1978 AUSTRALIAN SPORTS CAR
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Sports car racingSports car racing is a form of motorsport road racing that uses sports cars with two seats and enclosed wheels. They may be either purpose-built sports prototypes, which are the highest level in sports car racing; or grand tourers (GT cars) based on road-going models and therefore, in general, not as fast as sports prototypes. Sports car races are often endurance races run over particularly long distances or large amounts of time, emphazing on reliability and efficiency of the car and its drivers more than outright car performance or driver skills. The FIA World Endurance Championship and IMSA SportsCar Championship are some of the best-known sports car racing series. Sports car racing is one of the main types of circuit auto racing, alongside open-wheel racing (such as Formula One), touring car racing (such as BTCC, which is based on 'saloon cars' as opposed to the 'exotics' seen in sports cars) and stock car racing (such as NASCAR). A hybrid of the purism of open-wheelers and the familiarity of touring car racing, the style is often best associated with the annual 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race. First run in 1923, Le Mans is one of the longest-running motor races. Well-known defunct sports car races include the Italian classics, the Targa Florio (1906–1977) and Mille Miglia (1927–1957), and the Mexican Carrera Panamericana (1950–1954). Most top-class sports car races emphasise endurance (generally between 6 and 24 hours), reliability, and strategy, over pure speed. Longer races usually involve complex pit strategy and regular driver changes. As a result, sports car racing is seen more as a team endeavour than an individual sport, with team managers such as John Wyer, Tom Walkinshaw, driver-turned-constructor Henri Pescarolo, Peter Sauber and Reinhold Joest becoming almost as famous as some of their drivers. Success in sports car racing helped build the prestige of Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, Audi, Bentley, BMW, Chevrolet, Ferrari, Jaguar, Lamborghini, Lancia, Lotus, Maserati, Mercedes-Benz, and Porsche. These makers' top road cars have often been similar in engineering and styling to those raced. This close association with the exotic nature of the cars distinguishes between sports car racing and touring cars. The 24 Hours of Daytona, 12 Hours of Sebring, and 24 Hours of Le Mans are considered the Triple Crown of endurance racing. Other crown-jewel sports car endurance races include Petit Le Mans, Nürburgring 24 Hours, Spa 24 Hours, Bathurst 12 Hour and Suzuka 1000km.
Elfin Sports CarsElfin Sports Cars Pty Ltd (formerly known as Elfin Sports Cars) is an Australian car manufacturer company that was founded by Garrie Cooper. It has been an Australian manufacturer of sports cars and motor racing cars since 1959. Elfin Sports Cars is currently owned by Young Timers Garage (YTG) after being purchased by the company in May 2023 from the Walkinshaw Group. It was previously owned by businessmen and historic racing enthusiasts Bill Hemming and Nick Kovatch (who remains as technical director) who purchased it in 1998. Elfin is the oldest continuous sports car maker in Australia and one of the most successful with 29 championships and major Grand Prix titles. The original factory was located at Conmurra Avenue, Edwardstown in suburban Adelaide, South Australia. The company is currently located in Keysborough, a suburb of Melbourne, Australia.
Australian Sports Car ChampionshipThe Australian Sports Car Championship was the national title for sports car racing drivers sanctioned by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport from 1969 to 1988. Each championship was contested over a series of races with the exception of the 1975 title, which was awarded on the results of a single race held at the Phillip Island circuit in Victoria. Championship races were open to purpose-built sports racing cars complying with CAMS Group A Sports Car regulations except for the years 1976 to 1981 in which they were restricted to Group D Production Sports Cars. Local manufacturers Matich, Elfin, Kaditcha, and K&A Engineering (Veskanda C1), along with McLaren dominated the series when run under Group A rules, while Porsche drivers won all six Group D based championships. The championship winners are listed below.
1979 Australian Sports Car ChampionshipThe 1979 Australian Sports Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing title for drivers of Group D Production Sports Cars. It was the eleventh Australian Sports Car Championship and the fourth to be restricted to cars complying with Group D regulations. The championship was won by Ross Mathieson driving a Porsche Carrera.
1977 Australian Sports Car ChampionshipThe 1977 Australian Sports Car Championship was a motor racing competition for Group D Production Sports Cars. It was authorised as an Australian National Title by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport (CAMS). It was the ninth Australian Sports Car Championship to be awarded by CAMS. The championship was won jointly by Alan Hamilton and John Latham driving a Porsche 934 Turbo and a Porsche Carrera RSR respectively.
1978 Australian Sports Car ChampionshipThe 1978 Australian Sports Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned Australian motor racing title for Group D Production Sports Cars. The title, which was the tenth Australian Sports Car Championship, was won by Ross Mathiesen, driving a Porsche Carrera.
List of sports carsThis page is a compilation of sports cars, coupés, roadsters, kit cars, supercars, hypercars, electric sports cars, race cars, and super SUVs, both discontinued and still in production (or will be planned to produce). Cars that have sport trims (such as the Honda Civic SI) will be listed under the sport trims section. Production tunes will include cars modified by outside brands and then sold. This does not include in-house brands such as Ford's Special Vehicle Team, which will be included in the main list. Some vehicles are sold under different brands, therefore some vehicles may be listed more than once but usually link to the same page. Different countries/continents may also classify vehicles differently.
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