Australian Formula 3 has been the name applied to two distinctly different motor racing categories, separated by over twenty years. The original Australian Formula 3 was introduced in 1964 based on the

FIA Formula 3 The FIA Formula 3 Championship is a third-tier international single-seater racing championship and organised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The championship launched in 2019 as a feeder series for the FIA Formula 1 W ...

of the period and intended as a cost-efficient open wheel category to run at state level for amateur racers. It was discontinued at the end of 1977. Formula 3 was reintroduced to Australia in 1999, again based on FIA Formula 3. An Australian Formula 3 Championship was sanctioned by the

Confederation of Australian Motor Sport Motorsport Australia, formerly the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport (CAMS), is the nationally recognised governing and sanctioning body for four-wheeled motorsport in Australia. It is affiliated with the Federation Internationale de l'Au ...

for the first time in 2001. From 2005 to 2014 the

Australian Drivers' Championship The Australian Drivers' Championship was a motor racing championship contested annually from 1957 to 2014 by drivers of cars complying with Australia's premier open-wheeler racing category as determined by the Confederation of Australian Motor ...

title (CAMS Gold Star) was also awarded to the winner of the championship. For 2015 the series reverted to the single title of Australian Formula 3 Championship. Following the withdrawal of national championship status, an Australian Formula 3 Premier Series has been contested since 2016.

History – The First Era

The Australian Formula 3 category was introduced by the

in 1964 as the fourth tier of formula car racing in Australia, below the

Australian National Formula The Australian National Formula (often abbreviated to ANF) was an Australian motor racing category which was introduced by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport in 1964 and remained current until the end of 1969. It had replaced Formula Libre ...

, the

Australian 1½ Litre Formula The Australian 1½ Litre Formula was a motor racing category which was current in Australia from 1964 to 1968. The formula specified racing cars with four-cylinder unsupercharged engines using commercially available fuel and limited to 1500cc capaci ...

and

Australian Formula 2 Australian Formula 2, sometimes abbreviated to AF2 or ANF2, is a "wings and slicks" formula racing category in Australia. The category is one of Australia's oldest, dating back to 1964. The current format of AF2 was introduced in 1978. Brian Shea ...

. Initially the formula was as per

, with cars restricted to using production based engines of under 1000cc capacity with overhead camshafts not permitted. For 1969 the engine capacity limit was increased to 1100cc and the prohibition on overhead camshafts was removed. 1972 saw the engine capacity limit lifted to 1300cc. 1977 was to be the last year of the first era of Australian Formula 3 as the category was discontinued at the end of the season. Formula 3 was never run under national championship status, although there were State Championships and the Stillwell Series.

History – The Modern Era

Bruno Senna 2006 Australian Grand Prix-3

The modern era began when 2 Litre Formula 3 cars were introduced into Australia in 1999, competing alongside 1600cc

cars in the Australian Formula 2 National Series. In the following year CAMS introduced

FIA FIA is the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (English: International Automobile Federation), the world's governing body for all forms of motor sport where four or more wheels are used. Fia or FIA may also refer to: People * Fia Backst ...

specifications for Formula 3 cars in Australia and Formula 3 drivers now had their own Formula 3 National Series. Agreement was reached with CAMS to grant National Championship status to the Formula 3 Series for 2001 and it officially became the Australian Formula 3 Championship in that year.Australian Titles
Retrieved from CAMS Online Manual of Motor Sport on 21 July 2009. By the 2005 season CAMS had decreed that Australian Formula 3 was now Australia's premier open-wheel racing car class (displacing

Formula 4000 In science, a formula is a concise way of expressing information symbolically, as in a mathematical formula or a ''chemical formula''. The informal use of the term ''formula'' in science refers to the general construct of a relationship betwee ...

) and as such the

title (and the associated CAMS Gold Star) would be awarded on the results of the Australian Formula 3 Championship.FORMULA 3 TO RACE FOR THE AUSTRALIAN DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP IN 2005
Retrieved from Internet Archive on 21 October 2008.

List of Champions

Following the running of a National Series in 1999 and 2000, official national title status was granted by the Confederation of Australian Motorsport from 2001 onwards. From 2005 to 2014 the winner of the Australian Formula 3 Championship was also awarded the CAMS Gold Star and the

title. In 2015 CAMS stripped the Gold Star Award from the Australian Formula 3 Championship citing low grid numbers. With the loss of national championship status for 2016 the series was renamed the Australian Formula 3 Premier Series. Aligning with the Australian Motor Racing Series from 2019 the series returned to National Championship status. 99AustF3champion

84 2006 Aust F3 C'Ship, Ben Clucas (UK), Dallara F304

Australian Formula 3 National Series

Australian Formula 3 Championship

Australian Formula 3 Championship / Australian Drivers' Championship

Australian Formula 3 Championship

The Australian Formula 3 Championship was renamed the Australian Formula 3 Premier Series by Formula 3 Management Pty Ltd from 2016-2018, returning to Australian Formula 3 Championship from 2019.

List of constructors in Australian Formula 3

Cars built by the following constructors have raced in Australian Formula 3

Historic Era

*Aztec *

Birrana Birrana was the name of two motor racing organisations, both associated with South Australian racing driver and engineer Malcolm Ramsay. From 1971 to 1978 Birrana constructed a series of successful open-wheel racing cars as well as a Holden V8 ...

Elfin Elfin may refer to: * ELFIN, a CubeSat developed by University of California, Los Angeles * Elfin (steamboat), a steamboat that ran on Lake Washington from 1891 to 1900 * Elfin of Alt Clut, ruler of Alt Clut, seventh century Scotland *Elfin, a cha ...

Cheetah The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large cat native to Africa and central Iran. It is the fastest land animal, estimated to be capable of running at with the fastest reliably recorded speeds being , and as such has evolved specialized ...

* Alpha Sports Productions ASP

Modern Era

Dallara Dallara is an Italian race car manufacturer, founded by its current President, Gian Paolo Dallara. After working for Ferrari, Maserati, Lamborghini and De Tomaso, in 1972 in his native village of Varano de' Melegari (Parma), Italy he created "D ...

Mygale Mygale Racing Car Constructor (Mygale SARL) is a French racing car manufacturer that specialises in the production of single seater chassis for use in formula racing. It is most notable for its Formula Ford chassis. Mygale also produces the cha ...

Reynard Reynard the Fox is a literary cycle of medieval allegorical Dutch, English, French and German fables. The first extant versions of the cycle date from the second half of the 12th century. The genre was popular throughout the Late Middle Ages, as ...

References

External links

Official Web Page
formula3.com.au
Sporting & Technical Regulations and Commercial Arrangements
Retrieved from www.camsmanual.com.au on 21 July 2009
Confederation of Australian Motor Sport
cams.com.au
CAMS Manual
camsmanual.com.au {{Formula Regional 1999 establishments in Australia Formula racing Motorsport categories in Australia