VW marketing staff wanted to make sure this Baja racer wouldn't be a grotesque caricature of the existing production version. VW's lead designer on the project, Alex Earle, had a difficult aesthetic problem: the mid-engine Tebbe/Harris chassis was some 11 percent larger than that of a standard Touareg. But Earle's final lines were so artfully executed it's hard to notice the size difference until the racer is parked next to a production version.
Construction of the special chromoly tube-framed racer would proceed in total secrecy at the Arciero Miller facility in Orange County, California, until just weeks before the race. Building the new Baja Touareg so near the terrain on which it would eventually race allowed the Arciero Miller crew to prepare and test the bare chassis in secret, far from prying eyes, on a remote dry lake in California's high desert, just hours from the shop. The build schedule was extremely tight.
Just days after completion, VW's new racer was introduced at the Los Angeles auto show and then, hours later, whisked to Ensenada, Mexico, for the Baja 1000. Starting positions are drawn by lot; out of a total field of 347 entries, the VW drew the 13th spot off the line. Ryan Arciero started the 631-mile race at 10:40 a.m. with plans for Mark Miller to take over in the late afternoon at the 232-mile mark. An unforeseen problem with a tiny crush-washer sealing the hydraulic fitting on the integral clutch mechanism--a 10-cent part--temporarily stopped Arciero at race-mile 44. Within minutes, the efficient AMR support crew was on the scene and within an hour, the entire clutch assembly was changed out and Arciero continued. Further on, he encountered deep silt and extremely rough terrain, which didn't allow enough speed, even in first gear, for the engine's turbos to spool up and develop the necessary torque to handle the terrain. This required Arciero (and Miller in the latter half of the race) to slip the clutch to gain rpm. This in turn put severe loads on the entire driveline. A second and third stop along the route to change out the complete transmission, clutch, and then the differential again slowed the team's effort. VW finished the race exactly where it started, 13th in class but 32nd overall. The team's primary goal, though, was met--the vehicle finished on its first time out, which is more than 43 percent of the Trophy Trucks could accomplish. The most important statistic was the Touareg's speed; when running, it easily matched that of the fastest TTs. (And of the cars finishing ahead of the Baja Touareg, eight were powered by air-cooled VW engines. Proven designs are hard to beat, even with the most modern technology.)
The data gathered will be analyzed, the necessary changes to improve reliability will be made, and more developmental testing will start almost immediately. The second Baja Touareg is already under construction, and the team's next outing is possibly at the San Felipe 250 in March. Knowing Arciero Miller's past record, one can bet that by next November's 1000, the Baja Touaregs will be serious threats for the overall win.