March GT Prototypes
With the announcement of new rules, both for IMSA and the forthcoming Group "C" formula, in 1980, March (along with Lola which produced the T600 series) began to develop a GT prototype which would use ground effects and also carry a wide variation of engines. John Bishop, the head of IMSA, wished to break the domination enjoyed by Porsche with their 935 and its derivatives.
The March design team produced a prototype BMW-powered car called the M1C. David Hobbs and Marc Surer raced this in the IMSA series of 1981. Basically underpowered against the Porsche 935s, the MIC nevertheless earned two pole positions and three top six finishes.
The March 82G followed and has the distinction of being the first car to be designed by Adrian Newey. Designed as a "customer" car, the 82G was built with a honeycomb aluminum monocoque and was a simple, rugged design. The engine bay was capable of accommodating a wide range of engines from Chevrolet’s V-8 to Porsche’s turbocharged flat-6 "Boxermotor". To fulfill IMSA/Group ‘C’ regulations, the fuel was contained in a 120-liter bag tank/fuel cell between the driver’s bulkhead and the engine bay. The front suspension consisted of upper and lower wishbones with outboard coil spring and damper units whilst at the rear, there were top rocker-operated inboard coil spring/damper units mounted alongside the gearbox.
The bodywork was designed and developed by Max Sardou who had designed the Porsche 917/20 "Pig". It featured front fenders reaching forward with an adjustable wing between the fenders. This "lobster-claw" front end was to become a March GTP trademark in the following years.
82G/1 was sold to Bob Garretson and gave the March company a flying start by finishing on the same lap at Sebring as the winning Porsche 935. In Europe, a ‘Works’ car was run, fitted with a 5.8-liter Chevrolet small block. Sadly, it did not fare well and rewarded its drivers Eje Elgh and Jeff Woods with no victories. It was then sold to Randy Lanier who, with Marty Hinze, obtained a third and a sixth place in IMSA races.
Dace Cowart and Kenper Miller were stalwart March customers, buying their first car, an 82G, and having a BMW six-cylinder motor fitted. It was underpowered but reliable, the gearbox being the weak point of early Marches. Cowart/Miller finished in the top six at three races in 1982.
Success came March’s way in 1983 when Al Holbert bought three of the five 83Gs made and made subtle improvements to them. Holbert won the IMSA Championship for March with these cars, winning at Miami (after which he sold 83G-2 to Pepe Romero), Laguna Seca and Charlotte, the latter with a Porsche-powered car. Holbert then won at Brainerd, Minnesota, Sears Point and then the Daytona Finale in November. The Whittington brothers bought one of Holbert’s Chevrolet-powered cars and Ken Murray bought another 83G which Randy Lanier, Marty Hinze and Terry Wolters raced to second in the Daytona 24-Hours. Incidentally, Cowart and Miller were second at the Daytona Finale, having had Holbert Racing fit a Porsche 935 engine to their 82G. Jim Trueman, Holbert’s co-driver, drove the first 83G to victory at Mid-Ohio where he shared the victory with Doc Bundy and Bobby Rahal. Pepe Romero and Doc Bundy were on the pole for the Road Atlanta race but a succession of problems dropped them down to finish fifth.
The only Group C 83G was 83G-5, which was sold to Nissan and fitted with a four-cylinder 2.1-liter turbo engine, prepared by Tom Hanawa, March’s importer. Appearing as the "Nissan Silvia", it had a higher rear wing than standard and multiple engine air intakes. This car raced in only one international Group C event where Kazuyoshi Hoshino and Akira Hagiwara finished in seventh place, not bad against the all-conquering Porsche 956s.
All this time, the original 82G evolved into first the 83G and later the 84G, probably the best GTP car of its era. By this time, the Lola T600, despite its early promise of 1981–1982, was outclassed by the Marchs. All this would change, however, with the coming of the Porsche 956/962.
Six 84Gs were sold to IMSA race teams. The Leon brothers, the Whittingtons, Conte Racing and John Kalagian all had Chevrolet engines in their cars. A turbocharged Buick V-6 went into Ken Madren’s Pegasus Racing entry and Sarel van der Merwe installed a Porsche turbo unit in their "Kreepy Krauly" 83G team entry. Van der Merwe, Graham Duxbury and Tony Martin won the first race of the season, the Daytona 24-Hours, to give March a great start to the year. This particular car was later sold to Costas Los and campaigned in Group C in Europe in 1985–86 but it was by then outclassed by the Porsche 962.
At Road Atlanta, only a third place Group 44 Jaguar stopped a March clean sweep of the top five places. The Whittington brothers finished in first and second. Bill Whittington, driving with Randy Lanier, won at Riverside, beating Derek Bell and Al Holbert in the first customer Porsche 962. Marchs then won at Laguna Seca (Lanier), Charlotte 3-Hours (Lanier and Bill Whittington), and the Lime Rock one-Hour race (Sarel van der Merwe).
This was, however, the pinnacle of March’s career. The Porsche 962 had arrived and won five of the remaining nine races, with Marchs taking the other four. At the end of the season, Randy Lanier was proclaimed IMSA GTP Champion. March was the ‘winningest’ marque, along with Chevrolet engines.
For 1985, March cleaned up the 84G with new hubs, bodywork and a gearbox developed by Alan Mertens which proved to be bulletproof. This was used by Jaguar, Toyota and Nissan also. Peter Vennick had led this refreshment program which also included the slimmer gearbox. Sadly, it was not enough to combat the increasingly numerous Porsche 962s. In 1985, only a few placings came March’s way, a second and third at Miami being the best. At this point, March itself changed direction with their sports-prototypes, selling only to manufacturers. They supplied one 85G to BMW and three to Nissan. The BMWs were all four-cylinder turbos, and David Hobbs put one car on pole position at Daytona in December. The rear suspension had, at long last, been re-designed with a much lower roll center that cured the previous car’s problems in this department.
In Japan, three 85Gs were entered for the Fuji 1,000 Km. Hoshino put his car on pole position on the first day of practice. Porsche responded on the second practice day, pushing the March back to the second row but race day dawned with a monsoon howling. All the European-entered cars withdrew and Hoshino led the Japanese contingent to outright victory.
In 1986, ten 86Gs were built, with BMW buying six (two were destroyed in turbo fires!) and Nissan four. This was an all-new car designed by Gordon Coppuck and called the 86S (Sport). For this car, Indy car-type suspension was used. The tub was made out of aluminum honeycomb with magnesium bulkheads. It was narrower and lighter (by 100 kg) than the previous cars with side-mounted radiators. David Hobbs called it: "unbelievably competitive" and thought that it would still have been competitive in 1989 had BMW North America put their full weight behind it. In 1986, the Marches were very fast and victory only eluded them through minor problems. Sadly, at the end of the year, BMW stopped the program and that was that. Gianpiero Moretti bought two cars at the end of the season and equipped them with Buick engines, one a normally-aspirated V-8 and one a turbo V-6. He and John Andretti raced them with little success until 1988.
When raced by Nissan, it was known as the R86V and used a V-6 engine developed in conjunction with Electromotive which was reputed to deliver over 1,000 bhp on full boost.
1987 saw March build just three cars for Nissan, these accommodating the new three-liter VEJ30 V-8 engine. For 1988, March built two 88Gs for the Le Mans Company. One took part in the race, together with an 87G, both run by the Le Mans Company.
Sadly, both engines failed at 74 laps due to incorrect mapping of the fuel injection system. The V-8 engine was redesigned by Nissan as was the chassis of the 88G. This now also had a longer wheelbase but it was a retrograde step. These cars were known as Nissan R88Cs. March itself made one 88G, designed by Paul Bentley. It had a lower monocoque and new, lower bodywork developed by Nick Wirth. This and an up-dated 87G were sold to the Le Mans Company with V-6 engines but the best results were 14th at Le Mans with an R88C. In Japan, the cars soldiered on in the All-Japan Sportscar Championship but no great results were recorded.
The March series of GT prototypes were fast, user-friendly cars that filled out the bulk of IMSA races during 1983 to 1985. Used by the top teams and drivers, they rewarded their owners with success until once again, Porsche turbo power took over in the shape of the 962. Where Group C racing in Europe was concerned, they did very little until the involvement of Nissan in 1986, but still kept the name of March (as a constructor of customer racing cars) to the fore.
Today, in HSR racing, the "Red Lobster" car of Dave Cowart and Kenper Miller is still competing with honor and will be joined at Daytona in November by my own 84G, the ex-Leon brothers’ car, now painted in "March Hare" livery.
MARCH GT PROTOTYPE HISTORIES
81P. BMW M1C 3.5.
1981:
31/1-1/2: Daytona 24-Hours: Hobbs/Surer, #2; 16th.
03/5: Laguna Seca: Hobbs, #2; 6th.
25/5: Lime Rock: Hobbs, #2; DNF.
31/5: Mid-Ohio: Hobbs, #2; 5th.
26/7: Sears Point: Hobbs, #2; DNF.
02/8: Portland: Hobbs, #2; 4th.
15-16/8: Mosport; Hobbs/Stuck, #2; DNF.
22-23/8: Road America: Hobbs/Schuppan, #2; DNF.
13/9: Road Atlanta: Hobbs, #2; DNF.
82G
82G/01 12/81. Bob Garretson Chevrolet V-8
1982:
30-31/1: Daytona 24-Hours: Rahal/Trueman/Canepa, #9; Pole;24th.
20/3: Sebring 12-Hours: Rahal/Trueman/De Narvaez, #46; 2ndOA.
04/4: Road Atlanta: Rahal, #46; DNF.
25/4: LA Times GP, Riverside: De Narvaez/Gloy, #46; DNF.
02/5: Laguna Seca: Rahal, #46; 10th.
Le Mans: Rahal/Trueman/McKitterick; DNF.
82G/02 Cowart/Miller/ Red Lobster. BMW 3.5.
1982:
20/3: Sebring 12-Hours: Cowart/Miller, #25; DNF.
Road Atlanta: Cowart/Miller; 3rd.
22/8: Road America: Cowart/Miller, #25; 5th.
25/4: Riverside: Cowart/Miller, #25; 6th.
16/5: Charlotte: Cowart/Miller, #25; 2nd.
05/9: Mid-Ohio: Cowart/Miller, #25; 18th.
12/9: Road Atlanta: Cowart/Miller, #25; 3rd.
26/9: Pocono: Cowart/Miller, #25; DNF.
28/11: Daytona: Cowart/Miller, #25; DNF.
Porsche 935 engine installed.
1983:
Road Atlanta: Cowart/Miller; 5th.
Charlotte 500 Km: Cowart/Miller; 2nd.
Brainerd: Cowart/Miller; 2nd.
Sears Point: Cowart/Miller; 4th.
Mosport 6-Hours: Cowart/Miller; 2nd.
1984:
Miami GP: Cowart/Miller; 9th.
Riverside: Miller; 3rd.
Laguna Seca: Miller; 2nd.
82G/03 Moretti/Momo Chevrolet V-8. Group C?
1982:
4/4: Jim Clark Rennen, Hockenheim: Moretti; DNS. (engine).
Note: Possibly re-engined with a Buick V-6 and raced in later IMSA events.
82G/04 Works car, later on, IMSA Spec.
1982:
Silverstone 6-Hours: Wood/Elgh; DNF.
Le Mans: Wood/Elgh; DNF.
Sold to Randy Lanier.
15/8: Mosport 6-Hours: Hinze/Lanier, #16; 3rd.
22/8: Road America: Hinze/Lanier, #16; 6th.
05/9: Mid-Ohio: Hinze/Lanier, #16; 3rd.
12/9: Road Atlanta: Hinze/Lanier, #16; DNF.
26/9: Pocono: Hinze/Lanier, #16; DNF.
May have been sold to the Sheltons, in which case:
1985:
14/4: Road Atlanta: Sheltons; 6th.
83G
83G/01: 11/82: Sold to Ken Murray. 366 Chevrolet.
1982:
28/11: Daytona 3-Hours: Redman/Trueman; DNF.
1983: ‘Executone’ sponsored. Entered by Motorsport Marketing.
1-2/2: Daytona 24-Hours: Lanier/Hinze/Wolters, #88; 2nd.
27/2: Miami GP: Needell, #88; DNF.
10/4: Road Atlanta: Donaldson/Whittington; 2nd.
15/5: Charlotte 500 Km: Dale Whittington/R. Lanier; DNF.
30/5: Lime Rock: Haywood/Donaldson; DNF.
19/6: Mid-Ohio: Dale Whittington/Donaldson; DNF.
14/8: Mosport: Lockhart/Lanier/Haywood; DNF.
27/11: Daytona Finale 3-Hours: Murray; DNF.
1984:
08/4: Road Atlanta: Dale Whittington/Murray, #88; 20th.
Sold to Jack Newsum, Wayne Baker.
20/5: Charlotte: Baker/Newsum, #9; 27th.
7-8/7: Watkins Glen: Baker/Newsum, #9; DNF.
29/7: Portland: Baker/Newsum, #9; 9th.
26/8: Road America: Baker, #9; DNF.
09/9: Pocono: Baker, #9; DNF.
15-16/9: Michigan: Baker/Newsum, #9; DNF.
1985: Sold to Frank d’Aquanno.(#48).
1986: Daytona 3-Hours: 5th.
Sold to Massachusetts.
Magnum-sponsored.
83G/02: 1/83. Holbert Racing. 366 Chevrolet.
1983:
Miami GP: Holbert/Trueman; 1st.
Sold to Pepe Romero.
83G/03: ?/4: Holbert Racing. 366 Chevrolet.
1983:
Riverside: Holbert; 2nd.
Laguna Seca: Holbert; 1st.
Sold to the Leon Brothers. Never raced.
Rented to Sanchez for Miami.
Sold to the Whittington Bros/Lanier.
1999: With Terry Wolters, Florida. Restored.
83G/04: 5/83. Holbert Racing.
1983:
Porsche 3-litre 935 Turbo engine
Charlotte 500 Km: Holbert/Trueman; 1st.
Brainerd: Holbert/Trueman;1st.
Minnesota: Holbert/Trueman;1st.
Portland 3-Hours: Holbert; 1st.
Sears Point 3-Hours: Holbert/Trueman;1st.
Daytona Finale 3-Hours: Holbert/Trueman;1st.
1983 IMSA Championship winner.
Sold to Sarel van der Merwe. Kreepy Krauly sponsored.
1984: Rebuilt as 84G.
Kreepy Krauly sponsored. #00.
4-5/2: Daytona 24-Hours: van der Merwe/Martin/Duxbury; 1stOA.
26/2: Miami G.P.: Van der Merwe/Martin; 8thOA.
24/3: Sebring 12-Hours: Der Merwe/Duxbury/Martin; DNF.
29/4: LA Times GP, Riverside; Der Merwe/Martin; 6th.
06/5: Laguna Seca: Der Merwe; 3rd.
20/5: Charlotte: Der Merwe; DNF.
28/5: Lime Rock: Der Merwe; 1st.
10/6: Mid-Ohio: Der Merwe/Martin; 5th.
Le Mans 24-Hours: Van der Merwe/
Sold to John Hotchkiss.
1985:
28/4: Riverside 500 Km: Hotchkiss/Adams; 5th
83G/05: - Japan. Nissan 2.1 turbo.
Fuji 1,000 Km: Kazuyoshi/Hoshino/Hagiwara; 7th.
84G
84G/01 Leon Brothers Pink 12/10/83. Invoice No: 6676.
DGZ gearbox. Lozano Chevrolet 366.
Raced 1984/85/86..
1983:
27/11: Daytona 3-Hours: Art Leon; 8th.
1984:
Daytona 24-Hours: A & A. Leon/T. Wolters; 7thOA.
26/2: Miami 3-Hours: Art Leon; 15th.
24/3: Sebring 12-Hours: A/A. Leon; DNF.
8/4: Road Atlanta 500 Km: Leons/H. Haywood; 5th.
29/4: Riverside 6-Hours: Art Leon/Hurley Haywood; 12th.
20/5: Charlotte 500 Km: A & A Leon; 9th.
8/7: Watkins Glen Double 3-Hours: Art Leon/Skeeter McKitterick; 12th.
29/7: Portland 3-Hours: Art Leon/S. McKitterick; 12th.
5/8: Sears Point: Al Leon; 9th.
25/11: Daytona 3-Hours: Art Leon; 10th.
1985:
3-4/2: Daytona 24-Hours: Art Leon/S. McKitterick/T. Wolters; 6th.
24/2: Miami 3-Hours: Art Leon; 15th.
14/4: Road Atlanta 500 Km: S. McKitterick; 9th.
19/5: Charlotte 500 Km: Art Leon; 16th.
9/6: Mid-Ohio 500 Km: Art Leon; 6th.
25/8: Road America 500 Miles: Art Leon; 6th.
06/10: Columbus 500 Km: 16th.
1/12: Daytona 3-Hours: Art Leon; 21st.
1986:
0?/4: Road Atlanta 500 Km: Leons/Fish; 7th.
1987:
Road Atlanta: Leons; 21st.
Sold to Chuck Kendall. Stored
1998: Sold to Rick McLean.
1999: Sold to John Starkey.
Restored.
84G/02 Pegasus Racing. White. 16/11/83. Invoice # 6762.
DGZ. Buick V-6.
1984:
No finishes, Ken Madren.
Le Mans 24-Hours: #62. Madren/Speer/Pickering; DNF, (engine).
1985:
Miami GP: Lammers/Guerrero; 9th.
1988: Sold to Briudy.
84G/03 John Kalagian Red. 16/12/83. Invoice # Cash.
Porsche engine.
Kreepy Krauly car? If so:-
Riverside: Merwe/Martin; 6th.
Laguna Seca: Merwe; 3rd.
Charlotte: Merwe; DNF.
Lime Rock: Van der Merwe; 1st.
Mid-Ohio: Merwe/Martin; 5th.
Portland: Merwe; DNF.
Road America: Merwe; 4th.
Pocono: Merwe/Martin; 4th.
Daytona 3-Hours: Merwe/Scheckter; 6th.
1985:
Le Mans 24-Hours: #34. Danner/Duxbury/Coppelli; 22nd.
Sold to Costas Los. NOTE: All books say: "84G-01"
Hockenheim: Los/?; DNF
Brands Hatch: Los/Andersson/Galica; 7th.
Spa-Francorchamps 1,000 Km: Los/Danner/Witmeur; 7th.
Selangor 800 Km: Danner/Los; 8th.
1986:
Brands Hatch 1,000 Km: Los/Needell; 9th.
Jerez: Los/Needell; 9th.
Nurburgring 1,000 Km: Los/Weidler; #66; 10th.
Le Mans: #66. Los; Disq.
84G/04: A.M.I. Conte Racing?/Whittington Brothers. White. Invoice # 6850
DGZ/Chevrolet.
1984:
Used a Chevrolet V-8 during the year to take the IMSA Championship.
Sebring 12-Hours: Lanier/B. Whittington; 2ndOA.
Riverside: Lanier/B. Whittington; 1st.
Portland 3 Hours: Lanier; 1st.
Laguna Seca: Lanier; 1st.
Charlotte 3 Hours: Lanier/Whittington; 1st.
Road Atlanta: B. Whittington/D. Whittington; 1st.
84G/05: Pegasus Racing. (John Kalagian/Randy Lanier). White. 24/1/84. Cash
DGZ/Chevrolet.
84G/06 Conte Racing. DGZ/Chevrolet. White. 24/1/84. Cash
84G/07 Mazdaspeed.
1984:
Fuji 1,000 Km: Katayama/Yorino; DNF.
85G
85G/01. 1/85. Buick V-6 Turbo. Conte Racing. Ralph Sanchez.
NOTE: One car turned into: Momo-March IMSA GTP car for 1988. McLaren bodywork
1999: For sale at Bob Akin's shop.
85G/02. 1/85. Buick V-6 Turbo. Conte Racing.
1985:
Road Atlanta: Ganz/Paul; 2nd.
Charlotte: Ganz/Lobenberg; 3rd.
Lime Rock: Ganz/Crawford; 3rd.
85G/03. 1/85. Conte Racing. Buick V-6 Turbo.
85G/04. 1/85. de Atley. Chevrolet V-8.
1985:
Miami GP: Hobbs/Brassfield; 2nd.
85G/05. Leon Brothers. Porsche 962 engine.
Destroyed at Road Atlanta in 1982 whilst being driven by Calvin Fish. Remains with John Starkey.
85G/06. John Kalagian. Porsche 962 engine.
1985:
IMSA.
1986:
Silverstone 1,000 Km: Cleare/Weaver/Gilbert-Scott; 9th.
Le Mans 24-Hours: Cleare/Robert/Newsum; 14th. 1st IMSA class.
85G/07. Prototype. BMW North America.
1985:
Daytona 3-Hours: Hobbs; DNF (front row).
Used as test "mule" John Andretti?
Crashed.
1999: Tub plus parts at Vasek Polak's, Torrance, CA,
Sold to Roman Hurtado, Ca.
85G/08. Nissan. VG30. V-6
1985:
Fuji 1,000 Km: Hoshino/Hagiura/Matsumoto; 1st.
1986:
Le Mans 24-Hours: Weaver/Hasemi/Wada; 16th.
85G/09. Nissan. V-6.
1985:
Fuji 1,000 Km: Hasemi/Wada; 5th.
85G/10. Nissan. L-4 engine?
85G/11. Conte Racing. Buick V-6 turbo.
86G
86G/01. BMW North America. 2-liter turbo.
1986:
20/9: Watkins Glen: Jones/J. Andretti; 1st.
86G/02 BMW North America. 2-liter turbo.
86G/03 BMW North America. 2-liter turbo.
86G/04. BMW North America. 2-liter turbo.
86G/05. R86V Nissan V-6 turbo. Le Mans Co.
1986:
Le Mans: #23. Hoshino/Suzuki/Moroni; DNF G/Box.
Mount Fuji 1,000 Km: Hoshino/Nakaki; 10th.
86G/06. R86V Nissan V-6 turbo. Nismo
1986:
Mount Fuji 1,000 Km:
86G/07. R86V Nissan V-6 turbo. Nismo
1986:
Mount Fuji 1,000 Km:
86G/08. R86V Nissan V-6 turbo. Nismo
1986:
Mount Fuji 1,000 Km: Wada/Olofsson; 13th.
Le Mans 24-Hours:Olofsson/Ferte/Gonin; DNF.
1987: Sold to Le Mans Co.
1988: R88V.
Le Mans 24-Hours: Courage/Team Le Mans: Cougar Nissan R88V: DNF.
1989:
Cougar-Nissan R88V.
86G/09. BMW North America. 2-liter turbo .
86G/10. BMW North America. 2-liter turbo.
86G/11. Buick V-6 turbo. Conte Racing.
1986:
1987:
26/7: Portland: Moretti/Ganz; 9th.
2/8: Sears Point: Moretti/Ganz; #30; 6th.
16/5: Road America: Moretti/Ganz; DNF.
06/9: San Antonio: Moretti/Ganz; DNF.
1988: Buick 4.5 V-6.
87G
87G/01 NISMO. Nissan V-8. Turbo. Group C.
87G/02 NISMO Nissan V-8. Turbo. Group C.
1987:
Le Mans 24-Hours: DNF, engine.
Fuji 1,000 Km: Suzuki/Hasemi; 12th.
87G/03. NISMO Nissan V-8. Turbo. Group C.
1987:
Le Mans 24-Hours: Grice/Percy/Wilds; 14th.
Fuji 1,000 Km: Hoshino/Grice/Takahashi; 9th.
1989:
Suzuka 1,000 Km: Hoshino/Suzuki; 4th.
88G
88G/01. Le Mans Co. VG30 V-6 Turbo. VRH-30.
1988:
Le Mans 24-Hours: DNF, engine.
Fuji 1,000 Km:
1989:
Suzuka 1,000 Km: Wada;
88G/02 Le Mans Co. VG30 V-6 turbo.
Le Mans 24-Hours: 14th.
Fuji 1,000 Km: Hoshino/Takahashi/Grice; 9th.
Suzuka 1,000 Km: Takahashi/Scott; 6th.
1989:
Le Mans 24-Hours: Courage-Nissan C22: Wada/Morimoto/Olofsson; DNF.
