SIERRA COSSIE
Texaco-liveried classic touring car racer.
Historic touring car racing has become a popular attraction in recent years, and motorsport fans have been eager to queue at the gates of the UK’s leading racing circuits in order to spend an afternoon watching classic Super Tourers driven by the likes of Tim Harvey, John Cleland and Patrick Watts. For all their bells and whistles, however, these legendary tin-tops are no longer backed by their respective manufacturers and are often owned by the distinguished drivers seen piloting them – men who are only too aware that they’ll have to foot the bill for any damage sustained to the cars that made them famous!
Unsurprisingly, the bumperto-bumper rough and tumble that attracts so many to touring car events is largely absent from these retro races of yesterday’s heroes. That’s understandable enough, and it would be unfair to criticise participants for not driving into one another on their way to the podium ( even if we secretly want to see the odd nudge here and there). Indeed, it’s a credit to the owners of these magnificent
machines that time, money and effort has been invested in giving them a new lease of life for our viewing pleasure.
Fortunately, for those that want to see retro touring cars driven with a little more aggression, help is at hand thanks to the Classic Touring Car Racing Club ( CTRC) and its increasingly popular class- driven championships. The organisation aims to “recreate the spirit of classic touring car racing for the club competitor of today” and encourages no-holds barred action, from drivers in motors built to mirror original touring car specification. This is real racing in real racing cars.
meet the man
One of the leading lights of the CTRC’s pre-1993 class is seasoned racer, Jim McLoughlin. More than comfortable in the cockpit of a competitive Blue Oval, he can be found punishing rivals from behind the wheel of his stunning threedoor Sierra Cosworth following a string of victories in a tricked out Capri. “I drove an immaculate Mk1 equipped with a 300bhp threelitre Essex that helped me to win virtually every race that I entered during a successful five-year
“I wanted to race the BMWs that were supposedly calling the shots!”
period,” he tells us.
Those victories included pre1983 class championship titles in 2008 and 2009 and an overall third place trophy in the sixhour Classic Masters endurance tournament at Belgium’s Spa circuit. “The Capri was in a league of its own, but I became tired of endless trophy hunting and the lack of any serious challenge to the car’s dominance on track,” admits Jim. “Besides, it was around that time that the pre-1993 class was gaining momentum and I wanted to try my hand at racing against the BMW E30 M3s that were supposedly calling the shots!” he grins.
The trusty Capri was sold on and the search for a complete ex-British Touring Car Championship RS500 began thereafter. A few of yesteryear’s ferocious Fords offered themselves to the Mcloughlin magnifying glass, but Jim concluded that most were too tired to take to the track without a ground-up restoration. The associated cost of remedial work when combined with already expensive purchase prices proved prohibitive, and the dejected driver returned to the drawing board as he began to question the sale of the race-winning Capri.
It was while scouring eBay late one night that the solution presented itself in the form of a brand new Ford Motorsport Sierra shell. “I couldn’t believe my luck!” bellows Jim. “It was a genuine, right-hand drive 909 shell that had been stored by Malcolm Wilson Motorsport for well over a decade before it was bought by one of the firm’s employees. The car had been collecting dust in the owner’s garage ever since, and he was forced to part with it in advance of an impending house move,” he gasps.
price is right
Offered for just £1500 and in its original factory condition, the shell was on its way to Jim’s Cheshire workshop that same evening. “I called the seller and told him that I’d already hitched a trailer to my truck and would be collecting the car by midnight!” he laughs. He wasn’t joking, and set off on the 500 mile round trip as soon as he’d put the phone down.
The late night adventure would yield what historic, sports and prestige race car dealer, Oakfields, believes to be the last brand new, right-hand drive 909 shell in existence. The firm is well versed in the trading of Blue Ovals and counts the recent procurement, preparation and sale of one of the original European Touring Car Championship Group A Eggenberger Texaco RS500s as one of the jewels in its Ford shaped crown.
Charitably, the company offered its assistance to Jim in the form of in- depth knowledge, detailed photographs and invaluable measurements regarding the all-conquering racer’s iconic livery. It was this insight that enabled him to decorate the newly-acquired shell in the same instantly recognisable graphics as the Eggenberger. Before cosmetic work could take place, however, there was the small matter of the car’s drivetrain, running gear and body panels to address!
The Internet would once again come to the rescue with a sea of genuine RS Cosworth panels and parts, while famed engine builder, Ric Wood, assembled the car’s incredible forged YB powerplant with a 200 block, modified head, custom profile camshafts, Pectel engine management, a T3 hybrid turbocharger and a side- exit Mongoose exhaust system. The lump has been built to be capable of over 500bhp, but is restricted to a conservative 360bhp and 400lb/ft of torque to keep the car from demolishing those brazen Beemers out on the asphalt.
if it ain’t broke...
Ric had been responsible for the Capri’s mighty motor, and Jim was keen to surround himself with the same team that had provided him with such a competitive car in previous years. Accordingly, race
car builder, Anthony Seddon constructed the lightweight Sierra using the ever booming stockpile of performance parts that Jim was acquiring. “I bought Avo adjustable dampers, AP Racing four-pot brakes, a custom pedal box, Group A specification safety equipment, a new gearbox, a Gripper differential, a fibreglass bonnet and tailgate, a set of centre-lock hubs and matching rims, polycarbonate windows and an RS500 splitter!” he says, admitting that the bare shell required the purchase of every single nut and bolt that features on the car.
the final countdown
As you might expect, amassing such a collection took a long time, and it was well over a year before Anthony was able to piece the component parts together. Once work had commenced, Avo sent their technical director to assist with the setup of the suspension, and Anthony worked day and night to ensure that the car was ready for some CTRC action following successful application of its striking exterior illustration.
Jim unveiled his stonking Sierra at the last round of the 2013 season at Silverstone. The fierce Ford’s good looks and amazing presence on track afforded it a lot of attention from enthusiastic punters who were bowled over by its ability to dismiss the competition with ease. In fact, the car was sat at the front of the grid all weekend and won the last race of the season!
“Winning during the Sierra’s very first outing was a great introduction to the pre-1993 class,” smiles Jim. “Anthony and I were keen to continue our good fortune at the start of the 2014 season and I was thrilled to steam ahead of my 32 no-nonsense opponents at Donington Park in late March,” he adds.
Bagging the top spot in the last race of 2013 – and matching the achievement during the first clash of 2014 – certainly bodes well for what is likely to be this season’s hotly contested title challenge. Thankfully, Jim’s Sierra is already displaying the kind of authority that his Capri was famous for, and excited retro racing devotees are witnessing a modern interpretation of the legendary Eggenberger Sierra doing what it does best. “We’ve built a proper racing car and intend to run it hard against like minded teams in what is rightly regarded as a serious touring car championship,” he says, rejecting the notion of ‘show’ over ‘go’. And if the outcome of that determination is that a Texaco Sierra is once again seen flying past the chequered flag, then we’re off to book our tickets for the next round of action without delay!