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Filed under: LA Auto Show , Motorsports , Sports/GTs , Mitsubishi Click above for high-res gallery of these fun '70s Mitsubishis We might have skipped the Mitsubishi booth altogether this year at the LA Auto Show if it hadn't been for this pair of eye-catching cars from the '70s. While checking out the neighboring Audi booth we spotted a toad-green FTO and then caught a glimpse of what looked like an old F1 car. The racecar turned out to be the last single-seat racer Mitsu ever made, the 1971 Colt F2000. It actually won the Japan Grand Prix that year. It was powered by a 4-valve dohc 1,994 cc R39B that put out 290 PS. It was also one of the first open-wheelers to use those side-mounted radiators that became the standard in many forms of single-seater racing. The other car was a 1973 Galant FTO GS-R. Fittingly painted toad-green, this little beast had warts all over it. Built between 1971 and 1975 the FTO was a rear-drive coupe that could be had with a number of different Neptune...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Coupes , Sports/GTs , Aston Martin Click above for high-res gallery of the Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT4 At the Dubai Autodrome this week, Aston Martin revealed the car that will replace the Vantage N24, which has raced successfully in the FIA GT4 class and endurance events like the 24 Hours of Nürburgring for the past two years. Named the Vantage GT4, the new racer will employ a racing version of the production car's 4.7L V8 in place of the N24's slightly smaller 4.3L V8. Other race-bred modifications include a free-flow exhaust system, dry sump lubrication and new engine management software calibrated for racing. The new GT4 is hand-built by Aston Martin and can be ordered by race teams from the factory with a six-speed manual transmission or Sportshift tranny with paddle shifters. The production car's interior gets gutted and replaced with a molding of the dash that's covered in Alcantara suede (which also covers the steering wheel),...
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Filed under: Motorsports , SEMA , Sports/GTs , Dodge Click above for high-res gallery of the new Mopar Drift Dodge Challenger Using the slogan, "if you can dream it, you can build it with Mopar," the Dodge boys introduced Sam Hübinette's 2009 Mopar Dodge Drift Challenger. Team owner Shaun Carlson and driver Samuel Hübinette introduced the car and pointed out some of the unique features, like the 850-hp Hemi underhood. While that should definitely help Sam in his quest to retake the title for Mopar, one additional fun touch should help the team cut their repair bills. The driver's side rear fender has a built-in line of roller blade wheels to keep him skimming along the walls rather than tearing the quarter panels away on contact. We doubt it will hold up to anything harder than a five-mph brush, but it was interesting nonetheless. The car they showed us was actually a cutaway as you'll see from the gallery and hit the jump to read all of the specs. Gallery...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Hybrids/Alternative , Sports/GTs , Green Just how quick is the Tesla Roadster now that it's been blessed with version 1.5 of its drivetrain? Pretty dang quick, as a recent 12.7-second blast down the quarter-mile will attest. The first powertrain that was installed in the electric car used a two-speed transmission, while the latest v1.5 needs just one speed for seamless power delivery from zero to the car's top speed. That should make the Roadster an excellent bracket car, especially considering it was able to put down such impressive numbers with a novice racer behind the wheel who posted a relatively poor .764 reaction time. Its terminal velocity was nearly 105 miles per hour, and whatever car happened to be in the lane next to the Tesla got its butt kicked by an electric car. What's this world coming to? Some of us here at Autoblog team who've actually driven the Tesla Roadster, myself included, were surprised by this quick performance, but the...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Sports/GTs , Chevrolet click for a high-res gallery from the 2008 Detroit Sports Car Challenge 2009 will be a transition year for the American Le Mans Series as the GT1 class all but disappears after the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The Corvette Racing team announced a few weeks ago that it will switch from GT1 to the GT2 class. In an ALMS conference call, program manager Dough Fehan revealed that the engineering work on the new car is done and assembly of the first car will start in the next 7-10 days. Visually, the new car will be almost indistinguishable from the GT1 racer, with the biggest difference being a smaller rear wing. Underneath the skin, the carbon brakes will have to go as they aren't allowed in GT2 so steel rotors will have to dissipate the kinetic energy. Creating kinetic energy will be a new, smaller, 6.0L version of the engine currently used. The GT2 engine will continue to run on cellulosic E85. The GT2 cars will likely make their competition debut...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Sports/GTs , Euro , Supercars , Lamborghini Click above for a gallery of the Lamborghini Super Trofeo racer Ferrari does it. Porsche does it. And now, Lamborghini is going to do it, too. "It" is a single-make race series, and Lambo's will showcase a competition-spec Gallardo LP560-4 dubbed the Super Trofeo. Each race will feature 30 of the cars, piloted by deep-pocketed private owners, dealer teams, and a single, Lambo-sponsored "celebrity driver" who'll change from race-to-race. The Super Trofeo racer weighs in at 1300 kg/1866 lb and is spec'd out with all the requisite safety equipment; race-specific chassis adjustments, ABS brakes and wheels; Pirelli slicks; new instrumentation; and aero tweaks. The powered-up 5.2L direct-injected V10 sends 570 horses to all four wheels via the automaker's e.gear six-speed sequential gearbox. If you have the itch, head to your Lamborghini dealer with €200,000 -- that's the buy-in...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Sports/GTs , BMW Earlier this year Rahal Letterman Racing announced its partnership with BMW to bring M3s back to ALMS GT2 in 2009. The Rahal Letterman deal is a new venture for BMW, putting its ALMS race operations in the hands of an unfamiliar crew. While Rahal Letterman is a proven open wheel race team, they are not one of the existing ALMS teams with prior BMW sports car racing experience. It is an interesting match-up that will be exciting to watch next year. To keep in step with this fresh-faced approach, Rahal Letterman Racing has now also announced a partnership with Rays Engineering, which will supply wheels to the RLR ALMS program. Widespread use of Rays' wheels has yet to take hold throughout the world amongst the professional ranks, but they have been tried and tested for years in every type of event found in Japan. Rays Engineering is best known for their Volk Racing wheel line and the lightweight TE37 model in particular. They have established...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Sports/GTs , Euro , Supercars , Nissan Click above to view hi-res gallery of the Nissan GT-R Academy With a 7:29 lap time, Nissan contends its GT-R is the King of the 'Ring. What better place, then, to introduce the new supercar to its European owners than the track infamously known as the Green Hell? In conjunction with the Silverstone International racing school, Nissan is taking some 1,300 European GT-R customers to the Nurburgring over the course of 19 days to take ownership of their vehicles with some performance driving tutelage. The program at the 'Ring follows a similar one held for 500 British customers at Silverstone, the former host of the British Grand Prix. According to Nissan and Silverstone International, about half of the participants had taken some sort of advanced driving course before, but the overwhelming majority of them said the GT-R Academy was the best they'd experienced. We're still waiting for Nissan NA to offer something...
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Filed under: Concept Cars , Motorsports , Hybrids/Alternative , Sports/GTs , Green , Hatchbacks , Citroen Click above for more shots of the Citroen C4 WRC HYmotion4 hybrid rally car One of Citroen's big debuts at the Paris Motor Show was its HYmotion4 hybrid technology, which was fitted to the Citroën Hypnos and C4 WRC along with the Peugeot RC and Prologue . Unlike most hybrid systems, the French technology has no direct connection between the car's engine and battery, so the pack is recharged "through the road" when the car's regenerative braking is applied. There's a 125-kW electric motor attached to the rear axle that gets its power from 990 individual lithium ion cells wired up to produce 400-volts. The C4 WRC's driver can select from a number of modes to allow a specific amount of electric assistance, including running solely on the electric motor or using it as a short-term boost for added acceleration. This way, the car can be run in zero-emission...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Sports/GTs , BMW click above to view more high-res live shots of BMW M3 ALMS race car When it comes to racing, diversity is key. Who doesn't love to root for their favorite brand to win against its fiercest rivals? We hope that BMW gets its latest M3 certified by the FIA in time for a showdown against with the Corvette and others in Le Mans GT racing, which will institute a new set of rules for the 2010 season. There's more than one way to get horsepower from a V8 engine, as clearly demonstrated by these two diametrically opposed class competitors. Team Corvette's brute strength and low-down grunt would go up against finesse and high-strung reviness from BMW. Kinda reminds us of the classic Ford versus Ferrari feuds of the '60s. In any case, BMW now needs to work with the FIA to get its racer properly sanctioned and approved, as it has already done for the American Le Mans racing series. Git 'r done, folks. Gallery: BMW Rahal Letterman Racing...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Sports/GTs , Euro , Lotus Click above for high-res gallery of 2009 Lotus Exige Cup 260 Lotus released its Exige Cup 260 for the 2008 model year to terrorize much larger and pricier cars on race tracks 'round the world. For 2009, the British automaker has spiced things up by 'adding lightness' in the marque's grand tradition. Weight drops by over 80 pounds this year to just under a ton thanks to copious use of carbon fiber. Coupled with a 257-horsepower 1.8-liter Toyota-sourced mill force fed through an intercooler by an Eaton M62 supercharger, the '09 Exige Cup 260 should hit 60 mph in less than 4 seconds. Electronic goodies such as launch control combined with variable traction control, plus 40 kilograms of downforce at 100 mph, do their best to keep the car planted on the track. Race-ready bits like forged wheels wearing Yokohama A048 LTS tires, Eibach springs over one-way adjustable Bilstein dampers and cross-drilled and ventilated discs...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Sports/GTs , Safety It was bound to happen, but it hurts nonetheless. The KTM X-Bow is hot off the presses , and it didn't take long for some brand new ones to show up on the 'Ring in Germany with their new owners behind the wheel. That hallowed circuit has led to the demise of more than a few machines, not to mention their drivers, and will inevitably continue to claim casualties as racers test their skills on its winding asphalt. The latest victim is one of the aforementioned German-powered, Austrian-built sportscars from KTM. According to reports , the car spent some time skidding on two wheels -- fitting considering KTM's motorcycle heritage -- before meeting the barrier and coming to an involuntary halt. Fortunately, it appears as if the carbon-heavy structure did its job well and protected the owner and passenger. It breaks the heart, but rest assured, it won't be the last. Click on the cropped pic for full-size shots of the carnage. Thanks...
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Filed under: Concept Cars , Motorsports , Sports/GTs , Maserati Click above to view more of the Maserati GranTurismo MC Corse Concept in our high-resolution image gallery Maserati is a company with a deep-rooted racing heritage, and it isn't about to let that fall by the wayside. With that in mind, the Trident marque has released details of its latest competition model, called the GranTurismo MC Corse Concept. We brought you spy shots of a stripped-out, track-bound GranTurismo earlier this month, and this looks to be the ticket. Based on the 430hp GranTurismo S , the MC Corse is destined for the tarmac. The engine has been upgraded with a new intake system, competition-spec catalytic converters and a center-exit exhaust to boost output to 450 horsepower. Grip is enhanced by an increased track along with a new front splitter, a larger rear spoiler, and more aerodynamically efficient side skirts, while the suspension has been upgraded to meet the track surface with 18x12-inch front and...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Sports/GTs , Aston Martin , Chevrolet GT1-class racing is one of the most hotly contested in Europe, with cars like the Aston Martin DBR9 and Maserati MC12 competing among others for top honors in the Le Mans Series and FIA GT Championship. Here in the American Le Mans Series, however, officials are considering the possibility that they'll have to shut down the class altogether. This season, the Corvettes have had the category all to themselves, which has made the class uninteresting, with predictable outcomes. Bell Motorsports announced their intention to run Aston Martins to compete with the Corvettes for GT1 victory , but that may be another case of too little too late. Itching for a good fight, GM is reportedly dropping down to the paradoxically more competitive GT2 series. Not anxious to run another season of an empty GT1 roster, ALMS could very well cut the class out altogether. [Source: AutoWeek ] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Filed under: Motorsports , Coupes , Sports/GTs , Etc. , Marketing/Advertising , Supercars , Nissan , Toys , Lifestyle First art imitates life and now video games do the same, with Sony Computer Entertainment Europe and Nissan having joined forces to create the GT Academy . Over the course of eight months, the academy culled a group of wannabe racers from a field of entrants who posted the best lap times in GT5 Prologue. Then, for five days at Silverstone , the finalists competed in the game and on the actual track, watched by ex-F1 racer Johnny Herbert and a panel of five judges. The two winners were just announced, and Top Gun status went to Lars Schlomer and Luis Ordonez. Schlomer is a taxi driver in Bonn, Germany; Ordonez is an MBA student from Spain. Now that they've won, they'll be thrown into boot camp for four months to learn to how to race for real silver: in four months, they'll have to earn their racing licenses and get ready to drive a factory-backed Nissan 350Z in...
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