An idea for a pre-90 Group A race championship.

[Al Weyman]

I have been thinking of this for sometime and have posted it on my club forum but did not get a lot of interest.

The way I see it on here with all the hankering old Group A SDI's, Holdens, Capris etc from the pre-1990 2 litre BTCC period there seems to be real yearning for this form of racing to return in some form or other. It also seems to me what really killed this period of racing off was the widespread and dominant use of the turbo hence the take up in the UK of the 2 litre formula and 2.5 litre in Germany etc.

So how about an Historic championship for pre-1990 Group A BTCC or European or worldwide vehicles but atmo and 2WD cars only. I really think this could work. The club I race with has a pre-93 championship on offer but that is more like Group 1.5, I am talking about a proper series or championship for Group A machinery that cannot run with us. I am sure there are loads of old Group A machinery out there languising about where the owner does not want to either modify them upwards or downwards to fit in with something else. I recollect when I was involved with ModProds one particular car we had entered was an ex-Brock Holden Commadore, a beautiful piece of kit. Unfortunately it did not comply fully with the regs and as the owner/driver did not want to modify it down to the regs (can you blame him) he sold it so it was lost to the championship.

I think it could be very popular, any thoughts.

[Peter Mallett]

I know! you could call it ................................... formula Saloons!

[Al Weyman]

No not at all that was totally different I never remembered any Chevy engined Calbra's in Group A or BTCC etc. I am talking about the type of cars that people here keep banging on about, SDi's, BMW's, Capri's Holden's etc there seems to be a hell of a lot of interest in that era on this site so why not get some of these cars out on to the circuits.

[Peter Mallett]

When FS started that's what they ran, it only developed into the ST era with time.

[Al Weyman]

No I think you have that wrong with respect as I followed its opening rounds very closely and digested the regs as the person that started it was also responsible for originally starting ModProds and i think we were at the same circuits in the early days. They allowed the V8 Calibra and V8 Carlton in from day one as I recollect and they also allowed the 2 litre post 1990 BTCC and DTM stuff in and of course the Turbo Cossies. This is not what I am suggesting at all here I am suggesting a sort of later day App. K plus. Just why does everything historic seem to stop at 1966. I thought you would understand what I was getting at what with racing the Capri Pete.

[Peter Mallett]

I do understand and as I recall Classic Thunder was intended to bring those cars in too. What I'm suggesting (in an attempt at humour) is that there aren't enough cars left for many reasons, not least that some of them were turned into Mod Prods.

[DAVID PATERSON]

Within the last couple of years, Group A Touring cars have been officially recognised as a Historic Category in Australia. The class is restricted to genuine cars with a documented racng history. The cars must run in their period specification and are strongly encouraged to run in period livery.

Numbers are slowly but steadily growing, but the market value of the cars is skyrocketing.

There is no dedicated association or racing series for them, they run with the 1973-1984 Production Touring Cars, which were known in Australia as Group C. Check out www.groupc.org.au

[Al Weyman]

Thank you David thats exactly what I am talking about, why not a series/championship in much the same way as App K pre-66 for later cars did motorsport suddenly stop in 66, never understood that one sorry you purists out there.

There is so much chat on here about SDI's, BMW 635, Capris and all these iconic 80's Group A cars before the turbo came along and upset the apple cart that I genuinely feel there is a lot of passion for that great era of motorsport so why not revive it.

All the championships/series I personally have ever been involved in either make this type of car ineligible because they run to Group N or Group 1 (1.5) regs or the other extreme where the car would require extensive modification to remain competitive (as in Peter's examples above) and as in my Holden example above who wants to do that and if it has been modified is it beyond the wit of man to modify them back again. I mean how many F5000 and single seaters had silly plastic bodies fitted only to have since been modified back to what they were. We are talking steel bodied saloons here which must be far simplier why I even have one (not a Group A car) in my workshop now that has been messed with but I will restore it one day back to the way it was.