1984 Australian Touring Car Championship

Motor racing competition July 2015 July 2020 1984 Australian Touring Car Championship 1983 1985 The 1984 Australian Touring Car Championship was a motor racing competition for Group C Touring Cars.Conditions for Australian Titles, 1984 CAMS Manual of Motor Sport, pages 88–93 The Championship was authorised by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport as an Australian National Title. It was the 25th Australian Touring Car Championship,Graham Howard, Stewart Wilson & David Greenhalgh, 1984 - Bye bye big bangers, The official history - Australian Touring Car Championship - 50 Years, 2011, pages 244–253 and the last to be contested by Group C cars as new regulations, based on international Group A,Touring Cars, 1985 CAMS Manual of Motor Sport, pages 300–303 were introduced for 1985. The championship, which began on 18 February 1984 at Sandown Raceway and ended on 1 July at Adelaide International Raceway after seven rounds, was won by Dick Johnson driving a Ford XE Falcon. Television Coverage The 1984 ATCC saw the ABC televise each round of the series live throughout Australia. It was the first time that one television station had covered the entire series, previously the ABC and Channel 7 had shared the broadcast rights. It would be the last time the ABC covered the ATCC as Seven took over from 1985 when the locally developed Group C rules were replaced by the FIA's International Group A touring car regulations. The commentators for the ABC telecasts were Will Hagon and John Smailes with Tim Lane, Neil Crompton, Bob Vincent, Bob Morris and Allan Grice joining them at selected rounds. Season summary thumb|A replica of the Ford Falcon XE driven by championship winner Dick Johnson Johnson's win gave Ford and its Falcon both the first and last ATCC wins under Group C regulations as Allan Moffat won the 1973 ATCC in a Falcon XY GTHO Phase III.2004 V8 Supercars TV Guide The win was also Ford's 12th ATCC win since the championship began in 1960 and the Falcon's 6th win overall after having previously won in 1973, 1976, 1977 (all Moffat), 1981 and 1982 (both Johnson). Given that a Falcon did not contest the championship from 1985 to 1992, it was also the last championship win for a Falcon driver until 1993. 1984 saw the first ever ATCC race win by a turbocharged car when George Fury won the 6th round at a wet Lakeside Raceway just north of Brisbane driving a Nissan Bluebird Turbo. Peter Brock, driving a Marlboro Holden Dealer Team entered Holden Commodore, was the only driver to win more than once, with victories in the opening rounds at Sandown and Symmons Plains. Johnson's only win in the series was at the 4th round at Surfers Paradise, though he never finished lower than 3rd in any other round. Allan Grice won the last round at Adelaide (his last ever ATCC race win), and thus the distinction of winning the last ATCC race run under Group C rules. Defending champion Allan Moffat only won one round of the series, at Wanneroo Park (also his last ATCC race win), and suffered a crash at Surfers Paradise in which he not only wrote off his Mazda RX-7, but also broke bones in his right hand and suffered a fractured sternum, forcing him out of the series (in fact, Moffat would not appear in another ATCC race until round 4 of the 1988 series at Wanneroo). The only other winner was former champion Bob Morris who introduced some flavour to the series when he made a comeback to the sport in 1984, winning Round 5 at Oran Park in an RX-7 fitted with a standard gearbox after the team's only race unit was broken in practice. Holden Commodore driver Warren Cullen finished 4th in the championship and was the only driver other than Dick Johnson to finish every round of the series. Unfortunately for the final ATCC run under the local Group C rules, with the exception of Dick Johnson, Jim Richards contesting his first ATCC in his JPS Team BMW 635 CSi, Warren Cullen's two car Commodore team backed by K-Mart with new teammate Andrew Harris in his 1982 and 1983 Bathurst winning ex-HDT Commodore, and 1983 Australian Endurance Champion Peter McLeod in his Slick 50 Mazda RX-7, the series was devoid of many of its big name drivers from mid-season. Peter Brock missed both Queensland rounds due to his commitment to race a Porsche 956 with his Bathurst winning co-driver Larry Perkins at the 1000 km of Silverstone and 24 Hours of Le Mans races and was substituted in both races by teammate John Harvey having his first ATCC drive since 1979. After the Roadways Racing team lost their STP sponsorship (though still running a single car for Steve Harrington), Allan Grice struggled to find enough sponsorship other than SAAS Wheels to run his rented Roadways Commodore for the entire series and missed most of the mid-season rounds, during which time he drove the ex-Bob Jane DeKon Chevrolet Monza (now owned by Re-Car's Allan Browne) on his way to winning the Australian GT Championship, and he also drove at Le Mans in a Porsche 956 (he also joined the television commentary team for Surfers Paradise). George Fury was also missing mid-season when Nissan team boss Howard Marsden decided to concentrate on car development following a couple of non-finishes, while reigning champion Moffat missed the last three rounds of the series through injury. Teams and drivers The following teams and drivers competed in the 1984 Australian Touring Car Championship. TeamCar NoDriver Masterton Homes Ford XE Falcon 2 AUS Steve Masterton Cadbury-Schweppes Racing Holden VH Commodore 3 AUS David Parsons Roadways Racing Holden VH Commodore 4 AUS Steve Harrington 6 AUS Allan Grice Marlboro Holden Dealer Team Holden VH Commodore 05 AUS Peter BrockAUS John Harvey K-Mart Auto Racing Holden VH Commodore 8 AUS Warren Cullen 9 AUS Andrew Harris John Sands Racing Holden VH Commodore 10 AUS Rusty French State Building Society/Rolfen Mazda RX-7 10 AUS Bob Morris Garry Willmington Performance Ford XD Falcon 11 AUS Garry Willmington Jim Keogh Holden VH Commodore 12 AUS Jim Keogh Bob Holden Motors Ford Escort Mk.II 14 AUS Lyndon Arnel John English Ford XD Falcon 14 AUS John English Repco Accessories Holden VH Commodore 14 AUS Terry Finnigan Nissan Nissan Bluebird Turbo 15 AUS George Fury 16 AUS Gary Scott Palmer Tube Mills Ford XE Falcon 17 AUS Dick Johnson Valentine Greetings Mazda RX-7 18 AUS Murray Carter Rob Collins Mazda RX-7 19 AUS Rob Collins David Cox Mazda RX-7 19 AUS David Cox Lusty Engineering Holden VH Commodore 21 AUS John Lusty PF Motor Racing Chevrolet Camaro Z28 22 AUS Bryan Thompson Everlast Battery Service Ford XD Falcon 26 AUS Bill O'Brien Alf Grant Ford XD Falcon 27 AUS Alf Grant Brian Bolwell Ford Escort Mk.II 28 AUS Brian Bolwell Bayside Spares Holden VH Commodore 28 AUS Barry Lawrence Paul Jones Ford XE Falcon 29 AUS Paul Jones JPS Team BMW BMW 635CSi 31 NZL Jim Richards Chris Clearihan Mazda RX-7 32 AUS Chris Clearihan Mike Burgmann Mazda RX-7 33 AUS Mike Burgmann Murray Coote Mazda 323 37 AUS Murray Coote Bernie Stack Holden VH Commodore 38 AUS Bernie Stack John Bundy Mazda RX-7 39 AUS John Bundy King George Tavern Ford XE Falcon 40 AUS Joe Moore Allan Moffat Racing Mazda RX-7 43 CAN Allan Moffat Bryan Byrt Ford Ford Capri Mk.III 44 AUS Craig Harris Gary Hinton Holden VH Commodore 45 AUS Gary HintonAUS Lester Smerdon Dean Lindstrom Mazda RX-7 47 AUS Dean Lindstrom John Donnelly Ford XD Falcon 49 Simon Harrex Martin Power Triumph Dolomite Sprint 49 AUS Martin Power Petrolon Slick 50 Racing Mazda RX-7 50 AUS Peter McLeod David Grose Mazda RX-7 52 David Grose Swiss Motors Mazda RX-7 53 AUS Ernie Carniello Barry Seton Ford Capri Mk.III 55 AUS Glenn Seton Jim Myhill Mazda RX-7 57 AUS Jim Myhill Lawrie Nelson Ford Capri Mk.III 59 AUS Lawrie Nelson Country Dealer Team Official Program, Sandown, February 18–19, 1984 Isuzu Gemini PF60 60 AUS Dennis Horley Les Ski Racing Isuzu Gemini 61 AUS Les Szreniawski Peter Brierley Holden VH Commodore SS 62 AUS Peter Brierley John White Isuzu Gemini ZZ 65 AUS John White Ian Burrell Mitsubishi Colt 66 AUS Ian Burrell Fred Geissler Holden VH Commodore 66 AUS Fred Geissler Alexandra Surplice Toyota Corolla Levin 67 Alexandra Surplice Lyndon Arnel Ford Escort Mk.II 68 AUS Lyndon Arnel Don Smith Ford Capri Mk.III 69 AUS Don Smith Bayswater Automotor Wreckers Holden VH Commodore 70 AUS Colin Campbell Bob Holden Motors Toyota Celica 73 AUS Bob Holden Garry McGrath Ford Escort Mk.II 77 AUS Garry McGrath Clynton Arentz Ford Escort Mk.II 79 Clynton Arentz Ken Harrison Ford Escort Mk.II 80 AUS Ken Harrison Russell Worthington Mazda 626 100 AUS Russell Worthington Race calendar The 1984 Australian Touring Car Championship was contested over a seven-round series with one race per round. Rd.Race titleCircuitCity / stateDateWinnerTeamReport 1 Sandown Sandown International Raceway Melbourne, Victoria 18 February Peter Brock Marlboro Holden Dealer Team 1984 ATCC Rd.1 2 Symmons Plains Symmons Plains Raceway Launceston, Tasmania 11 March Peter Brock Marlboro Holden Dealer Team 3 Wanneroo Wanneroo Park RacewayOfficial Programme, Wanneroo Park Raceway, Sunday 1 April 1984 https://web.archive.org/web/20110716212515/http://www.terrywalkersplace.com/Programs/1984-april.jpg 16 July 2011 Retrieved from www.terrywalkersplace.com on 7 July 2009 Perth, Western Australia 1 April Allan Moffat Peter Stuyvesant International Racing 4 Surfers Paradise Surfers Paradise International Raceway Surfers Paradise, Queensland 13 May Dick Johnson Palmer Tube Mills 1984 ATCC Rd.4 5 The Castrol Flying Fifty1984 ATCC http://www.progcovers.com/motor/atcc1984.html The Programme Covers Project 14 February 2019 Oran Park Raceway Sydney, New South Wales 27 May Bob Morris Barry Jones 1984 ATCC Rd.5 6 Lakeside Lakeside International Raceway Brisbane, Queensland 17 June George Fury Nissan 7 Motorcraft 100Official Programme, Motorcraft 100, Adelaide International Raceway, Sunday 1 July 1984 Adelaide International Raceway Adelaide, South Australia 1 July Allan Grice Roadways Racing 1984 ATCC Rd.7 Points system Cars competed in two engine displacement classes, "up to and including 3000cc" and "3001-6000cc". Points were awarded for the first twenty outright places in each round using a two tier system as shown in the following table. The 3001-6000cc class was made up of BMW 635 CSi, Chevrolet Camaro Z28, Ford XD Falcon, Ford XE Falcon, Holden VH Commodore, Mazda RX-7 and Nissan Bluebird Turbo. Up to and including 3000cc consisted of Ford Capri Mk.III, Ford Escort Mk.II, Isuzu Gemini, Mazda 323, Mazda 626, Mitsubishi Colt, Toyota Celica and Triumph Dolomite Sprint Outright position 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th 14th 15th 16th 17th 18th 19th 20th Points if up to 3000cc 30 27 24 21 19 17 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 Points if 3001-6000cc 25 23 20 17 15 13 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 0 0 Points from the best six round results only could be retained by each driver. Championship standings Pos. Driver Car San. Sym. Wan. Sur. Ora. Lak. Ade. Pts. 1 Dick Johnson Ford XE Falcon 2nd 2nd 3rd 1st 3rd 2nd (3rd) 134 (154) 2 Peter Brock Holden VH Commodore 1st 1st 2nd Ret 2nd 96 3 Peter McLeod Mazda RX-7 Ret 4th 4th 2nd 2nd 5th Ret 95 4 Warren Cullen Holden VH Commodore 6th 6th (12th) 5th 5th 3rd 5th 91 (97) 5 Jim Richards BMW 635 CSi 4th Ret 8th 3rd 16th 4th 7th 77 6 Andrew Harris Holden VH Commodore Ret 8th 5th 7th Ret 6th 10th 57 7 Allan Grice Holden VH Commodore Ret 3rd 7th 1st 56 8 Murray Carter Mazda RX-7 11th 10th 7th 6th Ret 8th 49 9 Allan Moffat Mazda RX-7 3rd Ret 1st Ret 45 = Steve Harrington Holden VH Commodore Ret 5th 4th Ret 6th 45 11 George Fury Nissan Bluebird 5th Ret Ret Ret 1st Ret 40 12 Brian Bolwell Ford Escort 16th 14th 13th 15th 15th 37 13 Bob Morris Mazda RX-7 1st 25 = Glenn Seton Ford Capri 16th 13th 12th 25 15 Garry Willmington Ford XE Falcon Ret 6th 7th 24 16 Chris Clearihan Mazda RX-7 10th 11th 11th 22 17 David Parsons Holden VH Commodore 9th 7th 20 18 Jim Keogh Holden VH Commodore 8th 9th Ret 19 = Lawrie Nelson Ford Capri 12th 13th Ret 19 = Dean Lindstrom Mazda RX-7 Ret 12th 13th 19 = Craig Harris Ford Capri 13th 17th 17th 19 22 Terry Finnigan Holden VH Commodore 4th 17 = Gary Scott Nissan Bluebird 4th 17 = Graham Lusty Holden VH Commodore 11th 8th 17 25 John English Ford XD Falcon 11th 10th 15 26 John Lusty Holden VH Commodore Ret 6th Ret 13 27 Ken Harrison Ford Escort 15th 17th 12 28 Rusty French Holden VH Commodore 7th 11 = Murray Coote Mazda 323 19th 14th 11 30 Mike Burgmann Mazda RX-7 8th 10 = Barry Lawrence Holden VH Commodore 8th 10 = Dennis Horley Isuzu Gemini PF60 18th 16th 10 33 Bernie Stack Holden VH Commodore 9th 9 = Steve Masterton Ford XE Falcon Ret 9th Ret 9 = Fred Geissler Holden VH Commodore 9th 9 = John Harvey Holden VH Commodore Ret 9th 9 = David Cox Mazda RX-7 Ret 9th 9 38 Paul Jones Ford XE Falcon 10th 8 = Lyndon Arnel Ford Escort 14th Ret 8 = Colin Campbell Holden VH Commodore Ret 10th Ret 8 = Bill O'Brien Ford XD Falcon 10th 8 = Don Smith Ford Capri 14th 8 = Joe Moore Ford XE Falcon 13th 15th 8 44 Rob Collins Mazda RX-7 11th 7 = John Bundy Mazda RX-7 Ret DNS Ret 11th 7 46 Ernie Carniello Mazda RX-7 Ret 12th 6 = Alf Grant Ford XD Falcon 12th 6 = Bryan Thompson Chevrolet Camaro Z28 12th 6 = Clynton Arentz Ford Escort 16th 6 50 John White Isuzu Gemini ZZ 17th 5 = Simon Harrex Ford XD Falcon 13th 5 52 Peter Brierley Holden VH Commodore 14th 4 = Jim Myhill Mazda RX-7 14th 4 54 Martin Power Triumph Dolomite Sprint 19th Ret 3 = David Grose Mazda RX-7 19th 3 56 Garry McGrath Ford Escort 20th 2 Pos Driver Car San. Sym. Wan. Sur. Ora. Lak. Ade. Pts. References External links 1984 Australian Touring Car racing images at www.autopics.com.au Category:Australian Touring Car Championship seasons Touring Cars