Group 1
Group 1 was only valid for cars under 1300 cc this year. In the 1000 cc
class, the familiar Fiat 850 Sportcoupé was no longer homologated - so
it could not be used anymore; or was it? Seat's identical coupé was
still homologated, so the cars were hastily rebadged "Seat" and Kluvers
changed his runner-up position of 1976 into a championship this year.
The 1300 class was stil Simca territory, a few brave efforts with
Sunbeam's 1300 Avenger came to nothing. Since Derr moved up a few
classes, Zwaanenburg's main enemy was van Arum whose two wins were one
less than Zwaanenburg; so the latter was champion again, with newcomer
Kistemaker third.
Super Toerwagens
Following the example set in Britain, the rules for the cars over 1300
cc were relaxed and an unexpected growth took place, especially in the
biggest class - hardly entries last year but now the sheer luxury of
one very good Commodore (and a few other ones), two BMW 530i's, five
(!) Camaro's both in 5.7 and 7 litre form - with a few Capri's the
entry would have been bigger as the British championship, where all
those Camaro's came from in the first place! The 2500 cc class was well
supported too, only the 1600 cc class a little weak. Dooseman won that
championship with four wins out of six.
Ford dominated the 2500 cc class, with Schinkel winning the
championship (3 wins), Koks second and Houthuyzen third - all with
Eichberg prepared machines. First non-Ford was Frankenhout's Firenza
who won the last race.
The over-2500 class did not quite live up to the expectations of the
entry list - in fact the Camaro's did not win a single race, though
they set poles and fastest laps. In the end, Frankenhout and Vermeulen
fought out the championship, with the Alpina BMW coming out on top
despite missing the first race. Frankenhout was a steady second (3 wins
like Vermeulen) but his third place in June cost him dear. Of the
Camaro's, some of which missed quite a few races, Dijkstra was the
fastest though it became a typical Dijkstra season: the first race was
missed, he finished lowly in the two following races but was a strong
second in July - only to be disqualified because of illegal
carburation. Van Gelderen was a steady finisher, his best second in
race one; Lady Hemmes made quite a few mistakes but had a pole and a
strong Spa 24 hours; Lubin was fast as ever but missed many races; and
Moritz had more than his share of troubles, unable to start at Spa for
instance.
In all, way better than the previous years - it would be a question of
time before it would take the place of Group 5 as the prime Dutch class.
Group 5
A brave desicion to move up to group 5 only made matters worse for the
championship, since the Benelux championship would still be Group 2, 3
and 4 only.
The two smallest classes were combined and had few entries and even
fewer new cars. Ernst was a predictable champion, having taken over
Kok's Imp.
The 1300 cc class was a little better with Datsun still entering a few
cars; Coronel's Cherry should have been propelled by a small turbo
engine but this never appeared; the relaxed rules giving room for a
return of the succesful Sunny at the end of the season. Antonides'
Cherry was a steady scorer, securing second in the championship (while
works driver Coronel finished third) but the champion would be Kok, in
a British Escort 1300 BDA. The class was better than the 1150 cc
although handicapped by the fact that half of the entry were Group 2
cars - no match for Kok.
Both the 1600 and 2000 cc class were near-empty, the 1600 class only
awarded a championship since in three races some Supertourers entered
their cars giving Redeker a hollow but deserved championship.
The big bangers came in force, but what would have been a strong 1975
field was in reality outdated now. Van Oorschot bought a Loos Porsche
934, and even without Group 5 modifications the car was unbeatable.
Despite enthusiasm, both Slotemaker's Camaro (the 1974 ex-Gardner car)
as de Jong's Capri (the ex-Akersloot car with a 24-valve engine) were
no match, just like Deen's unreliable Group 4 Corvette and Suykerbuyk's
Carrera, the latter a little out of his depth.
Benelux Championship
As said, the championship was onlyopen for Groups 2,3 and 4. Albert
Vanierschot was probably the only one to enter all rounds, the
allrounder claiming the 1600 cc championship. Like last year, it was
all pretty disappointing, really.