| Category | Silhouette racing car |
|---|---|
| Country | Australia |
| Inaugural season | 1976 |
| Drivers' champion | Tony Ricciardello |
| Official website | National Sports Sedan Series |
 Current season | |
TheNational Sports Sedans Series, formerly theAustralian Sports Sedan Championship, is aMotorsport Australia-sanctioned nationalmotor racing title for drivers of cars complying with Australian Sports Sedan regulations. This class, essentially asilhouette racing car class, permits three types of cars:
Beyond these basic requirements, there are relatively few restrictions on engines, drivetrains, aerodynamics, or other performance-enhancing components.
The relatively relaxed regulations mean that Sports Sedans are the fastest domestic "tin-top" racing series in Australia. At circuits such asMount Panorama,Queensland Raceway,Phillip Island, the Sports Sedan lap record is at least a second, and usually several seconds, faster thanSupercars, despite the latter being a fully professional series generally regarded as featuring Australia's best local drivers.
The category emerged following the replacement ofAppendix J Touring Cars by the more restrictedGroup C Improved Production Touring Cars at the end of 1964.[1] Promoters of circuits such asWinton andOran Park then allowed the redundant Appendix J cars to run withSports Cars under the name Sports Racing Closed.[1] By 1966 cars were competing with extensive modifications, often including engine swaps.[1] By 1971 restrictions were placed on bodywork modifications ensuring that the original silhouette of the car had to be maintained.[2] The term Sports Sedans had been in common usage for the cars[3] and in 1973CAMS gave the name official recognition[3] when it introducedGroup B Sports Sedans as a new racing classification.[4] The category officially becameGroup 2D Sports Sedans in 1988,[5] andGroup 3D Sports Sedans in 2000.[6]
An Australia-wide championship was run each year from 1976 to 1981. It was discontinued for 1982 with the introduction of anAustralian GT Championship, although Sports Sedans were invited to compete in this new series, which many did as it was the only national series their cars were eligible for, but the older Sports Sedans were generally un-competitive against the new GT cars such as thePorsche 935 or the convertedChevrolet Monzas. While the power of the top Sports Sedans, which generally ran 5.0L or 6.0LChevroletV8 engines, was not far shy of the GT cars, the Sports Sedans were restricted to running 10" wheels while the GT cars such as the 935's were allowed up to 18" of rubber. This gave the GT cars far greater stability and enabled them to go much faster through turns. The Sports Sedan category itself was retained for state level racing. The Australian Sports Sedan Championship title was revived in 1991 and was contested annually through to 2003. Each championship was decided over a series of races, with the exception of the 1994 title, which was contested over two races at one meeting atSandown Raceway inVictoria.
A National Series for Sports Sedans replaced the Australian Sports Sedan Championship for 2004[7] and has been included in the CAMS Nationals Racing Championships (now known as theShannons Nationals Motor Racing Championships) since its inception in 2006.[8]
Winners of theAustralian Sports Sedan Championship are shown below.
| Year | Champion | Vehicle |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Allan Moffat | Chevrolet Monza Ford Capri RS3100 |
| 1977 | Frank Gardner | Chevrolet Corvair |
| 1978 | Allan Grice | Chevrolet Corvair |
| 1979 | Allan Grice | Chevrolet Corvair |
| 1980 | Tony Edmondson | Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV-Repco Holden |
| 1981 | Tony Edmondson | Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV-Chevrolet |
| Not held | ||
| 1991 | Greg Crick | Honda Prelude-Chevrolet |
| 1992 | Kerry Baily | Toyota Celica Supra-Chevrolet |
| 1993 | Kerry Baily | Toyota Celica Supra-Chevrolet |
| 1994 | Brian Smith | Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV-Chevrolet |
| 1995 | Cameron McLean | BMW M3 |
| 1996 | John Briggs | Honda Prelude-Chevrolet |
| 1997 | Kerry Baily | Toyota Celica Supra-Chevrolet |
| 1998 | Tony Ricciardello | Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV-Chevrolet |
| 1999 | Tony Ricciardello | Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV-Chevrolet |
| 2000 | Kerry Baily | Nissan 300ZX-Chevrolet |
| 2001 | Tony Ricciardello | Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV-Chevrolet |
| 2002 | Tony Ricciardello | Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV-Chevrolet |
| 2003 | Kerry Baily | Nissan 300ZX-Chevrolet |
A Sports Sedan series has been run each year from 2004, this being recognised by CAMS as a National Series rather than as an official Australian Championship. Each series has been open to cars built to American Trans-Am or New Zealand TraNZam rules as well as cars complying with CAMS Group 3D Sports Sedan regulations.
Series winners have been :