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Kauhsen started his own team, Willi Kauhsen Racing Team, for the 1972 season to participate in Interserie and Can-Am as a driver. In 1971, Jo Siffert was popular in the Can-Am series driving a Group 7 Porsche 917/10, and Porsche competition director Rico Steinemann decided to update this car into 1972 spec. for Willi Kauhsen to drive,[2] which produced 1000 hp on the dyno, 900 hp in racing trim with twin turbo chargers.[3]
He won the Imola Interserie event in 1972, and finished second in Zeltweg, Norisring, Keimola and Hockenheim in the series.[4]
This car's Can-Am debut was at the 8th round (of 9 total) at Laguna Seca in 1972, in which Kauhsen qualified 8th and did not finish for a turbocharger trouble. For the last round at Riverside Raceway, Kauhsen qualified 9th and finished 8th.[5][6]
In 1973, he won the first two races in Interserie at the Nürburgring and in Imola, second place at Silverstone, 4th place at Norisring, 6th at Hockenheim, 4th at Misano and 4th at Hockenheim. For Can-Am, he qualified 5th and did not finish at Mid-Ohio, which was the only appearance in 1973.[7]
For 1974, he won at Interserie Silverstone, entered Emerson Fittipaldi for 6th at Nürburgring, 2nd place as the driver at Kassel Calden, 4th place at Casale, 4th at Hockenheim, and did not appear in Can-Am.
The #1 Merzario duo finished the 1000 km race in second place behind an Alpine-Renault A441 Turbo of Jabouille/Larrousse, and the #2 Pescarolo car finished in the 4th place behind a turbocharged 6 cylinder Porsche 908/3 of Müller/van Lennep.[8]
The team dominated the rest of the season as follows:
The team did not participate in 1975 24 Hours of Le Mans held on 14–15 June, which did not count toward World Championship for Makes due to the conflict between FIA and ACO. Arturo Merzario, paired with Nino Vaccarella, did win the 1975 Targa Florio on 20 July driving an Alfa Romeo 33TT12, but the event no longer counted for the championship and the entry was made by Autodelta directly without involvement by the team.
The Kauhsen team started in Formula Two in 1976, purchasing Renault cars, and raced with an assortment of drivers with limited success. Kauhsen then entered the 1979 Formula One season, spending 1978 designing their own chassis with Cosworth engines. They participated in two World Championship Grands Prix with Gianfranco Brancatelli, failing to qualify on both occasions, before the team was shut down.
