A Ford GT40 contesting the Group 4 Sports Car category at the 1969 1000 km Nürburgring, marked with an S on the rear
A Group 4 Porsche 906
A Group 4 Alpine A110 1800
A Group 4 De Tomaso Pantera GTS

Group 4 referred to regulations for sportscars and grand touring (GT) cars used in racing and rallying, as regulated by the FIA. The group was introduced in 1954 and was replaced by Group B for the 1982 season.

BMW M1 Procar, used in the M1 Procar Championship. These cars were designed and built to FIA Group 4 racing specifications.

Production requirements

Prior to 1966, the FIA's Group 4 classification applied to Sports Cars which were in compliance with FIA Appendix C regulations. It also included recognised Series Touring Cars, Improved Touring Cars and Grand Touring Cars which had been modified beyond the respective Group 1, Group 2 or Group 3 regulations under which they had been homologated.[1][2]

First announced in October 1964 to give Manufacturers time to prepare, beginning with 1966, an overhaul of FIA categories saw Group 4 Sports Cars redefined such that they were now subject to a minimum production requirement of 50 units in 12 consecutive months and had to be fitted with all equipment necessary for use on public roads. This saw the Shelby 427 Cobra Mk3, the Ford GT40 Mk1 and Ferrari 250 LM homologated in early 1966, despite controversy in the case of the Cobra and Ferrari. The day after Ford's 1967 24 Hours of Le Mans win the FIA announced a 5000cc engine capacity limit applied for 1968 and allowed the homologation of the Lola T70 by including earlier open top cars to be counted toward the total. In April 1968, faced with small Group 6 Prototype fields, the minimum production requirement of Group 4 was reduced to 25 units for the 1969 season.[3] This led Porsche to build a run of 25 12-cylinder Porsche 917s for homologation in April 1969, followed by the Ferrari 512S in January 1970. These new types were basically Group 6 Prototypes with 5 liter instead of 3 liter and thus competed for outright wins.

For 1969, Appendix J of the FIA International Sporting Code defined groups for Touring cars, Grand Touring cars and Sports cars as follows: (numbers between brackets are required minimum production in 12 consecutive months).[4]

  • Group 1: series-production touring cars (5,000)
  • Group 2: touring cars (1,000)
  • Group 3: grand touring cars (500)
  • Group 4: sports cars (25)
  • Group 5: special touring cars
  • Group 6: prototype-sports cars

For 1970, the limited production sports car category was renamed from Group 4 to Group 5[5] and, in the same year,[6] Group 4 became the class for special grand touring cars with minimum production of 500 in 12 consecutive months [7]

For 1971, the relevant FIA classifications were as follows:[7]

  • Group 1: series-production touring cars (5,000)
  • Group 2: touring cars (1,000)
  • Group 3: series-production grand touring cars (1,000)
  • Group 4: special grand touring cars (500)
  • Group 5: sports cars (25)
  • Group 6: prototype-sports cars

In 1976, the Group 4 production requirement was reduced to 400 in 24 months.[8]

Sports car racing

A Porsche 911 competing in the Group 4 Special Grand Touring Car category at the 1970 1000 km Nürburgring

In 1966 and 1967, the Group 4 Sports Cars were mostly sold to and entered by privateers to play a supporting role to the Group 6 prototypes. While factory-entered prototypes like the 7.0L Ford GT40 Mk.II and Mk.IV raced for outright victories, the 4.7L GT40 Mk I entries were competing for Group 4 class wins.[9] Indeed, competitors in the two categories were competing for two different championships, with similar looking cars, the Group 6 cars for the International Championship for Sports-Prototypes and the Group 4 cars for the International Championship for Sports Cars.

For 1968, the rules were changed, so that prototypes were limited to 3.0L, but sports cars of up to 5.0L could still be entered. It was also announced that the minimum production figure for the Group 4 sports cars would be reduced to 25 cars for 1969. With larger engines than the sophisticated prototypes, the simpler and mostly older Group 4 cars were now in contention for outright race wins. An updated old Ford GT40 Mk.I chassis was the winner at Le Mans in both 1968 and 1969. Porsche began work on a production run of 25 cars for the Porsche 917. Ferrari, with some financial help from Fiat, produced the similar Ferrari 512S.[10]

For the 1970 season, the Group 4 Sports car category was renamed and became Group 5 Sports Cars, and Group 4 designation was applied to a new Special Grand Touring category. The new Group 4 was contested by production based cars such as the Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona, Porsche 911 Carrera RS and the De Tomaso Pantera.

The Group 4 GT category was replaced by a new Group B GT class for 1983.[11]

Rallying

Roberto Cambiaghi and Emanuele Sanfront on a Fiat 124 Abarth Rally at the Rally delle Regioni 1975 (valid for European Rally Championship)
Fiat Abarth 124 rally
A Group 4 De Tomaso Pantera and Lancia Stratos, pictured in 1973
Group 4 Lancia Stratos HF. The Stratos helped Lancia win the World Rally Championship in 1974, 1975 and 1976.
Fiat 131 Abarth Group 4 rally (1982)

The Group 4 regulations were also used as the basis for the World Rally Championships until they were replaced by the Group B regulations. In the mid-1970s to early 1980s rallying, it was necessary to produce 400 identical cars for homologation as a Group 4 rally car. Notable cars included the Ford Escort RS1800, Fiat 131 Abarth, Lancia Stratos HF and the Audi Quattro.

List of FIA Group 4 homologated cars

No.MarqueModelType ImageStartEnd
220United States ShelbyCobraRoadster 427 January 2, 1966January 2, 1966
221France MatraDjet5S MB 8S January 1, 1965January 1, 1965
222France AlpineA1101300 February 1, 1966February 1, 1966
223France Panhard24BA February 1, 1966February 1, 1966
224United Kingdom FordGT40Mk I February 2, 1966February 2, 1966
225Italy Ferrari250 LMBerlinetta February 1, 1966February 1, 1966
227Germany FordTaunusP5 Hardtop April 15, 1966April 15, 1966
228United Kingdom TunexDivaGT April 16, 1966April 16, 1966
229Italy Abarth1300OT April 15, 1966April 15, 1966
230Italy Abarth1000OTR Coupé April 30, 1966April 30, 1966
231Sweden SaabSonettII
234Italy Ferrari275GTB 4 April 1, 1967April 1, 1967
235Italy Lamborghini350GT April 1, 1967April 1, 1967
236Italy Lamborghini400GT 2+2 April 1, 1967April 1, 1967
237United Kingdom TVRMkIV1800S July 1, 1967July 1, 1967
238United Kingdom LotusMark 47 January 1, 1969January 1, 1969
239Italy Ferrari308GTB 4 April 1, 1967April 1, 1967
240United Kingdom LolaT70Mk III February 1, 1968February 1, 1968
241Italy Abarth1000SP March 1, 1969March 1, 1969
242United Kingdom Marcos1300 GT March 1, 1968March 1, 1968
242Italy LamborghiniUrraco P250 July 1, 1975December 31, 1981
244United Kingdom ChevronGT May 1, 1968May 1, 1968
245Italy LamborghiniP400Miura June 1, 1968June 1, 1968
246Italy Alfa Romeo33Spider January 1, 1969January 1, 1969
247Italy Ferrari206GT January 1, 1969January 1, 1969
248United Kingdom McLarenM6GT August 20, 1968
249Germany Porsche910 January 1, 1969January 1, 1969
250Germany Porsche917 May 1, 1969May 1, 1969
251Italy De TomasoMangusta April 1, 1969April 1, 1969
252Italy Abarth2000 April 1, 1969April 1, 1969
253Italy Ferrari365GTB 4 Daytona June 1, 1969June 1, 1969
254Italy Ferrari512S July 1, 1969April 1, 1970
255United Kingdom ChevronB16Cosworth January 2, 1970January 2, 1970
624France AlpineA1101600 January 1, 1970December 31, 1970
625Italy Alfa RomeoGTASprint January 1, 1970December 31, 1977
626Germany Porsche914/6 March 1, 1970October 1, 1971
627Italy Ferrari246GT January 1, 1971February 1, 1973
628France CitroënSMType SB April 1, 1971July 1, 1971
629United Kingdom Range RoverClassic April 1, 1971January 1, 1972
630France Renault12Gordini R1173 October 1, 1971January 1, 1972
632Italy De TomasoPantera January 1, 1972July 1, 1972
633Italy Ferrari365GTB 4 January 1, 1972December 31, 1979
634United Kingdom LotusEuropaTwin Cam April 1, 1972July 1, 1972
637Germany PorscheCarreraRS March 1, 1973July 1, 1973
638France Renault17TS April 1, 1974October 1, 1974
639Italy MaseratiAM122Merak May 1, 1974December 31, 1981
646United Kingdom Aston MartinV8 April 1, 1976December 31, 1981
631Italy Alfa RomeoMontreal January 1, 1972April 1, 1972
640Italy LanciaStratosHF October 1, 1974December 31, 1981
644Germany OpelKadettC GT/E October 1, 1975February 1, 1976
645Germany Porsche911Turbo January 1, 1976January 1, 1977
647Italy Abarth131Rally April 1, 1976December 31, 1981
648Italy Ferrari308GTB November 1, 1976December 31, 1981
649United Kingdom VauxhallChevetteHS2300 November 1, 1976December 31, 1981
650United Kingdom FordEscortRS April 2, 1977January 1, 1982
651France AlpineA310V6 April 1, 1977January 1, 1978
652Sweden Saab99Turbo Combi Coupé January 1, 1978October 1, 1978
653United Kingdom LotusEsprit April 1, 1978December 31, 1981
654United Kingdom B.L. TriumphTR8 April 1, 1978December 31, 1981
655United Kingdom PantherLima October 1, 1978December 31, 1981
656Poland FSOPolonez125 PN January 1, 1979April 1, 1980
657Poland FSOPolonez January 1, 1979April 1, 1980
658Sweden Saab99Turbo Sedan February 1, 1979April 1, 1979
659Germany Audi801600 February 1, 1979December 31, 1981
660Germany Porsche924Turbo February 1, 1979April 1, 1979
661Germany Daimler-Benz450SLC 5.0 April 1, 1979December 31, 1981
662United Kingdom ChryslerSunbeamLotus April 1, 1979January 1, 1980
663Japan ToyotaCelica2000GT Rally RA45 June 1, 1979December 31, 1981
664Argentina Renault Argentina12Alpine July 1, 1979December 31, 1981
665United Kingdom MorganPlus 8 July 1, 1979December 31, 1981
666Germany OpelAscona400 November 1, 1979December 31, 1981
668Italy Alfa RomeoAlfettaTurbodelta February 1, 1980December 31, 1981
669France Renault5Turbo September 1, 1980April 1, 1981
670Germany BMWM1 December 1, 1980December 31, 1981
671Germany AudiQuattro2145 January 2, 1981January 1, 1982
672Germany Porsche924Carrera GT January 1, 1981December 31, 1981
673Germany Daimler-Benz500SL January 1, 1980December 31, 1981
674Italy Alfa RomeoAlfettaGT 6 2.5 January 1, 1981October 1, 1981
675Japan MitsubishiLancer2000 Turbo A176A April 1, 1981December 31, 1981
676France Talbot MatraMurena2.2 August 1, 1981December 31, 1981
677Germany VolkswagenGolf Mk I16S December 1, 1981December 31, 1981

In addition, cars were homologated for Group 4 as variants of Group 3 cars. Before 1976, this was possible using a "100-off rule":[12] clause bb of Art 260 of Appendix J to the FIA's International Sporting Code 1975 (invoked from Art 266). This rule only required production of 100 of a "bolt-on option kit" of parts, not the production of any modified cars as homologation specials, but was deleted after 1975 and approved components banned "Effective from the end of 1977".[13] Such an approval applies to the Group 4 16-valve TR7,[12] the multi-valve head (and other parts) from the Group 1 Dolomite Sprint being approved as "valid for Group 4" on 1 Oct. 1975 in amendment 1/1V to the Group 3 TR7 homologation papers and reapproved (following production of about 60 16-valve TR7 Sprints in 1977) on 1 Feb. 1978 in amendment 10/8v.[14]

Groups 1-9

Categories and Groups of Appendix J 1954 - 1965
Categories 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965
I. Touring A. Touring
II. Sports II. Grand Touring B. Grand Touring
- C. Sports
Group 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965
Group 1 Normal series production
Group 2 "Grand Touring" series prod Modified series prod Modified series prod
Group 3 Special series production Grand Touring Cars
Group 4 Series production Normal GT series prod Sports Car
Group 5 International Modified GT series prod -
Group 6 - GT specials -
Source:[15][16]
Categories and Groups of Appendix J 1966 - 1981 (Production requirement)
Categories 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981
A. Production
B. Special B. Experimental Competition B. Racing Cars
C. Racing Cars -
Group 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981
Group 1 Series Touring (5000)
Group 2 Touring (1000) Special Touring (1000)
Group 3 Grand Touring (500) Series Grand Touring (1000)
Group 4 Sportscars (50/25) Special Grand Touring (500) Grand Touring (400)
Group 5 Special Touring Cars Sports cars (25) Sports cars Special cars derived from Groups 1-4
Group 6 Prototype sportscars - Two-seater racecars
Group 7 Two-seater racecars International formula
Group 8 Formula racing cars International formula Formula libre racing cars
Group 9 Formula libre racing cars -
Source:[15][16]
Note: Special may be replaced with Competition in some official documents.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Article 252 of the FIA’s Appendix J regulations, 1962 Archived 2006-03-14 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved from www.fia.com on 11 February 2009
  2. ↑ Article 252 of the FIA’s Appendix J regulations, 1965 Archived 2009-07-11 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved from www.fia.com on 11 February 2009
  3. ↑ M.L. Twite, The World's Racing Cars, 1971, page 109
  4. ↑ Appendix J 1969, Art. 251, Art. 252 Archived 2006-10-17 at the Wayback Machine on www.fia.com
  5. ↑ János L Wimpffen, Time and Two Seats, 1999, page 710
  6. ↑ M.L. Twite, The World's Racing Cars, 1971, page 99
  7. 1 2 Appendix J 1971, Art. 251, Art. 252 Archived 2005-03-02 at the Wayback Machine on www.fia.com
  8. ↑ Appendix J 1976, Art. 251, Art. 252 Archived 2006-03-14 at the Wayback Machine on www.fia.com
  9. ↑ Ford GT40 MkI 289 Archived 2007-01-02 at the Wayback Machine on QV500.com
  10. ↑ 1970 Ferrari 512 S Archived 2006-12-29 at the Wayback Machine on QV500.com
  11. ↑ János L Wimpffen, Time and Two Seats, 1999, page 1347
  12. 1 2 Robson G., The Works Triumphs: 50 Years in Motorsport, 1993, J H Haynes & Co Ltd, ISBN 978-0854299263.
  13. ↑ Robson G., "Ford Escort RS1800" Rally Giants, page 16, Veloce Publishing Ltd, 2008, ISBN 1845841409, 9781845841409.
  14. ↑ RAC TR7 Homologation papers number 3071.
  15. 1 2 "Regulations - Period Appendix J | FIA Historic Database". historicdb.fia.com. Retrieved 2022-05-19.
  16. 1 2 "APPENDIX K TO THE INTERNATIONAL SPORTING CODE" (PDF).
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Group_4_Special_GT_Cars