1987 Australian Touring Car Championship


The 1987 Australian Touring Car Championship was a motor racing competition which was open to Touring Cars complying with regulations as defined by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport and based on FIA Group A rules. The championship, which was the 28th Australian Touring Car Championship, began on 1 March 1987 at Calder Park Raceway and ended on 5 July at Oran Park Raceway after nine rounds. The Calder round saw the world debut of the racing versions of the BMW M3, the Ford Sierra RS Cosworth and the Alfa Romeo 75 Turbo.
After years of racing for very little in prize money which brought numerous complaints from the leading competitors, CAMS signed a AU$275,000 sponsorship package with Shell which brought the championship an overall sponsor for the first time and saw the series promoted as the Shell Ultra Australian Touring Car Championship.
Shell would also become the major sponsor of DJR which saw the team expand to running two cars for the first time. The team ran a pair of the new Ford Sierra RS Cosworths for team boss Dick Johnson and his 1986 James Hardie 1000 co-driver Gregg Hansford. Dick Johnson's win in Round 5 at the Adelaide International Raceway was the world's first race victory for the Sierra RS Cosworth and was also Dick's first ATCC win since Round 4 of the 1984 ATCC at Surfers Paradise.
The 1987 ATCC was the first time since 1975 that Peter Brock failed to win a round of the championship, his best finish being a 3rd at Symmons Plains in Tasmania in Round 2 where his 4.9L V8 Holden VK Commodore SS Group A was simply out-gunned on a noted power circuit by the Roadways Racing Commodore of Allan Grice, the factory Nissan Skyline turbo of race winner George Fury, while his heavy Commodore was no match on tyres and brakes for the 4 cyl, 2.3L BMW M3 of Jim Richards. Brock did manage to hold second behind runaway early leader Grice for a number of laps, but once Fury was through the Skyline drove away from Brock and he then had no answer to the challenge of Richards.
The 1987 championship was also the first time since 1972 that a Holden car failed to win a round of the ATCC, the best result being a second by Larry Perkins in the opening round at Calder.
The 1987 ATCC was also the first time in championship history that rolling starts were used. Rolling starts were used at Calder for Round 1 and at Adelaide for Round 5.
Jim Richards victory in the final round of the series at Oran Park would be the last time a car powered by a naturally aspirated engine would win an ATCC race until Tony Longhurst won Round 6 of the 1991 Australian Touring Car Championship driving a BMW M3 Evolution. Between 1988 and Round 6 in 1991, turbo powered cars would win 30 straight ATCC races, 21 of them by the Sierra Cosworth's evolution replacement which appeared after the 1987 ATCC, the Ford Sierra RS500.
1987 was a year of lasts in Australian touring car racing. It was the last time Peter Brock would drive a Holden until 1991 as he would switch first to BMW in 1988 and then Fords in 1989 and 1990. Consequently, it was the last time the Holden Dealer Team name, which started under Harry Firth in 1969, would be used, though the team officially ran as "HDT Racing Pty Ltd" as it was no longer the factory backed team following Holden's well publicised split with Brock in February only one week before the opening round at Calder. Prior to Calder, Holden had formed the Holden Motorsport Group and immediately signed Larry Perkins and his team as well as Allan Grice and Roadways Racing to be the 'factory backed' teams in the championship, though Grice would later say that it was more about moral support and an easier supply of parts rather than any financial support. It would also be Colin Bond's last year of racing Alfa Romeo's before switching back to Ford to run a Sierra RS500 from 1988. It was also the last time the JPS Team BMW would be seen with team boss Frank Gardner unexpectedly closing the team down at the end of the year.

Teams and drivers

The following teams and drivers competed in the 1987 Australian Touring Car Championship.
TeamCarNoDriverRounds
Roadways RacingHolden VK Commodore SS Group A
Holden VL Commodore SS Group A		2 Allan Grice1-5, 7-9
Roadways RacingHolden VK Commodore SS Group A
Holden VL Commodore SS Group A		8 Graeme Crosby1-2
JPS Team BMWBMW E30 M33 Jim RichardsAll
JPS Team BMWBMW E30 M34 Tony LonghurstAll
JPS Team BMWBMW E30 M312 Ludwig Finauer8-9
HDT Racing Pty LtdHolden VK Commodore SS Group A
Holden VL Commodore SS Group A		05 Peter Brock1-2, 6-9
HDT Racing Pty LtdHolden VK Commodore SS Group A
Holden VL Commodore SS Group A		05 Gary Scott3
HDT Racing Pty LtdHolden VK Commodore SS Group A
Holden VL Commodore SS Group A		6 Gary Scott1-2, 6, 8
HDT Racing Pty LtdHolden VK Commodore SS Group A
Holden VL Commodore SS Group A		6 Peter Brock3-5
HDT Racing Pty LtdHolden VK Commodore SS Group A
Holden VL Commodore SS Group A		6David Parsons7
HDT Racing Pty LtdHolden VK Commodore SS Group A
Holden VL Commodore SS Group A		6 Jon Crooke9
John Andrew MotorsportFord Sierra XR4Ti10 Neville Crichton
1, 6
John Andrew MotorsportFord Sierra XR4Ti10 Denny Hulme3, 5
Enzed Team PerkinsHolden VK Commodore SS Group A11 Larry PerkinsAll
Bob Holden MotorsToyota Sprinter Trueno AE8613 Bob Holden7
Bob Holden MotorsToyota Sprinter Trueno AE8613 Garry Willmington9
Bob Holden MotorsToyota Sprinter Trueno AE8641 Mike Hall7
Bob Holden MotorsToyota Sprinter Trueno AE8641 John Sax9
NetcommNissan Skyline DR30 RS14 Murray Carter1, 5, 7-9
Peter Jackson Nissan RacingNissan Skyline DR30 RS15 Glenn SetonAll
Peter Jackson Nissan RacingNissan Skyline DR30 RS30 George FuryAll
Peter Jackson Nissan RacingNissan Skyline DR30 RS60 John Bowe9
Peter Jackson Nissan RacingNissan Gazelle60 Mark Skaife7
Ralliart AustraliaMitsubishi Starion16 Brad Jones6
Shell Ultra Hi-Tech Racing TeamFord Sierra RS Cosworth17 Dick JohnsonAll
Shell Ultra Hi-Tech Racing TeamFord Sierra RS Cosworth18 Gregg HansfordAll
Terry FinniganHolden VL Commodore SS Group A20 Terry Finnigan9
Lusty EngineeringHolden VK Commodore SS Group A21 Graham Lusty1, 5, 7, 9
Alf Grant RacingHolden VK Commodore SS Group A23 Alf Grant3, 6, 8-9
Team Nissan Racing NZNissan Skyline DR30 RS24 Kent Baigent6-9
Team Nissan Racing NZNissan Skyline DR30 RS25 Graeme Bowkett6-9
Kalari TransportHolden VK Commodore SS Group A26 Tony Noske1, 5-7
Kalari TransportHolden VK Commodore SS Group A26 Gary Rush8-9
Ray GulsonBMW 635CSi27 Graham Gulson1, 6, 9
Ray GulsonBMW 635CSi27 Ray Gulson2-3, 7-8
Capri ComponentsFord Mustang GT28 Lawrie Nelson1, 7
Wayne CliftHolden VK Commodore SS Group A28 Wayne Clift3
Simon EmmerlingBMW 635CSi29 Simon Emmerling4
Ian LoveFord Mustang GT31 Ian Love4
Toyota Team AustraliaToyota Corolla GT AE8631 John Smith1, 7
Toyota Team AustraliaToyota Corolla FX-GT AE8232 Drew Price1, 3, 5, 7
Toyota Team AustraliaToyota Corolla FX-GT AE8233 John Faulkner5, 7
Oxo MotorsportFord Sierra RS Cosworth34 Don Smith1, 3, 5
Oxo MotorsportFord Sierra RS Cosworth34 John Giddings6-9
Oxo MotorsportFord Sierra RS Cosworth35 Andrew Miedecke1-3, 5-9
Oxo MotorsportFord Sierra RS Cosworth36 Don Smith2
Grellis MarketingHolden VK Commodore SS Group A38 Ray Ellis1, 6-7
Lansvale Racing TeamHolden VK Commodore SS Group A39 Trevor Ashby8-9
Steve WilliamsHolden VK Commodore SS Group A40 Steve Williams9
JagpartsHolden VK Commodore SS Group A42 Gerald Kay7
Sutherland MitsubishiMitsubishi Starion42 Kevin Bartlett9
Lester SmerdonHolden VK Commodore SS Group A45 Lester Smerdon3, 6
Mobile Concrete PumpingHolden VK Commodore SS Group A47 Brian Callaghan8-9
Wayne ParkHolden VK Commodore SS Group A48 Wayne Park3, 6
John DonnellyRover Vitesse50 John Donnelly3, 6
John FarrellHolden VL Commodore SS Group A52 John Farrell4
Mike FreemanToyota Celica RA4057 Mike Freeman1, 7
David RatcliffToyota Corolla Levin AE8658 David Ratcliff7-9
Jon MitchellHolden VK Commodore SS Group A69 Jon Mitchell7-8
Graeme HooleyHolden VK Commodore SS Group A71 Graeme Hooley4-5, 8
Caltex CXT RacingAlfa Romeo 75 Turbo75 Colin BondAll
Liverpool ToyotaToyota Celica Supra MA6177 Peter Williamson9
Peter McLeodHolden VK Commodore SS Group A84 Peter McLeod9
Daryl HendrickIsuzu Gemini ZZ86 Daryl Hendrick1, 5, 7, 9
Brian BolwellBMW E30 323i87 Brian Bolwell5, 7
David SalaIsuzu Gemini PF6088 David Sala1, 7, 9
Alf BarbagalloRover Vitesse96 Tim Slako4

Peter Brock drove both the #05 and #6 HDT VK Commodore during the season

Race Calendar

The 1987 Australian Touring Car Championship was contested over a nine-round series with one race per round.
Rd.Race TitleCircuitLocation / StateDateWinnerCarTeamReport
1Calder ParkCalder Park RacewayMelbourne, Victoria28 Feb - 1 Mar Glenn SetonNissan Skyline RS DR30Nissan Motorsport Australia
2LauncestonSymmons Plains RacewayLaunceston, Tasmania7 - 8 Mar George FuryNissan Skyline RS DR30Nissan Motorsport Australia
3LakesideLakeside International RacewayBrisbane, Queensland4 - 5 Apr Jim RichardsBMW M3JPS Team BMW
4PerthWanneroo RacewayPerth, Western Australia25 - 26 Apr Glenn SetonNissan Skyline RS DR30Nissan Motorsport Australia
5AdelaideAdelaide International RacewayAdelaide, South Australia4–5 May Dick JohnsonFord Sierra RS CosworthShell Ultra Hi-Tech Racing Team
6Surfers ParadiseSurfers Paradise RacewaySurfers Paradise, Queensland30–31 May Jim RichardsBMW M3JPS Team BMW
7SandownSandown International RacewayMelbourne, Victoria6 - 7 Jun Glenn SetonNissan Skyline RS DR30Nissan Motorsport Australia
8Amaroo ParkAmaroo ParkSydney, New South Wales20 - 21 Jun Jim RichardsBMW M3JPS Team BMW
9Grand FinalOran Park RacewaySydney, New South Wales4 - 5 Jul Jim RichardsBMW M3JPS Team BMW

Classes

Cars competed in two classes based on engine capacity.
The Over 2500cc class was contested by Ford Mustang, Ford Sierra, Holden Commodore, Nissan Skyline, Rover Vitesse and Toyota Supra.
The Under 2500cc class consisted of Alfa Romeo 75, BMW 323i, BMW M3, Isuzu Gemini, Nissan Gazelle, Toyota Celica and Toyota Corolla.

Points system

Championship points were awarded at each round on a 20–15–12–10–8–6–4–3–2–1 basis for the top ten positions outright and on a 9-6-4-3-2-1 basis for the top six positions in each of the two classes. Only the best eight round results could be retained by each driver.

Championship results