CAVALIER SUPER TOURING CARS Our massive feature on one of the greatest competition Vauxhalls ever built, the Mk3 Cavalier Super Touring Car! Words Jarkle Photos Vauxhall Motorsport Archive, Steve McCann othing (and we mean thought we’d put together an in-depth finishes). For 1990 Vauxhall opted to nothing) goes down history of the Cavalier in the BTCC, step things up a gear, competing in the quite as well on the covering the seasons it competed in, new Super Touring TOCA regulations Total Vauxhall the results it netted, the with the Mk3 Cavalier GSi, and hired Facebook page as a developments undertaken to make it Chris Hodgetts to compete alongside picture of a Cavalier competitive and, most importantly, Cleland. It wasn’t ever going to be easy, BTCC car, ideally with a the people who made it into a winner! especially as the team faced a steep certain ruddy-cheeked Scotsman at learning curve and an already up to Nthe wheel. It’s impossible to overstate speed, Prodrive-backed BMW effort. MOVING UP how well regarded these cars are John clinched the 1989 title in an Astra Pre-season testing at Donington amongst the Griffin faithful, and it’s GTE, though he did it without setting revealed how far there was to go if the probably not a stretch to say that foot on the podium. (He competed in a GSi was ever going to be a winner. they’re your most popular Vauxhall class below the Sierra RS500s, and “Out on the GP loop for the competition car. With that in mind, we won his title through regular points first time, the car was actually 66 TOTAL VAUXHALL CAVALIER SUPER TOURING CARS TOTAL VAUXHALL 67 Cav super touring “John lunged at Sytner, attempting to grab the Englishman by the neck” Future F1 star David Coulthard samples the rough and ready world of the BTCC cornering on two wheels, it really was that dramatic,” Recalls Cleland. “We were also using diffs and transmissions developed for use in the WRC programme, so there was a lot of work involved to make them effective on circuits.” All of this meant that the Cavalier versus BMW slugging match was eagerly anticipated. The front-wheel drive Cavalier was permitted to run at a lower weight than the rear-wheel drive M3s, and the competition raged all season. The most controversial incident of the year took place at the Birmingham Superprix, a short-lived but spectacular street circuit. The season long fight between Frank Sytner and Cleland was in full swing, with the former catching the latter at an alarming rate with just a handful of laps to go. We’ll let Cleland take over the story… “I was on a shot set of Dunlops, falling into Frank’s clutches. On the penultimate lap, Frank made a lunge for the inside line of a corner that, with the best will in the world, was never 68 TOTAL VAUXHALL Rob Gravett’s Sierra spent most of its career struggling to keep up with the Cavaliers! BTCC in the early ’90s was dominated by the Vauxhall versus BMW battles THE REAR-WHEEL going to work.” DRIVE CAVALIER The pair ended up in the barriers, Cleland’s temper long past boiling point In the very early days of the Cavalier and not helped by being forced to programme, Vauxhall actually experimented with a rear-wheel drive extricate himself from the battered GSi version of the Cavalier. TOCA rules through the driver’s side window. John stated that if a four-wheel drive then lunged at Sytner, attempting to version of the road-going car was grab the Englishman by the neck. available (i.e, the GSi2000 4x4), then “We were pulled apart by marshals manufacturers were clamouring to get a race version could be either front- rear- or four-wheel drive. Reacting to and I started walking back to the pits. their racers on the grid on Sunday in the early front-wheel drive car’s Then someone yelled out from the order to sell cars on Monday. The battle tendency to eat its tyres, a rear-wheel crowd ‘I’d have hit him harder.” I again came down to Vauxhall versus drive version was developed. Though thought about it for a second, agreed, BMW, with the Toyota Carina of Andy tested quite extensively, the project then went back to have another bash,” Rouse occasionally troubling the was eventually canned due to chuckles John. podium. The fact that there were so difficulties transmitting the car’s power from the transverse XE to the It’s safe to say that though Sytner many more M3s on the grid than rear axle. There was also the fact that and the M3 finished above the Cavaliers eventually took its toll Vauxhall had no intention of offering Vauxhalls that year, it was Cleland who though, and Cleland was forced to a rear-wheel drive Cavalier to the established himself as a firm favourite settle for second place, with Will Hoy general public, so there was little with the fans. taking overall honours. commercial incentive. That’s not to say the experimental car was bad though, and Cleland recalls it fondly. in THE GRoovE TRADING PAINT “It drove really well, it was 1990 might have represented a steep 1992 was even closer, and Cleland and superbly balanced and you could learning curve, but 1991 was, if Allam started well, with victories for the corner confidently. It’s just a shame anything, even tougher. The Super Cavalier at Silverstone, Snetterton and that the technology of the time wasn’t This is actually the car that was tested Touring regulations had prompted an Knockhill. There were also two in rear-wheel drive configuration up to the task.” explosion in popularity, and other Cavaliers on the grid driven TOTAL VAUXHALL 69 Cav super touring The hugely varied grids the Super Touring rules generated were a large part of its appeal by David Leslie and Alex men were hungry for the title. In the Portman. These were prepared closing stages of the race Cleland was and run by Ray Mallock, a man that’d in fourth, with Soper fifth and Harvey go on to play a very significant role in sixth – an order that would give the the Cavalier programme. As the season Scot the championship. Later in the lap progressed, the BMWs of Tim Harvey Soper snuck into fourth, resulting in and Steve Soper became more of a Murray Walker’s now legendary ‘I’m problem, eventually culminating in that going for first’ commentary, and the legendary coming together at the race was well and truly on. Harvey season finale at Silverstone. Cleland edged past the Cavalier, and Soper ever and Harvey were separated by one the loyal team-mate, instantly ceded point going into the round, and both his fourth place to the Englishman, then closed the door on Cleland. This culminated in the infamous coming together at Luffield, Soper cutting in front of Cleland before barging into him, sending both into the gravel and The Cavalier was always a force to be reckoned instant retirement. with, and the silverware quickly mounted up At the time, Cleland’s indignation was palpable, and he went on to vent his fury in no uncertain terms. “Is this stock car racing or is this motorsport? He might get away with that in Germany where he might be Mr Superstar, but this is clean. The man’s an animal!” It’s fair to say his feelings on the subject have mellowed somewhat, and asking him about it nowadays prompts a wry smile and a comment about spending that whole period of his careers battling BMWs left right and centre. Cleland had to settle for third in the standings, though Vauxhall netted manufacturers’ honours. TOUGH TIMES The following two seasons would prove very trying for all the teams running Cavaliers. 1993 saw the BMW E36s prove tough to beat, a 70 TOTAL VAUXHALL David Leslie’s unmistakable saltire liveried ENGINE ENGINEERING car was often seen near the head of the field One of the most about a week’s work to Swindon ones were far discussed elements of complete. Some of the more aggressive. the BTCC Cavaliers is work included “Lift was 13.5mm, the reverse-head C20XE. re-routing oil ways and and we ran very tight This was developed by altering the position of piston to valve Swindon Race Engines the cam throat with a clearances, which early on in the Cavalier Swindon designed were about 1.5mm. programme, and was outrigger. The heads “The blocks were first used in the 1992 were also ported and highly modified too, and season. We spoke to polished, then fitted the race car’s bore and Sean Orafferty of with some very high- stroke was changed to Swindon to get the low end components. Valves 82x88mm. They were down on this amazing grew by 2mm, stems fitted with billet cranks, piece of engineering. shrank from 7 to 5mm in rods and pistons and “The reverse-head order to lose weight, extensively tested. idea came about as we double springs “These were highly wanted to get the best prevented valve bounce, stressed engines, and performance and and the hydraulic we’d consider ourselves cooling characteristics tappets of the road lucky if a block lasted from the engine. The OE engine were exchanged more than two races engine has the exhaust for solid lifters. without cracking, and a manifold at the front, so “The hydraulic crank more than four all the heat goes back tappets just couldn’t without failing.” towards the inlet – not keep up with the race Sean estimates that good,” recalls Sean.