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Filed under: Motorsports , Hatchbacks , Mazda , Australia Click above for a high-res gallery of the Targa Tasmania-ready Mazda3 MPS. Mazda is heading Down Under to compete in the Targa Tasmania for its eighth campaign. The team, consisting of Rick Bates and Alister McRae, will be charging through the outback in one specially prepped Mazda3 MPS (or Mazdaspeed3 to those of us in NA). The 2WD Showroom Targa rules dictate that the vehicle has to remain somewhat stock, with the carpeting, power windows and audio equipment keeping things civil as the driving duo covers over 2,000 km during the six-day race. Naturally, the Mazda is outfitted with the necessary safety equipment, including a PCD roll cage, racing seats, five-point harnesses and a fire extinguisher, but the performance modifications are kept to a minimum. The MPS is equipped with upgraded springs and struts, brake pads, a new steering wheel, navigation equipment, cat-back exhaust (cats are still fitted), some additional ducting to...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Coupes , Lotus , Australia Click above for a high-res gallery of the Lotus Exige GT3. Aussie racing fans are in for a treat during the Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix this weekend, where the updated Lotus Exige GT3 will make its official debut. The revised racer is still packing the same supercharged 1.8-liter mill from the road-going Exige S, but it's been tweaked to created almost 350 hp and 224 lb.-ft. of torque (we're guessing through the use of a liquid-to-air intercooler and around 16 pounds of boost heaved into the built motor). Additionally, Lotus has revised the aero bits to increase downforce and reduce drag through the use of a lengthened nose (3 cm), a widened track (10 cm) and a rear section stretched by some 8 cm. Angelo Lazaris will be piloting the GT3 this weekend during the third round of the GT Championship. Lotus' full press release is posted after the jump and you can check out the gallery of the Lotus Exige GT3 concept below. Gallery...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Hirings/Firings , Australia As any racing fan Down Under will tell you, the Australian Grand Prix has a long and rich history. The event has been held annually since 1928, and has been a staple of the Formula One calendar since 1985, usually either kicking off or ending the season. History might not be worth as much as cold hard cash to Bernie Ecclestone, though, as the F1 manager is reportedly preparing to scrap the Melbourne event in favor of a new one in Russia. This weekend Ecclestone was slated to meet with government officials in St. Petersburg to discuss building a new circuit there to host a Russian Grand Prix. But with the calendar already stretched thin, something's got to give, and Ecclestone has reportedly grown impatient with the Aussie event, whose organizers have been resistant to the idea of turning their event into a night race like Singapore's , prompting reports that Bernie won't renew Australia's contract beyond 2010. With the...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Etc. , Australia , Motorcycles Proving once again that it is always easier to tear things apart than it is to build them is the Australian monster , as seen above. The builder, Ray Baumann, says that "this is a way of taking a bit more care," if you can believe that. You see, his previous job was as a stunt driver. He claims that it is much safer riding this monster bike crushing cars than it was to jump them on a much smaller machine. Weighing in at 13 tons and standing about 10 feet tall, the monster doesn't appear to have any suspension travel at all. The frame appears to be an upside-down ladder design, with wheels and tires from Caterpillar. What does it take to move this maxi-machine? A Detroit Diesel engine hooked to a 6-speed Allison automatic transmission. Gallery: Monster Motorbike From Hell [Source: World Car Fans] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Filed under: Motorsports , Marketing/Advertising , Australia Car vs. Jet. It's an epic battle that never seems to end, with new contenders continuously lining up on the runway. And we love it. Top Gear raced a Bugatti Veyron down the runway and back against a Eurofighter , Lamborghini pitted its jet-inspired Reventon against a Tornado , Audi raced its Le Mans-winning R10 TDI against an RAF Harrier jump-yet at Goodwood and Spyker F1 faced off against a Royal Dutch Air Force F16 fighter . (Volkswagen even pulled a 747 jumbo jet with a Touareg V10 TDI .) Now meet the latest challengers: "Black Beauty", Team New Zealand's Zytek-powered Lola A1GP race car, against an Air New Zealand Boeing 777-200ER. The showdown took place on the runway at Auckland International Airport between Kiwi racer Jonny Reid and Air New Zealand pilot Dave Morgan as a publicity event to promote the A1GP races in Taupo, New Zealand this coming weekend. The promotional event seems a little at odds with...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Hatchbacks , FIAT , Australia Click image to view in high resolution With revenues and attendance declining, Merlbourne's Albert Park circuit is in danger of losing the Australian Grand Prix to another venue Down Under, but the organizers aren't giving up without a fight. With cash from title sponsor ING, which has been pouring big bucks into its F1 sponsorship program , the 2008 Australian Grand Prix is gearing up to be a huge spectacle that will include a V8 Supercars race and even a two-hour KISS concert in addition to the headline Formula One contest. Now the organizers have added another supporting event that will mark the first time the Fiat 500 will be raced. The race-prepped retro-minis will be the car of choice for the Celebrity Challenge, which pits local Australian celebrities against each other on the race track. Although no information has been provided on what sort of race preparation the Fiats will undergo for the event, we wouldn't...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Supercars , Nissan , Australia The land Down Under hasn't been kind to Nissan when it comes to motorsports. The Skyline GT-R was banned in 1993 from the country's touring car series after three consecutive wins in 1990, 1991 and 1992, and Nissan hasn't returned since. That might change in the 2008 season, as Nissan is considering campaigning the GT-R in the Targa Tasmania rally, according to Ross Booth, marketing manager for Nissan in Australia. The automaker is looking into the Bathurst 12-hour race as well, not to mention the Grand Am series and a possible campaign in the 24-hours of LeMans. The sourced Drive.com.au interview is rife with great quotes from Booth and Jim Richards, driver of the 1992 Bathurst 1000 GT-R driver. But one line from Booth referring to the V8 supercar series cars as "taxis" is worth clicking through for. [Source: Drive.com.au] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Filed under: Motorsports , Videos , Australia Most people attending drag races expect to see cars accelerate to breakneck speeds in a matter of mere seconds. However, as sick as it sounds, there's always the excitement one gets from seeing a car crash...
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