Japan's 'Gentlemans agreement'
Discussion
I've often wondered two things.
1) Why they had one
2) Why it was set at such an odd number (276bhp)
I suppose the 3rd question would be which cars were quoted at 276bhp but had loads more when tested?
The fact that you have flat 4 turbos, inline 4 and inline 6 turbos, naturally aspirated v6s, turbo v6s, v8s and v12s all quoted at the same figures says to me that it was largely ignored, which makes it even stranger!
1) Why they had one
2) Why it was set at such an odd number (276bhp)
I suppose the 3rd question would be which cars were quoted at 276bhp but had loads more when tested?
The fact that you have flat 4 turbos, inline 4 and inline 6 turbos, naturally aspirated v6s, turbo v6s, v8s and v12s all quoted at the same figures says to me that it was largely ignored, which makes it even stranger!
Once and for all, there never was any actual formal or informal agreement among the Japanese automakers not to manufacture vehicles rated above 276 net hp (better known as SAE net horsepower, different from bhp) When will this rumor ever die?!? I did a search on Google last night and found dozens of discussions on message boards of all kinds speculating on this issue, with dozens of incorrect answers & assumptions. The truth was first presented to me last year in an issue of Super Street that discussed the JGTC, and later research confirmed it. Info on that is below, excerpts of which were taken from a post I did yesterday in the "All-Motor" forum: (sorry it's so long, but it was a lot of pertinent information)
The ceiling on hp had nothing to do with a gentlemen's agreement between the manufacturer's, it also had nothing to do with driver safety or restricting exports to other countries or anything of that nature. It all had to do with racing, Japanese circuit racing.
The JGTC or All-Japan Grand Touring Championship (I hate to say it, but if you've ever played Gran Turismo 2 or 3 then you'll recognize the name VERY quickly) is a prestigious race series in Japan, similar to our NASCAR in popularity. It was created in 1994 and it's governing body the GT-A has VERY strict rules/regulations. The JGTC is seperated into 2 classes the GT 500 & GT 300; the numbers designate the ROUGH hp limits for cars competing in those classes. Motor swaps are restricted to the same manufacturer and the car's body MUST be mostly stock and fucnctional. Aero mods and suspension tweaks are the very limit of what is allowed, so in essense it is mostly stock VS stock, especially in the GT 300 class; are you beginning to see the picture?
While anything from Vipers to Ferraris to Lambos compete in the GT 500, the 300 is more homegrown. The cars that traditionally competed in the GT 300 class were the cream-of-the-crop of all of the Japanese auto manufacturers, and it's line-up consisted of cars like the Mazda FD-3S RX-7, the Mitsu 3000 GT (GTO) and afterwards the EVO, the Nissan 300ZX & Skyline, the Honda NSX, the Toyota Supra, and a few others. Ok, now are you seeing a logical trend here?!?
The JDM manufacturers wanted each of their flagship cars to be able to compete against one another without engine modification within the limits of the GT 300 Class horsepower limitations, so they all "claimed" that none of their cars made over 280 hp at the crank (but most of them underrated their vehicle's capabilities, in essense they all cheated). What better way to advertise your flagship car and prove that yours is better than your competitors than by having your mostly stock sportscar kick theirs' *** in the most prestigious, most watched racing circuit in all of Japan?!? It also made it easier for a potential team/owner to field a GT 300 Class car instead of a 500 because it was much cheaper since no engine mods would be needed. That made the GT 300 more popular than the GT 500, although the "big brother" Class attracted fans of the exotics.
Thus, the hp "limit" was born, although it was mostly bogus, because for example, some "stock" RB26DETT's (R33/34 Skyline motors) have repeatedly dyno'd well over 320 whp, but the abuses of the rule were generally allowed/ignored because they (the JDM manufacturers) were all doing it, fudging their net hp numbers to gain an advantage on the track. It was only cracked down upon by the GT-A if the races became uncompetitive, as when the Nissan Skylines dominated in the mid-90's and were banned for a short time.
So there you have it. The reason why you are seeing and will be seeing more and more cars being produced that will exceed the limit is because they will not compete in the GT Series, so they see no need to restrict them any longer (but it's obvious that cars like the 350Z and R35 are lined up for the GT 300 & Honda will increase the hp on the NSX to possibly compete in the GT 500 Series in the near future, as will Toyota's new version of the Supra).
More info on the JGTC can be found here: JGTC General Info and here:JGTC Technical Regulations.
The ceiling on hp had nothing to do with a gentlemen's agreement between the manufacturer's, it also had nothing to do with driver safety or restricting exports to other countries or anything of that nature. It all had to do with racing, Japanese circuit racing.
The JGTC or All-Japan Grand Touring Championship (I hate to say it, but if you've ever played Gran Turismo 2 or 3 then you'll recognize the name VERY quickly) is a prestigious race series in Japan, similar to our NASCAR in popularity. It was created in 1994 and it's governing body the GT-A has VERY strict rules/regulations. The JGTC is seperated into 2 classes the GT 500 & GT 300; the numbers designate the ROUGH hp limits for cars competing in those classes. Motor swaps are restricted to the same manufacturer and the car's body MUST be mostly stock and fucnctional. Aero mods and suspension tweaks are the very limit of what is allowed, so in essense it is mostly stock VS stock, especially in the GT 300 class; are you beginning to see the picture?
While anything from Vipers to Ferraris to Lambos compete in the GT 500, the 300 is more homegrown. The cars that traditionally competed in the GT 300 class were the cream-of-the-crop of all of the Japanese auto manufacturers, and it's line-up consisted of cars like the Mazda FD-3S RX-7, the Mitsu 3000 GT (GTO) and afterwards the EVO, the Nissan 300ZX & Skyline, the Honda NSX, the Toyota Supra, and a few others. Ok, now are you seeing a logical trend here?!?
The JDM manufacturers wanted each of their flagship cars to be able to compete against one another without engine modification within the limits of the GT 300 Class horsepower limitations, so they all "claimed" that none of their cars made over 280 hp at the crank (but most of them underrated their vehicle's capabilities, in essense they all cheated). What better way to advertise your flagship car and prove that yours is better than your competitors than by having your mostly stock sportscar kick theirs' *** in the most prestigious, most watched racing circuit in all of Japan?!? It also made it easier for a potential team/owner to field a GT 300 Class car instead of a 500 because it was much cheaper since no engine mods would be needed. That made the GT 300 more popular than the GT 500, although the "big brother" Class attracted fans of the exotics.
Thus, the hp "limit" was born, although it was mostly bogus, because for example, some "stock" RB26DETT's (R33/34 Skyline motors) have repeatedly dyno'd well over 320 whp, but the abuses of the rule were generally allowed/ignored because they (the JDM manufacturers) were all doing it, fudging their net hp numbers to gain an advantage on the track. It was only cracked down upon by the GT-A if the races became uncompetitive, as when the Nissan Skylines dominated in the mid-90's and were banned for a short time.
So there you have it. The reason why you are seeing and will be seeing more and more cars being produced that will exceed the limit is because they will not compete in the GT Series, so they see no need to restrict them any longer (but it's obvious that cars like the 350Z and R35 are lined up for the GT 300 & Honda will increase the hp on the NSX to possibly compete in the GT 500 Series in the near future, as will Toyota's new version of the Supra).
More info on the JGTC can be found here: JGTC General Info and here:JGTC Technical Regulations.
Robmarriott said:
I've often wondered two things.
1) Why they had one
2) Why it was set at such an odd number (276bhp)
I suppose the 3rd question would be which cars were quoted at 276bhp but had loads more when tested?
The fact that you have flat 4 turbos, inline 4 and inline 6 turbos, naturally aspirated v6s, turbo v6s, v8s and v12s all quoted at the same figures says to me that it was largely ignored, which makes it even stranger!
Curious but what V12's?1) Why they had one
2) Why it was set at such an odd number (276bhp)
I suppose the 3rd question would be which cars were quoted at 276bhp but had loads more when tested?
The fact that you have flat 4 turbos, inline 4 and inline 6 turbos, naturally aspirated v6s, turbo v6s, v8s and v12s all quoted at the same figures says to me that it was largely ignored, which makes it even stranger!
276bhp is 280PS. PS being metric horse power rather than imperial.
Makes sense then, I always assumed it was formal as its always referred to in the press that way.
One thing though, if it was literally just to get under class limits, why is it the quoted figure for things which would never ever see a race track, like the Toyota Century, Nissan President, Pajero Evolution?
One thing though, if it was literally just to get under class limits, why is it the quoted figure for things which would never ever see a race track, like the Toyota Century, Nissan President, Pajero Evolution?
Also there are a fair few Japanese cars with 276bhp that predate the JGTC if it was born in 1994 and I am quite sure that I was reading about the Japanese gentlemen's agreement in Fast Lane, which was long gone by 1994. The Skyline R32 was available in 1989, the NSX in 1990, and... um actually I can't think of any more. The 300ZX, 3000GT Supra were all 300bhp if I recall. 
xRIEx said:
sc0tt said:
(but it's obvious that cars like the 350Z and R35 are lined up for the GT 300...
Appreciate this was copied and pasted, but surely the R35 would be aimed at GT500? The first model was quoted at 478bhp.Alfanatic said:
Also there are a fair few Japanese cars with 276bhp that predate the JGTC if it was born in 1994 and I am quite sure that I was reading about the Japanese gentlemen's agreement in Fast Lane, which was long gone by 1994. The Skyline R32 was available in 1989, the NSX in 1990, and... um actually I can't think of any more. The 300ZX, 3000GT Supra were all 300bhp if I recall.
Japanese market 3000GTs (Mitsubishi GTO over there) were 276bhp.Same with Supras, only export market ones were over 276bhp.
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