# 1990 Australian Touring Car season

The 1990 Australian Touring Car season was the 31st year of touring car racing in Australia since the first runnings of the Australian Touring Car Championship and the fore-runner of the present day Bathurst 1000, the Armstrong 500.
There were 12 touring car race meetings held during 1990; an eight-round series, the 1990 Australian Touring Car Championship (ATCC); a support programme event at the 1990 Australian Grand Prix and a three-round series of long-distance races, nicknamed 'enduros', which counted towards both the 1990 Australian Endurance Championship and the 1990 Australian Manufacturers' Championship.

## Season review

After two years domination by Dick Johnson Racings Ford Sierras, 1990 was to prove much of an upset year with race victories spread across seven teams with Nissan and Holden teams taking wins off the massed privateer Ford teams. The arrival of the 4WD, twin turbo Nissan Skyline GT-R towards the end of the Australian Touring Car Championship was enough for Jim Richards to take Nissan's first title in a four driver showdown again Ford Sierra threesome, Dick Johnson, Peter Brock and the surprising Colin Bond who had won the Lakeside and Mallala rounds of the ATCC. Glenn Seton took his first race wins as a team owner beginning with the Sandown 500, while the Holden Racing Team took a memorable Bathurst win for Win Percy and Allan Grice outlasting the GT-R and the pack of tyre frying Sierras on a day of attrition. Larry Perkins underlined Holden's return to form by winning Eastern Creek Raceways first major touring car race at the end of the season.

## Results and standings
### Race calendar

The 1990 Australian touring car season consisted of 12 events.
| Date | Series | Circuit | City / state | Winner | Team | Car | Report |
| 25 Feb | ATCC Round 1 | Amaroo Park | Sydney, New South Wales | Jim Richards | Nissan Motorsport Australia | Nissan Skyline HR31 GTS-R | |
| 11 Mar | ATCC Round 2 | Symmons Plains Raceway | Launceston, Tasmania | Dick Johnson | Shell Ultra-Hi Racing | Ford Sierra RS500 | |
| 25 Mar | ATCC Round 3 | Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit | Phillip Island, Victoria | Dick Johnson | Shell Ultra-Hi Racing | Ford Sierra RS500 | |
| 8 Apr | ATCC Round 4 | Winton Motor Raceway | Benalla, Victoria | Jim Richards | Nissan Motorsport Australia | Nissan Skyline HR31 GTS-R | |
| 6 May | ATCC Round 5 | Lakeside International Raceway | Brisbane, Queensland | Colin Bond | Caltex CXT Racing | Ford Sierra RS500 | |
| 10 Jun | ATCC Round 6 | Mallala Motor Sport Park | Mallala, South Australia | Colin Bond | Caltex CXT Racing | Ford Sierra RS500 | |
| 24 Jun | ATCC Round 7 | Barbagallo Raceway | Perth, Western Australia | Peter Brock | Mobil 1 Racing | Ford Sierra RS500 | |
| 15 Jul | ATCC Round 8 | Oran Park Raceway | Sydney, New South Wales | Jim Richards | Nissan Motorsport Australia | Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R | |
| 9 Sep | Sandown 500 AEC Round 1 | Sandown International Raceway | Melbourne, Victoria | Glenn Seton George Fury | Peter Jackson Racing | Ford Sierra RS500 | report |
| 30 Sep | Tooheys 1000 AEC Round 2 | Mount Panorama Circuit | Bathurst, New South Wales | Win Percy Allan Grice | Holden Racing Team | Holden VL Commodore SS Group A SV | report |
| 3-4 Nov | Ansett Air Freight Challenge | Adelaide Street Circuit | Adelaide, South Australia | Glenn Seton | Peter Jackson Racing | Ford Sierra RS500 | |
| 10 Nov | Nissan Sydney 500 AEC Round 3 | Eastern Creek Raceway | Sydney, New South Wales | Larry Perkins Tomas Mezera | Perkins Engineering | Holden VL Commodore SS Group A SV | report |

### Ansett Air Freight Challenge

The Ansett Air Freight Challenge was a support event at the 1990 Australian Grand Prix meeting. Nissan Motorsport Australia had intended to run two of the new 4WD, twin-turbo Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R's at the meeting, but were reduced to just one car after Mark Skaife rolled his GT-R at Brewery Bend (turn 10) during practice.
| Driver | No. | Team | Car | Race 1 | Race 2 |
| Glenn Seton | 30 | Peter Jackson Racing | Ford Sierra RS500 | 3 | 1 |
| Dick Johnson | 17 | Shell Ultra Hi Racing | Ford Sierra RS500 | 6 | 2 |
| Win Percy | 16 | Holden Racing Team | Holden VL Commodore SS Group A SV | DNF | 3 |
| Alan Jones | 20 | Benson & Hedges Racing | Ford Sierra RS500 | 4 | 4 |
| Chris Lambden | 23 | Beaurepaires | Nissan Skyline HR31 GTS-R | 8 | 5 |
| Wayne Park | 29 | Wayne Park | Holden VL Commodore SS Group A SV | 7 | 6 |
| Ray Lintott | 12 | Ray Lintott | Ford Sierra RS500 | 10 | 7 |
| Joe Sommariva | 28 | Joe Sommariva | Holden VL Commodore SS Group A SV | 11 | 8 |
| John Faulkner | 71 | Toyota Team Australia | Toyota Corolla FX-GT | 14 | 9 |
| Murray Carter | 14 | Netcomm | Ford Sierra RS500 | 17 | 10 |
| Peter Brock | 05 | Mobil 1 Racing | Ford Sierra RS500 | DNF | DNF |
| Colin Bond | 8 | Caltex CXT Racing | Ford Sierra RS500 | 5 | DNF |
| Tony Longhurst | 25 | Benson & Hedges Racing | Ford Sierra RS500 | DNF | DNF |
| John Bowe | 18 | Shell Ultra Hi Racing | Ford Sierra RS500 | 2 | DNF |
| Jim Richards | 2 | Nissan Motorsport Australia | Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R | 1 | DNF |
| Phil Ward | 51 | Phil Ward Racing | Mercedes-Benz 190E | 9 | |
| Mark Skaife | 3 | Nissan Motorsport Australia | Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R | DNS | DNS |