Swiss-born Peter Sauber was an electrician before taking a job as a car salesman in Hinwil, Switzerland. Later in life, he created a motorsports team that would bear his surname. His first racing car he built was named the C1, with the 'C' standing for his wife's name Christine. The car had a tubular frame and was powered by a 1-liter Ford-Cosworth engine. The car would have a tremendous racing career lasting a decade.

In 1971, Sauber introduced his second car, the C2. The C1 and C2 had tremendous promise and attracted a growing number of customers who were eager to get one of their own. In 1973, Sauber built three C3 racers for different customers and raced mostly in the Swiss Sports Car Championship.

In 1975, the C4 was introduced and only one example was created. This sports racer was powered by an eight-cylinder, 2-liter engine. It had an aluminum chassis, a wedge-shaped design, and a large wing in the back providing downforce.

The C5 soon followed and was fitted with a 2.0-liter BMW engine. It raced in the Group 6 Sports Car category, making it eligible to race at the 24 Hours of LeMans. The car would be driven to the 1976 Interserie Championship by Herbert Muller. The C5 appeared at LeMans in both 1977 and 1978. In both years it lead its class before it was forced to retire.

by Dan Vaughan