Group A Toyota Corolla History (merged)

[DAVID PATERSON]

Originally Posted by groupasprinter

Would anybody have any history or photo's on the AE86 that Malcom Rea built?

Mal Rea ran my car in 1993 and i have two poor photos of my car in his colour scheme. They may not copy well, but i could try and describe the colour scheme to you.......................

[#76sprinter]

Is there anyone that has any pics from 90-92? specifically Peter Verheyen's car......i am seeking info on it....he is my uncle....
this is great seeing all these photos!

[Eircamae86]

Nice little video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAZFr...layer_embedded

[chris hodgetts]

I just cant believe all of this! its a time warp!
All fantastic,and bringing back so many great memories. I've forgotten how brilliant all of this was,and appreciate all of your interest etc.
Please feel free to contact me on any info you might require;chms@blueyonder.co.uk or visit chrishodgetts.co.uk
Would love to locate any of my Corollas.......also major interest from me now I'm getting older!,and as Graham Hollamby has totally restored my 85 BTCC Brooklyn escort,which I have driven(as has Stefan at Brands final round display,2009,and he was crying.....)
I can help with lots of the history of my cars(with a little jogging of my memory)and all of your historical help.
I lost all of my memorabilia in a container fire where it was all stored,so ANY photos,press stuff etc any of you can assist with would be SO appreciated.
Such happy years in so many ways,and a turning point in my life.
Please feel free to mail or call me,no probs.
and..thanks for your enthusiasm and interest!

[BrendanMcF]

Glad to see you here Chris, I have a large number of photos from the mid 80's, and I'm sure I have some of you in the Escort and Corolla. I'll see if I can dig them out.

[chunterer]

Welcome Chris!

I think most would agree that you sort of became intrinsically linked with the Toyota's (although you were obviously also a Ford man at times as well!!)

Please have a look at the other Group A threads we've got going as well (including RS1600i's)

If you would like to contribute to the dicsussions we would be very appreciative!!

[Jesper OH]

A delightfull addition to the forum, so welcome Chris. Being the prolific Group A racer you were in the second half of the 1980s I will gladly point you in various directions for you to jog your mind.

Jesper

[Eircamae86]

The Australian guys on here have all seen these before.

[Eircamae86]

Really cool to see Chris on here, good to meet you.

[Jesper OH]

Originally Posted by Eircamae86

Excellent pictures of the Bob Holden AE86 - the original 1984 car? These pictures must be of Bathurst 1992 vintage. Looking at the last picture there seems to be the rare AE92 - the white car on the outside to the left of the picture just nosing the "Murrays Corner" sign. Do you have any detailed pictures of that, Eircamae?

Jesper

[brendonwood1]

Hi,
I can help a little with that one. It was definitely the 1992 Bathurst 1000. It was an NZ entry for Chris Barnes/Stuart Murphy. According to the "Australia's Greatest Motor Race 1960-99" book I have here it was second-last on the grid. The car was eventually classified as finishing in 31st position and 7th in class.
Someone else may have more details on the car, but to the best of my memory it was the only AE92 to start at Bathurst.

[Eircamae86]

Afraid not but TerryO might as thats his ae82 & 86 in front

[Jesper OH]

Originally Posted by Eircamae86

Afraid not but TerryO might as thats his ae82 & 86 in front

Thank you for looking and thank you to brendonwood for the information. The car is visible for a few moments in the DVD of that year's Toohey's 1000 where it's looking very plain - white body with black bumpers and trim.

Jesper

[DAVID PATERSON]

Originally Posted by chris hodgetts

I just cant believe all of this! its a time warp!
All fantastic,and bringing back so many great memories. I've forgotten how brilliant all of this was,and appreciate all of your interest etc.
Please feel free to contact me on any info you might require;chms@blueyonder.co.uk or visit chrishodgetts.co.uk
Would love to locate any of my Corollas.......also major interest from me now I'm getting older!,and as Graham Hollamby has totally restored my 85 BTCC Brooklyn escort,which I have driven(as has Stefan at Brands final round display,2009,and he was crying.....)
I can help with lots of the history of my cars(with a little jogging of my memory)and all of your historical help.
I lost all of my memorabilia in a container fire where it was all stored,so ANY photos,press stuff etc any of you can assist with would be SO appreciated.
Such happy years in so many ways,and a turning point in my life.
Please feel free to mail or call me,no probs.
and..thanks for your enthusiasm and interest!

Hello Chris and a big welcome to the forum. It's great to hear from somone who raced these cars (very successfully) back in the day. I am presently restoring a Group A AE86 which was built by Australia's Bob Holden and took part in the Bathurst 1000 six times. Would you possibly remember the spring rates or ride height of your cars?

[DAVID PATERSON]

Originally Posted by brendonwood1

Hi,
I can help a little with that one. It was definitely the 1992 Bathurst 1000. It was an NZ entry for Chris Barnes/Stuart Murphy. According to the "Australia's Greatest Motor Race 1960-99" book I have here it was second-last on the grid. The car was eventually classified as finishing in 31st position and 7th in class.
Someone else may have more details on the car, but to the best of my memory it was the only AE92 to start at Bathurst.

That was the only AE92 2 door coupe to take part in the Great Race, but TTA ran a pair of AE92 hatchbacks quite successfully for a couple of years.

[Jesper OH]

Why was the AE82 so rare in European Group A racing in the 1980s?

I think we have speculated about it on this threat without an answer. With Chris Hodgetts on board, he might help answering why he or Toyota GB choose the AE86 at a time when both the Japanese and Australians were gradually going with the FWD AE82.
As I understand it Toyota thought of the AE86 as a Group A clubman rally car and didn't homologate any particular parts for circuit use for this car. When the AE82 was homologated in the spring of 1985 they did something about it, to the point that by late 1987 an Autosport test of the Hodgetts AE86 and TOM'S GB AE82 revealed a 20 bhp advantage for the latter.

The Toyota Team Australia team started running the AE82 during 1986 I think, but for some reason reverted to the older AE86 for 1987 and 1988.

Jesper

[davyboy]

More fundamentally you have to ask why there was an AE82 and AE86 in the first place... and furthermore the reasoning behind the similarities behind their motor and the BDA. Toyota did some had scratching things back in the 1970s and 1980s.

[Eircamae86]

Back to the car:
Do not click on here unless you have time,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kf4LEb5ybHg

[Planty]

Following links slightly reviews Antonin Charouz´s years with Toyota.
Some pictures are there too.
1986:
http://www.antonin-charouz.cz/index....=599&view=stat
1987:
http://www.antonin-charouz.cz/index....=601&view=stat
1988:
http://www.antonin-charouz.cz/index....=600&view=stat

In 1987 there are also results from Czech Touring Car Championship wich means that Corolla also raced here.

[chunterer]

Thanks for those links planty,

I'd be interested to learn a bit more about the Czech series (one for another thread methinks) What sort of hardware was in that at the time?

[Planty]

Originally Posted by chunterer

Thanks for those links planty,

I'd be interested to learn a bit more about the Czech series (one for another thread methinks) What sort of hardware was in that at the time?

Im afraid i cant answer your question cause i was born in´90. Im also interested and searching for some magazines like Svet Motoru. There could be some info. There could have been Charouz´s Toyota and also DTM BMW ran by Oldrich Vanicek in´89.
There was also series named Pohar miru a pratelstvi (The peace and friendship cup) wich ran in communist countries.There was some sort of cars like Lada 2105, Skoda 130 or Dacia 1310 so probbably some of this cars was there too.This starting list from 1988 Havirov shows also Volkswagen Golfs.(racingsportscars.com)
http://www.racingsportscars.com/cove...988-06-05e.jpg

maybe we really could set new topic for this

[chunterer]

Yes Planty, please feel free to start a specific thread, there's plenty of questions to be asked judging by that entry list!!

[terryobeirne]

The front drive cars like the AE82 FX-GT were introduced to racing because the rear drive AE86 was becoming obsolete. Manufacturers have never been very interested in supporting obsolete models.
Toyota Australia never sold the 2-door FX-GT, so local 4 door versions were often raced.(we called them the AE82/AE92 twin cam)
Some of the specially imported Toyota Team Australia FX-GT's were changed to use the local front bumper , grille etc to make them look more like our 4-door models.
The front drive cars were initially faster than the rear drive AE86, but with a bit more effort, the rear drive cars kept up and occasionally were faster. very much car/driver/track specific I recall. Personally, i like my rear drive corolla much more than the FX-GT
There was never a huge following for these race cars outside the teams. The public here supported local V8's , and the small cars were seen by some big car drivers as a menace on the bigger/faster tracks like Bathurst. Toyota proudly advertised their constant class wins, but in reality they rarely had real competition. It was corolla vs corolla, private vs factory.

[KA]

Originally Posted by terryobeirne

The front drive cars like the AE82 FX-GT were introduced to racing because the rear drive AE86 was becoming obsolete. Manufacturers have never been very interested in supporting obsolete models.
Toyota Australia never sold the 2-door FX-GT, so local 4 door versions were often raced.(we called them the AE82/AE92 twin cam)
Some of the specially imported Toyota Team Australia FX-GT's were changed to use the local front bumper , grille etc to make them look more like our 4-door models.
The front drive cars were initially faster than the rear drive AE86, but with a bit more effort, the rear drive cars kept up and occasionally were faster. very much car/driver/track specific I recall. Personally, i like my rear drive corolla much more than the FX-GT
There was never a huge following for these race cars outside the teams. The public here supported local V8's , and the small cars were seen by some big car drivers as a menace on the bigger/faster tracks like Bathurst. Toyota proudly advertised their constant class wins, but in reality they rarely had real competition. It was corolla vs corolla, private vs factory.

That's an interesting comparison Terry- IIRC, Tiff Needell (at the time I think just about the only British driver who'd raced both types of Corolla in Group A) in the Autosport article he did at the end of '87 said something to the effect that the fwd AE82 was faster and easier to drive quickly, but much satisfying to drive.

The CHMS AE86 Corollas certainly seemed to get quite a lot of attention in the UK motorsport press, although I suspect the always-entertaining Hodgetts driving style coupled with some of the remarkably-high overall placings Chris scored in the AE86 (especially when grids were low in '86) might have contributed as much to this as any following for the actual car did.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAZFrg45Zlo

[Eircamae86]

Not group A but back in the day,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ntu_p...layer_embedded