1989 British Touring Car Championship - Rd 3 - Thruxton

Описание: The 1989 Esso RAC British Touring Car Championship was the 32nd season of the championship. This season was the final year of the four separate class format, with the championship changing to just two classes for 1990. There were a total of thirteen rounds with the best eleven scores for each driver counting towards the championship.

Class A (Over 3000 cc)
A whole string of potent Ford Sierras was lined up to tackle this years championship, making for one of the toughest series of 1989. Defending champion Andy Rouse was back in a new car, still in Kaliber colours, with Guy Edwards in similar colours in his 1988 car. Laurence Bristow and Tim Harvey were the instigators of a new high Labatt’s sponsored team running customer Andy Rouse cars. Bristow’s mount was his previous car while Harvey had a new one to his disposal.
Like Rouse, Graham Goode would be in his third season with the Sierra RS500 Cosworth entering three cars – two Listerine sponsored cars for himself and Mike Newman, while single seater and prototype convert Sean Walker would drive a Goodyear supported third entry. Terry Drury might have lost the talent of Tim Harvey, but upped his entry from one to three Sierras with two brand new cars. Former Holden man Mike O’Brien and newcomers Robin Donovan and David Pinkney drove on pay-and-drive basis. Chris Hodgetts, Jerry Mahony and Karl Jones would reappear with their regular cars from Brooklyn, Roger Dowson and Richard Asquith, while David Brodie was contemplating a full season with his late 1988 car, Graham Hathaway would stick to a more limited programme.
Three new teams would make their debut in 1989 albeit on different levels. Former Rallycrosser Mark Rennison had gotten his fingers on the Andy Rouse built ex Ford France RS500 intending to do a season on a limited budget, while JQF and Trakstar were all out projects. Having bought the little used CC Motorsport RS500 for the first races JQF would continued their successful relationship with sponsor Fina oil and hiring single seater exponent Gerrit Van Kouwen, while working on their own RS500 with an anti roll suspension set-up for the second half. Trakstar was the collected efforts of former production saloon rivals Mike Smith and Robb Gravett who both had BTCC experience from the previous season. With John Whickham managing the new team and their newly imported pair of highly regarded Australian Dick Johnson cars. Initially the taciturn Johnson was rejecting selling any car at all, but finally his two original 1987 cars went to the UK with engine man Neal Lowe along for initial help on the highly personalised engine compartment. Mike Smith would have the original Johnson car as his 1989 weapon while Gravett would have the well rested car of Gregg Hansford, nearly unraced in 1988, at his disposal, while Gravetts contacts at Yokohama secured an exclusive deal with the Japanese tyre manufacture.

Class B (2001-3000 cc)
Defending champion Frank Sytner, Prodrive and BMW GB would continue their efforts with new signing James Weaver replacing Mike Smith. John Maguire was back with his two car operation for Godfrey Hall and John Clark while Alan Minshaw and Ian Forrest had ex-Prodrive equipment in their hands. These six cars would be regulars for 1989 sometimes joined by Swede Nettan Lindgren on the back of four straight national Ladies Cup titles.
BRR Motorsport would field an M3 for John Llewellyn for much of the season.

Class C (1601-2000 cc)
John Cleland, continuing with preparing specialist Dave Cook, would drive the 16 valve Vauxhall Astra GTE. Followed quite lately by Rallydriver and fellow Scot Louise Aitken-Walker who joined the BTCC in a rally car set up for tarmac usage no less. In the Peugeot Talbot camp Porsche protagonist Mike Jordan was centre of activity in a Peugeot 309 GTI, but only the V8 version, so underpowered until the new V16 was homologated.
The Alan Minshaw VW Golf GTI 16V had often been the class of the rather thin field with a variety of drivers during 1988, would now have its owner as the regular driver. John Morris would make a welcome return to BTCC action in another VW Golf, making class C the most varied if the smallest in 1989.
The need to have enough starters for Cleland to score full points would result in Vauxhall fielding a 3rd Astra in the second half of the season for Jeremy Rossiter.

Class D (Under 1600 cc)
Phil Dowsett had been the class of the field during 1988 and would continue although with a much reduced input from Toyota. Similar front drive Corollas were prepared for Les Liddiard and Tony Dolley, while the regular rear wheel drive cars of Geoff Kimber-Smith and Tony Crudgington should still provide some entertainment. A brand new Honda Civic build by Graham Goode and to be run by the new Trakstar outfit was supposed to appear with Ray Armes driving, when homologation issues were dealt with.
The Honda would eventually arrive mid-season, and totally change the balance of power in the class.