Trader Dreamer: BTCC Special I

YouTube is a wonderful thing, aside from millions of hours of utterly pointless drivel and many more comments of the same ilk, there’s seemingly no limit to what you can watch. I’ve recently been entertaining myself by watching BTCC videos. I’m a huge fan of the super touring years of the sport, and YouTube makes it possible to watch those races on demand. This is the first of ‘Trader Dreamer’s inspired by this great racing series, and it’s natural to start with the year 1990, the first year to feature the new 2-litre class that would make the series so very special.

(Picture from Ejcallow)

Vauxhall were straight in with their Cavalier, while privateer BMW M3’s dominated the rest of the grid. Though It was not only the 2-litre class that competed this year, but also the Class A cars that had headed up the sport since 1983. So let us start with the car that essentially created the need for the new class, the Ford Sierra RS500.

At the beginnings of class A in BTCC (British Saloon Car Championship as it was known then) Ford were wielding their 3.0 litre Capri against the very capable Rover Vitesse with it’s mighty V8. Even with those Rovers eventually disqualified in their first season, the Capri failed to make much impact on the sport. Stuart Turner, the recently appointed head of Ford’s European Motor Sports division, was fully aware of the cars shortcomings and convinced those above him that investment in a new competition car was necessary.

Cosworth handled the engine, with a tuned version of Fords Pinto engine, easily capable of delivering 300hp in race trim. The Sierra was the chosen chassis in which the engine would be dropped, it’s aerodynamic efficiency and rear wheel drive layout lent itself lending itself to racing. Ford weren’t the only ones with this idea, Andy Rouse and his engineering team switched from the Rover Vitesse to the Sierra XR4ti in 1985 and won the BSCC for that year. Technically, the team was racing a non existent car in Europe, the Sierra XR4ti slipped through homoglation thanks to the US only Merkur XR4ti. Part of an ill fated brand experiment by Ford in the US, the car dropped the European XR4i’s 2.8 V6 in favour a turbocharged pinto engine, perfect for Rouse to tune to large power outputs.

Not only did this vindicate Ford’s choices for it’s new race car, it also provided a useful testbed for development of the new Sierra RS. Although the new race car would be based on the standard 3dr Sierra, rather than the XR4i with it’s distinctive glasshouse, Ford motorsport would still gleam various successful modifications from the XR4ti for their factory car.  It received a large spoiler necessary to counter high speed lift along with additional cooling ducts and wheel arch extensions, to allow fitment of competition spec tyres. These exterior changes only added to the cars controversial looks, when shown to Fords dealer network the consensus was that only 1,500 could be sold, when Ford needed 5,000 to homoglate the car for racing. This bleak predication was retracted when they were allowed to test drive the car.

The road going Sierra RS could accelerate to 60mph in 6.4 seconds, which is good today, never-mind 1986. Coupled with decent enough handling the car won praise not only from the dealers but also the press, meaning Ford had no trouble shifting the required 5000. The car made it’s debut to BTCC in 1987, run by several teams, the car performed well though reliability issues saw it beat overall by the Rover Vitesse.

That same year Ford decided to up the anti and make the car even more of a weapon on track. Group A rules allowed for a road going ‘Evolution’ model of 500 units to make changes to race cars already homoglated by the initial run of 5000. Ford used this rule to great effect by launching the Sierra RS500. The changes were largely aimed at allowing huge power outputs, things like thicker cylinder walls, bigger turbo along with a second fuel rail and revised induction system. On the road car the second fuel rail was only fitted, not used, and the changes only raised power by 21bhp, dropping the 0-60 by barely half a second. However on the track the changes meant for a great deal more, by 1990 the Sierras on the BTCC grid were developing in the region of 500bhp, essentially more power than they had grip.

There were plenty of them on the grid too, the Sierra was so successful in Group A that no other manufacturer could match it. This meant that the grid was completely dominated by the car, being only obviously differentiated by livery and tyres. BTCC clearly saw this problem and introduced the 2.0 litre class which would be come the staple of the series for the next 10 years. After a BTCC championship victory for Rob Gravett in 1990 the group A Sierras were gone, the only reminder was a single RS500 running to 2.0 regulations with moderate success. It’s more often Formula One where one car gains such an advantage that rule changes are required to end it’s dominance, but the RS500 managed to completely change the face of touring car racing, and unlike those F1 cars you can actually drive a road going version of this piece of history.

Here’s Some I Found

You can’t actually have this one as it’s been sold. But at £8,500 this Moonstone Blue Sierra RS Cosworth seems like good value considering it’s tidy condition. It may be the more common, less powerful car, but it’s got all the looks and turbo ‘woosh’ you could want for.

This heavily tuned RS comes in at £13.5k, and claims to have ‘400+ bhp’. Taking the 400 figure, this car costs a reasonable £33.75 per bhp. The new swift sport will cost you the same money (£13,500), but £100.74 for each of it’s 134bhp. Of course the swift sport will handle better and likely be more reliable, safe and comfortable, but it’s not a piece of automotive history is it?

If the tuner special isn’t too your taste then perhaps this lovely original RS is. At a snip under £19k it isn’t exactly cheap, but with only 51,000 miles the car looks pristine in a way which the cheaper ones do not. Keep it this way and you’re likely to have an appreciating asset on your hands, original cars like this will only become less common.

Perhaps you’re holding out for the limited production RS500. At £22,500 this modified Sierra represents an interesting way to get behind the wheel of a 500bhp, road legal, monster. The fact that that it’s been running in it’s current state of tune for 12 years and 17000 miles inspire confidence, as does the fact that the car has had the same, clearly devoted, owner since 1990.

At the top of the currently available scale is this £42,950 RS500, currently for sale on Car and Classic. The price is big, but with only 19000 miles on the clock this is more likely to make money than any other currently available. It also claims to come with a comprehensive service history, and to my eyes it looks lovely.

You don’t have to settle for the BTCC cars road going cousin however. This is the real deal, prepared by Rouse Racing in 1988, with a massive 500bhp and race spec everything. It’s not road registered, however this car was built for the track, and despite it’s huge power and imperfect chassis, I imagine it remains a hoot on the right circuit.

Specifications

Ford Sierra RS Cosworth

0-60 6.4 seconds 
0-100 16.1 seconds
Top Speed 149mph 
Power 201bhp @ 6000rpm
Torque 204lb ft @ 4500rpm
Weight 1240kg 
Insurance Group 20
MPG 24
Warranty Direct Reliability Index N/A
How Many Left 780 (unclear how many are RS500)

Ford Sierra RS500

0-60 6.0 seconds 
0-100 15.8 seconds
Top Speed 150mph 
Power 221bhp @ 6000rpm
Torque 276b ft @ 4500rpm
Weight 1210kg 
Insurance Group 20
MPG 24
Warranty Direct Reliability Index N/A
How Many Left 780 (unclear how many are RS500)