TOUR DE FORCE

MARK SANDERS IS ONE OF THE TRUE INNOVATORS OF THE AUSSIE PRO TOURING SCENE, BUILDING CORNER-CARVING WEAPONS THAT WERE ALSO PRETTY HANDY AT PICKING UP AWARDS

- CRAIG PARKER

AUSTRALIA’S pro-touring scene is really building momentum at the moment, with an ever-increasing amount of aftermarket support and the world’s premier pro-touring event, the Optima Search for the Ultimate Street Car, returning to our shores in 2021.

With that in mind, we thought it appropriate to chat with one of the pioneers of Australian pro-touring, Mark Sanders. Mark’s aluminium P76 V8-powered LH Torana (SM, Apr/May ’91) and stunning big-block HK Monaro (SM, Oct/Nov ’94) were both landmark builds back in the early 1990s and well ahead of their time – and he’s still tinkering today.

How did the car bug bite you?

Although Dad wasn’t into cars, he took me to a few Touring Car races. When I saw Brock’s dominant Bathurst ’79 performance – he won by six laps and broke the lap record on the last lap – I was hooked. I’ve been into Holdens and going fast ever since. Ian Hazel lived a block away and his PREM70 HG wagon left a lasting impression – so subtle, yet so detailed, so well finished. A lot of the Monaro was inspired by PREM70. Later, I met Colin Townsend when I concreted his garage. He taught me a lot and taught me to learn a lot. Colin was part of a group building mega-fast cars that were registrable in South Australia, which was not easy. Many never got finished; mostly just Colin’s FJ, LEGAL8 (the EH I built for Neville Philips) and my Torana.

So it’s all Colin’s fault?

Ha! He’s a clever man who had a lot to do with the original Torana build and me starting my business, RPM. For me, it was all about the engineering – how it worked rather than how it looked. Howard Astill and Ron Barclay changed that. Howard led me down the path of show cars, trophies, marketing and sponsorship.