21-579: After the great success of the T332 in the 1974 Formula 5000 season (18 out of 21 top 3 finishes in the US), much was expected of the new high-tech Lola T400 . Described by development driver Frank Gardner as "the most sophisticated Formula 5000 to be built so far", the T400 was a completely new design, strikingly different from its T300, T330 and T332 predecessors. Built with a heavily revised aerodynamics and suspension system
42-479: A couple of extremely powerful US F5000 chev engines. Lawrence, after a serious accident in the 72 NZGP regained competitive form in a new T332 in the 1974 Tasman and by 1975 had upgraded his chassis to the specs of Andretti's US car and running with real sponsorship from Malboro, Singapore Airlines and Wix, was Warwick Brown's most serious rival during the 1975 Tasman. As a side note, both the 1975 and 1976 New Zealand Grands Prix were held at Pukekohe Park Raceway . It
63-535: A level of prestige to the event. It is seen as a stepping stone to larger open-wheeler classes, such as Formula 3 , and beyond, and drivers such as Daniil Kvyat , Alex Lynn , Lance Stroll and Lando Norris have competed in the race and then gone on to compete as race or test drivers in Formula One. From 2023, it will be part of the Formula Regional Oceania Championship . In its history,
84-577: A row in 1974–76, his most serious rivals Al Unser and Mario Andretti , in 1974–75 in Parnelli T332C. Australian driver Warwick Brown used a T332 to win the 1975 Tasman Series as well as the 1975 New Zealand Grand Prix . In doing so he became the only Australian driver to ever win the Tasman Series . New Zealand driver Ken Smith also used a Lola T332 to win the 1976 New Zealand Grand Prix . Ken Smith had obtained Redman's 1974 US winning chassis and
105-533: The 1979 Australian Grand Prix in his T332. Walker also used a T332 to finish second in the 1975 Australian Drivers' Championship . New Zealand Grand Prix The New Zealand Grand Prix , sometimes known as the New Zealand International Grand Prix , is an annual motor racing event held in New Zealand . First held in 1950 , it is best known for hosting rounds of the Tasman Series in
126-651: The 1960s and 1970s. It is currently run as the signature race of the Formula Regional Oceania Championship . It is one of only two current national Grand Prix events that are not part of the Formula One World Championship, the other being the Macau Grand Prix . The race was once an important race on the international calendar, most notably when it was a part of the Tasman Series. In this era, several contemporary Formula One drivers would compete in
147-601: The 1977 Australian Tasman rounds and Keith Holland Shellsport campaign that year. During its competition life, the T332 also won the US Formula A/F5000 Championship in 1974 and 1975 driven by British driver Brian Redman, the British Formula 5000 Championship in 1974 driven by Formula One driver Bob Evans and the 1979 Australian Drivers' Championship when driven by South Australian Johnnie Walker who also won
168-465: The T400 baffled and perplexed teams. The radiators were mounted in front of the rear wheels, as part of the mandatory deformable structure, so the aerodynamics could be significantly cleaner. However, the key difference was designer Eric Broadley's adoption of rising rate suspension, with rocker arms and inboard springs, both front and rear. This would, eventually, prove very successful but at first nobody really understood how to make it work. This design
189-457: The T400 just three and everyone else put together shared the other four. Eventually, the very advanced and complex suspension system was figured out by Lola and updates and chassis setup instructions tamed the beast. However, the US series ended in 1976, so little time was available to demonstrate the T400's full potential. In recent years sophisticated computer modeling has been used to further enhance
210-519: The T400 never matched the T332 although after its disastrous 1975 series, Max Stewarts T400 was often competitive in 1976 and 1977. In the Shellsport F5000 series in 1975, Peter Gethin and Pilete's T400 was probably quicker than the best T332s of Guy Edwards and Ian Ashley and in 1976 Keith Holland in a T400 often matched Edward's and David Purley 3.6 March and Chevron cars. The last two new T332c F5000s in 1977 were built for Alan Jones for
231-533: The T400's chassis performance. Two of the 14 T400s were wrecked in accidents but the recent whereabouts of all twelve of the survivors are known. Lola T332 The Lola T332 was a race car designed and built by Lola Cars for use in Formula 5000 racing and made its racing debut in 1973. The T332 was successful around the globe with race victories in places such as Australia, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and
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#1733085536181252-525: The United States. The Lola commonly used the 5.0-litre Chevrolet V8 engine , though some competitors in Australia and New Zealand used the slightly cheaper and less powerful Australian made 5.0-litre Repco Holden V8 . The alloy/steel tub of the T332 followed standard Lola design practice with twin bulkheads and utilised a semi-stressed engine and transmission. Twin side radiators were mounted in front of
273-461: The event in 2021. Due to travel restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic , the 2021 event was only contested by New Zealand drivers, with Supercars Championship regulars Shane van Gisbergen and Andre Heimgartner joining the field alongside past winners Greg Murphy and Ken Smith , who contested his 50th New Zealand Grand Prix. Van Gisbergen won the event, despite starting from pitlane due to
294-449: The four kiwi rounds of the last Tasman. McRae himself found his own T332 far faster than his GM2 in the 1974/75 US Travellers Cheque F5000 series. Although not able to equal the engine preparation of the Haas or Parnelli teams running at F1 level, even in 1975 at Watkins Glen , Laguna Seca and Long Beach, McRae in a T332 was still as quick as Jarier or Unser while his T332 lasted. In Australasia
315-507: The race has been held in eight different locations across New Zealand. Pukekohe Park Raceway in Pukekohe has been the most common venue, with the race being held there 29 times. The Circuit Chris Amon , formerly Manfeild Autocourse, in Feilding hosted the event between 2008 and 2020. Hampton Downs Motorsport Park , which had campaigned to host the event for several years, became the new host of
336-464: The race, often with great success. Six Formula One World Drivers' Champions have won the New Zealand Grand Prix, including three-time champions Sir Jack Brabham and Sir Jackie Stewart . In the years following the demise of the Tasman Series, Formula One drivers did not regularly compete in extra-curricular races, and as such the New Zealand Grand Prix lost many of its big-name entrants. It
357-506: The rear wheels which were located by upper and lower links and radius rods. Driven through a Hewland DG300 five-speed transmission, a Chevrolet powered T332 was once timed at 305 km/h (190 mph) at the now closed Ontario Motor Speedway in Ontario, California . The T332 dominated the last three years of the US F5000 championship, with Briton Brian Redman taking the title three times in
378-579: The two leading drivers had returned to their earlier cars mid-way through the Tasman series but later persevered with the T400s and eventually made winning cars out of them. In the UK, VDS also pressed on and got one of their cars working really well at the end of the season; four wins in the last eight races securing a second F5000 title for Teddy Pilette . Of 27 top 3 finishes in the US, the T332 took 20, including all nine wins,
399-562: Was generally thought in the 1975 Tasman the two best drivers, Graham McRae in a McRae GM2 and Chris Amon in a Talon (a modified version of the GM2) were very much at a disadvantage compared with Lawrence, Brown and Smith in the Lola 332T, although to some extent that was compensated by the very fast Firestone F5000 tyres used by McRae for the last time in NZ which meant McRae took pole or deadheated for pole time in
420-409: Was not only the first to move the shock absorbers inside the bodywork and out of the air-stream, but both mounting points of the shocks moved with the suspension, increasing the spring rate and shock damping with the movement, and therefore referred to as "rising rate". Haas and Vel's Parnelli Jones , the top two US teams, quickly forgot about their T400s and wheeled out their 1974 T332s. In Australia,
441-578: Was run for smaller local or continental formulae in the 1990s and 2000s such as Formula Holden . From 2006 to 2020, the race was run as part of the Toyota Racing Series, which has gained international prominence due to the championship being held over the Northern Hemisphere winter. This has resulted in many international drivers, particularly young developmental drivers , joining the championship in their traditional off-season, thus restoring
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