Racing circuit for saloons

There was an air of excitement at the Zwartkops Raceway near Pretoria last week as hundreds of fans turned up for the unveiling of a prototype car for a new circuit-racing competition, the Global Touring Car (GTC) series.

The ambitious project is scheduled to start in South Africa in the second half of next year with a field of at least 12 cars, and by the beginning of 2015 the competition will have expanded to accommodate 24 cars.

Eventually, say the organisers, the plan is to extend the concept to other countries and at some stage the best drivers could compete in a GTC World Cup.

Those wanting to take part will buy a car for R1.3m, which includes the engine, chassis and running gear but not the body panels. The car has been designed to be able to accommodate a variety of saloon-car body shells. The idea would be for teams to approach manufacturers for sponsorship and carry their body shells.

So races would see what looks like a variety of vehicles — Ford, BMW, Chev, Mercedes-Benz and Audi, to mention a few.

Because they would all have the same engines and the same running gear the result would be an exciting competition decided by the skills of the drivers and the expertise of their engineers.

Included in the R1.3-million price will be a franchise. Only 24 will be sold. These will become tradable commodities and their owners will be able to sell these for a profit, should they choose to do so.

The organisers will reserve the right to hold back two franchises for use by guest drivers.

The racing saloon, powered by a standard 5-litre V8 engine, was taken around the track for a few laps after the unveiling by Gary Formato, a former multiple champion and MD of the GTC series.

His father Michael is chairman and Mark Woolley executive director. Woolley, a South African who has lived in England for the past three years, will develop the international side of the series.

The series is being launched in South Africa, he said, because despite its wider ambitions it has been conceived by South Africans for South Africans.

Even the prototype car was designed and built in Australia by a South African, Paul Ceprnich of Pace Innovations, whose company designed the 2013 cars for the hugely successful Australian V8 Supercar series.

The engine for the GTC series will develop 372kW at 6600 rpm, with a boost of about 10% extra with a “push to pass” feature.

The emphasis has been on keeping the competition affordable. Because the engines will be under-stressed they are expected to last for at least a season. Parts will be common, which should help to keep costs down.

The GTC series is loosely based on the Australian V8 Supercar series but in a more compact format, using medium-sized saloons. The plan is to build all the cars in South Africa.