Categories
Motorsports

Group Cex

Le Mans - Group C racing on show in 2010

If you’re of the right age then Le Mans Group C cars will hold a special place in your heart. They are beautiful.

Well, if you do happen to be of that age then get ready to get all excited down below. At next year’s Le Mans race there will be a 45 minute support race featuring the Group C cars that will take place hours before the start of the next 24 hour classic.

Bob Berridge of Group C/GTP Racing explains, “There has already been a huge surge in interest by potential and existing competitors to race at this event, and we’re expecting a wide range of marques on the grid – from Porsche, Jaguar, Mazda, Spice and Mercedes, to Aston Martin, Nissan, Argo and Tiga.”

If you’d like to find out more, check out the following sites: www.motorracinglegends.com or www.groupcracing.com.

Happy, happy, joy, joy!

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Categories
Porsche

2010 Porsche 911 GT3 R

Porsche 911 GT3 R

Amateur racers of the world rejoice, your new weapon of choice is about to be ready. Sure, you’ll need around €280,000 (AU$450,000), but Porsche say their new 911 GT3 R is the one for you.

In simple terms this is a 911 GT3 Cup that has been further beefed up. Engine capacity has increased from 3.8 to 4.0 litres and the power has obligingly come up as well. So, you now have a very respectable 353kW (480bhp) to play with and only 1200kg of racecar to lug around.

The GT3 R replaces the GT3 Cup S and is good to go international FIA GT3 races. Porsche say they have improved handling and made the car easier to drive. What’s not to like about that. With a sequential six-speed box that automagically blips the throttle for you you’d have to be trying pretty damn hard not to enjoy driving this thing.

The GT3 Cup R will be released at the world famous Birmingham Motor Show in mid January next year, with customer deliveries to take place a couple of months later. Now, where to find me an amateur racer with a lazy half mill lying around.

There’s more from Porsche below.

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Categories
Formula 1 McLaren

And in other news, Button has signed with McLaren

Button to McLaren

Given yesterday’s news, multiple reports tonight claiming Jenson Button has indeed signed with McLaren come as no surprise.

Button will hope he can maintain the image above and stay ahead of his new teammate and 2008 World Champion Lewis Hamilton. But, word on the interwebz suggests that Button is making a terrible mistake and will not be able hold a candle to the talents of Lewis Hamilton.

Whatever the case may be, you can bet the big winner out of this will be the sport’s rights holder Bernie Ecclestone who will be loving the hype generated by this news. Perhaps, the losers out of a Hamilton-Button driver pairing are the fans in countries like Australia who take the television feed and race commentary of BBC’s F1 coverage. Brundle and Legard are likely to be totally insufferable in describing the efforts of the McLaren duo.

[Source: BBC]

UPDATE: McLaren have confirmed the Button signing, you can read their press release below.

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Categories
Formula 1 Mercedes-Benz

Schumacher to drive for Mercedes GP in 2010?

Michael Schumacher

Hang on to your hats, the F1 rumour mill is about to go into hyperdrive with reports suggesting Michael Schumacher could be tempted out of retirement to re-unite with Ross Brawn at the revamped Mercedes GP team in 2010.

The speculation is being fuelled by two main factors. First, Schumacher has left his role as an advisor to the Ferrari F1 team. Secondly, with Jenson Button seemingly destined for a seat at McLaren the scene is set for an all-German dream team in the new “Silver Arrows” at Mercedes GP.

Okay, sure, Schumacher still holds a key role at Ferrari’s road car department which may scupper any plans of an F1 comeback with the German giants. But, the seven time world champion could almost taste an F1 return earlier in the year when a Maranello red Formula One carrot was dangled in front of him in the form of a part time drive to cover for the injured Felipe Massa.

In the end, that chance was taken away due a neck injury he suffered earlier in the year. Would the promise a full time drive in a new German super-team, headed by his ex-Ferrari master tactician Ross Brawn, be enough to lure Schumacher back to the sport?

Norbert Haug, Mercedes motorsport chief, expects to announce the team’s driver pairing in the next couple of weeks. He’s not revealed any concrete plans to offer Schumacher a seat, but has said, “I think and hope we can announce something in the course of the next couple of weeks. We will do a very good job in that respect as well I can promise you – and maybe we can create some surprises.”

I must admit I am not one of Michael’s greatest fans, but even I can see how spectacularly awesome this would be for F1 were the Schumacher-Mercedes rumour to come true. Please let it be so.

[Source: Autocar]

Categories
BMW

Blast from the past

BMW 3/15

Fifteen horsepower in a car is hardly anything to get excited about, even if it only has 550kg to lug around. But these were the keys stats of BMW’s first car, the 3/15. If it looks familiar to our British readers, that’s because, essentially, the car was an Austin 7.

After the jump you can see a short clip from BMW’s YouTube channel, which gives a bit more history on the “Dixi”. To be fair, the clip is a bit slow moving, but I did get a bit of a kick out of the footage showing a 3/15 blasting up the Stelvio Pass. A classic driving road, to be sure, but perhaps a car with such modest performance capabilities is not the first that would come to mind if one could pick any from history to tackle the classic climbing route.

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Categories
Porsche

I love 911s, but I couldn’t eat a whole one

Porsche 911 choc top

Some car dealers will go to extraordinary lengths to attract publicity, but Porsche Centrum Gelderland in the Netherlands seems to have hit the sweet spot with this stunt. They have covered a 911 Carrera S in chocolate to attract attention to themselves. And, hats off to them, it has worked with this little blog on the other side of the world giving them a free plug.

The dealer went to these extraordinary lengths in honour of the “Sinterklaas” holiday, celebrated in the Netherlands on 5 December. Apparently 175kg of chocolate was used to cover the car. That really is a lot of chocolate!

Perhaps more astounding is the revelation that this car will be on display until Christmas. The dealer says the dealership won’t get over 27°C, and leading into a European winter, the chocolate sculpture is bound to be pretty safe.

Chocolate and supercars.—what a wonderful, if bizarre combination, I still couldn’t eat a whole one, though.

More sweetness after the jump.

[Source: AutoTelegraaf via autoblog]

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Categories
Audi

No quattro for Audi S1?

Audi S1 rendering

Earlier hopes of a hotted up all-wheel drive Audi A1, likely to wear Audi’s hallowed S1 badge, ready to take it up to the MINI John Cooper Works could be dashed.

Back in January Auto Express told us of Audi’s plans to build a 200hp S1 fitted with a rear-biased quattro drivetrain. Now, new details suggest that Audi’s quattro system will not be found on any A1-based car. A real sense of irony, then, that the 21st century S1 appears to be FWD only.

According to a recent article from German website AutoBild the A1 will utilise a solely front-wheel drive platform and is due for its first major reveal, in coupé form only, at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show. Market release for the three door will follow some time around September 2010. Sales of the five-door Sportback model would commence in late 2011, with plans for a cabrio version to be released in 2012.

Getting back to the feisty S1 model, it is expected to be fitted with a 1.4 TFSI producing around 140kW and 250Nm of torque. Australian customers will get a glimpse of that engine when the next Polo GTI is launched down under in 2010.

The only transmission option available for the S1 would be a 7-speed S tronic. The car should be capable of reaching 100km/h somewhere in the high 6 second range.

The AutoBild piece has quite a lot of interesting tidbits in there. Copy the link below and stick it into your favourite online translator and see just how serious Audi is at taking up the challenge to MINI.

[Source: AutoBild via The German Car Blog]

Categories
Motorsports Video

Smash up derby

Ouch! Here for your enjoyment, if you can call it that, is 10 minutes of YouTube carnage titled “Crazy Finns Crashing”.

Seems noone bothered to the tell the Finnish the old motorsport adage, to finish first, first you have to finish.

Given the recent Jenson Button rumours, you have to wonder if we will see Kimi Raikonnen adding to this party clip in 2010.

[via TopGear.com]

Categories
Volkswagen

Volkswagen to run amok at Dakar

Volkswagen Pickup Concept

Well, Volkswagen to run Amarok at Dakar, to be precise. Volkswagen’s new pickup will be used as the official support and fleet vehicle of the 2010 Dakar Rally (1-17 January).

Continuing to suffer something of an identity crisis the Dakar will again be held in South America (Argentina and Chile), starting and ending in Buenos Aires. Twenty Amarok will be used to ferry officials around during the rally, while a further fifteen will be used for press and general shuttle duties.

Volkswagen, of course, have a strong recent history with the Dakar Rally. Earlier this year VW fielded a strong three car team running Touaregs. South African driver Giniel de Villiers won the event, with the Touareg of American Mark Miller finishing in second. Former WRC champion Carlos Sainz was leading the event before suffering an unfortunate crash that saw him retire from the race.

The support act is a sort of homecoming for the Amarok which will be built at Volkswagen’s Pacheco plant near Buenos Aires. Shortly after the Dakar the newest addition to Volkswagen’s commerical range will be launched in South America, followed by Europe.

The Pickup concept was seen in Australia at the Melbourne International Motor Show in February and, according to previous reports, the Amarok is due in local showrooms late next year, as well.

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Categories
Formula 1 McLaren

Breaking: Button agrees to McLaren move

Jenson Button

The Guardian currently leads its sport page with a story declaring that reigning F1 world champion Jenson Button has agreed to join the McLaren team on a three year deal.

While nothing has been made official, just yet, it is expected the £6 £18 million deal will be signed off in the coming days.

Button’s reported salary of £2 £6 million per season is well short of Lewis Hamilton’s wage, which is understood to be a very healthy £12 million per year, thanks very much. Assuming this deal goes through, a Hamilton-Button driver pairing is sure to make fascinating viewing in 2010.

[Source: guardian.co.uk | Thanks to Mark for the tip]

Categories
Porsche

VIDEO: Evo tests 911 GT3 RS and GT3 Cup

Porsche 911 GT3 RS

Chris Harris from Evo is fast becoming my new anti-hero. He’s doing many of the things we’d all love to be doing, and yet, I hate him at the same time! After the jump you can watch as he spends a few minutes showing off in a Porsche 911 GT3 RS, before really rubbing our noses in it as he takes control of a GT3 Cup car.

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Categories
Formula 1 McLaren Mercedes-Benz

McLaren and Mercedes build a bridge

McLaren & Mercedes build a bridge

If we’re to believe the spin McLaren and Mercedes will part ways under mutual agreement. The basics of this agreement were given in Daimler AG’s announcement of the BrawnGP buy-in. Now, McLaren are making happy family noises, as well.

A statement on the McLaren website begins, “McLaren and Mercedes-Benz are delighted to announce a realigned long-term strategic alliance.

“The agreement covers the next six Formula 1 seasons (2010-15) and also provides mechanisms whereby the partnership may continue beyond 2015.”

McLaren will buy back the 40% share owned by Mercedes, with the purchase scheduled to be completed by 2011. Interestingly, for the time being, the Woking-based outfit will continue to race as the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes team in their familiar silver and red livery.

Reading between the lines it seems as though McLaren welcome the independence from Mercedes in the lead up to the launch of their new road car, the MP4-12C. While Mercedes will, theoretically, enjoy greater control over their new F1 team.