Allan Grice

Allan Grice
Nationality	Australian
Born	21 October 1942 (1942-10-21) Maitland, New South Wales
Retired	2005
V8 Utes
Years active	2002-05
Teams	Allan Grice Racing
Best finish	6th in 2002 V8 Brutes Series
Previous series
1974-95 1978-80 1981 1984	Australian Touring Car Championship Australian Sports Sedan Championship AMSCAR Series Australian GT Championship
Championship titles
1978 1979 1984 1986 1990	Australian Sports Sedan Championship Australian Sports Sedan Championship Australian GT Championship Bathurst 1000 Bathurst 1000

Allan Maxwell Grice OAM (born 21 October 1942), known to motor-racing fans as Gricey, is an Australian former racing driver and politician, most famous for twice winning the prestigious Bathurst 1000 (1986 and 1990), and as a privateer driver of a Holden in the Australian Touring Car Championship.

Grice also had a successful second career as a politician and Member for Broadwater in the Queensland Parliament from 1992 to 2001. He currently operates an LPG conversion and importing business - LPGricey Tanks.

Bathurst 1000 record

26 starts between 1968 and 2002 (equal 6th on the 'most starts' list).

Grice had seven podium finishes at Bathurst: two wins (1986 and 1990), four seconds (1978, 1982, 1991, 1995), a third (1983). These results put him equal fifth on the 'most podiums' list for drivers at Bathurst.

Thirteen top 10 finishes (50% of all his starts) (in addition to above, fourth in 1979, seventh in 1980 and 1981, tenth in 1989, fifth in 1992 and seventh in 1994). Grice holds the record for the most Bathurst 1000 drives (16) before first victory (of those who have won).

Bathurst 1986

Main article: 1986 James Hardie 1000

Driving a Holden Commodore VK Group A SS that was owned by his co-driver, Graeme Bailey, Grice posted the first 100 mph average lap in a Group A car (backing up his feat of achieving the first 100 mph average lap in a Group C car 4 years earlier.

Grice and Bailey led for all-but 12 laps and Grice drove for 137 of the 163 laps (before the track alterations in response to FIA request reduced the race to 161 laps).

When asked recently, which Bathurst win was more satisfying, Grice replied:

"I think 1986, as we kicked the factory's arse. They didn't like that, but you get that."^{[citation needed]}

Bathurst 1990

Main article: 1990 Tooheys 1000

The winning Holden VL Commodore SS Group A SV from the 1990 Tooheys 1000

British Touring Car Championship legend Win Percy was given the task of reviving the fortunes of the Holden Team in the Australian Touring Car Championship by Tom Walkinshaw, and against Walkinshaw's wishes Percy chose Grice as his co-driver for Bathurst.

With Percy carrying a shoulder injury, Grice did the bulk of the testing and race driving for Bathurst. Competing against a field that included multiple turbo-charged Ford Sierras, Grice and Percy prevailed to record a famous victory in a Holden Commodore VL SS Group A SV.

Racing career

Though Grice did race, and win, for Holden factory teams in ATCC (most famously in the Bathurst 1000 in 1990), he spent much of his career as a privateer racing in a Holden against the Holden works teams (typically driven by Peter Brock).

Early in his career, Grice was the first racing driver to race the iconic Holden Torana LH SLR/5000 V8 (though he raced the road-version, L31, not the race-bred, Bathurst winning version, L34).

In 1974 Grice began driving for the Craven Mild Racing team and the following year he won a number of rounds in the Australian Touring Car Championship in his L34 Torana. 1978 saw Grice break through with a placing in the Bathurst 1000 when he came second behind Peter Brock in a Craven Mild Racing Holden Torana LX A9X SS Hatchback.

At Bathurst in 1982 Grice qualified fastest in the Re-Car Holden VH Commodore and finished second with co-driver Alan Browne after a blisteringly fast duel with Peter Brock in the early laps. The following year Grice finished third at Bathurst in a STP sponsored Commodore shared with Colin Bond.

Though best remembered for his endurance race feats, Grice was a very fast driver. Driving as a privateer, he was the first driver to record a 100 mph laps around Bathurst in both a Group C car 1982 and in a Group A car 1986 (that time on his way to winning Bathurst).

Grice ended his career having won 10 rounds in the Australian Touring Car Championship (equal 12th on list of round winners).

In addition to touring cars, Grice also won the Australian Sports Sedan Championship in 1978 and 1979, the 1984 Australian GT Championship, and won the 1991 James Hardie 12 Hour at Bathurst.

Career results

Season	Series	Position	Car	Team
1975	Australian Touring Car Championship	3rd	Holden Torana LH SLR-5000 L34	Craven Mild Racing
1976	Australian Touring Car Championship	4th	Holden Torana LH SLR-5000 L34	Craven Mild Racing
1977	Australian Touring Car Championship	7th	Holden Torana LH SLR-5000 L34	Craven Mild Racing
1978	Australian Touring Car Championship	7th	Holden Torana LX A9X SS Hatchback	Craven Mild Racing
1978	Australian Sports Sedan Championship	1st	Chevrolet Corvair	Craven Mild Racing
1979	Australian Touring Car Championship	7th	Holden Torana LX A9X SS Hatchback	Craven Mild Racing
1979	Australian Sports Sedan Championship	1st	Chevrolet Corvair	Craven Mild Racing
1980	Australian Touring Car Championship	8th	Holden Torana LX A9X SS Hatchback	Craven Mild Racing
1980	Australian Sports Sedan Championship	2nd	Holden Torana LX BMW 318i turbo	Craven Mild Racing
1981	Australian Touring Car Championship	12th	BMW 635 CSi	JPS Team BMW
1981	Australian Sports Sedan Championship	5th	BMW 320i turbo	JPS Team BMW
1981	Better Brakes 3.5 Litre Series	2nd	BMW 635 CSi	JPS Team BMW
1982	Australian Touring Car Championship	5th	Holden Commodore VH SS	Re-Car Racing
1982	Better Brakes AMSCAR Series	1st	Holden VH Commodore
1983	Australian Touring Car Championship	4th	Holden Commodore VH SS	STP Roadways
1984	Australian Touring Car Championship	5th	Holden Commodore VH SS	Roadways Pty Ltd
1984	Australian GT Championship	1st	Chevrolet Monza	Re-Car Racing
1984	Alfasud Trophy	2nd	Alfa Romeo Alfasud
1985	Nissan ET Super Challenge	3rd	Nissan Pulsar ET Turbo	Nissan Motorsport Australia
1987	Australian Touring Car Championship	8th	Holden Commodore VK SS Group A Holden Commodore VL SS Group A	Bob Jane T-Marts
1989	Australian Touring Car Championship	14th	Holden Commodore VL SS Group A SV	ICL Racing
1990	Australian Endurance Championship	8th	Holden VL Commodore SS Group A SV	Holden Racing Team
1991	Australian Touring Car Championship	15th	Holden Commodore VN SS Group A	Holden Racing Team
1995	Australian Touring Car Championship	13th	Holden VR Commodore Ford EF Falcon	Pinnacle Motorsport Glenn Seton Racing
2002	Australian V8 BrUte Series	6th	Ford Falcon AUII XR8 Ute	Kerry Wilson
2003	Australian V8 BrUte Series	10th	Ford Falcon BA XR8 Ute	Akubra/Wrangler
2005	Australian V8 BrUte Series	18th	Ford Falcon BA XR8 Ute	Allan Grice Racing

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans Results

Year	Pos	Class	No	Team	Drivers	Chassis	Tyre	Laps
						Engine
1984	25 DNF	C1	21	Charles Ivey Racing	Alain de Cadenet Chris Craft	Porsche 956	D	274
						Porsche Type-935 2.6 L Turbo Flat-6

External links

• VESRIX, Drivers record - Allan Grice
• Bathurst Winners
• Bathurst 1986
• Bathurst 1990
• OAM Citation
• LPGricey Tanks
• Nascar Results

Sporting positions
Preceded by John Goss Armin Hahne	Winner of the Bathurst 1000 1986 (with Graeme Bailey)	Succeeded by Peter Brock David Parsons Peter McLeod
Preceded by Dick Johnson John Bowe	Winner of the Bathurst 1000 1990 (with Win Percy)	Succeeded by Jim Richards Mark Skaife
Parliament of Queensland
Preceded by inuagural	Member for Broadwater 1992 – 2001	Succeeded by Peta-Kaye Croft