Can-Am began with two races in Canada and four in the United States, initially sponsored by Johnson Wax. The series operated under the FIA Group 7 category, which allowed unrestricted engine capacity — including turbocharging and supercharging — virtually unrestricted aerodynamics, and required only two seats, bodywork enclosing the wheels, and basic safety standards. Group 7 was essentially a Formula Libre for sports cars. The category originated in Europe for non-homologated sports car "specials" and was also popular in the United Kingdom and in European hillclimb racing during the 1960s. Group 7 cars were designed for short-distance sprints rather than endurance racing. Similar Group 7 cars also competed in the European Interserie series from 1970.
The growing popularity of SCCA sports car racing among European constructors and drivers, combined with the United States Road Racing Championship for large-capacity sports racers, eventually led to the Group 7 Can-Am series. The series offered substantial prize and appearance money, attracting significant trade backing. By its peak, Can-Am cars produced well over 1,000 horsepower, featured wings, and achieved unprecedented speeds.
On track, Lola initially dominated the series — John Surtees driving a Lola T70 won the inaugural 1966 Can-Am championship. This was followed by a period known as the "Bruce and Denny show," as the McLaren works team dominated for five consecutive seasons from 1967 to 1971. A notable moment came on September 28, 1969, at Michigan International Speedway, where McLaren drivers finished first, second, and third: Bruce McLaren first, Denny Hulme second, and Dan Gurney third.
Porsche became almost unbeatable in 1972 and 1973. After Porsche's withdrawal, Shadow dominated the final season before Can-Am faded, being replaced by Formula 5000. Racing was rarely close — one marque was usually dominant — but the noise and spectacle made the series highly popular.
The 1973 oil crisis and rising costs of competing led to the original series folding after the 1974 season. An SCCA Continental Championship Formula 5000 series became the leading road-racing series in North America.
Notable drivers in the original Can-Am series included Jim Hall, Mark Donohue, Mario Andretti, Parnelli Jones, George Follmer, Dan Gurney, Phil Hill, Denny Hulme, Jacky Ickx, Bruce McLaren, Jackie Oliver, Peter Revson, John Surtees, and Charlie Kemp. Al Holbert, Alan Jones, and Al Unser Jr. are among the drivers who launched their careers in the revived Can-Am series.
Can-Am served as a proving ground for cutting-edge technology. Can-Am cars were among the first race cars to use sport wings, effective turbocharging, ground-effect aerodynamics, and aerospace materials like titanium. This technological ambition contributed to the prohibitive costs that eventually brought down the original series. During its peak, Can-Am cars were frequently as fast as or faster than contemporary Formula One cars around certain circuits.
McLaren cars were specially designed race cars, developed from sports cars introduced in 1964 for North American sports car races. The team works car for 1964 was the M1; for 1965, the M1A prototype was the factory car and the basis for customer Elva M1A cars. In late 1965, the M1b (Mk2) was the factory car, driven by Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon. In 1967, specifically for Can-Am, the team introduced the M6A, which also introduced what became the trademark orange color for the team.
The McLaren team was considered very "multinational" for the era, consisting of team owner Bruce McLaren, fellow New Zealander Chris Amon, 1967 Formula One world champion Denny Hulme, team manager Teddy Mayer, and mechanics from the US, UK, Australia, and New Zealand. The M6 series used a full aluminum monocoque design and was powered by Chevy "mouse-motor" small-block V8s built by Al Bartz Engines in Van Nuys, California. The M8A followed in 1968, built around the Chevy big-block V8 "rat motor" as a stressed member of the chassis.
McLaren dominated so thoroughly that Can-Am was often called the "Bruce and Denny show." Bruce McLaren died on June 2, 1970, at Goodwood when the rear bodywork of his prototype M8D detached during testing, causing a fatal high-speed crash. The works team continued with other drivers before withdrawing to concentrate on Formula One.
The Porsche 908 spyder competed in Can-Am but was underpowered at 350 hp and was mainly used by underfunded teams; it did win the 1970 Road Atlanta race when more powerful cars retired. The 917PA, a spyder version of the 917K Le Mans car, was also raced but its normally aspirated flat-12 produced only 530 hp.
In 1971, the 917/10 was introduced — not turbocharged, but lighter with cleaner bodywork; Jo Siffert managed a fourth-place championship finish with it. For 1972, the 917/10K with a turbocharged 900 hp five-litre flat-12 was introduced. Prepared by Roger Penske and driven by Mark Donohue and George Follmer, these cars won six of nine races. Porsche then introduced the 917/30KL, nicknamed the "Turbopanzer," producing 1,100 hp in race trim and up to 1,580 hp in qualifying trim from its 5.4-litre flat-12 and weighing 1,800 lb (816 kg). This car won six of eight races in the 1973 championship. Porsche's dominance was such that engine rules were changed to enforce a fuel-consumption rule for 1974. In 1975, Donohue drove the 917/30KL to a closed-course world speed record of 221 mph average (356 km/h) at Talladega Superspeedway.
Jim Hall's Chaparrals were highly innovative, following his earlier success in the United States Road Racing Championship. The 2 series Chaparrals, engineered with support from Chevrolet's research and development division, were leaders in the application of aerodynamics to race cars. The 2E, introduced in 1966, was the first high-wing race car. The 2G was a development of that design. After the FIA banned movable aerodynamic devices, Chaparral responded with the 2H in 1969, which sought to reduce drag but achieved limited success. The 2J that followed used a small snowmobile engine to power a pair of rear fans, which combined with movable Lexan skirts around the bottom of the car to create downforce without drag — a concept that later appeared in Formula One in the 1978 Brabham BT46B.
The Lola T70, T160-165, T220, T260, and T310 were campaigned by the factory and various customers, primarily Chevy-powered. John Surtees driving a Lola T70 won the first Can-Am championship in 1966. The 1971 Lola T260 had some success, with Jackie Stewart taking two victories. In 1972, the radical Lola T310 made its appearance — the longest and widest Can-Am car of that era — but it was delivered late, suffered handling problems throughout the year, and achieved a best finish of fourth at Watkins Glen.
Other manufacturers competed with limited success. Established European constructors such as Lotus, CRD (in the form of their Merlyn Mk8 Chevrolet), Ferrari, and BRM appeared at various times. March attempted to establish itself in 1970–71. Ford competed with cars based on the GT40 and its successors.
British engineer Peter Bryant designed the Ti22 (also known as the Autocoast) as an American-built challenger to the British McLarens and Lolas, making extensive use of titanium in its chassis and suspension. Bryant later moved to Don Nichols' UOP-sponsored Shadow team. Shadow debuted with an unconventional car featuring tiny wheels and radiators mounted on top of the rear wing, designed by Trevor Harris; more conventional cars designed by Bryant replaced them. After Bryant's departure, turbocharged Shadows came to dominate as Porsche and McLaren faded.
The last year for the original Can-Am championship was 1974. Spiraling costs, a recession in North America following the oil crisis, and dwindling interest led to the series being canceled; the last scheduled race of the 1974 season was not run.
The Can-Am name was revived in 1977, with a new series based on a closed-wheel version of the recently canceled Formula A/5000 rules. It grew in status, particularly during the USAC/CART conflicts of the late 1970s and early 1980s, and attracted top road-racing teams. A 2L class was added for the last several years based on Formula Two chassis. The series faded as IMSA and CART racing grew in stature and concluded in 1987, after which the series evolved into the Can-Am Teams Thunder Cars Championship and then the American Indycar Series.
In 1991, a Shelby Can-Am series was created using production sports-bodied cars designed by Carroll Shelby, powered by a 3.3-litre Dodge V6. The series ran for five years before being dropped by the SCCA; a large number of cars were subsequently relocated to South Africa.
The name was revived again in 1998 when the United States Road Racing Championship broke away from IMSA. Their top prototype class was named Can-Am, but the series folded before the end of 1999.
This article is based solely on the supplied corpus. No external sources were consulted; claims that could not be substantiated against the corpus were omitted under the drop-the-claim rule.
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