Yes, I know, this is not a book about Porsches, but it does cover one of the 962’s greatest rivals in IMSA and the Group C championships. Over the next few months, we will be bringing you a series of book reviews about some of Porsche’s biggest competitors in these two international racing championships, as these other marques slowly but surely challenged the mighty 962 for global supremacy.
In the ‘80s and early ‘90s, the racing world witnessed some of the greatest sports car racing in the history of the sport. As it dawned on the world’s big manufacturers that the level of exposure and public interest in sports car racing was growing, they also began to enter this sphere of racing. Porsche soon found its dominance being challenged by the likes of Jaguar, Mercedes, Toyota and Nissan, who all climbed in on the action.
The well-known author, John Starkey, familiar to many Porsche enthusiasts, has compiled this handy history of the great effort and success achieved by the Nissan engineers and drivers, on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as in Japan.
The book covers the design and development of the Nissan Group C and GTP cars and their racing history and success, but Starkey begins with the background to the Electromotive Nissan GTP ZX Turbo cars which began life as Lola T810s back in 1985. The book’s Foreword has been written by Geoff Brabham, one of the cars’ most successful drivers. He was approached by Nissan in ‘85 to drive the car, but following some worrying accidents around the time of the cars’ development, he declined. Brabham was then approached again a few years later and, fortunately for us, he accepted. The Nissan team was rewarded with four straight IMSA Camel championships between 1988 and 1991!
Constant development in the fiercely competitive Group C championship saw the Nissan improving all the time, and although it still had some way to go, the car was impressively fast.
Starkey has succeeded in interviewing most of the drivers ever to have sat behind the steering wheel of this race car. In addition, he has interviewed engineers, designers and team management, which all combines to make a very credible book on these potent cars. Such wide research always confirms the quality of the subject matter and this book is no exception, and makes excellent reading.
The photographs selected for this book show a wide variety of the races in which this car competed. This is complemented by a useful selection of technical images showing various components from engine and gearbox to aerodynamics and bodywork. A good smattering of photos of the team and personnel also adds to a satisfying feast of images.
At 160-pages, this is not a huge book, but it offers a useful reference for these cars during what was one of the most exciting eras of motorsport in recent history. Reasonably priced at just £35.00, this offers a good opportunity to build a collection of books on those race cars that contributed to the motorsport spectacle in the ‘80s and ‘90s. First published in 2002, this is a timely reprint of a great title. Other titles in this Classic Reprint series will be published in due course, so be sure to check back for reviews of those books.
Is this title worthy of a place on your bookshelf? If you missed the first printing back in 2002, then yes, this would be a great opportunity to acquire this issue at a very reasonable price. As a motorsport enthusiast, and it is fair to say that most Porsche enthusiasts probably are, then you will want to make sure you get a copy of this book. To have a complete library of books covering other race car manufacturers can only make you a more informed proponent of the sport down at the pub. Enjoy!!
