Touring car racing

As a touring car is called passenger cars from mass production, which are used in modified form to motor sports racing. But you have 'intended for normal sale to the customers " be ( original text of the ISG).

A synonym is used like production cars. These will be built by the famous car manufacturers primarily for the mass market and the regular use on the road in large numbers. With the necessary safety equipment ( roll cage, fire extinguisher, if necessary harnesses, main switch ), these cars can be used in motorsport, in some little risky competitions such as automobile slalom and uniformity tests ( GLP) in unchanged form.

The most important basis for recognition in the categories of vehicles mentioned below documented by the FIA ​​Homologation FIA regulations.

The International Vehicle classes are (starting with the next series ):

All further divided according to engine capacity.

In addition, there are in every country national vehicle classes. In Germany, the

  • Group G ( series closer than Gr. N, divided by power to weight ratio ),
  • Group F or F- 2005 ( approximately like size. A), and
  • Group H ( freer than Gr. F).

The groups F and H are divided again according to engine size. When in a car modifications ( tuning measures ) performed ( and declared in DMSB vehicle pass! ) Were in excess of the allowable, it can be widely heralded in the next higher group.

GT cars have only two seats in the series include state and partly to Category I ( series production car, then group B), as GT2/GT1 but to Category II ( racing cars). The latter take on the popular international competitions such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans, or the FIA ​​GT championship part.

In addition, there are special classes such as brand cups, DMSB Group 2 l and 1,8 l and clearly attributable to the race car class 1, which run generally without subdivision. But are possible separate ratings for last year's cars, young drivers, " celebrities ", etc.

History

The first World Touring Car Rally Germany was organized in 1905 by Sir Hubert von Herkomer. These so-called Herkomer competitions were held until 1907, and were considered to be background checks for automobiles, making this new sport was popular in Germany. The winner of the rally got the Herkomer Prize, which created by the artist himself and was created out of pure sterling silver. Even to the present day these 40 kg heavy trophy to the winner portrait is considered the most valuable private car price in the world.

By 1981, the four-seater car in the FIA rules in the Group 1, Group 2 and Group 5 were divided (ascending tuning level ).

In the sixties and seventies of the last century was the really great time touring car racing. This was due to the competitive situation Alfa- Romeo (GTA, GTAm ) for BMW (1800 TI / SA, 1602, 2002) and Ford ( Lotus Cortina, Escort Twin Cam ) in the car to two liters and BMW (CSL ) to Ford ( Capri RS) with the larger displacement vehicles. It was a hotly contested and very popular " European Touring Car Championship ", the most spectacular race was the 6 hours for touring cars on the Nürburgring- Nordschleife. Hubert Hahne succeeded on 6 August 1966 at the supporting program of the Grand Prix of Germany as the first driver to go around on his factory BMW 2000 TI the Nordschleife in the race with a touring car in under 10 minutes ( 09:58,5 minutes).

By measured relative to today's racing car series near and pure private teams were able to participate in competitive and thus attracted tens of thousands of polarized fans to the tracks. On top of that at this time the paddock - and the driver (!) - Were mostly more or less accessible. You could certainly at the Nürburgring on the morning of the 6-hour race at the restaurant sit under the grandstand with racing stars at the same table and talk.

In addition, there was the old, very similar road slope of the Nordschleife with no run-off areas ( to 1973); and for a driver who ran off the track, it was usually " on hedge, hedge about ," and he was gone. But there were trees along the route that many were fatal. For viewers, the proximity to the slopes was naturally a strong magnet and already days before the race we saw at Brünnchen people squatting in the trees, where she found her " box seats " carpentered in the branches.

Various " ring battles " are legendary. Let us recall names such as Hubert Hahne, Eugen Boehringer, Dieter Quester, Sir John Whitmore, Andrea de Adamich, Jacky Ickx, Jochen Mass and Hans- Joachim Stuck. But Peter Lindner (Jaguar Mk II) has not been forgotten, the deadly with his Jaguar E-Type Montlhery accident in 1964. He delivered himself thrilling duels with Eugen Boehringer Mercedes 300 SE.

In the 1980s, the DTM or German Touring Car Championship became popular, were used in the production-based vehicles such as BMW M3, Mercedes 190, Ford Sierra, Opel Kadett, Audi V8, etc.. These cars had a normal sheet body, all changes had to be pre-approved ( homologated to FIA Group A ).

As of 1993 1 vehicles were used in the DTM but so-called class that only superficially resembled the production car. Especially with today's DTM is purebred racing cars, where a plastic bag was placed. For this meets the definition in Article 251 of the Appendix J of the International Sporting Code of the FIA, " Exclusively for competitive purposes individually constructed vehicles ". You could also call the touring car prototype.

From 1990, we developed similar to Germany in the BTCC in a succession Regulations for Group A touring car. Unlike in Germany, here was again a close- regulation of the super touring car, which was in 1994 awarded by the FIA internationally as Class 2 regulations. Many national championships contributed hereafter of their race. In Super Tourenwagen Cup this regulations were also applied in Germany.

Since 2002, the FIA Super writes 2000 Regulations, as the successor to the Super Touring Car, internationally, which was developed for the European Touring Car Championship ( ETCC ) and 2005 in the World Touring Car Championship ( WTCC), the world's discharging their race, passed.

In grassroots sport a variety of touring car from the large-scale production are used, as these are particularly as used vehicles to acquire cost on the Nürburgring- Nordschleife VLN, RCN and 24-hour race.

Touring car championships in Germany

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