Watch this high speed demo of touring cars from the legendary Group A era in the BTCC with BMW 528, 635 CSis and M3s, Rover SD1, Ford Sierras and more. #75MM
I own a 1982 Volvo 240GLT Turbo (non-intercooled), except mine has four doors, and is equipped with the hi-line trim package: leather seating, power windows, fog lamps, and a few other amenities. With the oil-cooled Garrett T3 turbo, you get about 130 horsepower; naturally-aspirated cars were rated around 100 horsepower. Fuel injection is provided by the Bosch K-Jet CIS, lifted from the PRV-V6 you’ll find under the bonnet of any common or garden DeLorean DMC-12: with two of its ports plugged for Volvo's 2.1 litre 4-cylinder engine. Mid-year 1984 models came equipped with an intercooler from the factory that boosted output to 160 horsepower. From 1983 intercoolers were available as kits from Volvo and could be retrofitted to any B21ET/FT motor from 1981-1984, with only minor modifications and no sacrifice in fuel economy. However, the intercooler actually made its public debut mid-year 1983, in a run of 500 cars, as part of the homologation process for Group A racing. Volvo's first foray into turbocharging, series production of the 240GLT Turbo ended in 1985. While the GLT Turbo in its day wasn't the best of the turbocharged cars, it was faster than contemporary BMW 3- and 5-series motors in stock configuration. It also was far less expensive than many other European saloons of the time, with or without turbochargers. Descended from the 242GT of 1978-1980, which made a great impression in the handling department, the GT never had the muscle to match. The GLT Turbo may have been of mixed pedigree, but it certainly could hold its own on the track. Car and Driver, Road & Track, and many other magazines had a lot of good to say about the 240GLT Turbo when it was new, and there's still much to be said 35 years later. You likely won't win any races today, but you may still enjoy a very memorable driving experience.
I had a 1982 stickshift (m46+overdrive) turbo wagon that was modified by a fellow in Oregon with an intercooler, bigger turbo, remapped ECU, and 4.10:1 LSD rear-end; amazingly it still passed California smog tests. I’ve owned thirteen Volvos from years 1963 to 2010, and that 1982 Turbo Wagon was clearly the quickest, fastest, and most fun to drive of them all (yes, even better than the R-Design V50-R 6-speed manual AWD!!!). Thing was a mother-f-'in sleeper too, I’d embarrassed plenty of mulletheads in American musclecars with it.
Sorry, forgot to add that on the return trip to California from Oregon (drove all the way up there to buy the car), the speedometer ended at 120MPH but the needle kept on going back around to 30MPH again; no idea what the speed I was really going, all I know is that there were still 700RPMs left on the tach before redline.
Do you happen to know when the modifications were performed and the supplier(s) of the add-ons? And what became of the car in the end? Did you perform any further modifications, in addition to those completed by the previous owner in Oregon? Just wondering. Cheers!
A truly great car which frightens so many boy racers because not only is it quick in a straight line but can go round corners too. Especially if you are in an estate 🤗
9:53 A beautiful motor. Reminds me of my Vandan Plas. Gold, luxury and quick. The transmission went and I put the engine straight into a Land Rover and went of road. Great V8 engine.
Love that Ford Mustang.. Would love to be able to find a photography website where i could purchase a print of that Mustang along with the Gitanes Ford Capri raced in the gerry marshall trophy by Ric Wood and Adam Morgan !
The Fox Body Mustangs certainly weren't saloons, but Ford did build plenty of four doors (and wagons/estates!) on the Fox platform. They even did a Mustang sedan of sorts called the LTD LX.
The rules specified minimum internal dimensions and four seats. If Nissan could get the 'coupe' R32 GT-R accepted as a saloon, then the Mustang would pass without any trouble. In the early days of the class a Mazda RX-7 was to be found contesting rounds of the ETCC in 1982..... The Mustang in question raced several times during 1983, but was not really competitive. Ford in the US had no interest in Group A, and made very little effort to help make the car go faster. Interestingly, the turbocharged SVO model would have made a decent racer, but it seems no-one thought of trying it.
Sierras and M3s are in Part 2. Commodores were thin on the ground in this neck of the woods. Yes you had the VKs and then the Rothmans VL but the only versions run by a team up there were the Herbie Clips Walkinshaw VLs...from memory. Great memories from a great era in touring cars.
Looking carefully at the details on the 635 makes me think it's 1983 vintage. It may have had a very long motorsport career, and be more than a little bit tired. A hard worked shell can become soft and saggy.....
Was gonna say, wrong era... Nissan only introduced the R30 Skyline into Australian touring car racing in the mid 80's; "The DR30 achieved success in Australian touring car racing during the mid-1980s. The factory backed Peter Jackson Nissan Team made its Group A debut in the opening round of the 1986 Australian Touring Car Championship, and over the 10 round series, lead driver George Fury would win four of the rounds and it was only unreliability in the first two rounds that cost Fury the title, finishing only 5 points behind the Volvo 240T of Robbie Francevic. Fury then went on to finish second to the BMW of Jim Richards in the 1986 Australian Endurance Championship, winning four of the six rounds, though failures to finish in the opening round at Amaroo Park in Sydney, as well as a DNF at the James Hardie 1000 at Bathurst cost him the title. Team driver Garry Scott would put the DR30 on pole for the James Hardie 1000 before going on to finish third with young charger Glenn Seton.[26] Despite missing out on the drivers title, Nissan would win the 1986 Australian Manufacturers' Championship from BMW. Fury finished off 1986 by finishing second to the V8 Holden Commodore of Allan Grice in the Group A support race for the Australian Grand Prix in Adelaide." - Wikipedia
I still wonder exactly why they never entered the R32 in BTCC. After all Rouse's Cossie Vs a skyline would be quite interesting. I think the reason though was because by the time they got the skyline sorted out for domination in 1991 BTCC announced the super touring regulations which pretty much banned homologation specials which the GTR effectively was. I don't think it got banned for 4 wheel drive though because Audi turned up with it's quattro system for 1996 on it's A4 and as you'd expect it made mince meat of everyone else.
One of the best Era's in Touring Cars. That ICS Rover looked stunning and the Metro and 635i.
That Jag is an absolute monster! Looks great.
Oh the sound of that 635csi 😍
Great cars and great "memory lane" commentary
I own a 1982 Volvo 240GLT Turbo (non-intercooled), except mine has four doors, and is equipped with the hi-line trim package: leather seating, power windows, fog lamps, and a few other amenities. With the oil-cooled Garrett T3 turbo, you get about 130 horsepower; naturally-aspirated cars were rated around 100 horsepower. Fuel injection is provided by the Bosch K-Jet CIS, lifted from the PRV-V6 you’ll find under the bonnet of any common or garden DeLorean DMC-12: with two of its ports plugged for Volvo's 2.1 litre 4-cylinder engine.
Mid-year 1984 models came equipped with an intercooler from the factory that boosted output to 160 horsepower. From 1983 intercoolers were available as kits from Volvo and could be retrofitted to any B21ET/FT motor from 1981-1984, with only minor modifications and no sacrifice in fuel economy. However, the intercooler actually made its public debut mid-year 1983, in a run of 500 cars, as part of the homologation process for Group A racing. Volvo's first foray into turbocharging, series production of the 240GLT Turbo ended in 1985.
While the GLT Turbo in its day wasn't the best of the turbocharged cars, it was faster than contemporary BMW 3- and 5-series motors in stock configuration. It also was far less expensive than many other European saloons of the time, with or without turbochargers. Descended from the 242GT of 1978-1980, which made a great impression in the handling department, the GT never had the muscle to match. The GLT Turbo may have been of mixed pedigree, but it certainly could hold its own on the track.
Car and Driver, Road & Track, and many other magazines had a lot of good to say about the 240GLT Turbo when it was new, and there's still much to be said 35 years later. You likely won't win any races today, but you may still enjoy a very memorable driving experience.
I had a 1982 stickshift (m46+overdrive) turbo wagon that was modified by a fellow in Oregon with an intercooler, bigger turbo, remapped ECU, and 4.10:1 LSD rear-end; amazingly it still passed California smog tests. I’ve owned thirteen Volvos from years 1963 to 2010, and that 1982 Turbo Wagon was clearly the quickest, fastest, and most fun to drive of them all (yes, even better than the R-Design V50-R 6-speed manual AWD!!!). Thing was a mother-f-'in sleeper too, I’d embarrassed plenty of mulletheads in American musclecars with it.
Sorry, forgot to add that on the return trip to California from Oregon (drove all the way up there to buy the car), the speedometer ended at 120MPH but the needle kept on going back around to 30MPH again; no idea what the speed I was really going, all I know is that there were still 700RPMs left on the tach before redline.
Do you happen to know when the modifications were performed and the supplier(s) of the add-ons? And what became of the car in the end? Did you perform any further modifications, in addition to those completed by the previous owner in Oregon? Just wondering. Cheers!
A truly great car which frightens so many boy racers because not only is it quick in a straight line but can go round corners too. Especially if you are in an estate 🤗
9:53 A beautiful motor. Reminds me of my Vandan Plas. Gold, luxury and quick. The transmission went and I put the engine straight into a Land Rover and went of road. Great V8 engine.
Get A Hard Burger really made that old Beemer fly!
Love that Ford Mustang.. Would love to be able to find a photography website where i could purchase a print of that Mustang along with the Gitanes Ford Capri raced in the gerry marshall trophy by Ric Wood and Adam Morgan !
Epic
The Fox Body Mustangs certainly weren't saloons, but Ford did build plenty of four doors (and wagons/estates!) on the Fox platform. They even did a Mustang sedan of sorts called the LTD LX.
The rules specified minimum internal dimensions and four seats. If Nissan could get the 'coupe' R32 GT-R accepted as a saloon, then the Mustang would pass without any trouble. In the early days of the class a Mazda RX-7 was to be found contesting rounds of the ETCC in 1982..... The Mustang in question raced several times during 1983, but was not really competitive. Ford in the US had no interest in Group A, and made very little effort to help make the car go faster. Interestingly, the turbocharged SVO model would have made a decent racer, but it seems no-one thought of trying it.
Dick Johnson had a fair amount of success with the Group A Mustang in Australia...
Ford in the US was more interested in IMSA GT at the time.
There were actually lots of RX7s raced in group A, I think 3 in Europe and at least two in japan, raced up until ‘86 I believe.
Half the cars in group A were coupes really, the jags, BMW 635, Toyota supras, skylines, Mazda RX7s etc etc
Fantastic litlle Metro Turbo.
When Rally and Touring Car used same regulation.
lol the rover broke
GpA. where is the Commondores, Sierras, M3.or V8 Mustangs
Sierras and M3s are in Part 2. Commodores were thin on the ground in this neck of the woods. Yes you had the VKs and then the Rothmans VL but the only versions run by a team up there were the Herbie Clips Walkinshaw VLs...from memory. Great memories from a great era in touring cars.
The texico Sierras in 1987 at Bathurst cheated and they got caught simple as that.
Is a matter of seeing what you want to see. And choosing to not look at what you don't want to see.
@@theant9821 yep and rules are rules 🤔😂🤣
"... that straight six never fails to disappoint ..." Perhaps a little too much with lunch, chaps?
Looking carefully at the details on the 635 makes me think it's 1983 vintage. It may have had a very long motorsport career, and be more than a little bit tired. A hard worked shell can become soft and saggy.....
Kinda bummed. Group A and no Godzilla present.
DankKronix this is british group A, the nissan gtr was not raced in btcc during this era.
Was gonna say, wrong era... Nissan only introduced the R30 Skyline into Australian touring car racing in the mid 80's;
"The DR30 achieved success in Australian touring car racing during the mid-1980s. The factory backed Peter Jackson Nissan Team made its Group A debut in the opening round of the 1986 Australian Touring Car Championship, and over the 10 round series, lead driver George Fury would win four of the rounds and it was only unreliability in the first two rounds that cost Fury the title, finishing only 5 points behind the Volvo 240T of Robbie Francevic. Fury then went on to finish second to the BMW of Jim Richards in the 1986 Australian Endurance Championship, winning four of the six rounds, though failures to finish in the opening round at Amaroo Park in Sydney, as well as a DNF at the James Hardie 1000 at Bathurst cost him the title. Team driver Garry Scott would put the DR30 on pole for the James Hardie 1000 before going on to finish third with young charger Glenn Seton.[26] Despite missing out on the drivers title, Nissan would win the 1986 Australian Manufacturers' Championship from BMW. Fury finished off 1986 by finishing second to the V8 Holden Commodore of Allan Grice in the Group A support race for the Australian Grand Prix in Adelaide."
- Wikipedia
The R31 was races in btcc, but I believe 4wd was banned in btcc.
I still wonder exactly why they never entered the R32 in BTCC. After all Rouse's Cossie Vs a skyline would be quite interesting. I think the reason though was because by the time they got the skyline sorted out for domination in 1991 BTCC announced the super touring regulations which pretty much banned homologation specials which the GTR effectively was. I don't think it got banned for 4 wheel drive though because Audi turned up with it's quattro system for 1996 on it's A4 and as you'd expect it made mince meat of everyone else.