New campus, old factory with a new purpose: Audi explains how its historic Formula 1 base in Hinwil is to be redeveloped by 2030
The Audi Formula 1 team has long-term plans for its base in Hinwil, Switzerland: The German works team has now unveiled its vision for further expansion – a new campus on Zürichstrasse, not far from the current team headquarters on Wildbachstrasse. The new facility is due to be completed in 2030.
The existing site will remain in place but will be repurposed in the coming years: Audi intends to convert the former Sauber site into a production centre featuring a wind tunnel.
The Audi site in Neuburg an der Donau in Germany, where the powertrains are developed and manufactured, and the technical centre in Bicester, England, are not affected by the changes.
What Audi hopes to achieve with its new campus
Audi views the new building in Hinwil primarily as an “investment in the staff, the team’s performance and its future”. The works team aims to “bring together all the conditions necessary to compete for world championships whilst simultaneously creating long-term added value for the entire organisation”.
Audi team principal Mattia Binotto explains: “Building a successful Formula 1 team is ultimately about the people. The best engineers, designers, mechanics and specialists want to work in an environment that enables them to collaborate, drive innovation and perform at their very best. With the campus, we can create precisely this environment.”
Furthermore, the new building gives Audi the opportunity to “shape the future of the team from the ground up”, Binotto continued. “Such opportunities are rare in modern Formula 1. After all, we are not simply moving into an existing facility, but creating a home tailored to our staff, our culture and our ambitions.”
“The campus will play a key role in attracting top-class specialists from all over the world and retaining them in the long term. At the same time, it lays the foundations we need to achieve our long-term goals.”
Audi’s roadmap in Formula 1
Even before Audi’s entry into Formula 1 for the 2026 season, Group CEO Gernot Döllner had outlined the roadmap for his works team: Audi is to gradually improve in the ‘premier class’ of motorsport, become competitive enough to win in the medium term, and be among the title contenders by the end of the decade. The team scored its first points in its debut race in Australia, courtesy of Gabriel Bortoleto.
Audi’s involvement in Formula 1 stems from the former Sauber team, which operated from the Hinwil factory from 1993 until its final takeover by Audi at the end of 2025. Peter Sauber had in fact been using the site since the 1970s. In Formula 1, he led his private team to a total of eleven podium finishes across more than 400 Grands Prix. The highlight came in 2001 with fourth place in the Formula 1 Constructors’ Championship.
