The new FIA World Endurance Championship team, based at Toyota Motorsport GmbH (TMG) in Cologne, Germany, will make its race debut on 5 May in the Six Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, which is the second round of the championship.

A driver line-up of Alex Wurz, Nicolas Lapierre and Kazuki Nakajima has already been confirmed for one car while discussions are still ongoing to finalise the driver line-up for the other. Additionally, Andrea Caldarelli, from Pescara, Italy, has joined Toyota Racing as a junior driver.

The TS030 HYBRID is Toyota’s successor to the iconic TS010 and TS020 cars which participated at Le Mans with podium success during the 1990s, with TS an acronym for ToyotaSport.

Toyota is the first manufacturer to confirm its participation in the FIA World Endurance Championship using a hybrid system, emphasising the pioneering approach to this technology which has seen more than 3.5 million Toyota hybrid vehicles sold worldwide.

The THS-R (Toyota Hybrid System – Racing) powertrain is designed to deliver maximum performance and features an all-new V8 3.4litre normally-aspirated petrol engine and hybrid system with capacitor storage developed by official team partner Nisshinbo.

The team will use the TS030 HYBRID’s first test to evaluate the merits, within the current regulations, of a front motor system produced by Aisin AW and a rear motor system developed by official team partner DENSO. Those regulations limit hybrid systems to recovering a maximum of 500kJ between braking zones whilst restricting deployment to only two wheels.

A brand new carbon fibre LMP1 chassis has been developed and produced at TMG, where the complete car was assembled for the first time in preparation for a roll-out on 11-13 January at Paul Ricard.

During an exclusive test session at the French track, which included running in darkness, the TS030 HYBRID completed several hundred kilometres, showing an impressive level of reliability and performance for this very early stage in the car’s testing programme.

Alex Wurz and Nicolas Lapierre both put the TS030 HYBRID through its paces at Paul Ricard, joined by 30-year-old Japanese driver Hiroaki Ishiura, who is a candidate to join the driver line-up at races where Toyota Racing participates with two cars.

Official partners to the Toyota Racing programme include ZENT, Aisin, Nippon Steel, Takata, Toyoda Gosei and Michelin.

Gallery

The deal sees Brundle senior reunited with Nissan, after the Englishman spearheaded its official works effort at the world’s oldest and most celebrated endurance race in 1997 with the R390 GT1.

Nissan’s R390 GT1 driven by Martin Brundle at Le Mans in 1987.

For 2012, the father and son combination will pilot the race-winning Greaves Motorsport Zytek Z11SN-Nissan sports prototype. Not only did the car take the LMP2 class win at this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans (in the hands of Karim Ojjeh, Olivier Lombard and Tom Kimber-Smith) on its way to finishing eighth overall, but victories at Le Castellet, Imola and Silverstone also saw the Nissan-engined LMP2 car capture both the 2011 Le Mans Series drivers’ and team titles.

After enjoying a successful Formula One career spanning 13 years (1984-96), Martin Brundle has remained in the sport as a highly-regarded and multi award-winning commentator.

Martin Brundle winning at Le Mans in 1990 with Tom Walkinshaw’s Silk Cut Jaguar team.

Joining him in the driver’s line-up for the 80th running of the race will be his 21-year old son Alex.

As the leading British driver in this year’s Formula Two Championship, he will join Greaves Motorsport in 2012 to race the Nissan-powered prototype as the team defends its Le Mans Series crown.

The Brundles will follow in the footsteps of a small number of father-son combinations to have competed at the illustrious race together, including Mario Andretti, with son Michael, and Nigel Mansell with sons Leo and Greg.

Martin Brundle, 52, said: “I’m very much looking forward to returning to the Le Mans 24 Hour race with Nissan and the Greaves Motorsport LMP2 team. This is an unexpected pleasure, heightened by the fact I will be team-mates with my son. I’m eagerly anticipating a very special feeling when handing the car over to Alex during one of the world’s greatest motor races. Class victory in front of the fanatical Le Mans spectators is the goal.”

http://www.skiddmark.com/?p=25845 the GT sportscar to have for any self-respecting race team, but in recent years the competition has become tougher with the Corvette ZR1, Ferrari F458 Italia and BMW M3 GT all taking their share of the winner's garlands. ]]> The RSR has long been ‘The Daddy’ of all Porsche’s racing models and at one time was the GT sportscar to have for any self-respecting race team, but in recent years the competition has become tougher with the Corvette ZR1, Ferrari F458 Italia and BMW M3 GT all taking their share of the winner’s garlands.

The American Le Mans Series (ALMS) is the main battleground of GT racing and as the 2011 series reached its conclusion, the highest placed RSR of Jörg Bergmeister and Patrick Long was only in 4th place, more than 50 points behind the championship winning M3 GT.

Unsurprisingly, Porsche have felt the need to do something about this state of affairs, hence the new, wider and more expensive 2012 GT3 RSR.

Most striking at first glance are the changes to the body: the width of the new GT3 RSR has grown by 48 millimetres. Built to conform to the A.C.O. “LM” GTE regulations, the 911 represents the crowning pinnacle of a range of successful customer sport race cars that are based on the 997 type 911 GT3 RS street road car.

Powering the new 911 GT3 RSR is a more efficient 4.0-litre six-cylinder boxer engine with a mandatory air-restrictor, generating 453 bhp (338 kW) and putting its power down through 310 mm wide rear wheels. The diameter of the front wheels has increased by 30 mm and the Porsche sequential six-speed gearbox is operated via paddle shifts on the steering wheel.

The nose and rear panels are adapted to the flared front and rear wheel arches, as are the door sill and the wheel arch coverings. The aerodynamic concept is complemented by a new ducting of the intake air. There are openings in the rear side sections, similar to those used in the 911 turbo and 911 GT2 RS, which replace the air scoop on the engine hood.

The new 911 GT3 RSR can be raced at the Le Mans 24 Hours, the FIA World Endurance Championship, the Le Mans Series, the American Le Mans Series as well as the International GT Open and in other series and races around the world.

“Our customer teams can expect a technically mature, high performance race car with which they will be highly competitive at international long distance races,” assures Hartmut Kristen, Head of Porsche Motorsport. “Our test programme on various international race tracks is currently running at full speed. We are very pleased with the car’s performance and driveability.”

They say that if you have to ask the price then you probably can’t afford it, so perhaps we shouldn’t tell you that a 2012 911 GT3 RSR will set you back no less than 498,000 Euros (plus VAT). If that fails to dissuade you, then you’ll be pleased to hear that deliveries to customer race teams will begin in January 2012.

Gallery

Following a 12 year stint in F1 from 1989 to 2001, Alesi moved onto DTM racing and then last year made his most recent competitive race appearance in the Le Mans Series. In January 2011 he joined Group Lotus as a brand ambassador and development consultant on the F1 customer race car, the T125. Although never straying far from the race track, the Indy 500 and oval racing represent completely new challenges for Jean.

Commenting on the announcement Jean Alesi said: “I’m thrilled that Lotus has given me the opportunity to compete in such a world famous race. It’s going to be a very special experience for me but I also know that I have a lot of hard work ahead. I’m very focused on the task I’m facing – I’m taking my training very seriously, I have some amazing support on this front from a ‘comeback’ expert and of course I will be testing extensively. I’m really excited about the race.”

Jean’s development role with Group Lotus will stand him in good stead as he prepares for his new challenge as he will be competing in a Lotus powered by the new Lotus IndyCar engine. Development of the 2.2-litre twin turbocharged V6 is going to schedule with the first engine fire-up set for mid October and track testing planned to commence in December.

Group Lotus Director of Corporate Operations Gino Rosato said: “IndyCar racing represents a really important element of our overall motorsport program. The Indy 500 is the highlight of the race calendar, the atmosphere is always incredible and having Jean racing for us there will make it extra special.”

The R8C was Audi’s first closed-wheel Le Mans prototype, it was developed alongside the open Audi R8R spyder, prior to being replaced by the all-new Audi R8 in 2000. Although the R8C was capable of hitting speeds above 217 mph on the Mulsanne straight, it lacked the handling ability and overall speed of the open-cockpit R8R spyder and could only qualify 22nd and 28th, compared to 8th and 11th for the R8R.

Only two R8Cs were ever built and due to its dismal performance in the 1999 race, Audi decided to drop it and focus on developing the spyder. Incidentally Audi returned to the LMGTP class in 2001 in the form of the Bentley EXP Speed 8. Although similar to the R8C, the EXP Speed 8 inherited nothing except Audi’s turbocharged V8 engine. Bentley learned lessons from the ill-fated R8C and subsequently took the overall win in 2003.

The rest, as they say, is history..

After nine triumphs with open-wheel vehicles the Ingolstadt brand celebrated its first Le Mans victory with a coupe in 2011 – twelve years after the R8C’s debut. Both prototypes were showcased last weekend in the Audi Fan Area at Silverstone, accompanied by drivers Dindo Capello, Marco Bonanomi, Romain Dumas and Mike Rockenfeller.

Unfortunately, we don’t know who the photographer of the image is, but if someone would care to let us know then we’d be happy to give them some well earned kudos.

Meanwhile, if you love the image as much as we do, feel free to download it for your personal use.

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]]> http://skiddmark.com/2011/09/image-of-the-day-audi-r18-tdi-meets-r8c-at-silverstone-wdownload/feed/ 0 http://skiddmark.com/2011/09/rediscovering-dignity-at-chelsea-autolegends/ http://skiddmark.com/2011/09/rediscovering-dignity-at-chelsea-autolegends/#comments Mon, 05 Sep 2011 18:17:31 +0000 Steve Hindle http://www.skiddmark.com/?p=24525 There are few sights as mesmerising as a convoy of iconic supercars growling their way through the streets of London. Thousands of horses straining to be unleashed, clutches smouldering in frustrated anticipation; “look” I heard a young boy shout excitedly to his father, “an Enzo”.

But for all the millions of pounds of bespoke leather and hand-crafted carbon fibre, it was three solitary, elderly gentlemen who captured the essence of the day – all pensioners; all having lived incredible lives; all unassumingly gracing the grounds of The Royal Hospital simply by their presence.

I had missed last year’s inaugural event, so despite the spectacle of DTM visiting Brands Hatch, I was intrigued to see if Chelsea AutoLegends would live up to its promise and deliver a credible motoring show into the heart of London.

On balance, I’d say it did. Using the premise that first impressions count, the fact that I was able to park only a minute away from the entrance ticked the top box; to then be greeted by the stunning 1960s Bizzarrini 5300 GT made me realise that this was definitely the right place to be.

Founded by former Alfa Romeo, Ferrari and ISO engineer, Giotto Bizzarrini in the 1960s, the 5300 GT Strada was a street legal ISO Grifo A3C and was less than 40 inches in height - just like Ford's GT40 of the same period.

Credit needs to go to the organisers and their sponsors for assembling such an eclectic group of cars, especially in the face of fierce competition from the more established events such as Goodwood and Cholmondeley.

Marques such as Jaguar, Porsche and Ferrari were amply represented, spanning generations of automotive history. Uniquely British and having recently celebrated 50 years in our hearts, the range of E-Types was both impressive and endearing. Oh, if only…

There were other themed displays too.

The Italian classics demonstrated why, despite all their failings, young men would dream at night, not of young ladies, but of red-bodied beauties instead.

And then there were the Rally Cars and Le Mans “heroes”. For me, the Rally display was disappointing. I’m not sure if this was due to its location (in the midst of the trade exhibitors), or because of a lack of interaction from those looking after their charge. Whatever the reason, I felt an absence of might from the Group B era.

But where the Rally cars failed, the Le Mans feature shone.

Starting with the iconic, pre-war, 1920 Bentleys – cars immense in both stature and achievement, here, you could truly sense the epic battle of man and machine against men and machines. Twenty-four hours of life-challenging effort from drivers, teams and automobiles; each pushing ever harder and faster to reach their ultimate goal.

Now we’re talking legends.

The MG J4 was a pure racing version of the J-Type with light-weight body work and a supercharged 746 cc Straight-4 engine producing 72 bhp. Just 9 cars were made and this one is immaculate.

And as I moved along, past the Jaguars, MGs, Triumphs and Fraser Nash of the 1950s and ‘60s, past the Cooper, the Ferraris, past the 1995 BMW-engined “Harrods” McLaren of Andy Wallace, Derek Bell and Justin Bell, past the #8 Audi of Biela, Kaffer & McNish, and finally onto the #7 Peugeot of Wurz, Davidson and Gene, I could see why these cars were so important, compared to their Supercar counterparts across the lawn – they had duelled and they had lived. They weren’t just a part of history, they are history.

For me, this is what Chelsea AutoLegends was all about. It’s the story of how talented young men built beautiful cars and then how brave young men had the courage to race them.

One of these was stood at the far end of one of the Hospital’s boulevards. The man was Norman Dewis and he was presiding over a recreation of the Jaguar X13, possibly the greatest car of its kind.

Responsible for 25 Jaguar incarnations over a 36-year period, Norman Dewis not only engineered cars, he raced them too, and here he was, at 91 years of age, at 9am on a Sunday morning, stood outside and happy to talk about his life, his work and his thoughts on the future. There was no posse of minders, no anxious PR person, just him and me and my notebook.

If this was Heaven, it wasn’t a bad place to be. We talked about developments in technologies, about the influence of big-business in the business of motorsport and most of all, about an era when you took risks, shook hands and had a pint or two afterwards. I left Norman to talk to talk to his next devotee – he won’t remember me, but I will always remember him.

Sometime later, I was awaiting the arrival of the Supercar Parade. There, strolling towards a podium was another legend, Sir Stirling Moss.

As the V-engined monsters made their arrival, he happily dropped the chequered flag, greeting each participant with a nodding smile. And as the Supercar Paddock filled, he ambled over to the Autoglym Stage and over the whine of over-worked fans and intercoolers, recounted tales of glory and mishaps to an audience spellbound by this most admired of our gentlemen.

The Ferrari Dino 206 SP was fitted with a 2.0-litre V6 engine (with a 65 degree 'V') producing around 218 hp at 9000 rpm. It was originally built to take part in the Campionato Europeo Montagna (European Hillclimb Championship).

It would be wrong to attempt to make comparisons with today’s crop of driving talent, after all, in fifty years time, perhaps Jenson Button will be equally well received, but somehow I don’t think that the tales of his escapades with Lewis will be quite so enchanting or captivating.

After four hours of auto-lust, I left. I’d met with some old friends, and met some new ones. I’d smiled seeing cars that I last encountered 40 years ago and I’d day-dreamed of cars from a time that I could only wish I’d known. This is clearly an event with an underlying quality, and to have it in such an accessible location is a big “plus”.

Trying to be constructive, it would be nice if for next year, the organisers look at how they can better manage the Supercar parade, and importantly, park these show cars in such a way that they are more accessible. It would also strengthen the feature to have some smaller parades through the day – an auto event like this needs to be able to showcase the beauty of the noise, not just the designs and heritage, but this aside, I would say that Chelsea AutoLegends is a worthy addition to the calendar and I hope it grows and continues.

And so as I walked towards the gate, I noticed the third dignified old man. Resplendent in red tunic with polished brass buttons and black cap, he stood straight, not stooped, and held an open bucket. He smiled acknowledgingly to the crowds. He didn’t shake the bucket, he had too much pride to do that but it was a fitting reminder that this show, with all of its nostalgia, was being held at the home of those who also had lived.

Angie Voluti was driving this Jensen Interceptor R built by Jensen Automotive International in the Pistonheads Supercar Run. The Interceptor R is fitted with a thoroughly modern GM LS3 V8 engine delivering an impressive 429bhp (and 25mpg). The stunning picture was taken by Kevin McGlone of Red Square Images

We got in touch with Mark Carbery from Eterniti, who explained that the company is completely independent of any OEM and funded by an international group of investors and a team of people assembled with experience ranging from luxury and high performance vehicles to motorsport.

He told us that on the engineering side Eterniti are staffed by some of the most highly-skilled individuals – some who are past Le Mans winners, whilst others have been responsible for the development of landmark high-performance cars. The engineering team is led by Alastair Macqueen, who was responsible for the development of the Jaguar XJ220 supercar to production and has won the Le Mans 24-Hour race with both Jaguar and Bentley.

Eterniti also has its very own F1 driver, Johnny Herbert, like Macqueen victorious at Le Mans but in addition a winner of three Grands Prix during a 10-year Formula 1 career. Johnny will have an active involvement in developing Eterniti vehicles as well as serving as an ambassador for the brand.

Hemera

Hemera was the Greek Goddess of light/daylight, but some might be surprised to discover her name being used for a model derived from the ungoddess-like Porsche Cayenne SUV.

Eterniti say the Hemera will be the world’s first Super-SUV, providing new levels of luxury, space and performance in an SUV to create a new niche. It will feature a limousine-like rear cabin, including twin reclining seats, iPads and a drinks chiller, giving customers the option of being chauffeured as well as driving. But with compact dimensions, 4×4 ruggedness and dynamic performance, it is also both practical and retains driver appeal.

The Hemera will be shown in Frankfurt as a prototype, with production and deliveries to start in 2012. Although based on the Cayenne, it will undergo a complete chassis-up rebuild, with a new, repackaged interior, carbon-composite body panels and as yet undisclosed ‘additional’ performance.

Eterniti is establishing a London hub featuring a showroom, car build and service centre, and a separate atelier where customers can discuss their requirements and create a bespoke specification for their cars. Despite the German underpinnings, all cars will be hand-built on site by British craftsmen and technicians – Eterniti have an in-house trim shop to allow the ultimate in bespoke specifications to be realised.

The London facilities will open later this year, with further showrooms in key international cities to follow from 2012.

You may wonder what qualifies this announcement as being ‘news’ – there remains a strong contingent of 911 RSRs at Circuit de Sarthe each year and Porsche won the LMP2 class at Le Mans in 2008 and 2009 with the RS Spyder.

But a factory Porsche team has not competed at Le Mans in the top prototype class since 1998 when Allan McNish, Stephane Ortelli and Laurent Aiello drove the 911 GT1 to Porsche’s 16th and most recent win – now it’s going for overall victory again.. Hans Herrmann and Richard Attwood claimed the first outright victory for Porsche in 1970 with the legendary 917 short-tail, a car which reached legendary status after starring in Steve McQueen’s film, Le Mans.

President of the Executive Board at Porsche AG Matthias Müller said, “Motorsport has always been an essential part of the Porsche brand, so for us it was only a matter of time before we returned as a factory to the premier league of endurance racing.”

Research and Development Board member Wolfgang Hatz said, “With the RS Spyder we proved that our motorsport engineers at Weissach are among the industry’s leaders. We were the first to run a high-revving race engine with direct fuel injection and now, with the 911 GT3 R Hybrid, we’ve adapted a new drive technology for endurance racing and achieved a considerable reduction in consumption – which means longer between pit stops.”

Porsche Motorsport boss Hartmut Kristen says it will be one of the most challenging development programmes in the company’s history.

“We’re looking forward to developing new technologies and building on the success of the RS Spyder. After the conclusion of our works-supported sports prototype programme in the American Le Mans Series we have kept up with the latest technological advances. We’ll start by researching the various concept alternatives for the new car; depending on the exact details of the 2014 regulations, one possible option would be to integrate our hybrid technology.”

Created to celebrate the 10th victory for Audi in this month’s gruelling 24 Hours of Le Mans, which was won first in 2000 by the R8 sports prototype, the new limited edition road car is based on the successful R8 V8 Coupe. It will be reserved solely for UK R8 customers, and with just 100 examples currently scheduled for production.

Titanium finish 19-inch ‘5-arm double-spoke Y design’ alloy wheels inspired by the R8 GT Coupe, and embellished by red brake callipers, will be the key differentiating feature of the R8 LE’s exterior. All normally optional metallic and pearl effect paint options will also be included in the Limited Edition price, but for maximum visual drama customers will be able to specify a striking Titanium Metallic paint finish exclusive to this model, at extra cost.

Over and above the standard R8 V8 Coupe specification, the Limited Edition model includes satellite navigation, the Audi Music Interface (AMI), an interior light package and a premium Bang and Olufsen sound system, as well as mobile phone preparation via a Bluetooth interface with integrated seat-belt microphones.

The much praised Audi magnetic ride adaptive suspension system also makes a special appearance as standard equipment in the Limited Edition. Using sensors to monitor road conditions, it adjusts the damping effect to suit them by varying a magnetic charge which passes through a fluid-based shock absorber.

On the inside, the Limited Edition is marked out by crimson red accents to the sides of its Black Fine Nappa Leather-upholstered seats and headrests, which also feature red contrast stitching. The design theme is continued with red stitching on the flat bottomed, leather-covered multi-function steering wheel and instrument cowl and by a striking crimson red leather finish for the monoposto.

To complete the look, the knee pads and passenger door handle are also finished in red leather, and the floor mats have a red surround and feature the R8 logo in silver. The sporting character is further underlined by stainless steel pedals and illuminated door sills with bright aluminium inserts carrying the R8 logo.

Just 100 examples of the new R8 V8 Limited Edition are currently planned for production, although perhaps if you ask nicely Audi may consider building a few more. Order books open in July and an R8 Limited Edition can be yours for the tidy sum of £93,935 OTR, excluding the shiny Titanium paint finish.

In the run-up to the race, the e-tron Spyder joined the “LeMans vers le futur” demonstration drive, whilst an Audi Q5 hybrid quattro joined Audi’s exhibit in the Racing Village next to the Audi Fan Area. The Audi R8 GT Spyder also made its debut on Friday night before the 24-hour race.

Backed by the power of three propulsion units, the Audi e-tron Spyder uses two asynchronous electric motors to drive the front wheels with a combined 86 bhp of power and 352 Nm (259.62 lb-ft) of torque. In front of the rear axle sits a twin-turbocharged 3.0 TDI, mounted longitudinally in the direction of travel. It pumps out up to 296 bhp of power and 650 Nm (479.42 lb-ft) of torque, which are channelled to the rear wheels via a seven-speed S tronic gearbox. The V6 engine, currently making its production debut in the A6 Avant, is a highly sophisticated powerplant, emitting a sonorous growl when under load.

The three units can summon up their power separately or in unison. The maximum system output is 383 bhp, with a maximum system torque of over 900 Nm (663.81 lb-ft). The lithium-ion battery, which takes about one hour to charge up at an electrical outlet, is located in the front section of the car and stores up to 9.1 kWh of energy.

At just 1,450 kilograms the Audi e-tron Spyder accelerates from zero to 62 mph in 4.4 seconds and reaches an electronically governed top speed of 155 mph. In keeping with the proposed standard for plug-in hybrids, it consumes a mere 2.2 litres of fuel per 100 km (128 mpg) on average and emits just 59 grams of CO2 per km. In all-electric mode, it has a range of 31 miles and a top speed of 37 mph, and on one fill-up of the 50-litre tank the open two-seater can travel over 621 miles between refills.

Under normal driving conditions, the drive management system sends 75 percent of the power to the rear wheels and 25 percent to the front wheels, but the system selectively applies the brakes to slow the wheels individually or provide precise, millisecond-long surges of power to specific wheels in order to speed them up, allowing understeer and oversteer to be nipped in the bud. This high-precision torque vectoring system marks a new stage of evolution for the quattro drive – the e-tron quattro.