Supercar scare

The Supercar scare was a national controversy that arose in Australia in 1972 in regard to the sale to the public of high performance "homologation special" versions of Australian-built passenger cars.

The reason

The cause of the controversy was an article published in the Sydney based The Sun-Herald newspaper[1] on 25 June 1972.[2] Written by motoring journalist, Channel 7 television commentator and successful race and rally driver Evan Green and entitled "160 MPH 'Super Cars' Soon", it claimed that Australia's three major car manufacturers, General Motors-Holden's, Ford Australia and Chrysler Australia (commonly called "The Big Three"), were each about to produce new models, based on family saloons but with top speeds of up to 160 mph (257 km/h). Although some rural roads at the time had no speed limits, the maximum limit on most roads in Australia was 60 mph (97 km/h).[3] The intent by each manufacturer was to sell at least 200 units of their respective models to the public, thus making the cars eligible for the Hardie-Ferodo 500, a major motor race held on the Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales. At the time, the race was run under Group E Series Production regulations, meaning that the cars that raced had to be available for sale to the general public, although cars used in the race had safety features such as roll cages and racing seat belts.[3] (the Hardie-Ferodo 500 mile race was a forerunner to the current "Bathurst 1000" event)

Prior to the article being published, a magazine had shown a Ford Falcon GTHO Phase III being driven at over 225 km/h (140 mph) on a public highway.[4]

The cars

The proposed models were a 320 bhp (239 kW), 5.0 L V8-engined version of the Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1, the Ford Falcon GTHO Phase IV powered by a 400 bhp (298 kW) 5.8 L V8 engine,[5][6] and an upgraded version of the Chrysler Valiant Charger fitted with a 300 bhp (224 kW) 4.3 L Hemi-6 engine.[3]

The Ford Falcon GTHO Phase IV was a casualty of the "Supercar scare"

While testing the prototype Torana V8 in a Sports Sedan race at Bathurst during the Easter weekend in 1972, Holden Dealer Team (HDT) boss Harry Firth calculated that the car, driven by regular HDT driver Colin Bond, reached 272 km/h (169 mph) on the 2km long Conrod Straight. He also noted that the V8 was a regular road car engine (with minimal modifications) and not a blueprinted race engine. Firth ran the car in Sports Sedans (fitted with front and rear spoilers) in a successful attempt to disguise that the V8 Torana was intended to be raced in the Bathurst 500 later in the year. Firth also had team mechanic/driver Larry Perkins drive the Torana from Melbourne to Bathurst with instructions to "Go as fast as you can", with Firth in his hotted up Holden Monaro secretly following Perkins the entire way, and noting that the Torana was getting away from Firth while he was doing 125 mph (201 km/h). The entire journey to Bathurst was completed in a mere 4 hours and 33 minutes, a record that stands to this day. The team also ran their regular six-cylinder car in the Series Production races that weekend, giving Firth a valuable guide in how much faster the V8 engined car was compared to the six (the V8 lapped over 5 seconds faster), and how it would compare to the V8 powered Ford XY Falcon GTHO Phase 3's. The V8 Torana was not only faster than the Phase 3's, but around 5 seconds per lap faster than the team's 6cyl XU-1 Torana driven by Peter Brock.

Chrysler Australia tested V8-powered Valiants that "went like Hell" according to Ian (Pete) Geoghegan[7]. Similarly powered vehicles in the United States were winning many races in the Trans-Am series. Two VH Valiant Chargers with 340ci engines, 4-speed manual transmissions, and heavy duty Chrysler-built rear axles were sighted briefly in a Melbourne dealership only days prior to the publishing of Evan Green's article; this pair had "disappeared" by the very next morning (Monday 26th).

Government reaction

The article quoted New South Wales Transport Minister Milton Morris as saying that he was appalled at these cars - which he labelled "bullets on wheels"[3] - being sold to ordinary motorists and that "if manufacturers are making these supercars available to the general public because this is a condition of eligibility for the Bathurst 500, then I think it is imperative that race organisers closely examine their rules."[3] Green went on to say that the models would introduce new standards of handling and control in Australian high performance cars and he quoted HDT boss Harry Firth as saying that the proposed Torana V8 model would be "the best handling, safest car on the road."[3]

While Firth was insistent that the V8 XU-1 handled better than the six-cylinder version, HDT driver Peter Brock, who also raced the car in Sports Sedans, later claimed that while the V8 was a lot faster in a straight line, its handling was terrible and he reported that in testing, the first time both he and Colin Bond gave the car full acceleration it broke the windscreen due to the V8's much greater torque.

On the following Wednesday, Morris said he would "seek a national ban on such cars"[8] and the following day the Queensland Minister of Transport, Mr Hooper joined in calling for a "national ban on the registration of popular make high-performance cars capable of speeds in excess of 130 mph".[8] In another announcement on that Thursday, Mr D Thomson, secretary of the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport, stated that regulations would be changed to discontinue all "series production car" races and allow manufacturers to race specially modified race vehicles derived from a production vehicle.[9] Thomson also said that the Bathurst 500 "had created large problems, one of the greatest of which was the marketing of the 'super-cars'".[9]

The Backdown

On Friday, 30 June 1972, a spokesman for General Motors-Holden's announced that the company had abandoned its plans to build and race a V8 powered Torana "because of concern expressed by government leaders".[10] On the same day a spokesman for the Ford Motor Company stated that "We are considering the situation" and a spokesman for Chrysler Australia Ltd claimed that "The Charger R/T is not a super-car".[10] The following day Ford announced that it would not continue with production of its new GTHO and that the company would seek government guidelines for the production of performance cars.[11]

On the same day, Chrysler said that it had abandoned development of a V8 competition version of the Charger R/T and that it would "withdraw from "direct participation" in series production racing, including the Bathurst 500". Chrysler also reported that the V8 Charger was not intended for the 1972 Hardie-Ferodo 500, though Chrysler factory backed racing brothers Leo and Ian Geoghegan did test a ute fitted with a 5.6 liter (340 cui) V8 engine and with the R/T Charger's wheelbase at the Mallala circuit in South Australia. The Geoghegan's reported that while faster on the straights, the extra weight of the V8 gave the car severe understeer and required earlier brake points due to the brakes being the same size as those on the six-cylinder Hemi Chargers (the Geoghegan's reports on the V8 Chrysler mirrored Peter Brock's later comments about the V8 Torana). As a result, lap times in testing were around two to three seconds slower than when the car was fitted with the lighter Hemi six, though it was expected that the long straights and more open nature of the Mount Panorama Circuit would better suit the more powerful V8 engine car. Pete Geoghegan also road tested the V8 ute on the country roads surrounding the town of Mallala and reported that while the top speed was a vast improvement over the Hemi-6, the extra weight of the V8 did not stop the front of the car feeling 'light' at high speeds.[11]

While there was government outrage that the "Big Three" were to produce such supercars for public sale in Australia, it was pointed out that those who could afford to do so could still buy high powered imported sports cars such as those made by Ferrari, Porsche and Jaguar that came with performance capabilities that rivaled or surpassed the proposed Australian cars. While these cars were somewhat more expensive to buy in Australia, it was argued that drivers had as much chance of having a fatal accident in a high powered import as they did in an Australian-made car.

The aftermath

Following the shelving of the so-called "Supercars", the 1972 Hardie-Ferodo 500 went ahead under Series Production rules. The race was won by Peter Brock in a six cylinder LJ Torana GTR XU-1 for Firth's Holden Dealer Team. The following year, CAMS introduced the Group C touring car rules which would last until the end of 1984. The Bathurst 500 was also increased from 500 miles to 1000 kilometres from 1973.

Evan Green, the journalist/racer who started the Supercar Scare, was also a television motorsport commentator for Channel 7 in Sydney, which broadcast Bathurst 1000. For many years after 1972, Green was shunned or given short answers by HDT boss Harry Firth, whose team had carried out all the development of the V8 Torana. Firth also claimed that he personally lost some A$55,000 of his own money on the cars, with all four prototypes meeting their end on the crash pad at Holden's Lang Lang proving ground. This was also true of factory Ford driver Allan Moffat who had been heavily involved in the testing and development of the Phase IV Falcon (four were built and three are known to survive as of 2020). While Firth later claimed that Green was "No friend of mine" following the Supercar scare, Moffat softened his stance over the years and allowed Green to interview him both in the pits and also in his Melbourne workshop.

Unlike Ford and Holden, Chrysler Australia chose to pull out of racing after 1972 (Ford also did after 1973, but returned in 1976). Chrysler introduced both the 5.3L and 5.6L V8 engines to its luxury sedans, though both were heavily de-tuned. Ford continued to produce its V8 powered Ford Falcon GT range until the GT was discontinued after the Ford XB Falcon, though the Falcon continued with the V8 until Ford pulled the plug on it in 1983. Although the 5.0L V8 was already part of the larger Monaro and Kingswood range, Holden introduced the V8 to the Torana range in 1974 with the Holden LH Torana SLR/5000.

References

1. Bill Tuckey (1981). "Australia's Greatest Motor Race". p. 162.
2. John Wright (14 December 2011). "Classic metal: Holden EH S4". uniquecarsmag.com.au. Retrieved 21 January 2012.
3. Evan Green (25 June 1972). "160 MPH 'Super Cars' Soon". The Sun-Herald. pp. 1, 19. Archived from the original on 13 February 2015.
4. Nichols, Mel. "HO down the Hume". falcongt.com.au. Archived from the original on 23 May 2013. Retrieved 18 January 2016.
5. Wright, John (1987). "The Final Finest Phase" (PDF). Super Ford's: 20–27. Retrieved 18 January 2016.
6. "The Ultimate Muscle Car: Enter the Ford Falcon XA GT-HO Phase 4". www.smartbeard.com. Archived from the original on 27 June 2016.
7. Tuckey, Elisabeth; Kennedy, Ewan (1996). Chrysler Valiant : including an extensive motor racing section. Marque Publishing Company. ISBN 978-0-947079-54-3.
8. Qld joins bid to ban fast cars, The Sydney Morning Herald, Friday, 30 June 1972, page 3/
9. 'Super-car' era to end soon, The Sydney Morning Herald, Friday, 30 June 1972
10. GM-H quits power race, The Sydney Morning Herald, 1 July 1972, page 1.
11. Evan Green and Peter Allen, 'Big Three' all drop high-speed supercar plans, The Sun-Herald, July 2, 1972, page 3 & 27.