It must be a special occasion when almost all of Switzerland's racing celebrities gather in the car building. On November 20, 2010, the "Wall of Frame" of Swiss motor racing was inaugurated with a small ceremony.
The "Wall of Fame" honors all those personalities who have made outstanding contributions to Swiss motorsport over the past 100 years as racing drivers, technicians, team managers, commission agents or in other roles. The list was compiled by a jury of motorsport experts. The list of honorees begins with the Dufaux brothers and Louis Chevrolet, who caused a sensation at the beginning of the last century. The roll of honor at autobau in Romanshorn thus also documents a piece of Swiss sporting history. Adriano Cimarosti and Fredy Lienhard, themselves immortalized in the "Wall of Fame", are behind the initiative.
Numerous personalities from the Swiss motorsport scene were present at the inauguration of the "Wall of Fame", including almost 40 of the "Legends" immortalized on the plaque. They include Jo Vonlanthen, Walter Brun, Marc Surer, Fredy Amweg and Mario Illien, to name but a few. The "young" legends active as drivers Marcel Fässler, Neel Jani and Simona De Silvestro also received their certificates in person. Deceased celebrities such as Peter Monteverdi, Jo Siffert and Clay Regazzoni were represented at the ceremony by relatives or close friends.
The gallery can be viewed in the Autobau in Romanshorn during normal public hours as part of the museum visit.
The following list shows the honored personalities. The gallery shows the legends past and present in impressive pictures.
Charles Dufaux 1879-1950
Frédéric Dufaux 1881-1962
From 1903, the two brothers from Geneva built cars. In 1905, Frédéric set an absolute world speed record of 156.2 km/h on a straight near Arles (France) in a Dufaux eight-cylinder with a displacement of 26 liters and 150 hp, although this was never formally registered. Car production at Dufaux was discontinued in 1907.
Ernest Henry 1885-1950
In 1912, the engineer from Geneva built the first engine with two overhead camshafts and four valves per cylinder for Peugeot. The brand won the ACF Grand Prix (1912/1913) and the 500 miles of Indianapolis (1913/1916/1919) several times with this engine. Henry also designed the Ballot eight-cylinder engine with which Jules Goux won the Italian GP in 1921.
Louis Chevrolet 1878-1941
Gaston Chevrolet 1882-1920
Louis and Gaston Chevrolet came from Bonfol in the Swiss Jura. They became famous as racing drivers in the USA. Louis, co-founder of the Chevrolet brand in 1911, designed the Frontenac racing cars, among other things. Gaston Chevrolet and Tommy Milton won the Indianapolis 500 miles in 1920 and 1921 respectively. Seven months after his Indy success, Gaston was killed in a racing accident and Louis retired from racing.
Hans Stuber 1895-1956
Active from 1924 to 1937, the Bernese driver became Swiss champion four times. Initially driving Ansaldo racing cars, he switched to Bugatti in 1929 and won various European hill climb races. In the brand's Model 35B, he finished sixth in the 1930 Monaco GP and third in the 1932 Avus Race in Berlin. From 1934, Stuber also drove an Alfa Romeo 8C Monza.
Hans Rüesch 1913-2007
In the 1930s, he was one of the few Swiss drivers in GP racing. He won numerous hill climbs and was at home on all the racetracks in Europe with Maserati or Alfa Romeo. In an Alfa Romeo 8C, he won the GP of Donington in 1936 together with Richard Seaman. Later, Rüesch was also known as a writer and animal rights activist.
Emmanuel de Graffenried 1914-2007
The Romand with Bernese roots made his debut at the Mille Miglia in 1936, he was the most prominent Swiss driver on the GP circuit after the war and won the British GP in 1949 in a Maserati. He was a works driver for Alfa Romeo in 1950 and 1951, then returned to Maserati and won the 1953 Syracuse race and the Eifelrennen at the Nürburgring.
Christian Kautz 1913-1948
From 1934, the Zug native first made a name for himself at Alfa Romeo and Maserati before joining the Mercedes works team in 1937. He achieved good results in the Monaco, German and Italian Grand Prix (3rd/6th/6th) and finished third on the podium in the European Championship. A guest appearance at Auto Union was followed by a period as a test driver for Lockheed in the USA. In 1947 he won in Reims in a Maserati, and in 1948 he was killed in an accident at the Swiss GP in Bern.
Rudolf Fischer 1912-1976
Initially driving Alfa Romeos from 1935, he became famous after the war for his successes in Simca-Gordini cars. After switching to Ferrari, he won in Angoulême and Aix-les-Bains in 1951. This was followed in 1952 by a victory on the Avus in Berlin, second place in the Swiss GP and third place in the German GP. Fischer finished fourth in the World Championship as a privateer Ferrari driver.
Willy-Peter Daetwyler 1919-2001
In the 1950s, the businessman from Zurich enjoyed a legendary reputation: he won practically every national race in his 4.5-liter Alfa Romeo with a V12 supercharged engine. In 1955, he switched to a Ferrari 750 Monza and also competed abroad with this vehicle. In 1957, "WPD" became European Hill Climb Champion in a Maserati 200S.
Michael May 1934
As a young ETH engineer, he fitted a Porsche 550 with a downforce-generating wing in 1956. In 1959 he won the Monaco Junior GP in a Stanguellini, and in 1961 he competed in two F1 Grand Prix. After working for Porsche and Mercedes, he joined Ferrari in 1962/63 and was the first to use fuel injection on the V6 F1 engine.
Heini Walter 1927-2009
The Basel native was active as a racing driver from 1947 to 1967, driving Bugatti, BMW and AFM, before taking on Porsche in 1956, also as a works driver. He became German racing champion (1959), European hill climb champion, twice in the sports car category (1960/1961) and once in the GT category (1964). From 1957, he won the Swiss sports car championship title five times in a row.
Karl Foitek 1931
Originally from Austria, he established himself as a garage owner in Zurich, where he also became known as an Alfa Giulietta tuner. From 1956 to 1971, he competed in races and became Swiss champion four times in Alfa Romeo and Lotus. He also took first places in Austria, England and Germany, and twice took part in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Harry Zweifel 1920-1991
Between 1950 and 1966, the Glarus native took part in 279 competitions (hill climbs, circuit races, slaloms and rallies). He became Swiss racing car champion in 1957 in a Cooper-Norton 1100, in 1958 in a Cooper-Climax 2500 and in 1959 and 1960 in a Cooper-Ferrari 2500. He won numerous one-day and class victories in hill climbs in Switzerland, Belgium, France and Austria.
Georges Gachnang 1931
Claude Gachnang 1934
From 1957, the brothers from Aigle were active in motor racing: Claude as a designer and Georges as a driver. Claude built racing cars and modified existing sports and racing cars, fitted them with a different engine, gave them a new livery and christened them "Cegga". Georges mainly raced in hill climbs and took several one-day victories.
Charles Vögele 1923-2002
One of the most prominent figures in Swiss racing, he competed in races in Jowett Jupiter, AC, Lotus, Lola, Brabham and Porsche from 1953 to 1967. He became Swiss sports car champion in 1962 in a Lotus Monte Carlo and national racing car champion in 1963 in a Brabham. His one-day victories in the Brabham-Climax Intercontinental were also remarkable.
Peter Monteverdi 1934-1998
From 1956, he competed in races in Porsche, Ferrari, Cooper and Lotus, and from 1959 to 1961 in Formula Junior races in his own monoposto designs. In the same year, the Basel garage owner built an F1 racing car with a Porsche engine, and from 1967 to 1981 luxury sports cars in small series. In 1990, the Monteverdi Onyx team took part in Formula 1 with Gregor Foitek as driver.
Joseph Siffert 1936-1971
Probably the most legendary Swiss racing driver of all time, he switched from motorcycles to Formula Junior in 1960 and then to Formula 1 two years later. He won the 1968 British GP in a Lotus and the 1971 Austrian GP in a BRM. He was victorious in a dozen endurance races in a Porsche. He was killed in an accident at Brands Hatch in 1971.
Silvio Moser 1941-1974
The highlights of his racing career, which lasted from 1961 to 1974, include four F3 victories in the 1964 Argentinian Temporada. In 1968, he entered Formula 1 in a Brabham and finished fifth in Holland (Zaandvort). After stints in F1 (in Brabham and Bellasi) and F2 (Surtees), "the little man from Ticino" also competed in endurance races (Lola). He died in 1974 after an accident in Monza.
Gianrico Steinemann 1939-2003
Having occasionally competed in races since 1960, the Zurich native founded the magazine "Powerslide". With partner Dieter Spoerry, he was successful in endurance races in a Porsche in 1967/68, and the team finished second in the 1967 24 Hours of Le Mans. From 1969 to 1971, "Rico" Steinemann was race director at Porsche, after which he worked for Mercedes Switzerland, becoming President of the Swiss Car Importers in 1997.
Curt Schild 1930
The ETH mechanical engineer from Solothurn worked at Porsche from 1955 to 1958. After a year at Smith Motor Accessories in England, he joined the ACS in 1960, where he headed up the sport and technology divisions. At the FIA, Schild initially chaired the Homologation Commission, later becoming head of the Formula 1 Technical Commission.
Pete Ettmüller 1934
After an unsuccessful first race appearance (Steckborn-Eichhölzli 1956) in an Austin Healey, the Zurich native became a two-time Swiss champion (1963/1964), winner of the Challenge Shell (1968) and the youngest NSK member in the same year. Ettmüller later ran the SAR/ACS driving courses, dealt with safety problems in motorsport and also managed the traffic safety center in Veltheim.
Xavier Perrot 1932-2008
The Zurich garage owner began his racing career in 1955 in a Porsche. In 1966 he switched to a Lotus 23 and in 1968/1969 he took part in the F2 European Championship in a Brabham. In addition to his many national one-day victories, his 1972 season is worth mentioning, in which he became European F2 hillclimb champion in a March-Cosworth after taking 16 one-day victories with 13 track records.
Gianclaudio (Clay) Regazzoni 1936-2006
The Ticino native started out in F3 in 1965, was a Tecno works driver in F2 from 1968 and became European champion in this category in 1970. In the same year, he made his successful debut in Formula 1 in a Ferrari and won the Italian GP. At the end of the 1974 season in Watkins Glen, he narrowly missed out on the championship title in the premier class. He won four of his five GP victories with Ferrari and one with Williams.
Adriano Cimarosti 1937
Since his youth, the Italo-Bernese was passionate about motor racing. After appearing as a racing expert on the television quiz "Dopplet oder nüt", he was hired by "Automobil Revue" as sports editor in 1961. Cima" remained faithful to this role for 40 years, authoring several award-winning racing books and working as a speaker and presenter.
Josef Marquart 1936-1993
The engineer and racing designer came from Winterthur, but made his career in England. He started at Lotus in 1966, moved to McLaren in 1968 and to Huron in 1970. The next stages were GRD (1971) and Modus (1973). Finally, he joined Anglia Cars (1976), where he built the Argo. Marquart worked on F1, F2, F3 and Indycar projects as well as sports cars.
Marc Surer 1951
After starting out in karting (1971), the Basel native switched to Formula 2 via Formula Vee and Formula 3, where he became European Champion in 1979. He then drove in Formula 1 for the Ensign, ATS, Arrows and Brabham teams. Together with Manfred Winkelhock, he won the 1000-kilometer race in Monza in 1985 in a Porsche 962C.
Jo Vonlanthen 1942
The man from Fribourg first competed in Formula Vee in 1968, then switched to F3, where he became Swiss F3 champion in 1972 in a Tecno. He then competed in F2 races, finishing third in the 1973 GP of Rome in a GRD and second in 1975 in Estoril in a March. In the same year, he made two F1 appearances in a Williams-Cosworth. After his active career, he became known as an organizer of racing car exhibitions.
Peter Sauber 1943
In 1970, Peter Sauber founded PP Sauber AG in Hinwil and built his first racing car. In 1989, the Sauber-Mercedes C9 won the 24 Hours of Le Mans and in 1989 and 1990 the World Sports Car Championship. In 1993, the Zurich-based company entered Formula 1 and achieved fourth place in the Constructors' World Championship in 2001. From 2006 to 2009, the team was majority-owned by BMW and celebrated its first GP victory in Montreal in 2008. Sauber took over the BMW shares again at the end of 2009.
Arthur Blank 1933-2005
The Zurich graphic designer and co-founder of the magazine "Powerslide" had been racing since 1958. However, he became famous from 1963, when he not only delivered acrobatic performances in a Ford Cortina Lotus, but also became Swiss champion. He also won this title in 1965 (Ford Cortina Lotus) and 1968 (Porsche 911 L). Until 1976, he competed in races in Porsche 910, Opel Steinmetz, Chevron and Lola.
Herbert Müller 1940-1981
"Stumpen-Herbi" started in Cooper F3 in 1960 and drove for Scuderia Filipinetti from 1963. In 1965 he became European Hillclimb Champion in a Porsche GT, in 1966 he won the Targa Florio with Willy Mairesse and finished second at Le Mans in 1971 in a Porsche 917. With Gijs van Lennep, he won the Targa Florio again in 1973 in a Porsche and became Interseries champion in 1974. He died at the Nürburgring in 1981.
Mario Illien 1949
The engine specialist from Chur designed the ROC Chrysler F2 engine in 1972. In 1979, he joined Cosworth, where he designed an F1 engine and the Sierra Cosworth engine. In 1984, he founded the company Ilmor in England with Paul Morgan and Roger Penske, which built the Chevrolet Indy V8, the Mercedes Indy V8 and later the Mercedes V10 engines for F1 (World Championship victories in 1989/1990 with McLaren). Illien also built the Honda Indy engines.
Jürg Dubler 1941
After initially competing on Volvo in 1962, Dubler built the Zarp racing cars for Formula Vee in 1965/66. In addition, he drove successfully and predominantly on Brabham in Formula 3 with victories in Brno (1966/1970), Vallelunga (1967) and Jarama (1969). In 1971, he contested F2 races in Colombia and Argentina and was manager of the hapless Finotto F1 team in 1974.
Markus Hotz 1941
The man from Thurgau contested his first races from 1966 and became a two-time Swiss champion in March BMW F2 (1975/1977). He also worked as a vehicle designer and built a total of over 40 monopostos (Formula Vee and Super Vee as well as CanAm vehicles). He was successful with his Horag team in F2 and sports cars.
Heini Mader 1936
Heini Mader, originally from Lindau on Lake Constance, came to Switzerland in 1957 and soon became a legendary racing mechanic. He looked after Jo Siffert's F1 cars from 1963 to 1965 and then worked for Bonnier, Cooper and Ligier. In 1973, Heini Mader Racing was founded in Gland VD, which prepared up to 40 percent of F1 engines (Cosworth and BMW) in the era of F1 turbo engines.
Loris Kessel 1950-2010
The Ticino native got his start in touring cars, moving into Formula 2 via Formula 3 in 1975. His appearances in F1 with the RAM team (1976) ended in a legal dispute. This was followed by individual starts in F3 and F2. He finished seventh in a Porsche 962C at Le Mans in 1993. He later distinguished himself in the Ferrari Challenge.
Peter Schetty 1942
The man from Basel first made a name for himself in 1966 in a Shelby Mustang in the European Hillclimb Championship, after which he was successful for Abarth for two years. In 1969, he switched to Ferrari and became European Hillclimb Champion with the 212E. In 1970, he drove the Ferrari 512S in various endurance races before becoming Ferrari team manager for two years in 1971.
Claude Haldi 1942
He spent most of his three-decade-long racing career driving a Porsche from 1964 onwards. He contested most of the classic endurance races several times, some of them as a works driver. He competed 22 times at Le Mans and four times at the Targa Florio. He won the Porsche Cup in 1975. The Vaud native also drove in rallies and became Swiss champion in this discipline in 1979.
Walter Brun 1942
Initially as a driver and later as a racing team owner, the Lucerne native was active from 1965 to 2003. He mainly drove BMWs and Porsches. In 1971, he became European Hillclimb Champion in the touring car category. In 1982, he founded his Team Brun, with which he mainly competed in endurance races and won the one-make world championship with the Porsche 962C in 1987. In 1988, he entered Formula 1 with EuroBrun without any luck.
Jean-Louis Burgnard 1944
As his diploma thesis at the Geneva School of Engineering, he designed a racing car, which was christened "Griffon" and at the wheel of which Charles Ramu-Caccia became Swiss champion in 1971. In 1975, the same school hired him as a specialist teacher. He continued to build Renault and Ford racing cars as well as two-seaters, building a total of around 30 vehicles.
Charles Graemiger 1937
"Cheetah" was the name of the racing cars or prototypes built by the Manila-born designer, who worked in Vaud. All eight vehicles built by him between 1975 and 1991 with monocoque chassis and 2.0, 3.0, 3.9 and 5.4-liter engines were intended for use in endurance races. The Cheetahs confirmed their good quality with good finishes in Dijon, Le Mans and Imola.
Fredy Lienhard 1947
From 1966, the entrepreneur from eastern Switzerland was active for over 40 years and raced in Europe and North America. Until 2008, he contested races in various formulas (V, Super V, F2, F3000), GT and sports cars (Horag-Lola, CanAm, Ferrari, Dallara, Daytona Prototype, Lola, Porsche). In 2002, he won the 24 Hours of Daytona with Baldi/Theys/Papis in a Dallara-Judd. Lienhard initiated autobau in Romanshorn and is an important promoter of Swiss racing.
Max Welti 1952
The Zurich native began his driving career in 1974 in a Porsche, switched to sports cars/F3 in 1977 and became Swiss sports car champion in a Wittwer BMW in 1980. From 1982 to 1985, he took part in the World Sports Prototype Championship in a Sauber C7/C8. As a motorsport manager, he became team manager at Sauber (1986 to 2000), then Porsche race director (1991 to 1995) and finally Sauber F1 team director (1995 to 1998). He won the A1GP Nations World Cup with the Swiss team in 2007/2008.
Fredy Amweg 1949
With the help of his father, the man from Aargau built his first racing car himself and contested his first race in 1967. During his career, he drove Brabham (F3), Tecno (F2), March (F2), Martini (F2) and Lola (F3000) monopostos. In 500 starts, he took around 250 one-day victories and won the Coupe of the Swiss Mountains 16 times. During his long racing career, he did not have a single accident worth mentioning.
Paul Gutjahr 1942
He was active as a driver from 1968 to 1980, but was also a successful racing official. In 1976, he was elected Sports President of the ACS Bern and in 1980 President of the NSK (until 2005). In 1982, he was OC President of the Swiss GP in Dijon. Since 1996, the Bernese businessman has been a permanent sports commissioner for Formula 1. In 2004, he was one of the founders of Auto Sport Switzerland, which he headed as its first managing director.
Gregor Foitek 1965
He contested his first races in 1984 in an Alfa Romeo GTV6. With significant support from his father Karl, he switched to Formula Ford and then to Formula 3, where he became Swiss champion in 1986 in a Dallara-VW. In Formula 3000, he won in Vallelunga (1988) before making his debut in F1 with EuroBrun a year later. He ended his career in 1992 with appearances in the US CART series.
Hanspeter Kaufmann 1953
The driver from Obwalden made his debut in Alpine in 1974. He won the F3 Swiss Championship title in March in 1983. In 1986, "Hasi" Kaufmann finished second in the German F3 championship and third in 1987. In 1987, he contested the 1000 kilometers on the Nürburgring in a Porsche 962. Fontana (1995), Trulli (1996) and Pantano (2000) won the German F3 Championship for his KMS team.
Jo Zeller 1955
He contested his first races in 1974 in a Mini Cooper S. The Zurich native won a record 13 Swiss F3 championship titles from 1976 onwards in March, Ralt and Dallara racing cars. During his active career, Zeller competed in over 300 races and won a total of 149 championship races. The Zurich native has run his own racing team since 1987.
Alain Menu 1963
The Genevan started out in Formula Ford in 1985 and moved up to Formula 3000 via Formula 3 in 1990. He was particularly successful in the English Touring Car Championship, which he won twice in 1997 in a Renault and in 2000 in a Ford. During the following years, Menu was involved in the DTM (Opel), the ALMS and the World Touring Car Championship (Chevrolet).
Marcel Fässler 1976
The driver from central Switzerland moved from karting to Formula Renault in 1995, where he won the Macau race (1997). After a stint in German F3, he switched to the DTM (2000), initially as a Mercedes-Benz driver (various race wins until 2003) and from 2005 as an Opel driver. In 2007 he won the 24 Hours of Spa (Chevrolet Corvette), and in 2010 he finished second in the 24 Hours of Le Mans as an Audi works driver.
Andreas Jenzer 1963
He made his racing debut in 1989 in the Formula Ford 1600, but his real career began in 1993 when he founded his own racing team. The team from Lyss won several Swiss and international titles, including in Formula Ford, Formula Renault 2.0 and Formula Master. Jenzer Motorsport has been active in the GP3 series in the Formula 1 environment since 2010.
Enzo Calderari 1952
Lilian Bryner 1959
Since Enzo Calderari contested his first race in a Porsche in 1976, he has competed in well over 200 endurance races in Porsches, Jaguars, Ferraris and BMWs. He has won the Porsche Cup and the 24 Hours of Daytona GT twice. From 1993, Lilian Bryner from Ticino was his partner; together with Capellari and Gollin, the pair won the 24 Hours of Spa in 2004 in a Ferrari.
Neel Jani 1983
The man from Seeland started out in karting in 1996. He won the Formula Lista Junior Championship in 2000, successfully entered Formula Renault in 2001 and twice finished runner-up in the European Championship (2002/2003). Two victories in GP2 followed in 2005, and in 2006 he was a test driver for Toro Rosso. In 2007 he finished on the podium three times in the US ChampCar series and in 2007/2008 he won the Nations Championship of the A1GP series for Switzerland.
Sébastien Buemi 1988
The Vaud native caused a sensation with great results in the Formula BMW ADAC in 2004. He won F3 in 2005 and Formula Renault in 2006. He took the next successful step in his career with a victory in GP2 in the 2007/08 season. In 2009, he was promoted to F1 at Scuderia Toro Rosso, where the talented daredevil scored his first world championship points as a rookie.
Simona De Silvestro 1988
The monoposto driver, who was born in Thun and grew up in Vaud, won the CSAI Supercorso in Italy in 2005, and in 2006 she achieved one victory, seven podium finishes and the "Sportsman of the Year" award in Formula BMW USA. This was followed in 2008/09 by five victories in the Atlantic Series (USA) and the "Rising Star" award. In 2010, the Vaud native finished an excellent 14th in the Indianapolis 500 and received the "Rookie of the Year" award in Indy Cars.
