this, the car appeared in its first Deutsche Rennsport Meisterschaft at the Nürburgring, where it again failed to finish due to an accident. Brun and Sauber's luck however would increase as the year went on, with an SHS C6 finishing 13th at Silverstone, earning its first WSC championship points, although its second entry failed to finish. However, for the next few WSC and DRM races, neither SHS C6s would be able to finish, including at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Following Le Mans though, Brun and Sauber would improve again, as they finished 7th at Norisring, 4th at Hockenheimring, and 8th at Hockenheimring again in DRM, then followed by a 9th at the 1000km Spa and 5th at 1000km Mugello in WSC. With these results, Sauber managed to finish tied for 5th in the World Sportscar Championship.

With 1982 over, Sauber decided that the SHS C6 needed improvement, and decided to develop a replacement, the Sauber C7, and to use a BMW motor in place of their Ford Cosworth they had used for the bulk of 1982. With no longer being needed for 1983, the two SHS C6 chassis were retired.

Return to racing

In 1983, the World Sportscar Championship decided to split the Group C class into two categories, with the lower category designed for cheaper, production based engines and privateer teams. French racer Roland Bassaler, needing a cheap chassis for competition in the C2 class, decided to buy an SHS C6 and install a BMW "M88" 3.5L I6 for the 1985 season, debuting at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where the car finished a distant 23rd. The only other finish on the year was a 17th at the 1000km Spa, leaving the teams with no points on the season.

Roland Bassler would continue into 1986, again starting at Le Mans where he failed to finish, then followed by a 17th place finish at Brands Hatch. Roland Bassler would then score their only points at the Nürburgring with a 12th place finish, in an event which was actually won by a Sauber C8. After the 1986 season, Roland Bassler would stop participating in the World Sportscar Championship, but continued to race in the 24 Hours of Le Mans until 1988, scoring no finishes in the two attempts.

Returning again

Roland Bassaler would again bring his SHS C6 chassis out of retirement for a second time in 1993, again to participate in the C2 class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The car was still outfitted with a 3.5L BMW I6, although the bodywork was radically different from how the SHS C6 had started life in 1982. Unfortunately the car would not finish due to an accident, leading to the final retirement of the chassis after 11 years. This also meant that the SHS C6 out lasted the next five chassis that Sauber had built to replace the SHS C6.