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Originally Posted by chunterer
I think what VIVA is suggesting is that any replacement regs need to be more 'standard' than we have now (and i'll venture a damn site more interesting) in order to get ore models involved.
The reference to Group A isn't a bad one. from the 70's to the late 80's production based modified touring car racing was hugely popular and subscribed to by manufacturers and privaterers. It gave some of them the chance to homologate and enter more than one car from their range, albeit in different classes.
I don't think silhouette style racing would befot the BTCC either, but I hardly see Lacetti, Vectra or Leon looking like they have very standard type shells either?
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There is one issue with the rules - they has to be a worldwide standard. If a manufacturer can develop one racing car to use in three or four countries, that could be tempting. If the BTCC has different rules to the WTCC which has different rules to racing in Sweden, which one will they go for?
The current economic situation will show that lateral thinking for cost cutting measures is needed. Not just in F1. Not just in WTCC. Not just in the BTCC. The engine in IFM cars is a touring car engine, and the 3.5 Renault unit used in WSR is a higher spec version of the Megane Trophy engine. Maybe that could be the future - not in the form of Max Mosley's world engine, but possibly in the form of a 2.0 turbo and 1.6 turbo set of rules with varying degrees of tuning and turbo pressure - with the 2000s being used for prototypes, rallying and a single seater class (something between a re interpreted F2 and F3) and the 1600s being used for Formula 3 amongst others. Touring cars could use the 2.0 turbos pushing out 420 horsepower as the top class, and 1.6 turbos generating 250 or so horses.
The current set of rules aren't really based on road cars that are enticing to the manufacturers, as the two litre naturally aspirated engine is not going to be much popular for long. The trends appear to be going towards forced induction engines, normally at 1.6 and 2.0 litres.
Silhouette racing is not the way forward. However, for the WTCC the cars need to be more dramatic. The power increase should do that, and allowing different base models in would help. A move to performance orientated versions of saloons like the Exeo would help for the top class, as would the legalization of 4WD with different aero rules (no flat floors for example) - FWD cars in TC1 would probably have to be converted to RWD, which would be a bit silhouettey but aside from that the cars should be based on production shells and bear relation to their road going cousins, possibly by requiring the rather extreme body kits that should be permitted be available on the road going model.