One for the sports car experts. I thought that production cars have always been a feature of Le Mans, as well as prototypes there always seems to be an abundance of 911's, Ferrari's and other such cars further down the grid. When I've watched the race in more recent times that's still the case. But recently I saw highlights of the 1988 and 1989 races and there were no production based cars at all, just prototypes. Was there a reason for this?
Thanks Chris.
Chris
from 1982 to 1992 the FIA World Sportscar Championship ran under Group C and Group B regulations. 1982 was a transitional year that still allowed Group 5 and 6 cars to compete. Group C rules governed the prototype classes and Group B was concerned with production based racecars.
As far as I know there were only two cars built to Group B regs intended for endurance racing (a great many were produced to compete on rallies) the Porsche 961 and the Ferrari GTO Evoluzione. One Porsche chassis, a development of the 959, was constructed and ran at Le Mans in 1986 and 1987 under the IMSA GTX Class banner. The Ferraris, based on the 288 GTO, were the work of Michelotto, six in total. They did not race though a couple were used as test mules for the upcoming F40.
To comply with Group B a limited run of 200 cars were to be built in a year and 20 of these could be designated as evolutions. This requirement was way beyond the financial resources of traditional sportscar companies (Porsche and Ferrari were very different animals financially back then) and rendered the class uneconomic. It was going to be cheaper to buy a Group C1 or C2 car so those classes prospered as did sportscar racing.
The involvement of manufacturers such as Porsche, Lancia, Jaguar, Mercedes, Toyota, Nissan and Mazda did not sit well with those who controlled F1, aka Max and Bernie. They persuaded the President of the FIA, Jean-Marie Ballestre, to scrap the Group C fuel consumption rules and introduce a new formula one style engine of 3.5 litre V10s. No turbos, no rotaries, and, it was speculated, no endurance racing. All that lovely manufacturer money heading to F1 where it belonged.
At the same time Bernie and his men took over the running of the FIA SWC, costs rocketed and entries dwindled.........all was going to plan.
By the end of 1992 just eight cars took the start of the final round of the Championship held at Magny Cours. Even Le Mans was in trouble with a mere 28 racers taking the Tricolor that year.
A week after the 1992 Le Mans 24 Hours the ACO witnessed first hand, at their Bugatti circuit, a grid of 56 GTs assembled for the premier round of the Venturi Trophy, the work of Stéphane Ratel. Salvation was at hand. The ACO resigned from the World Championship and created a GT class for their 1993 race. June 1993 saw 7 Venturis joined by 11 Porsches, 3 Jaguars and 2 Lotus, 23 in all, just under 50% of the grid of 47.
The following year Ratel, with his partners Patrick Peter and Jürgen Barth, launched the BPR and modern day GT Racing rose from the ashes of the destruction of Group C.
Apologies for the discourse but this story needs telling in greater depth than I have managed here.
Edited by SamoanAttorney, 14 April 2018 - 07:42.