The 1969 Trans-American Championship was the fourth running of the Sports Car Club of America's Trans-Am Series. The championship was open to SCCA Sedan category cars competing in Over 2 liter and Under 2 liter classes. 1969 marked the end of the use of co-drivers in the Trans-Am Championship, as most of the races were between 2.5 and 3 hours. The Over 2 liter and Under 2 liter Manufacturers' titles were won by Chevrolet (Due in large part to Mark Donohue's 6 wins, and a major crash at the St. Jovite, Canada race that nearly destroyed all the Ford and Shelby team cars. Not including the controversial illegal underweight Camaro used by Donohue, wins were to be stripped from Chevrolet given to Ford. But GM threatened to take their money and leave the series.) and Porsche (Due in large part to Peter Gregg's 7 wins) respectively.
Schedule
The championship was contested over twelve races. Race Date Circuit Distance Over 2 liter winning car Under 2 liter winning car Over 2 liter winning car Under 2 liter winning car 1 May 11 Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn, Michigan Ford Mustang Porsche 911 Parnelli Jones Gary Wright 2 May 30 Lime Rock Park, Lakeville, Connecticut 2 h 30 min Ford Mustang Porsche 911 Sam Posey Tony Adamowicz 3 June 8 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, Ohio Chevrolet Camaro Porsche 911 Ronnie Bucknum Peter Gregg 4 June 22 Bridgehampton Race Circuit, Sag Harbor, New York Ford Mustang Porsche 911 George Follmer Peter Gregg 5 July 6 Donnybrooke International Speedway, Brainerd, Minnesota Ford Mustang Porsche 911 Parnelli Jones Peter Gregg 6 July 20 Bryar Motorsports Park, Loudon, New Hampshire Chevrolet Camaro Alfa Romeo GTA Mark Donohue Gaston Andrey 7 August 3 Circuit Mont-Tremblant, Saint-Jovite, Quebec 3 h Chevrolet Camaro Porsche 911 Mark Donohue Peter Gregg 8 August 10 Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen, New York 2 h 30 min Chevrolet Camaro Porsche 911 Mark Donohue Peter Gregg 9 August 24 Laguna Seca Raceway, Monterey, California Chevrolet Camaro Porsche 911 Mark Donohue Peter Gregg 10 September 7 Seattle International Raceway, Kent, Washington Chevrolet Camaro Porsche 911 Ronnie Bucknum Peter Gregg 11 September 21 Sears Point Raceway, Sonoma, California Chevrolet Camaro Porsche 911 Mark Donohue Don Pike 12 October 5 Riverside International Raceway, Riverside, California Chevrolet Camaro Porsche 911 Mark Donohue Alan Johnson
Championships Points were awarded for finishing positions in each class at each race on the following basis:Dave Friedman, Pony Cars Wars 1966 to 1972, page 112 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 9 6 4 3 2 1
Only the highest-placed car of each make could earn points for its manufacturer and only the best nine results for each manufacturer counted towards the championship totals.
No Drivers titles were awarded in 1969 or in any other Trans-American Championship prior to 1972.
Over 2 liter Manufacturers Championship Pos Manufacturer MIC LRP MOH BRI DON BRY MTB WGL LAG PAC SPT RIV Points 1 Chevrolet 2 3 1 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 78 (94) 2 Ford 1 1 2 1 1 3 8 2 3 2 2 4 64 (71) 3 Pontiac 3 5 8 3 4 5 2 12 5 3 4 3 32 (34) 4 American Motors 4 7 5 6 5 8 4 5 7 12 8 6 14 The official SCCA’s 1969 Trans-Am Box Scores list AMC as scoring 14 points in seven of the twelve races but show a final total of only 13.
Under 2 liter Manufacturers Championship Pos Manufacturer MIC LRP MOH BRI DON BRY MTB WGL LAG PAC SPT RIV Points 1 Porsche 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 81 (106) 2 Alfa Romeo 3 2 8 3 1 12 7 4 5 28 3 BMW 9 9 3 14 8 6 5 4 British Leyland 3 4
The cars The following models contributed to the points totals of their respective manufacturers.
Chevrolet Camaro Ford Mustang Pontiac Firebird AMC Javelin Porsche 911 Alfa Romeo GTA BMW 2002Ti Mini Cooper S
1969 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am 1969 had marked the sales debut of the Pontiac Firebird Trans Am however the car's smallest engine was well over the 5000cc maximum set by the series at the time and it was not used in the 1969 championship. In using the name Trans Am, a registered trademark, General Motors agreed to pay $5 per car sold to the SCCA.
References
External links 1969 Trans-Am, www.touringcarracing.net