The A-Z of Group C: Every Car Builder, Part Four

Here's the final part of our 4-part trot with big and small constructors from the Group C era (if you can't help but miss a few, email the DSC editors and we'll update!) Twenty-one brands of C1, C2 and C Junior are listed here, making a total of 72, some racing infrequently and one or two not racing at all. And some have graced the world's circuits over the years (in fact, many are still active in historic races). Click here for Part 1>>
Click here for Part 2>>
Click here for Part 3 >> Thanks again to John Brooks and the photographers who contributed to the valuable racingsportscars.com. Porsche – Germany By far the most successful brand of the Group C era, with a large number of cars in factory hands, both the first Porsche 956 and the later Porsche 962 C1, high-quality privateer entrants are left bewildered. It has been competing everywhere with so many versions (and that's not even mentioning the IMSA GTP!). The 956 won four Le Mans in a row, followed by two more by the 962 (and in 1994 the lightly modified 'GT1' Dower Porsche version of the 962 took another overall victory! The World Sportscar Championship was also held five times in a row, the DRM Championship was held three times, the All Japan Sports Prototype Championship was held six times, and one race was won. It took five years for the chasing factory packs to catch up, but the 962's reliability often paid off, and the 956 and 962 were the cars that defined Group C.

Leaguer – Switzerland The Cosworth DFV powered C2 effort competed in the 1983 German Championship and was selected for the 1983 and 1984 WSC events.

ROC – France The 1991 ROC 002, powered by a 3.5-litre Ford Cosworth DFR, was only entered in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Magny-Cours WSC race, posting one DNF that year.

Rondeau – France Until 1988 he was active in Ford Cosworth-powered cars in both C1 and C2, with some (very) early Group C successes for the M382C, and winning the first race of the new era. , and also won the class in the second half of the season. The brand that won the overall victory at Le Mans in the 1980 season before Group C. A high-profile effort at Le Mans, backed by Ford France, turned out to be a disaster, and the death of Jean Rondeau in a car accident in 1985 effectively ended the car's factory development. .

Royale – GB The Argo-based Royale RP40 had a long and successful career in the IMSA Lites, and the odd car also (unsuccessfully) made an appearance in the GTP. His career in that Group C2 was short and less successful, but included a start at Le Mans in 1987, plus his WSC participation in the UK and elsewhere. rice field.

SARD – Japan The 1986-88 Toyota semi-works C1 was SARD's modus operandi and never raced outside of Japan during its time participating in domestic sports car championships and WSC events.

Sauber – Switzerland An early adopter of Group C, Sauber was not a fairly successful machine, personally entering the power of Ford, then BMW and finally Mercedes-Benz. With help from Kouros (Men's His Fragrance), the turnaround began as the C8 recorded its first world championship win in the rain at the Nürburgring. By 1988 Mercedes-Benz had taken notice and the new C9 utilized both much better downforce and a factory-developed engine. Le Mans was a disaster the year after the car withdrew, downforce overloading the tires, but after that it was an upward trajectory. , 1988 won five World Championship races, with two cars scoring points in 2nd and 3rd place. In 1989 he was completely dominated by the C9, en route to the top of the world championship he failed to win a single WSC race and even won Le Mans. There was one more win for him at the first race in 1990 before the Mercedes-Benz C11s took over.

Sehcar – Switzerland Walter Brann's exit plan from Sauber included the acquisition of a pair of Sauber chassis. One of which he was equipped with a Cosworth DFL and the other he was equipped with a BMW Turbo 6, neither of which were top performers. The Ford C100 chassis was scrapped, the car was a lemon, but the project was canned in favor of customer Porsche.

Simpson – GB Intended as an update kit for owners of older Chevron sports cars, the Simpson C2 ran in one WSC race and several Thundersports events in 1986 before the car was burned out in an accident at the Birmingham Superprix. It was a one-off to compete in

Spice – GB A prolific constructor of the C1 and C2 chassis, Spice has won 3 World Team Championships, 4 World Manufacturers Championships, 5 Le Mans Class and IMSA since its Group C days. Other successes at GTP have made it one of the most successful brands of the period. The car was a darling of privateers around the world, but it also saw partnerships with manufacturers, notably C2's Pontiac and IMSA's Acura. The end of Group C also saw a drop in Spice as diversification efforts failed.

Stemo – France A brand named after its three founders (sort of!), Hubrt `steibig, Jacques Heuclin and Noel del Bello, a lightweight C2 car campaign with first four-cylinder and then six-cylinder engines launched in 1983 and on and off for two seasons in 1984. Le Mans both years.

Strandel – Sweden A 'bitsa' car with a TOJ monocoque, Lotec bodywork and a powertrain sourced from a Porsche 934, the car was only raced for one season in 1985 with only one notable result. At Silverstone he was parked at the end of the season after taking the C podium.

Stürz – Germany The BMW turbo-powered Stürtz C88 won the German Supercup and laterThe terseries from 1988 to 1991 had limited success.

Tiga – GB Another group that built a significant amount of chassis and often served other brands listed in this AZ (Tiga's in its championship-winning C2 effort and Lamborghini Countach QVX effort) including Spice with foundation). These cars have a staggering number of powerplants in both Group C and IMSA competition, including but not limited to Buick, Chevrolet, Mazda Rotary, Ferrari, Ford, BMW and MG Rover V6 It was done. There were also some positive results such as the Spice Tiga winning the C2 class at Le Mans in 1985, winning races at both international and world competitions.

TOJ – Germany The Ford DFL-equipped RC390 competed in DRM and Interseries races from 1982 to 1984, finishing on the podium. Additionally, his one-off WSC appearance at the Nürburgring in 1984 was not very successful, but he scored a DNF.

TOMS – Japan Up until 1986's 86C, he was responsible for building many of the early Toyota Group C efforts both domestically and internationally, often with design input from Dome.

Toyota – Japan Today's dominant force in the FIA ​​WEC, Toyota's world championship and Le Mans ambitions in the Group C era, plagued by bad luck and unreliability, will always fall short of quality opponents. I saw. After the early Group C cars built by Dome, the Toyota effort was kept in-house from 1987 for a spell designed by Dome but built by TOMS. Driving the TS010, he won at Monza and won the All Japan title the following year. The glory of Le Mans will have to wait a quarter century!

URD – Germany Competing in the C2 from 1982 to 1987, it competed in a series of neat, tidy cars with BMW power and was reliable, if not headline-grabbing performance.

Veskanda – Australia The one-off Veskanda – Van Elsen Special K AND A, named after its owner and the K&A engineering company that built it, is Australia's only Group C product, a car completed in 1985 and powered by a Chevrolet V8. Powered by three seasons. In 1988, with a modified Chevrolet motor, the car competed with real reliability at the WSC round at Sandown, initially finishing 8th overall, but running out of fuel allowance allowed. Excluded.

WM – France WM's Peugeot-powered C2 and C1 had little notable WSC and Le Mans success (aside from the C2 podium in 1986), but a top speed of 400 km/h in 1988. Challenge to is the most notable chapter of a fairly small car in history. , exceeded it, but with devastating mechanical consequences – the P88 (below) was his 405 km/h before subsequent cooling and electrical problems forced him to retire. The brand disappeared from the competition after 1989, as Gerald Welter concentrated on his 'real job' at Peugeot and returned as his WR six months later.

Zakspeed – Germany Zakspeed kept one of the original Ford C100s and redesigned the car with the same 1.4-liter Turbo 4 that made it so successful in the team's mighty Ford Capri. This car was re-engined in his Ford Cosworth DFL V8 after scoring his two wins in his 1983 DRM. This change was unsuccessful and the car was quietly retired.