V8 Supercars

Echoing the previous comments seeing the V8's on top of the mountain is a spectacle, I've been up there with people who don't even follow any form of motor racing and they were impressed!

My first visit to the top of the mountain would've been 1991 as a 9 year old, even during the day it was wild! I recall we didn't hang around long haha

I'm still confused as to the direction of "Supercars", as Dozer quite rightly pointed out Ford vs. Holden is RIP. Race on Sunday buy on Monday is irrelevant as you can't buy a Camaro or Supra. I've argued with people the category should've gone GT4.
 
richie_gt said:
Echoing the previous comments seeing the V8's on top of the mountain is a spectacle, I've been up there with people who don't even follow any form of motor racing and they were impressed!

My first visit to the top of the mountain would've been 1991 as a 9 year old, even during the day it was wild! I recall we didn't hang around long haha

I'm still confused as to the direction of "Supercars", as Dozer quite rightly pointed out Ford vs. Holden is RIP. Race on Sunday buy on Monday is irrelevant as you can't buy a Camaro or Supra. I've argued with people the category should've gone GT4.
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I wondered a few years ago if the takeover of GT3 in Australia by Supercars (as a management team) was to futureproof the product. Either GT4 or GT3, lets do it!
 
Cardy George said:
Could not agree more! I've driven a V6 Commodore around it and it is indescribable. I've been trying to figure out how to get Mrs George there so she can see it. My cousin was there this year. Found out today he has connections. The mission is on!
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Challenge Bathurst is on in November. That fortnight there are races, hill climbs, V8 supercar experience drive days and best of all 2 days of track days.

I did the track days last year and it was F":!!ING AMAZEBALLS!

If I get more seat time and some coaching over the next few years, I will try and wrangle a Challenge entry. But that track at speed is SCARY!

The super close barriers up and down are bad enough. But the hump on the Mountain Straight caused the GTR to get air, and I cracked a DBA disc rotor with the braking at the end of Conrod.

I enjoyed myself a lot more on day 2 with the more sedate Stagea.

PSA: DBA do not warranty their 5000 series rotors for track days. Go with Alcon or AP. And for the love of God, don't use cross drilled rotors.

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richie_gt said:
If Supercars were either GT4 or GT3 you could make Bathurst an international round like 1987...invite the international teams to take it on against the locals. 50 car grid. Would be epic.
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Even if they aligned the category with IMSA GTD that would be amazing. There are a lot of Corvette, Ford, AMG, Ferrari etc V8s in that category that would undoubtedly come to race Bathurst. It would also do so much to broaden the appeal without diluting the 'V8' branding.

The more European focused WEC GT3/4 categories are dominated by Porsche and Ferrari V6s. Probably not what the core fanbase wants to see.

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Oddjob said:
Challenge Bathurst is on in November. That fortnight there are races, hill climbs, V8 supercar experience drive days and best of all 2 days of track days.

I did the track days last year and it was F":!!ING AMAZEBALLS!

If I get more seat time and some coaching over the next few years, I will try and wrangle a Challenge entry. But that track at speed is SCARY!

The super close barriers up and down are bad enough. But the hump on the Mountain Straight caused the GTR to get air, and I cracked a DBA disc rotor with the braking at the end of Conrod.

I enjoyed myself a lot more on day 2 with the more sedate Stagea.

PSA: DBA do not warranty their 5000 series rotors for track days. Go with Alcon or AP. And for the love of God, don't use cross drilled rotors.

Sent from my 24069PC21G using Tapatalk
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Also a quick postscript. There were some very quick and powerful cars.... that got absolutely rinsed by a guy in an i30N hatch. Me included.

Admittedly he was a race driver in the i30N series, but he absolutely wrung the beejesus out of that car everywhere and got some terrifying times. The only upgrades were Advan AD09S, braided brake lines and race pads. I still can't get my head around the single pot calipers on the rear.

A secondhand one of these has to be the price/performance king.

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Asininedrivel said:
Bring back Group A bring back Group A bring back Group A (etc.)
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This was my era, as a kid we used to go to Amaroo Park, Oran Park & Bathurst. My dad had a contact at Caltex so we used to get tickets.

Amaroo Park I met Dick Johnson & Peter Brock in the pits, I've got their signature somewhere. I still have a DJR poster with DJ & Greg Hansford with their Ford Sierra's infront of the transporter. I also have a Skyline GTR photo autographed by Richards & Skaife - I think I got that at Oran Park.

I've recently been caught in a youtube hole watching group a races - so much variety, cars with different strengths and weaknesses.
 
Oran Park, now there is some good memories. I reckon I went there 10 weekends of the year in the nineties, that was a great race track. The fun kept coming after the day was done when you're trying to leave the place. No matter the car park you chose, you'd come across some legit drunk legends keeping the comedy coming. I really miss that place.
 
I loved the Group A era, such a variety of cars that couldn't diverge too far from the production base. I went to Sandown a few times as a kid when they were The Thing.

I lost interest when they turned into Stuporcars which have nothing in common with the road cars except the badge.
 
Dozer said:
I wondered a few years ago if the takeover of GT3 in Australia by Supercars (as a management team) was to futureproof the product. Either GT4 or GT3, lets do it!
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It would be a shame to lose the skills though, look at Van Gisbergen on Nascar road courses for example.

But the relevance is not there anymore either, with road cars now all flappy paddle, automatic or no gears at all.
 
richie_gt said:
This was my era, as a kid we used to go to Amaroo Park, Oran Park & Bathurst. My dad had a contact at Caltex so we used to get tickets.

Amaroo Park I met Dick Johnson & Peter Brock in the pits, I've got their signature somewhere. I still have a DJR poster with DJ & Greg Hansford with their Ford Sierra's infront of the transporter. I also have a Skyline GTR photo autographed by Richards & Skaife - I think I got that at Oran Park.

I've recently been caught in a youtube hole watching group a races - so much variety, cars with different strengths and weaknesses.
Click to expand...

Amaroo was an amazing place to spectate. Miss that place.

Agree about the old races there on YT. Many of them I was there in person.

Back in the day I was taking a leak in the pit toilets at Bathurst, Perkins walked in and did the same. “Have a great race, Larry!”.

Try getting within 100m of an F1 driver…
 
I used to live in Bathurst while I was there for uni. Driving around the track in whatever you had at the time was a rite of passage. My favourite lap was in an unladen Toyota Dyna cab chassis in 1989 which exhibited substantial chassis flex as it went through The Dipper followed by some very concerning understeer in Forrest Elbow. Not fast at all but technical and wildly entertaining. The Lada Niva was also fun. Being a passenger in a worn out Bluebird getting its door panels rubbed off at speed on Skyline was not fun.

Watching a mate smack the Forrest Elbow wall whilst riding his girlfriends Honda moped down the hill was amusing. Seeing this giant of a lad getting slowly launched over the wall followed even more slowly by the moped was flat out hilarious.

As for the actual race...I may have been too hungover to really enjoy many of them. We woke on the mound at Pit Straight in 1987 after we stole onto the course via the paddock backing Conrod Straight at first light having been partying the night before. Completely trampled on by the crowd. 1988 we camped up top and watched Phil Hall(?) eventually roll his Mercedes in the sand trap on Skyline but otherwise had no idea what was going on. 1989...I think I was there but that would've been the last time.
 
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