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1988 Australian Touring Car Championship


The 1988 Australian Touring Car Championship (known as the Shell Ultra Australian Touring Car Championship thanks to sponsorship from Shell Australia) was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing title for drivers of Group 3A Touring Cars. It was the 29th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. Promoted as the "1988 Shell Ultra Australian Touring Car Championship", it began on 6 March at Calder Park Raceway and ended on 17 July at Oran Park Raceway after nine rounds.

The 1988 Australian Manufacturers' Championship was contested over the same nine round series. The championship victory was shared between Ford, who won all races outright, BMW who won the 2001-3000cc class at every round, and Toyota who dominated the Up to 2000cc class.

The championship was dominated by those driving the Ford Sierra RS500, specifically the Shell Ultra-Hi Racing Sierras of Dick Johnson and John Bowe. Between them the pair won eight of the nine rounds with team owner Johnson winning his 4th touring car championship. Tony Longhurst was the only other driver to win a round in his Freeport Racing Sierra. Longhurst won Round 6 at Lakeside from Johnson after Dick was penalised 1 minute for jumping the start.

With Sierras winning each round of the championship, 1988 was the first time since the Holden Torana A9Xs of 1979 that a single model car had won each round of the championship. Up to and including the 2016 V8 Supercar Championship Series, such single model domination has not been seen since in Australian touring car racing.


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