2008 British Touring Car Championship

After capturing the Drivers and Manufacturers titles in their first season with the Vectra, the Triple 8-run works Vauxhall squad expanded to three cars for 2008. Reigning champion Fabrizio Giovanardi remained on board, being joined by Matt Neal, returning to Vauxhall for the first time since 2002 after leaving his family-run Team Dynamics squad, with whom he won back-to-back titles in 2005 and 2006. The third car was piloted by Tom Onslow-Cole, who impressed at the wheel of a WSR BMW in his debut BTCC campaign in 2007.

SEAT were once again the only other full-works operation, and fitted their Leons with the rapid yet often unreliable turbo diesel engines being used by the marque's World Touring Car Championship operation. Jason Plato, who came extremely close to securing a second BTCC title the previous year, remained on board, as did GT convert Darren Turner.

Tom Chilton, moving the opposite direction after two years with Vauxhall, replaced the outgoing Neal at Team Dynamics (again running as Team Halfords), with Gordon Shedden remaining on board in the other of their self-developed Honda Civics. As with the previous year, in spite of not being a factory-backed operation, the cars were not eligible for Independents points due to their dominance of the category with the Integra in 2005 and 2006.

West Surrey Racing (again running as Team RAC) campaigned the BMW 320is for a second year, with reigning Independents champion Colin Turkington again heading the team and single-seater convert Stephen Jelley replacing the Vauxhall-bound Onslow-Cole. Mat Jackson returned in his 320is after a successful debut season in 2007, with his small family-run operation now enjoying BMW Dealer Team UK backing.

Motorbase Performance also joined the BMW brigade after ditching their SEAT Toledos, with former Independents champion Rob Collard returned to the series full-time with the team after spending most of 2007 away. He was partnered by Steven Kane, who had been a front-runner for the team in the Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain after making the switch from single-seaters. Also leaving the Toledo behind for 2008 were GR Asia (again running under the Team Air Cool banner), who switched to a newer Leon (which ran with its original petrol engine unlike the works cars) for the returning Adam Jones.

Team Eurotech continued with the ex-Team Dynamics Honda Integra for a third year, expanding to two cars with team boss Mike Jordan now joined by his 18-year-old son Andrew, who had impressed in rallycross before making his road racing debut in the Renault Clio Cup in 2007. John George also campaigned his Integra for a second year with TH Motorsport.

Alan Taylor returned for a full season in his Integra with Robertshaw Racing, having debuted in the closing meetings of 2007. The team also added a pair of ex-WTCC Chevrolet Lacettis to their line-up driven by Matt Allison, switching from Motorbase, and SEAT Cupra Championship graduate Harry Vaulkhard, the first Chevrolets to compete in the series since 1975. Allison left the team due to budgetary reasons after the first three meetings and was not replaced.

Among the other returnees were Kartworld Racing (entered as Team KWR), who continued to run the venerable MG ZS, cutting back to a single example for team boss Jason Hughes. Tech-Speed Motorsport, again running under the Arkas Racing banner, expanded to two cars for its second year with the Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch, Turkey's Erkut Kizilirmak being joined by Martin Bell, who had piloted a Geoff Steel Racing BMW in the previous two years.

BTC Racing began the year running their temperamental Lexus IS200s from the previous two seasons, before switching to a pair of SEAT Toledos acquired from Motorbase from the second round onwards. Team stalwart Chris Stockton remained alongside multiple truck racing champion Stuart Oliver, who was making his first steps into cars. Gareth Howell, who appeared in a Toledo for Motorbase in 2007, was recruited to replace Oliver at meetings that clashed with his truck racing commitments, making two such appearances before Oliver left the championship and the second car was dropped.

The only all-new entry to the championship came in the shape of young Scotsman Michael Doyle, who had been a race winner in the Clio Cup the previous year. He ran a BTCC-spec Honda Civic Type-R, originally built and run by the works Arena operation between 2002 and 2005, with his family-run In-Tune Racing team.

Team 48 Motorsport registered a two-car entry with Darrelle Wilson and Jamaican Matthew Gore as the drivers. The team intended to run the Alfa Romeos run by A-Tech in 2007 but after repeatedly delaying their debut, the team ultimately never raced.

• Dunlop was no longer the title sponsor of the BTCC, being replaced by HiQ. However, both brands shared the same parent company.

Pos	Driver	BHI			ROC			DON			THR			CRO			SNE			OUL			KNO			SIL			BHI			Pts
1	Fabrizio Giovanardi	1*	1*	6	5	2*	5	8	1*	4	3	10*	3	4	5	1*	7	3	3	3	2	6	2	2	5	5	1*	3	14	DNS	11	262
2	Mat Jackson	2*	4	2	6	1*	Ret	Ret	11	8	5	5	2	18*	2	5	15	7	1*	12	5	4	6	5	4	2	13*	1*	1*	1*	4	226
3	Jason Plato	3	3	5	9	9	6	1*	2*	3	DSQ	7	1*	12	8	12	1*	1*	Ret	1*	NC*	9	1*	1*	Ret	1*	7*	5*	5	Ret	13	223
4	Colin Turkington	20	8	1*	16	6	7*	9*	13	12	2	2*	6	1*	1*	8	5	2	6	4	1*	7	5	7	15	4	2	4	4	3	5	212
5	Matt Neal	5	7	3	3	11	1*	2	Ret	6	4	3	4	2	3	3	10	5	4	15	7	5	16	10	7	6	4	15	6	2	8	185
6	Tom Onslow-Cole	7	6	Ret	7	5	Ret	3*	3	2	1*	1*	7	19	11	7	6	14	5	5	3	11	3	3	12	11	6	6*	9	8	3	170
7	Gordon Shedden	6	2	Ret	1*	4	4	4	9*	10	13*	8	17*	3*	Ret	6	4	8	Ret	7	8	1*	4	4	8	13	8	11	13	9	9	144
8	Darren Turner	4	5	Ret	2	3*	Ret	19	4	1*	6	4	16	15	9	Ret	2	19*	16	6	Ret	16	Ret	8	1*	3	Ret	19	7	Ret	12	133
9	Adam Jones	10	10	18	4	8	3	7	7	7	8	6	5	8	6	2	13	10	DSQ	8	6	2	8	12	10	8	3	2	11	11	Ret	119
10	Tom Chilton	9	Ret	7	8	7	2	Ret	5	5	7	12	Ret	Ret	14	4	3	15	7	2	11	Ret	10	11	6	12	Ret	9	8	6	1*	107
11	Steven Kane	8	Ret	DNS	10	10	13	6	12	16	12	13	9	7	Ret	Ret	8	6	2	9	4	Ret	12	14	9	Ret	5	12	2	5	2	86
12	Rob Collard	12	Ret	11	13	12	8	Ret	DNS	Ret	14	14	11	5	4	Ret*	9	4	9	10	Ret	8	7	6	2	16	9	7	3	4	6	84
13	Andrew Jordan	15	14	9	Ret	Ret	Ret	5	6	Ret	10	9	Ret	10	Ret	10	Ret	Ret	Ret	13	9	3*	9	9	3	9	Ret	20	10	7	7	56
14	Mike Jordan	13	9	4	Ret	Ret	9	10	Ret	9	9	15	8	6	7	Ret	11	9	Ret	Ret	DNS	DNS	11	13	11	Ret	10	Ret	12	10	10	34
15	Stephen Jelley	14	11	10	11	15	11	Ret	Ret	13	11	11	Ret	Ret	10	9	12	11	8	11	10	15	13	15	13	7	Ret	10	Ret	12	Ret	14
16	Michael Doyle	NC	18	15	20	Ret	Ret	15	Ret	DNS	15	Ret	DNS	9	Ret	DNS	Ret	13	11	16	Ret	13	Ret	Ret	Ret	15	Ret	8	15	Ret	DNS	5
17	Matt Allison	11	12	8	12	Ret	DNS	Ret	DNS	DNS																						3
18	Chris Stockton	Ret	DNS	DNS	DNS	DNS	DNS	13	8	Ret	19	Ret	Ret	11	18	Ret				Ret	14	Ret	Ret	17	17	Ret	DNS	DNS	Ret	DNS	DNS	3
19	Harry Vaulkhard	18	15	14	Ret	13	14	12	14	11	Ret	16	10	13	13	11	14	17	15	14	12	12	Ret	16	14	10	12	13	16	13	14	2
20	Jason Hughes	16	13	13	14	14	15	11	10	14	16	18	13	14	12	DNS	16	12	12	Ret	15	10	Ret	Ret	16	14	11	Ret	Ret	14	15	2
21	John George	17	19	12	15	16	Ret	Ret	DNS	DNS	20	NC	12	17	17	Ret	17	16	10	17	Ret	Ret	14	20	19	19	15	14	Ret	15	Ret	1
22	Erkut Kızılırmak	19	16	17	17	18	10	16	Ret	DNS	22	19	14	16	15	13	18	Ret	13							18	DNS	17	18	17	Ret	1
23	Martyn Bell	Ret	17	16	18	17	12	14	Ret	Ret	17	Ret	15	20	16	Ret	Ret	18	14	18	13	14	Ret	18	18	17	14	18	17	16	Ret	0
24	Alan Taylor	21	20	Ret	21	19	DNS	18	Ret	DNS	21	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNS	DNS	Ret	Ret	Ret	NC	Ret	Ret	15	19	20	Ret	DNS	16	19	DNS	16	0
25	Stuart Oliver	Ret	Ret	DNS	19	Ret	Ret	17	Ret	15				21	Ret	DNS																0
26	Gareth Howell										18	17	Ret							Ret	DNS	DNS										0
Pos	Driver	BHI			ROC			DON			THR			CRO			SNE			OUL			KNO			SIL			BHI			Pts

• Note: bold signifies pole position (1 point given in first race only, and race 2 and 3 poles are based on race results), italics signifies fastest lap (1 point given all races) and * signifies at least one lap in the lead (1 point given all races).

* – BTC Racing lose all points for three changes of engine.
** – Team Eurotech lose 10 points for three changes of engine.
*** – Team Air Cool and Team Halfords lose 20 points for four changes of engine.

* – BTC Racing & Team Eurotech lose 10 points for three changes of engine.
** – Team Air Cool lose 20 points for four changes of engine.