Gone are the days of run-what-you-brung win-on-Sunday-sell-on-Monday racing. Where did they go, and why did they go? Personally, I think some great showroom racing series have died horrible deaths because the sanctioning bodies allowed them to. The classes got too complicated, too difficult to police, and they didn’t crack down enough on cheating, or didn’t care. Everyone romanticizes the halcyon days of TransAm racing in the late 1960s, but that series died because rules expansion made the cars too expensive for privateers to build, and the series too reliant on fickle manufacturer support to live. What used to be the SCCA Escort Endurance series for basically stock cars has evolved into the full-boat FIA GT3 spec Pirelli World Challenge (which is a great series, but it’s far from its roots). Even the SCCA’s “Showroom Stock” classes allow too much to be changed from stock (shock absorbers, for example).
Usually when I think up dream car stuff, it’s a highly modified car that I’ve always wanted in my garage, usually based on something I own or something I have owned, or something I would like to own. This time, I’m going to do something a little different, and think about a racing series that I’d like to see built. I was having a conversation with Mr. Eric Rood the other day about defunct series and what we’d like to see. Well, my answer was a resurgence of a true showroom stock racing series. I love showroom stock racing, and I want to see more of it.

The most realistic way to start a new racing series based on a type of racing that used to be really popular and went away is with Showroom Stock racing. So, here’s what my idea of a brand new Showroom Stock series would look like, as I think the SCCA’s version of this is a little too liberal an interpretation of “stock”. And before you say “Spec B”, that’s too slow, and not nearly stock enough. What does stock mean? It means stock, dammit. How did you drive it off the dealer’s lot? That’s pretty much how you race it! Street cars are getting better every year, so why not take them to the track?

Personally, I would see this type of racing as a lower budget alternative to GT racing that seems to be so popular these days. Unfortunately, there are a lot of teams that are dropping out of the GT ranks (TUSCC lost a lot of GTD candidates over the off-season, and some of those that are still committed are only running partial seasons). FIA GT3 cars generally cost somewhere around $300,000, and that doesn’t include any spares, any transportation costs, or any consumables costs. A season of GT3 racing could easily run a bill in the handfuls of millions of dollars. As racers are looking for less expensive ways to go fast, one need look no further than the nearest dealership. Most of the cars in this series would be able to start a racing season for under $100,000 fully prepped, some much less even than that.

The goal of this series would be to provide an outlet for semi-professional and gentleman driver racers to compete at a lower price point for a larger audience. Ideally, the entire series would be broadcast live over the internet, much like the 24 Hr series and Pirelli World Challenge series do. Race weekends would consist of two bite-sized portions of racing, typically an hour to an hour and a half long which allows fans to watch and then go about their day without eating up the whole day. This type of double header weekend with short races makes this series an excellent one to share weekends with many other series. For example, we had discussed a race like this sharing a weekend with an amateur series like the 24 Hours of Lemons or ChumpCar, bookending their race weekend with one showroom stock race on the Saturday before the race starts, and another race on the Sunday after the race ends (If any of the higher ups at any racing sanctioning body would like to discuss this idea further, both Mr. Rood and I would be happy to make ourselves available for discussion, of course.).

Rulebook

Section 1 – Upgrades

Cars may only be changed from stock for safety or individual racing series mandates.
All engines and transmissions will be ‘sealed’ units. Software must not be modified from stock.
Rules mandate FIA Article 253 compliant roll cages and racing bucket seats to similar spec.
Any equipment fitted to a car must meet factory-installed homologation requirements of at least 500 cars. If a new component released by the factory meets homologation criteria, racers may choose to add that piece to their car at any point during the season, provided their car is prepared to the same specification as the trim level that piece is fitted to.

Section 2 – Tires

Competitors may use any ‘off-the-shelf’ commercially available tire they choose, provided they fit safely on wheels that are identical in diameter, width, and offset to the wheels the car was originally fitted when it was delivered.  Basically if you can order it from Tire Rack, you can use it.

Section 3 – Braking

For the purposes of this series, we will consider the brake pad material, brake lines, and brake fluid to be a ‘safety’ concern. Competitors may use stainless steel or teflon coated brake lines if they choose. Competitors may use any brake fluid they choose. Competitors may use any brake pad material they choose.
All brake calipers must be stock and mounted in their original position with no spacers. Rotors must remain their stock material, stock diameter, and stock thickness. If a car is ordered with carbon ceramic rotors, it may compete with carbon ceramic rotors.

Section 4 – Exhaust

Because cars these days, barring Jaguar’s F-Type, are entirely too quiet to be considered race cars, and thus boring to fans, all cars in this racing series will be allowed to remove the entire exhaust from the most rearward catalytic converter and replace it entirely with a straight piece of exhaust piping in the same diameter as the smallest diameter section of the stock exhaust.

Section 5 – Balance of Performance

Cars in all classes will be balanced through a target power to weight ratio (in lb/hp), which is to be adjusted by adding or subtracting weight.
Before each race weekend, all cars will be subjected to a dynamometer test, and their minimum weight will be adjusted accordingly.

Section 6 – Classes

There will be three different classes of racing conducted at the same time on the same track: GT, Super Sedan, and Street Sedan.

Class 1 – GT

This class would essentially be for the stock counterparts of FIA GT3 cars. Porsche’s 911, Audi’s R8, Mercedes’ AMG GT, Nissan’s GT-R, Corvette, the rumored new Ford GT, Viper, etc.
Target power to weight ratio: 6 lbs per hp.

Class 2 – Super Sedan

This class is for very fast large displacement sedans such as Chrysler’s SRT cars, Mercedes’ AMG cars, Porsche’s Panamera Turbo, Jag’s XFR-S, Aston Martin’s Rapide, BMW’s M5/M6 Gran Coupe, Audi’s RS6/RS7, Cadillac’s CTS-V, maybe a Ford Taurus SHO if Ford ever give it competitive levels of power?
Target power to weight ratio: 8 lbs per hp.

Class 3 – Street Sedan

This class is for your average performance sedans with small displacement engines. Power adders such as superchargers and turbochargers are allowed, but may come with a hefty weight penalty. Cars for this class would include Dart, Civic Si, Corolla, Imprezza, Jetta GLI, Mercedes CLA, etc.
Target power to weight ratio: 11 lbs per hp.

Race courses –

In running an East coast vs. West coast dual series, there is much less transportation costs for teams who are based on one or the other coast. The series ending weekend would be a ‘centrally located’ track so teams don’t have to trailer for a week to get to a race. Reduced costs is key to getting these privateer teams.
West Coast Weekend 1 –
Race 1 – Thunderhill Long
Race 2 – Thunderhill Short
West Coast Weekend 2 –
Race 3 – Willow Springs – Big Willow
Race 4 – Willow Springs – Streets of Willow
West Coast Weekend 3 –
Race 5 – Sonoma – NASCAR layout
Race 6 – Sonoma – Sports Car layout
West Coast Weekend 4 –
Race 7 – Las Vegas Motor Speedway – Infield Course
Race 8 – Las Vegas Motor Speedway – Roval
East Coast Weekend 1 –
Race 1 – Roebling Road
Race 2 – Roebling Road
East Coast Weekend 2 –
Race 3 – Mid Ohio – Short
Race 4 – Mid Ohio – Full
East Coast Weekend 3 –
Race 5 – Virginia International Raceway – North Course
Race 6 – Virginia International Raceway – Full Course
East Coast Weekend 4 –
Race 7 – Gingerman Raceway (With 10A)
Race 8 – Gingerman Raceway (With 10B)
East Meets West Championship Weekend –
Race 1 – Circuit Of The Americas
Race 2 – Circuit Of The Americas
Race 3 – Circuit Of The Americas
Race 4 – Circuit Of The Americas

So what do you think? Would you race in a series like this? Would you watch a series like this online? How would you do it differently? Tell us in the comments below.
Photos sourced from Hemmings, Caradvice, HDWalls, MotorTrend, and the Autosport forums.