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Originally Posted by kurtiejjj
Whatever happened to the Sierra Gravett in the 1991 BTCC? It was supertouring spec wasn't it? I am quite sure there was a second sierra racing at the time, however I don't know who drove it...
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If it's just the 4-door Sapphire bodyshell you're interested in there were three examples built to 2-litre regs for the BTCC.
The first was the Rouse-built car run in 1990 by Ray Bellm and occasionally Chris Hodgetts. This re-appeared at Snetterton in 93 for Jim Wheals, who then sold it on to Bob Berridge who raced it in the second half of the season.
The second was the 1991 RobbGravett Trakstar/Shell car you're interested in. It was intended as part of a 2-car effort, the second never appeared. Think the driver for the second car might have been intended as Sean Walker- from memory he appeared in qualifying at one round in a 'restricted' RS500 but didn't start. Don't know what happened to the car subsequently.
The third was Dave Brodie's car which appeared sporadically from mid-season in 1991. I won't swear to this, but it might have been 4X4? I'm think I also remember seeing it in a saloon/GT race in at least one of the end of season Brands Hatch winter club meetings, with an RS500 engine. Brodie might have raced it subsequently in that form.
Dave Pinkney entered a Sapphire in 1992, but this never raced- it appeared at the British GP meeting but never ran- it apparently turned up without the engine, which wasn't prepared in time.
According to the Touring Car Year annual for that year, it may have been the ex-Brodie chassis (at least the book describes it as being bought from Brodie) and apparently was intended to use a V6 engine rather than the 4-cylinder..
There were a couple of 3-door Sierras run in 2-litre form in the BTCC- a Grahame Goode-run car for Andy Middlehurst in 1991, and long-time BTCC privateer Dennis Leech's black & orange car in 92- Leech had appeared in a few early-season 1991 rounds in a restricted RS500.
Think I've got photos somewhere of the Gravett and Middlehurst cars, and possibly Brodie's- I'll see what I can find