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Originally Posted by Russ Noble It's the Ford/Holden marketing thing. Not sure what it proves though.
I don't follow it all that much but aero aids make the cars look pretty much the same. As I understand it (but could be wrong) Hollinger 6 speed dog boxes and Ford 9" live axles in both cars. Windsors in the Falcons haven't been produced in Oz for decades. US Chev motors in the Holdens. Really theres not much in common with any showroom models other than some of the base sheetmetal. But plenty of hype. Win on Sunday, sell on Monday.
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The series is a parity sport and not really a production car series. The only thing that remains from the production cars is the body and this is what most of the critics seem to complain about. A lot of effort has gone into making these cars equal though and they have got it pretty right. I think the current consensus is that the Fords have it in the HP stakes whereas the Holdens have it in the aerodynamics (but even that fluctuates from time to time). Cries of foul mainly come from the one eyed supporters.
As far as introducing another make is concerned, I think you have to understand the tribalism culture that exists here in Australia between Ford and Holden supporters. There is nothing that even comes close to the passion for those two makes in motorsport. It goes all the way back to the 60’s and 70’s when some of the most memorable duels between these two makes took place. In those earliest days they were true production cars and the manufacturers were building affordable fire-breathing race cars just to win at Bathurst, but could also be registered on the road They were exciting days when passion ruled and allegiances were formed. Even the government of the day with its eventual regulations to halt the spiraling performance increases couldn’t stop this rivalry. The rules were simply changed allowing competitors to effectively bolt on any performance component that was available to the public.
Its probably worth mentioning though that in those very early days there were many other makes racing in the series, including Valliant’s, Minis, Jaguars, Triumphs and more, but none attracted the same following (although the Valliants came close).
PS. Windsor’s did exist in the production Falcons this decade.