Yep, the supposed bitter rivals once joined forces in America – in a Ford – to take on the big guns of the Trans-American Sedan Championship on their home ground.

The May/June edition of Australian Muscle Car magazine details what happened when Moffat and Firth raced together stateside. The latest edition of AMC also highlights what Moffat learnt in his 20-odd Trans-Am appearances that he took back to Australia in forging his professional career.

The two weren’t the only Aussies to star in the famed US series. There’s also the most capped of these Trans-Am competitors, a driver who hails from Cooma and who won a round of the 1968 series for the fabled Shelby Mustang team. AMC has tracked down the former lad from Cooma NSW, who’s a Trans-Am legend in his adopted country but virtually unknown in Oz. To find out who he is, check-out edition #61.

We also look at the swag of original Camaros, Javelins and Mustangs running in the USA’s Historic Trans-Am Series (pictured). And they could be headed downunder sooner than you think.

We also bring news of how the Australian Trans-Am Championship organisers are going all out for bigger and better things in 2012.

Beyond our big focus on Trans-Am, there’s plenty of news from Paul Gover, who reports on the securing of Holden’s immediate manufacturing future. He examines Ford’s four-pot Falcons, exports and engineering recruitment drive and provides an intriguing insight into Nissan’s rationale for returning to motorsport in Australia’s toughest arena, V8 Supercars.

Meantime, Muscle Maniac James Cockington delves into his pop culture treasure trove and looks at the audacious plan to produce a luxury sports car, with Leyland P76 V8 power – the Ilinga.

David Cook examines the nostalgia drags scene, while Bruce Moxon reports on the cars and characters at Australia’s biggest historic racing event, on Phillip Island.

We’ve also bloody-well found the bloody Volvo from Bathurst 1979. You bloody beauty. Uno, the little Fiat that raced in ’86? U do? We’ve found that too.

All that and a whole lot more in the latest edition of AMC.

- Peter Brock’s HDT Special Vehicles operation was actually a dual-state operation. The South Australian Holden dealer who set Brock up in business breaks his silence on his role in creating the Brock juggernaut of the early 1980s. Vin Kean tells AMC the real story behind the development of the original ‘Brock Commodore’, the VC of 1980 and ’81.

- Ford Australia president Bob Graziano’s dream car. In the first of a series of interviews with the Australian motor industry’s heavy hitters, AMC gets to know Graziano and puts some burning questions to him.

- HRT founder Win Percy feared for his life when he crashed Allan Grice’s Commodore at Bathurst. AMC eavesdrops on a chat between cartoonist John Stoneham and one of his favourite characters from his four-decade career illustrating Australian motorsport. In part two of Stonie’s interview with Percy, the 1990 Bathurst 1000 winner and HRT founder recalls his 10 Panorama pilgrimages in Commodores.

- Why Jim Richards is chucking his Javelin into the TCM fight. The Touring Car Masters craftsman tells Tony Whitlock how his new machine came together and explains why he has opted for American muscle.

- How an Aussie ‘tourist’ stumbled across the most incredible collection of American muscle cars, which includes an Aussie-built machine. Eye candy at every turn.

- How in the late 1970s a small band of West Australians – mostly rural Ford dealers – combined for two madcap Bathurst 1000 assaults in a Falcon Hardtop.

- Where the first ‘modern-day’ street race down under was held. Hint: it was Peter Brock and Larry Perkins’ second last race together. Readers will also learn that Dick Johnson raced a Group A version of the XE Falcon. True!

Firstly, John Bowe wrapped up the 2011 Touring Car Masters at Sydney Olympic Park, beating two other past masters – Andrew Miedecke and Jim Richards.

Oh, how we love the TCM. Motor racing’s ‘masters tour’ is far superior to those from tennis and golf, which are both so one-dimensional in comparison.

After all, who gives a toss about Bjorn Borg’s racket or a flying five-iron about what’s in Jack Nicklaus’ golf bag. In contrast, the TCM’s Mustangs, Camaros, Falcons, Monaros and Chargers are stars in their own right.

Anyway, congratulations to Australian Muscle Car magazine’s John Bowe for his latest title. Look for a season review and JB’s column in the January-February edition, out December 21.

Glenn Seton raced his Falcon hardtop at the pointy end in Homebush, and the following evening was inducted into the V8 Supercar Hall of Fame at the sport’s gala awards.

Then it was Allan Moffat’s turn to receive some much-deserved recognition, via life membership of the Australian Racing Drivers’ Club.

The four-time Bathurst winner was given the club’s highest honour, joining legends such as Sir Jack Brabham and Leo Geoghegan.

Moffat first joined the ARDC in 1976, the year he won the inaugural Australian Sports Sedan Championship and his second Australian Touring Car Championship crown.

Finally, it would remiss of AMC not to dip our lid to Jamie Whincup, who won his third V8 Supercar title, cementing his place among the greats.

That’s right, we reckon Whincup now sits alongside the sport’s best. Think about it.

Whincup has won three titles in the last four years, beating teammate Craig Lowndes in the process. The Victorian also won three consecutive Bathurst 1000s, 2006-08.

Whincup is one of just eight drivers to have claimed three championships and three Great Race victories since both entities began in 1960.

The others are Peter Brock, Bob Jane, Dick Johnson, Craig Lowndes, Allan Moffat, Jim Richards and Mark Skaife.

Who came up with the ‘Hey Charger’ catchphrase. This was part of Australia’s most famous automotive advertising campaign. We’ve tracked down the actual ad guru who had the light bulb moment, to learn what inspired ‘Hey Charger’ and what he thinks about it today. We give him a two-fingered salute – in the nicest possible way. And no, he doesn’t have a pony-tail.

What the Charger could have looked like. AMC #58 contains previously unpublished photos which show rejected designs, which look suspiciously like the Falcon hardtops of the same era. There’s a very good reason for this, as you will discover when AMC reveals how the Charger was conceived.

How the Charger was tested, using a ‘cut and shut’ Valiant ute. Leo Geoghegan recalls his many tests at South Australia’s Mallala circuit pounding around in an old stump ute.

Which racing Charger from Bathurst 1971 is still on track. Appropriately, it’s car #38. It’s had a colourful life since, which AMC documents.

Beyond the Charger, AMC provides 18 pages of coverage of the Muscle Car Masters, including details on the GMP&A Torana A9X and HDT Commodore which broke cover at this year’s Eastern Creek retro event.

There are also some stunning shots of the old Brickies illegal drag racing strip at Homebush Bay, just a stone’s throw from today’s V8 Supercar street race around Sydney Olympic Park. Some of the stories, from the 1960s and ‘70s, are incredible.

Drag racing fans will enjoy the Maurice Fabietti profile. Fabietti drives a new-shape Monaro with backing from Holden’s parts division. Fabietti’s squad represents the Holden’s biggest motorsport sponsorship outside V8 Supercars.

Speaking of things Holden, we’ve also tracked down Mark Skaife’s first racecar. The good news is that it’s safe and well – and used for racing to this day.

AMC’s news section is packed with stories from the Blue Oval camp, including one on the future of the XR8.

Check out the November/December edition of AMC to learn more. Available from all good newsagencies.

As V8 Supercar driver James Courtney, who Wheldon was set to join at the Gold Coast 600, explained, it was a reality check for race drivers everywhere.

Several thoughts keep popping back into my head in the aftermath of the Indy 500 winner’s passing. Firstly, that Wheldon’s two young boys won’t ever get to know their Dad.

If that’s not sad enough, neither of the Englishman’s lads is old enough now to remember their Dad in the future.

Secondly, car racing is just that – car racing. In happier times, not too many of the participants or crews look to be having fun, despite it being a form of entertainment. I’m probably guilty of it myself.

Head to a V8 Supercar round and you would think most people there had dropped their lolly bags. Guys, it’s only car racing; a sporting pursuit that, despite being many people’s passion, means little in the grand scheme of things.

The end of the Bathurst 1000 reminded me of why I love the sport. Two great drivers, Garth Tander and Craig Lowndes, going at it hammer and tongs after seven hours in a magical setting. Great stuff.

Earlier on race day, a driver in the Touring Car Masters escaped a wreck that could have left him seriously injured. Or worse. Especially if his 1968 Mustang had not been converted to right-hand drive somewhere along the line. Thankfully.

Next stop Surfers Paradise. A black cloud will hang over it given the tragedy in Las Vegas, yet it’s also possible the reality check will have everyone in the right frame of mind. We love it, but it’s only car racing.

Wheldon’s death was not just a reality check for drivers, but for the whole racing community.

The Chickadee Commodore turned laps at the Muscle Car Masters

The September October edition of Australian Muscle Car magazine celebrates the 25th anniversary of the Chickadee Commodore’s victory on the Mountain on October 5, 1986.

Allan Grice and Graeme Bailey were motor racing’s odd couple and their unorthodox ‘team’ arrangement with master race car builder Les Small netted a Bathurst victory against the run of play. Specifically, against the might of the Peter Brock-led Holden Dealer Team.

Car owner Bailey was the last privateer (non professional driver) to win the Great Race. He was a businessman racer who drove his own car and bankrolled the operation.

Grice did the bulk of the driving and Melbourne-based Small built, updated and prepared the machine for its date with destiny.

Incredibly, the car spent the first half of the season in a modest NSW Central Coast backyard garage being fettled by Bailey’s main man, Peter Pattenden.

In other words, this was not a team in the traditional or modern-day sense. It was a set-up best described as a co-operative effort. Each major player had what the others needed and they decided a few short months before the big race that they would attack it together. The fact that this bits and pieces approach worked, is, upon reflection, something of a minor miracle.

Edition #57 of AMC details this and provides a fitting tribute to the last of the breed of privateers whose dream of winning Australia’s biggest car race actually came true.

AMC outlines how the planets aligned to give a former chicken farmer the biggest day of his life.

The Chickadee Commodore was a tough old bird and has now come out of hibernation as a museum-piece to turn laps at gatherings like the Muscle Car Masters.

The latest edition of AMC also heavily features Jim Richards. The seven-time Bathurst winner is profiled, as is his 1964 Falcon Sprint, which won the 2010 Touring Car Masters title.

AMC also looks back at the glory days of Australian rallying and checks out the classic muscle cars still threading the needle in forests around the country. Drag racing fans should check out the profile on drag racer Norm Oakey and see some of his precarious seating positions – such as with his head poking through the windscreen.

AMC also features many previously unpublished images from the dramafest which was the 1976 Hardie Ferodo 1000.

All that and whole lot more in the latest edition of AMC.

Jason Richards at the Muscle Car Masters

V8 Supercar driver Jason Richards wowed crowds at the 2011 Australian Muscle Car Masters on Fathers Day, just as he did at the inaugural event in 2006. 

This year, however, there was extra appreciation for Richards’ exploits aboard Paul Stubber’s ex-Holden Dealer Team Torana A9X, with the New Zealander battling a rare form of cancer. Hence, the Torana was officially entered under the ‘FCUK CANCER’ banner. 

Car owner Stubber was thrilled with the big crowd’s reaction when Richards won Sunday’s Group C trophy race. 

“The spectators really got behind Jason, who everyone knows is a ripper bloke, and cheered when he took the chequered flag,” Stubber said. Richards led home Stephen Perrott in a similar Torana, and Adam Workman’s Nissan Bluebird Turbo. 

In the later, combined Group C/A trophy race Richards finished second, behind David Holc’s ex-GIO VL Commodore, the best of the Group A cars. Third was David Towe’s BMW M3. Over 42 cars contested the Group A/C events 

Other highlights witnessed by the bumper crowd on Fathers Day include: 

- Richards turn behind the wheel of the 1987 Le Mans 24 Hour-winning Porsche 962 in a Master Blast session. The same car appeared in the final event of the day, held as the sun was setting, with headlights ablaze. Eastern Creek’s front stretch was not quite the Mulsanne Straight, but the twilight conditions did give punters a taste of the French classic. 

- John French turned laps in the Tru-Blu XD Falcon that he and then team boss Dick Johnson drove to victory in the 1981 James Hardie 1000. 

- Another French Bathurst car, the Ford motor company-entered Phase III in which he finished fifth in the 1971 Great Race, turned laps in the Master Blasts to celebrate the 40^th anniversary of that model GT-HO and the race. It hit the track in tandem with two other cars (and drivers) from that race, a Torana GTR XU-1 and Charger R/T E38. The Torana was driven by Digby Cook, who raced it to 23^rd position in the ’71 Great Race with Geoff Leeds. Brian Reed was reunited with the Charger he and Graham Ritter drove to 25^th outright 40 years ago. 

- Graeme Bailey returned the 1986 Bathurst 1000 winning Chickadee Commodore to the track at a race meeting for the first time in 20 years. The car is the subject of the current AMC’s cover story. 

- Dameon Jameson won the AMCM’s first Sports Sedan Spectacular. The Jaguar driver received the Tony Edmondson Trophy from the duel Australian Sports Sedan Champion himself. 

A one-hour program wrapping up the 2011 Australian Muscle Car Masters will air on 7mate at 3pm on Sunday, October 2.

The Chickadee machine will be driven on September 4 at Eastern Creek by its owner Graeme Bailey, the last privateer to win Bathurst. It will be the car’s first appearance at a race meeting in over 20 years. Incidently, the full story of that car’s racing career and freshen-up is the subject of Australian Muscle Car magazine’s September/October edition’s cover story.

Meantime, John ‘Father’ French, who co-drove Tru-Blu with Dick Johnson will turn laps in the Master Blasts.  Tru-Blu’s presence on Father’s Day will mark the 30^th anniversary of the car’s ATCC and Bathurst win.

The Masters will be held a few days before the fifth anniversary of Peter Brock’s passing. To mark the anniversary, an #05 Commodore will turn laps in the Master Blasts. It’s the VL (now owned by Peter Champion) in which Brock started the dramatic 1987 Bathurst 1000, but only lasted until mid race before it retired. Brock then jumped into the second team car and, ultimately, won the race.

The Muscle Car Masters will pay homage to the classic muscle cars of the 1971 Hardie Ferodo 500, with an original example from that race from each of the ‘big three’ turning laps during the Master Blasts. Celebrating the GT-HO Phase III’s 40th birthday is the John French-driven works Falcon from Bathurst 1971. It will circulate with two other cars from that race: the ex-Brian Reed/Graham Ritter Charger and ex-Geoff Leeds/Digby Cooke Torana XU-1.

To reflect the growing interest in sports car racing, the 2011 MCM’s Master Blast demonstrations will feature sportscars for the first time. Porsche is bringing two Le Mans classics: the 962 which won the 1987 24-Hour classic and ‘Moby Dick’, the ‘whale tail’ 935 model of 1978. It will be the Porsche Museum cars only Sydney appearances.

Entries for the Group C/A races have again topped the 40-mark. The field includes 1986 ATCC winner Robbie Francevic in a Volvo. He will race the ex-Hazelton car.

Francevic is part of a big line-up of racing legends is confirmed for the Masters.

Races will also be held for the Touring Car Masters, Group N and Sports Sedans.

For road car fans, the day will honour the 40th anniversaries of the Ford Falcon GT-HO Phase III and Chrysler Charger R/T E38. And the 20th anniversary of the Holden Commodore VN Group A. Examples of these cars will hit the track in the featured muscle marques parade.

All that and a lot more at Eastern Creek Raceway on Fathers Day from 9am. Be there!

Owners of the NASCAR Truck-style machines are currently racing in state level categories in Queensland and New South Wales with a view to contesting a dedicated series when numbers grow.

Seven Oz Trucks currently reside in Australia, with two more bound for our shores later this month, from Longbeach, California.

The plan is to run Oz Trucks as a standalone category, subject to a minimum number of twelve cars hitting the track.

Oz Trucks are powered by a 6.2-litre Chevrolet V8 engine built by VanGordan Racing Engines. They feature a four-speed H-pattern gearbox and a 9 inch differential with full floating axles. Rear suspension adjustments can be easily made through the utility tray, and the fibreglass panels such as the front hood and guards can be removed quickly and efficiently.

The power to weight ratio is similar to a V8 Supercar’s. Oz Trucks weigh 1180kg with the driver and push out a whopping 525hp.

Oz Trucks founders Greg McIntyre and Graham Struber both have extensive experience working for various teams in the V8 Supercar Championship for almost a decade. They have plenty of passion for this series.

The bosses say nothing compares to the rumbling noise, sheer off-the-line acceleration and the curb-hopping, close racing. They claim it is the most cost effective form of turn-key racing with purpose-built racecars.

Marcos Ambrose drove a similar spec machine in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series back in 2006, which kick started his career in the States.

The Muscle Car Masters is on Fathers Day, September 4, with as many as three Oz Trucks likely to race for the Tony Edmondson Trophy in the Sports Sedan Spectacular. Story and pics by Kelly Johnson

KEY STATISTICS:

Power: 510 horsepower

Top speed: 145 mph

Gearbox: 4 speed T101

Diff: 3.5 ratio

Brakes: Willwood 12 inch

Tyres: Goodyear 15 x 10 inch

Rear-end: 3 link, coilover shocks

Chassis: full space frame

Weight: 1200kgs

Rear brake bias: 53 percent

Radiator: large rear aluminium

Fuel: E85 running thru carby

Fuel tank: 22 gallon

Built: USA

History shows that the Falcon GT-HO Phase has become the ultimate Aussie muscle car. But it could have all turned out very differently.

When American Al Turner was approached to head-up the Blue Oval’s Aussie performance car and racing department Down Under, he proposed that Allan Moffat and his colleagues race a local version of the compact Maverick coupe from the US.

That’s just one revelation in Australian Muscle Car magazine’s 40th anniversary celebration of the 1971 Ford Falcon GT-HO Phase III.

AMC has obtained previously unseen documents from 1969 outlining what Ford was originally planning for its rocketship racer. That includes the sketch Turner sent Aussie chiefs.

A highly modified Maverick was Turner’s preferred machine for winning Bathurst in 1971.

“The addition of the spoilers to the Maverick, its fastback design and relatively small frontal area should give it an aerodynamic plus over Holden’s GTS 327 in competition,” Turner wrote in his early 1969 note to FoMoCo’s head honcho in Australia, Bill Bourke, as planned for the future.

Of course, Turner proposal was rejected. To find out why, check out AMC #56 on sale now.

Our 22-page tribute examines the car Turner ultimately built, the Phase III and outlines how to spot the real McCoy. AMC also highlights the oddball Phase IIIs built.

Holden fans aren’t forgotten in edition #56, with a look at a Kiwi Brock Commodore.

AMC also examines the 1984 Melbourne to Perth Cannonball Run and chats to the arguably the most successful of the dealers who backed Bathurst privateers.