In 1993, Wayne Gardner joined the Australian Touring Car Championship with Holden Racing Team (HRT), driving a VP Commodore. He missed the Sandown 500 due to a sponsorship dispute, as Tom Walkinshaw attempted to leverage Gardner’s seat to secure Coca-Cola as HRT’s naming sponsor.
Gardner returned for the Bathurst 1000, partnering with Brad Jones to claim his only Bathurst podium. The dispute was resolved when Peter Brock rejoined HRT with Mobil sponsorship in 1994, though HRT later adopted Coca-Cola’s red and white colors from 1998 to 2009.
In 1994, Gardner founded Wayne Gardner Racing (WGR) with Coca-Cola backing. The team achieved its sole round win at Calder Park in 1997 but faced financial struggles, scaling back in 1999 before closing by season's end.
The Cars
Unfortunately neither Wayne's debut VP Commodore nor his first Bathurst podium car were ever produced in 1:18, however the latter was immortalised by Dinkum Classics in 1:43 scale (HVP270A).
Only two WGR cars were ever produced in 1:18, both Bathurst cars - one by Classic Carlectables and the other by AUTOart/Biante.
89963 - 1999 FAI 1000 4th Place Finish - Wayne Gardner / Geoff Brabham - VT Commodore
Released in January 2001 by AUTOart via Biante
Production run of 6000
18565 - 1995 Tooheys 1000 3rd Place Finish - Wayne Gardner / Neil Crompton - VR Commodore
Released in August 2007 by Classic Carlectables
Production run of 750
The Other Coca-Cola Cars
The first car that comes to mind is the Moff-Stang but let's set that one aside for now - we'll do a separate write up on that given its popularity and profile. Let's instead focus on modern Australian tourings cars in 1:18 scale.
B18H21G - 2021 Repco Bathurst 500, Race 2 - Macauley Jones - Brad Jones Racing ZB Commodore
Released in January 2023 by Biante
Production run of 375
B18H21V - Repco Bathurst 1000 - Macauley Jones / Chris Pither - Brad Jones Racing ZB Commodore
Released in February 2023 by Biante
Production run of 310
ACR18H22G - 2022 Repco Bathurst 1000 - Chris Pither / Cameron Hill - PremiAir Coca-Cola Racing ZB Commodore
Released in June 2023 by Authentic Collectables
Production run of 234 - the lowest production run of any Coca-Cola sponsored car
ACD18C23CW - 2023 Championship Winner - Brodie Kostecki - Coca-Cola Racing by Erebus Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Released in December 2024 by Authentic Collectables
Production run of 906
ACD18C23Q - 2023 Bathurst Pole Winner - Brodie Kostecki / David Russell - Coca-Cola Racing by Erebus Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Released in December 2024 by Authentic Collectables
Production run of 396
ACD18C23R - 2023 Bathurst 1000 - Will Brown / Jack Perkins - Coca-Cola Racing by Erebus Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Released in December 2024 by Authentic Collectables
Production run of 234