Group C (Australia)
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In relation to Australian motorsport, Group C refers to either of two sets of regulations devised by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport (CAMS) for use in Australian
Touring Car Racing Touring car racing is a motorsport road racing competition that uses race-prepared touring cars. It has both similarities to and significant differences from stock car racing, which is popular in the United States. While the cars do not move a ...
from 1965 to 1984. These are not to be confused with the FIA's
Group C Group C was a category of sports car racing introduced by the FIA in 1982 and continuing until 1993, with ''Group A'' for Touring car racing, touring cars and ''Group B'' for Grand tourer, GTs. It was designed to replace both Group 5 (motorspor ...
sports car regulations, used from 1982 to 1992 for the World Endurance Championship / World Sports-Prototype Championship / World Sportscar Championship and the
24 Hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans () is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the city of Le Mans, France. It is widely considered to be one of the world's most prestigious races, and is one of the races—along with ...
.


History


Group C Improved Production Touring Cars

Group C Improved Production Touring Car regulations were introduced by CAMS in 1965 to replace the Appendix J rules which had been in force since 1960. The
Australian Touring Car Championship The Australian Touring Car Championship (ATCC) is a touring car racing award held in Australia since 1960. The series itself is no longer contested, but the title lives on, with the winner of the Repco Supercars Championship awarded the troph ...
was run to these new rules from 1965 to 1972, initially as a single race championship and from 1969 as a multi round series. Group E regulations defining rules for Series Production Touring Car racing in Australia had previously been introduced with effect from 1 January 1964. The leading cars of the Improved Production era included the
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, Chevrolet Nova, Porsche 911S, Holden Monaro HK GTS327, Holden Monaro HT GTS350, Ford Mustang Boss 302, Chevrolet Camaro ZL-1 and the Ford XY Falcon GTHO Phase III.


Group C Touring Cars

For 1973 CAMS introduced a new Group C Touring Car category to replace both the existing Group C Improved Production and Group E Series Production. The new Group C cars would contest both the
Australian Touring Car Championship The Australian Touring Car Championship (ATCC) is a touring car racing award held in Australia since 1960. The series itself is no longer contested, but the title lives on, with the winner of the Repco Supercars Championship awarded the troph ...
and the Australian Manufacturers' Championship, the later having previously been contested by Group E cars and run over numerous long-distance events such as the Bathurst 500 and the Sandown enduro. The new Group C classification had been brought about by the media-driven " supercar scare" of 1972 which led to
Ford Australia Ford Motor Company of Australia Limited (known by its trading name Ford Australia) is the Australian subsidiary of Automotive industry in the United States, United States–based automaker Ford Motor Company. It was founded in 1925 as an Austral ...
, General Motors Holden and
Chrysler Australia Stellantis (Australia and New Zealand) Pty Ltd (formerly FCA Australia), is the official Stellantis subsidiary in Australia and New Zealand, operating as distributor of Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Fiat and Leapmotor vehicles. Ho ...
ceasing direct involvement with the manufacture of high performance production cars for Group E racing. Holden would continue support of touring car racing until the end of the 1970s. Ford closed their factory team at the end of 1973 and then provided technical and limited financial support of Allan Moffat Racing between 1976 and 1978, but Chrysler ended its involvement at the end of 1972. The ATCC had expanded to 11 rounds in
1976 Events January * January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 18 – Full diplomatic ...
and
1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...
, but the 'Golden Era' often had a thin veneer as uncompetitive small engined cars bolstered entries for many years. The low point saw just nine cars competing for the opening round at Symmons Plains in
1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...
, though this could be attributed to new CAMS engine emission rules which effectively banned the 1979
Holden Torana The Holden Torana is a mid-sized car that was manufactured by Holden from 1967 to 1980. The name apparently comes from a word meaning "to fly" in an unconfirmed Aboriginal Australian language. The original HB series Torana was released in 196 ...
hatchback's and Ford Falcons. The final three seasons of Group C (1982-1984), while seeing more manufacturer involvement from the Japanese with
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and
Mazda is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Fuchū, Hiroshima (town), Fuchū, Hiroshima Prefecture, Hiroshima, Japan. The company was founded on January 30, 1920, as Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd. ...
and German marque
BMW Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, trading as BMW Group (commonly abbreviated to BMW (), sometimes anglicised as Bavarian Motor Works), is a German multinational manufacturer of vehicles and motorcycles headquartered in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Th ...
, were plagued by parity arguments and leading teams and drivers campaigning with officialdom over technical regulations that were increasingly losing touch with the original intent of the class. In mid-1983 CAMS decided that beginning on 1 January 1985 they would replace Group C with new regulations based on FIA's international
Group A Group A is a set of motorsport regulations administered by the FIA covering production derived touring cars for competition, usually in touring car racing and rallying. In contrast to the short-lived Group B and Group C, Group A vehicles wer ...
rules which had been in place in the
European Touring Car Championship The European Touring Car Championship was an international touring car racing series organised by the FIA. It had two incarnations, the first one between 1963 and 1988, and the second between 2000 and 2004. In 2005 it was superseded by the World ...
since 1982, and in
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since 1984. In addition to the Australian Touring Car Championship, Group C cars also contested the following national title series: * Australian Manufacturers' Championship, 1973 to 1975 * Australian Championship of Makes, 1976 to 1980 * Australian Endurance Championship, 1981 (this was a manufacturers title) * Australian Endurance Championship, 1982 to 1984 (this was now a drivers title) * Australian Endurance Championship of Makes, 1982 to 1984 Group C touring cars also contested the Amaroo Park (
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
) based AMSCAR series from 1981 to 1984. The series, televised nationally by ATN-7, was restricted to cars with an engine capacity of no more than 3.5 litres in 1981, excluding the outright cars such as the
Holden Commodore The Holden Commodore is a series of automobiles that were sold by now-defunct Australian manufacturer Holden from 1978 until 2020. They were manufactured from 1978 to 2017 in Australia and from 1979 to 1990 in New Zealand, with production of ...
,
Ford Falcon The Ford Falcon is an automobile nameplate by Ford Motor Company, Ford that applied to several vehicles worldwide. * Ford Falcon (North America), an automobile produced by Ford from 1960 to 1970. * Ford Falcon (Argentina), a car built by Ford ...
and
Chevrolet Camaro The Chevrolet Camaro is a mid-size American automobile manufactured by Chevrolet, classified as a pony car. It first went on sale on September 29, 1966, for the 1967 model year and was designed to compete with the Ford Mustang. The Camaro sha ...
and Jaguar XJ-S. After complaints from the mostly Sydney based privateers who ran the outright cars and thus were missing out on potential prize money (with no such series on offer for the outright cars), the restriction was lifted in 1982 and outright cars contested the series to the end of Group C in 1984.


Class structure

Vehicles were separated into various classes based on engine capacity. The ATCC used a two class system throughout the second Group C era with the field divided into Under 2000cc and Over 2000cc classes from 1973 to 1975 and then into Under 3000cc and Over 3000cc classes from 1976 to 1984. Favourable points structures were used to encourage the smaller cars but it would take until 1986, after the abandonment of Group C, for a small class car to take outright victory in the ATCC. The Bathurst 1000, as it became in
1973 Events January * January 1 – The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 14 - The 16-0 19 ...
, would change several times, reflecting its roots as a race where four or five individual races held simultaneously with no outright winner promoted. The 1973 version began with cut-offs at 1300cc, 2000cc and 3000cc. For the
1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...
race the under 1300cc class was abandoned and a 1600cc class was introduced for the
1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
race. After a one-off cylinder-based system used in
1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...
, the two smaller classes were removed leaving just under and over 3000c. The capacity based system was abandoned entirely for the final Group C Bathurst race in
1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...
with one class for Group C cars and one for the new Group A cars to be raced from 1985.


Historic Group C Touring Cars

An Historic Group C category now caters for vehicles with a competition history in events run to CAMS Group C Touring Car regulations in the period from 1 January 1973 to 31 December 1984. Only actual race vehicles, for which a Group C log book was issued, are eligible.CAMS Online manual of Motor Sport > Historic Touring Cars: Groups Na, Nb, Nc, C, A, U
Retrieved on 20 March 2012 Today Group C touring cars are a spectator favourite at historic motor racing festivals, with leading drivers and cars from the era in high demand. Leading race cars are sold for hundreds of thousands of dollars, whereas less than a decade ago you couldn't pay someone enough to take away your old Group C racer, with a burgeoning support industry emerging including car clubs, professional magazines, parts and car care products. The largest race meeting specifically catering to historic touring cars is the Muscle Car Masters held at Eastern Creek Raceway in
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
. The largest museum of historic touring cars available to the public for tour is the National Motor Racing Museum, sited on the outside of Murray's Corner at the Mount Panorama Circuit at Bathurst.


List of Group C Touring Cars (1973-1984)

* Alfa Romeo GTV6 * Alfa Romeo 2000 GTV * Alfa Romeo GT 1300 Junior * BMW 2002 * BMW 3.0Si * BMW 635 CSi * Chevrolet Camaro Z28 * Chrysler Valiant Charger R/T E49 * Datsun 1200 * Ford Capri Mk.I * Ford Capri Mk.II * Ford Capri Mk.III * Ford Escort Twin Cam Mk.I * Ford Escort RS2000 Mk.I * Ford Escort Mk.II 1.6 * Ford Escort Mk.II 2.0 GL * Ford Escort Mk.II RS2000 * Ford XA Falcon GT Hardtop * Ford XB Falcon GT Hardtop * Ford XC Falcon GS500 Hardtop * Ford XC Falcon Cobra * Ford XD Falcon * Ford XE Falcon * Ford XY Falcon GTHO Phase III * Holden VB Commodore * Holden VC Commodore * Holden VH Commodore SS * Holden VK Commodore * Holden Gemini * Holden HQ Monaro GTS 350 * Holden LH Torana SL/R 5000 * Holden LH Torana SL/R 5000 L34 * Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 * Holden LX Torana SS A9X 4-Door * Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback * Isuzu Gemini * Isuzu Gemini ZZ * Jaguar XJ-S *
Mazda 323 The , also marketed prominently as the Mazda 323, Mazda Protegé and Mazda Allegro, is a small family car that was manufactured by Mazda between 1963 and 2003. The Familia line was replaced by the Mazda3/Axela for 2004. It was marketed as the '' ...
BD * Mazda RX-2 * Mazda RX-3 *
Mazda RX-7 The Mazda RX-7 is a front mid engine, Rear-wheel drive, rear-wheel-drive, rotary engine-powered sports car, manufactured and marketed by Mazda from 1978 through 2002 across three generations, all of which incorporated the use of a compact, light ...
* Morris Cooper S * Nissan Bluebird turbo * Nissan Pulsar EXA *
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* Toyota Corolla Levin * Triumph Dolomite Sprint


References


External links


Group C Touring Car Association

National Motor Racing Museum
{{Class of Auto racing Motorsport categories in Australia Touring car racing