Greatest Racing Eras – Group A Touring Cars (1982 - 1994)

The start of the 1992 Australian Touring Car race at Mallala (Image: IBC Holdings)

Starting a new series of blog posts, I’m taking a look at some of what I consider to be the greatest eras of motorsport. They’re also my favourites as well, in case you couldn't tell. First off, we start with the great Group A touring car category.

Ah, tin-tops. Everyone who’s anyone and a motorsports fan loves touring cars. It’s really a great way of relating back to what you drive in real life. Watching now, you see a Civic, Vectra, 3 Series or Leon and recognise it instantly, even see it on the roads today, unlike GT racing where those kinds of vehicles exist but aren’t commonly seen on the roads. Modern day touring car racing definitely has its roots, and I believe one of the major contributions to it was the Group A era.

The FIA introduced Group A for both rally and touring cars in 1982, the same time that Group B was conceived (which we’ll cover in another blog post). But for the tourers, it marked a replacement to Group 2 for modified touring cars, while Group N took over from Group 1 for standard touring cars. The regulations stated a minimum of 2500 road versions of the chosen vehicle had to be manufactured in order for it to homologated according to the Group A rules.

The European Touring Car Championship adopted the class first in 1982, followed by the ever popular and world-renowned British championsip a year later. At first, cars such as the V12 Jaguar, BMW 635CSi and Rover Vitesse which were the early big guns across Europe. 1984 saw the new tin-top phenomenon sweep to Germany, with the 635 asserting itself as the dominant vehicle of choice, while the Tom Walkinshaw-run Jags took the Euro title. Japan and Australia caught the Group A bug in 1985 with the BMW continuing its success in the Far East, while Volvo set about conquering Europe with the 240 Turbo, claiming Euro and German titles. Australia had Holden and Ford battling together with Volvo and BMW with giants such as Peter Brock, Dick Johnson and Jim Richards.

By 1987 the FIA decided to stage the first ever World Touring Car Championship which also saw the emergence of 2 legendary machines – the BMW M3 E30 and the iconic Ford Sierra RS500. In their Texaco livery, the Rudi Eggenberger-tuned Fords ran away with the Teams title while Italian Roberto Ravaglia claimed the name World’s Best Touring Car Driver in his M3. But after just 1 season, the series was scrapped due to the FIA fearing it would take away money from Formula 1, the premier racing series in the world, and so they discontinued it on the count of being too successful!

The biggest shake up in the class’ history came when Nissan began a program running the R32 Skyline GT-R, with four-wheel-drive and over 600hp. From it’s first race in 1990 at Winton Raceway, it was clear that the opposition had good reason to be very worried. It competed in the Spa 24 Hours and took a victory in 1991. But by this time, the Sierra and M3 had been the main forces in Group A events across the world. Now it was time for the Japanese to step it up a notch. The governing bodies could see the advantage it was gaining and allowed power gains for the other cars while the GT-R was told to put on weight.

1991 was their first full campaign and it was a straight walkover, with Jim Richards taking his second straight title ahead of teammate Mark Skaife. The Holden Commodore, Sierra and M3 fought as best they could, but could not overthrow them. So for 1992, seeing that despite adding as much weight as they could to the Nissan, the final verdict was to scrap Group A at the end of the season. Nissan managed to go out on a high with Skaife winning the GT-R's 3rd straight title, while Jim Richards took its last ever win at the Australian GP support races at Adelaide. By this time the world’s championships had moved on. The BTCC had switched to their own 2-Litre formula in 1991, and the end of 1992 Germany got rid of it too for their own 2.5L format. Slowly but surely, the category was dying out, and Japan's touring car series was the last to let go at the end of 1993.

While it was great fun while it lasted, those who were around in that time cannot forget how glorious the racing was. My favourite championship of the era had to be the Aussies. Growing up, I watched video tapes of the 1990 ATCC and Bathurst 1000, instantly planting memories of some great cars and racing. Since, I’ve been able to look at the ‘91 and ‘92 series and look back with great pleasure. The Nissan GT-R of 1990-1992 has now stuck with me as one of my favourite cars of all time. As has the Holden Commodore VL of 1990. Also, who can forget the RS500 and the M3? All 4 were the main weapons of choice in Australia and it was a series that became a main contributor to my love of tin-tops.

Would I like to see something similar return in the future? Depends. If they can get it right, then it’ll be a hit. But I think right now the current touring car series formats, such as the S2000 class for BTCC and WTCC and Germany and Australia coping fine with their own championships. So the touring car world is moving along nicely now, but I feel that it probably couldn’t get back to the hype and the intensity that it reached during this magical time of tin-tops.

Next time – The monsters of Group B rally

F1 2009 Super Season Grid – Post Bahrain

Jenson Button is back to winning ways with victory in Bahrain, but has his efforts over the weekend allowed him to retain his average pole position on the 2009 Super Season Grid? Well it's that time once again, and as you've already seen in an earlier blog post, the field is so, so close now with the spread as close as a fraction over 1 second! Believe it or not, it wasn’t Rosberg or JB who ended the weekend the fastest man on average over the whole weekend. Nope, it was in fact, surprisingly, Lewis Hamilton for McLaren with an average time of 1’33.676. So, has it helped the reigning World Champion move up the order? Let’s find out:

1. Jenson Button – 1’34.008  +0.000  Non-mover
2. Nico Rosberg – 1’34.047  +0.039  Non-mover
3. Rubens Barrichello – 1’34.132  +0.124  Non-mover
4. Mark Webber – 1’34.350  +0.342  Non-mover
5. Timo Glock – 1’34.447  +0.439  Non-mover
6. Sebastien Vettel – 1’34.511  +0.502  +1 place
7. Jarno Trulli – 1’34.560  +0.552  +2 places
8. Heikki Kovalainen – 1’34.584  +0.575  -2 places
9. Kimi Raikkonen – 1’34.607  +0.599  -1 place
10. Lewis Hamilton – 1’34.618  +0.609  +3 places
11. Felipe Massa – 1’34.642  +0.633  +1 place
12. Robert Kubica – 1’34.665  +0.657  -1 place
13. Kazuki Nakajima – 1’34.674  +0.666  -3 places
14. Nick Heidfeld – 1’34.825  +0.817  Non-mover
15. Fernando Alonso – 1’34.872  +0.864  Non-mover
16. Adrian Sutil – 1’35.091  +1.083  +1 place
17. Sebastien Buemi – 1’35.124  +1.115  -1 place
18. Nelson Piquet – 1’35.218  +1.209  +1 place
19. Sebastien Bourdais – 1’35.237  +1.229  -1 place
20. Giancarlo Fisichella – 1’35.370  +1.362  Non-mover

As it turns out, it has helped Hamilton. In fact, he’s the biggest mover in the grid by jumping 3 places from 13th to 10th. I reckon this was mainly down to topping FP1 and making the top 10 in qualifying. So it definately shows the MP4-22 is slowly but surely moving up the grid with the oncoming updates every race. At the head of the grid, Button retains the average pole, but has only managed to move away by 8 thousandths from Rosberg with Barrichello, Webber and Glock completing the top 5. They are all non-movers along with Heidfeld, Alonso and Fisichella, who remains at the back of the pack.

In the midfield, Vettel has made up one slot after a solid weekend’s work, as have Massa, Sutil and Piquet. Trulli is the second biggest mover, shifting up 2 places, while Kovalainen goes down 2.  Biggest loser is Nakajima who sinks 3 places and out of the top 10. The field gap has closed up by about 2 tenths which means the upgrades brought by Force India and the like have helped.  With Ferrari, BMW, McLaren and Brawn all reportedly bringing updates to their car for Barcelona, as I’m sure the majority of the grid will be too, we might just see the field either tighten up further or start to widen up.

That’s all for the Super Season Grid this time. Spain will be where the season really begins as it’s F1’s return to Europe and the chance to gauge just how the current crop of F1 cars really stack up against each other. Bahrain was the first completely dry race on a proper racing circuit, but the temperatures there are higher than those usually experienced at the European races. But we’ll have to wait and see whether the former “big 4” teams can reassert any of their former authority at the front. See you after Barcelona!

Let's "C" now, which one?

Image: flickr.com

OK, I've a bit of a dilemma here. I quite fancy purchasing one of the new World Sportscar Review DVD which available from Duke Video now. I saw them featured in Autosport and right now I'm tempted to buy one. I'm a massive Group C sportscar fan and it's my favourite era of sportscar racing with such classic race cars as the Porsche 956 and 962, Jaguar XJR-9, Toyota TS010 and my all-time favourite the Peugeot 905B. Admittingly the latter 2 don't feature in any of the DVDs I'm looking at but they are 2 of my best-liked machines from the category.

So, which one to buy? Well, that's the problem - I can't decide! So, after a rather helpful suggestion from Christine and Mr C at Sidepodcast, I am going to put up a poll asking you lovely lot which one you can recommend me to buy. The original toss-up was between 1985 and 1988, but do you think there's a year which is worth looking at as well? Whichever one comes out the winner is the one I will buy with my own money from Duke Video - and that's a promise.

So, direct your attention to the right-hand side of the screen, scroll down to the poll and vote which one you think is the best year of WSC racing!

They can haz F1 race here?

As good as the current F1 calendar is, there are fans who will say "This circuit should be on there" or "They should hold an F1 race here". I'm just the same, if I'm honest. There are circuits which I would love to see Lewis, Jenson, Webber, Sutil and co thundering around. So, I think to myself "What circuits would I truly love to see F1 cars race on?" Well, I'll share them with you:

1. Road America
If the US Grand Prix were to ever make a comeback, this is the circuit I would champion to host it all the way to the final announcement. Set in the pristene surroundings of Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, this is one of a select few circuits left in the world which have remained unchanged since they first opened. Home to many IndyCar/ Champ Car races, America's favourite single-seater series is the closest there's ever been to an F1 race there. Speaking from experience of racing it virtually, it is a glorious track. I adore the way the course winds and undulates through the trees and the elevation changes really make it feel so natural, unlike all the modern Tilkedromes we get these days. There's plenty of nostalgia there and in some ways you get a real sense of that when you drive around it. It's long sweeping corners tied to winding high-speed sections, and it is one of the most fantastic courses in the world. I love it. Please, Bernie, regardless of the size of the town, please bring F1 back to America here!

2. Macau
OK, I know this is a favourite with many people who follow the Macau Grand Prix. The city, nestled in the hills of Hong Kong, is another superb example of a circuit which needs to have F1 cars screaming through its streets. As Martin Brundle once described it, it's "Monaco with Silverstone tapped on the end of it for good measure". He's not wrong there. It really is a track of two halves. There's the high speed section which speeds past the Mandarin Hotel and down towards Lisboa, where it changes into this endless snake of complex turns. It's almost like you're constantly bombarded with 90 degree corners for some 2 or 3 minutes. But that's what makes it so awesome. It really is like Monaco - one momentary lapse of concentration and you're in the barriers. The most famous corner here is definately the Melco hairpin, a corner so tight that a permanent yellow flag is waved there because passing there is simply impossible. Regardless, it's such a jewel of a circuit.

3. San Luis
This is a relatively new circuit - it was only opened late last year - but my god it's epic. How can I describe it? Well, think of a mountain situated next to a beautiful lake with a racetrack draped around them and that sums it up adequately. Located in Argentina, it hosted it's first race, the final round of the FIA GT championship near the end of 2008. It was a huge hit, although I'm mystified as to why it was dropped from this season's calendar. I think it was money issues, but I'm not entirely sure. A real shame since this circuit reminds me of El Capitan from Gran Turismo 4. It really is a beautiful location and an amazing layout. Should F1 ever consider an Argentine GP once more, I'd like to think something can be arranged.

So there's 3 to start with. Right now I can't think of any others which really stand out for me. But if I could see an F1 car run around either of these places, I'd be happy. I'm sure everyone has different opinions and choices on where they'd like to see the F1 circus stop at. Then again, Bernie's always looking at new countries to visit so maybe it's not likely to happen any time soon. Ah well, a man can dream...