digital monthly magazine globalmag
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September 2014
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CHEVROLET Niva Concept
Moscow Automobile Salon
Pebble Beach Tour d’Elegance
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CONTENTS
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23
September 2014
4 16 36 4
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FRONT PAGE Mrs. Lightweight
AUTONEWS
36
FOCUS
52
MISS OF THE MONTH
Mercedes CLS
Peugeot Exalt
digital monthly magazine
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64
CLASSIC
74
GLOBAL NEWS
64 74
Pebble Beach 2014
Cadillac Platinum
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JAGUAR LAND ROVER SPECIAL OPERATIONS REVEALS ‘NEW’ LIGHTWEIGHT E-TYPE
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LIGHTWEIGHT E-TYPE
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aguar has revealed the prototype of its ‘new’ Lightweight E-type – a further six of which will be built and sold. Jaguar announced in May 2014 that it would recreate six new Lightweights, each built by Jaguar Heritage, part of Jaguar Land Rover’s new Special Operations division.
Each of the six cars will be built to a specification originated from the last Lightweight E-type produced in 1964 and will be handcrafted at the original home of the E-type, Jaguar’s Browns Lane plant in Coventry, England. The cars will be sold as period competition vehicles and all will be suitable for FIA homologation for historic motorsport purposes. The new cars are the ‘missing’ six vehicles from the ‘Special GT E-type’ project, which originally started in February 1963 with the objective of building 18 cars. Only 12 of the aluminium-bodied Lightweight E-types were eventually built and the remaining six designated chassis numbers having lain dormant, until now. The six new cars will carry those original, historic Lightweight E-type chassis numbers. A race winner in the hands of a variety of famous drivers during its short competitive career, the car has achieved worldwide fame and original examples are now valued in the many millions. In recreating the Lightweight E-type, Jaguar Heritage has been able to call on the superlative skills and experience of many talented engineers and technicians already working in a variety of departments within Jaguar.
Derek Weale, Director, Jaguar Heritage Business: “Operating from a brand new workshop at Browns Lane – now open for the restoration and servicing of customer cars – the building of six new, meticulously crafted Lightweight E-type period competition cars by Jaguar Heritage is testament to the unique skills within the team. To know those same skills can also be utilised to the benefit of existing classic Jaguar owners means this is a very exciting time for Jaguar Heritage.”
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LIGHTWEIGHT E-TYPE
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The Lightweight E-type was powered by a highly developed version of Jaguar’s straightsix XK engine which, with its chain-driven twin overhead camshafts and aluminium head with hemispherical combustion chambers, remained highly advanced in 1963 even though it had first been seen in the XK 120 as far back as 1948.
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LIGHTWEIGHT E-TYPE
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All, when offered the chance to assist with this unique project, leapt at the opportunity. Some even have an indirect link with the E-type when it was new: one master technician calculated that his family – including his grandparents, his father and his uncle – had a collective 170 years’ service at Jaguar stretching back to the early 1960s. The expertise and attention brought to bear on this recreation project is staggering, with the full resources of Jaguar being applied to ensure that the six new Lightweights will not only be authentic, but will also be built to the highest quality standards. So the six chosen customers will each receive the rarest of things – a brand new Lightweight E-type, hand-built at Browns Lane and just as desirable as one of the originals.
John Edwards, Managing Director, Jaguar Land Rover Special Operations: “Special Operations’ remit is to indulge our most discerning and enthusiastic customers’ passion for our cars – including those from our past. This is why our Jaguar Heritage division exists, and why the new Lightweight E-type is such an incredibly exciting project. The E-type is an iconic car, and the Lightweight E-type the most desirable of all. To be able to complete the intended production run of 18, some 50 years after the last Lightweight was completed, was an opportunity we couldn’t miss.”
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LIGHTWEIGHT E-TYPE
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Ian Callum, Director of Design, Jaguar: “With the Lightweight E-type, our focus as a design team has been to ensure justice was done to the original work of Sir William Lyons and Malcolm Sayer. Meticulous attention to detail has been everything to us in re-creating this car, just as it is in our contemporary Jaguars. I believe the result is a new Lightweight E-type that is as stunning now as the originals would have been when they were new.�
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LIGHTWEIGHT E-TYPE
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LIGHTWEIGHT E-TYPE SPECIFICATIONS ENGINE SYSTEM Engine: Aluminium six-cylinder block, wide-angle cylinder head Displacement: 236.0 cu in (3,868cc) Bore/Stroke: 3.46in/4.17in (88.0mm/106.0mm) Valvetrain: 2 valves per cylinder, DOHC Compression ratio: 10:1 Carburettors: Triple 45DCO3 Weber Injection (optional): Lucas mechanical, 6.25in (158.7mm) butterfly trumpets Crankshaft: Steel with steel H-section con rods Power: 340hp/253.5kW @ 6500rpm Torque: 280lbs ft/380Nm @ 4500rpm Fuel tank: Mesh-filled 14-gallon (64-litre) capacity Fuel pump: Standard E-type TRANSMISSION Transmission: Jaguar 4-speed all-synchro close-ratio gearbox Final drive casing: Cast iron, Powr-Lok limited slip differential, axle ratio 3.31:1 Clutch: Single dry plate SUSPENSION AND STEERING Front: Double wishbone, LWE torsion bars, uprated anti-roll bar Rear: Independent suspension lower wishbones/driveshaft links Steering: Standard E-type rack-and-pinion, adjustable steering column BRAKES Brake discs (front): 12in Dia (305mm) Brake discs (rear): 11.25in Dia (286mm) Handbrake: Production E-type WHEELS AND TYRES Magnesium wheels: Front: 15in x 7.0J, Rear 15in x 8.0J Tyres: Dunlop (Front - 6.00L15 CR65, Rear – 6.50L15 CR65) EXHAUST AND COOLING Exhaust: Fabricated steel manifold, steel exhaust system with centre silencer box Cooling: Aluminium E-type radiator, aluminium expansion header tank OVERVIEW Length: 175.3in (4,453mm) Width: 66.9in (1,700mm) Height: 46.5in (1,181mm) Weight: 2204.6lbs (1,000kg) Wheelbase: 96.1in (2,440mm) Front Track: 50.0in (1,270mm) Rear Track: 55.0in (1,397mm)
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BUGATTI “Ettore Bugatti” Legend
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ugatti clelbrated the conclusion of its “Les Légendes de Bugatti” edition. The world première of the company’s sixth Legend honors Ettore Bugatti, founder and patron of the brand, and is based on the historical model Type 41 Royale. As with the five previous Legends, only three of the final Legends model will be produced. It costs €2.35 million net. The “Ettore Bugatti” Legend is based on
the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse, as are all the other Legends. The super sports car is powered by a 1,200 PS, 8-litre W16 engine that transmits an unequalled 1,500 Nm at 3,000 to 5,000 rpm to the tarmac and rockets it from zero to 100 km/h in 2.6 seconds. With a maximum speed of 408.84 km/h (254 MPH) with the roof down, the Vitesse is the world’s fastest production roadster ever built.
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September
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hevrolet presented the the Niva Concept, a prototype that anticipates the new generation of crossover. The name refers directly to the previous generation of the model, developed in collaboration with the partners at AvtoVaz Lada. Designed in China and produced in Russia, the Niva is just a little longer than the Trax and is devoted to off-road driving with raised suspension, 235/70 tires and 16� wheels It mounts a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine, delivering 134 horsepower sent to all four wheels via a five-speed manual transmission.
DATSUN mi-Do
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he Datsun mi-Do is a hatchback 1500mm tall, 1700mm wide and 4337mm long. mi-Do features a special cut for its new headlamps that stretch and widen towards the side of the vehicle. The rounded style is complete with the roof gently curving down towards the windshield. Under the hood, the mi-Do mounts a 1.6-litre engine that develops 86bhp and is mated to five-speed manual transmission. A four-speed automatic transmission will also be available.
HYUNDAI Elite i20
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he all-new Elite i20 for India has been designed using Hyundai’s evolved Fluidic Sculpture 2.0 philosophy. The 1.2 Dual VTVT Kappa and 2nd Generation U2 1.4 CRDi engines offer maximum drivability in all conditions, delivering high power and torque with
high fuel efficiency. The environment friendly U2 1.4 CRDi diesel engine is low on emission and NVH levels, however it operates at a high pressure 1,800 bars and generates high low end torque resulting in lesser gear shifts in city driving conditions.
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INFINITI Q50L
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nfiniti presented the Q50L, the new longwheelbase variant of its Q50 sports saloon. With a 48mm/1.9in longer wheelbase than the standard Q50, the Q50L provides more room and comfort for rear passengers. The Q50L is dedicated to the mainland Chinese market and will be offered exclusively there. The Q50L is sold in Comfort, Elegant, Sports, Luxury and Luxury Sports trims, providing a wide range of personalised choices. The Q50L is powered by Infiniti’s first 2.0-litre in-line four-cylinder gas engine that is turbocharged to 211hp and 350Nm of torque. Together with its 7-speed automatic transmission with manual shift mode, this powertrain perfectly combines performance and fuel efficiency.
KIA Sportage
Sorento
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onger, lower and wider, with an extended wheelbase, the new Kia Sorento builds on the success of the outgoing model, delivering a premium look and feel, with more space and numerous features. The front of new Sorento features a larger, more upright ‘tigernose’ grille, with a distinctive three-dimensional diamond pattern, and long, swept-back headlamps. The lower roofline, higher beltline and more muscular, rounded shoulders at the rear give the car a dramatic appearance. The sleeker look is enhanced by an increase in length (+95 mm to 4,780 mm) and a 15 mm reduction in height (down to 1,685 mm), while the 80 mm longer wheelbase (now 2,780 mm) ensures more passenger space in all three seat rows.
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or 2015, the Kia Sportage is offered in three trim levels– LX, EX and SX– and offers two powertrains: a 2.4L GDI I4 (LX and EX) and a 2.0L Turbo GDI (SX). Starting with the LX trim, the 2015 Sportage offers numerous standard features, including 17-inch alloy wheels matched with 225/60R17 low-rolling-resistance silica tires. The popularly equipped EX trim offers stylish 18-inch alloy wheels with 235/55R18 tires. The top-of-the-line Sportage SX adds a powerful 2.0-liter turbocharged GDI engine producing 260-horsepower, unique 18-inch alloy wheels, dual exhaust, sculpted side sill moldings, LED accent lighting along the headlamps for a sportier look. A tilt and telescopic steering column is standard across all trims.
Rio
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vailable in three trims – LX, EX and SX – the 2015 Kia Rio is offered with a 1.6-liter GDI four-cylinder engine with the option of either a six-speed manual transmission (LX only) or efficient six-speed automatic. Previously available on only EX and SX trims, the 2015 model now offers LX customers the option of a six-speed automatic transmission with an Active ECO system, which optimizes fuel economy when activated. The Rio sedan produces 138 horsepower with a fuel economy rating of 27/37 mpg (city/highway). A sport-tuned suspension, front ventilated disc brakes, 17-inch alloy wheels and paddle shifters, give the 2015 Rio SX a sporty feel.
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LADA X-Ray 2 & Vesta
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he Lada X-Ray is a compact SUV. The “X” idea is clearly present at the front of the car. Though still in the concept version the Lada X-Ray SUV should mount a small 6-cylinder engine to keep it on the economic side of the market, following the market strategy of the company. The Lada X-Ray could debut as a street model just in 2016. The Vesta is a 4.4 meters long saloon. With a 2.65 meter-long wheelbase it will replace the Priora in Lada’s line-up. The Vesta is scheduled to hit the market in late 2015.
LAMBORGHINI Huracan 620-2 Super Trofeo
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utomobili Lamborghini unveiled the new Huracán LP 620-2 Super Trofeo. The car will debut in all three (Europe, Asia and North America) of the brand’s one-make 2015 Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo series. The Huracán Super Trofeo adopts the directinjected V10 engine from the road car, delivering 620 horsepower in race trim. It weighs an ultra-light 2,800 lbs, attributed to the hybrid
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carbon fiber/aluminum chassis and strict motorsports weight reduction. The weight/power ratio is 4.5 lbs/hp. The aerodynamics provide better efficiency, traction and downforce using a ten-position rear wing, front and rear diffusers as well as adjustable front air intakes. The Huracán Super Trofeo will be exclusively-equipped with Pirelli tires engineered specifically for this application.
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ith no need to meet the legislations for road legality, the McLaren P1 GTR will be the most track-tailored and most powerful model produced by McLaren Special Operations to date.
The track-focused McLaren P1 GTR design concept further optimises the aerodynamically efficient ‘shrink-wrapped’ body shape in order to offer maximum performance. The front track of the car has been increased by 80mm and is coupled with a more aggressive GT-style front splitter. Reprofiled low temperature radiator ducts seamlessly flow into the leading edge of the aggressively flared front wheelarches, while the active aerodynamic flaps are retained from the McLaren P1 in the floor ahead of the front wheels. The bodywork is ‘shrink-wrapped’ around the carbon fibre MonoCage chassis behind the front wheels, and is designed
650S Sprint
B to channel the air from around the wheel well. An additional aerodynamic blade is located behind the wheelarch to clean the air from the front tyres. A set of lightweight 19-inch motorsport alloy wheels are fitted – 10.5-inches wide at the front, 13-inches at the rear – and are secured into place with quick-release centre locking nuts. At the rear, a large, twin-element wing is mounted. This fixed height wing is fitted with a hydraulically operated Drag Reduction System (DRS). The car has an incredibly increased power to 1,000PS (986 bhp) from the motorsport-optimised 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8 petrol engine and lightweight electric motor.
ased on the recently launched McLaren 650S Coupe, the track-focused 650S Sprint is fitted with developments to the Brake Steer system, even more refined active aerodynamics and a race set-up for the ProActive Chassis Control (PCC). As with the 650S, the aerodynamically optimised design of the 650S Sprint offers increased levels of downforce, and the revised air intakes carried across from the road car allow for optimised cooling of the 3.8-litre twinturbo M838T engine. The cabin is fully track-focused and stripped out to minimise weight, but with no compromise to driver safety or comfort. The 650S Sprint has a lower ride height with recalibrated adaptive damping for revised spring rates, and sits on 19-inch centre-locking racing wheels. Stopping power is also enhanced and provided by a race-prepared braking system developed for the 650S Sprint.
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LEXUS NX
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he high-impact exterior presents a low, sloping roofline, a cab-forward silhouette, powerfully flared wheel arches and defining bodywork lines that flow directly from the signature Lexus spindle grille. In the Lexus NX luggage space is generous and practical. Maximum loadspace width is 1,347mm, enough for four golf bags to be stowed sideways, rather than across the diagonal. More storage space is available under the luggage board, taking total luggage capacity to 555 litres in hybrid versions and 580 litres in the turbo petrol (with a tyre repair kit carried). Next year the range will grow to include the NX 200t, the first model to adopt Lexus’s new 2.0-litre petrol turbo engine.
MERCEDES S 65 AMG Coupe
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he S 65 AMG Coupé is the new twelvecylinder top-of-the-range model in the SClass Coupé series. The AMG 6.0-litre V12 biturbo engine, with an output of 463 kW (630 hp) and 1000 newton metres of torque, is unique in its segment, as is the AMG sports suspension, based on MAGIC BODY CONTROL with curve tilting function and ROAD SURFACE SCAN. The S 65 AMG Coupé accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.1 seconds and has a top speed of 250 km/h (electronically limited). The AMG SPEEDSHIFT PLUS 7G-TRONIC is responsible for transmitting
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power to the rear axle. The transmission offers three individual modes: the driver can choose between Controlled Efficiency (C), Sport (S) and Manual (M) by pushing a button on the centre console. The S 65 AMG Coupé features forged wheels in a multi-spoke design, size 8.5 x 20 at the front and 9.5 x 20 at the rear, with 255/40 R 20 and 285/35 R 20 tyres. V12-specific features include the countless design elements in high-sheen chrome at the front, sides and rear which are particular in conjunction with dark paintwork.
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NISSAN 370Z NISMO
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he front bumper has been completely redesigned and features a larger air intake, additional air inlets ahead of the wheel arch and new LED daytime running lights. The revised 370Z NISMO also features new 19-inch Rays alloy wheels finished in black and silver. As part of a complete rework of the 370Z NISMO’s aero package, the new version features a smaller rear spoiler that works in
tandem with the new front bumper to create significantly more downforce when driving at speed. The new 370Z NISMO is powered by a 344PS, 3.7-litre six-cylinder engine. It sprints from 0-100kph in just 5.2 seconds. Available only as a coupe with a six-speed manual gearbox, the new 370Z NISMO features a number of suspension enhancements introduced as part of the 2015 MY updates.
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PANOZ Esperante
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anoz will produce no more than 25 Esperante Spyder and Spyder GT sports cars to commemorate the company’s motorsports heritage and Panoz sports cars of the past 25 years. The 2015 Esperante Spyder has the proven and lightweight SPF (Superplastic Forming, commonly referred to as ‘super formed’) aluminum body. The use of aluminum, carbon fiber and other composite materials, as well as other powertrain, suspension, interior weight-savings measures have the Esperante Spyder weigh just 3,128 pounds. It takes just 3.7 seconds (estimated) to reach 60 mph on its way to a top test track speed of 172 mph. It can cover the quarter mile in 12.5 seconds/112 mph. Prices start at $179,120 for the 25th Anniversary Edition Esperante Spyder and $204,750 (plus destination) for the Spyder GT version.
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RANGE ROVER Sport SVR
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apable of accelerating from 0-60 mph in 4.5 seconds with an electronically limited top track speed of 162 mph, the Range Rover Sport SVR will be the first Land Rover vehicle to wear the new high-performance SVR badge. The SVR features a 5.0-liter supercharged V8 engine which has been developed to produce 550hp and 502lb-ft of torque – a 40hp and 41lb-ft increase over the standard supercharged V8 – while its advanced ZF 8HP70 eight-speed automatic transmission and four-wheel-drive chassis have been tuned to complement the performance. Emphasizing all-terrain capability, vehicles are equipped with 21-inch alloy wheels with 275/45 R21 all-season Continental Cross Contact tires. The exterior design of the SVR makes a visual impact, while functionally boosting cooling and aerodynamic efficiencies. Similarly, a modified interior featuring sport seats provides visual differentiation and offers increased support during spirited driving.
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SUBARU WRX S4
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ubaru has introduced the Subaru “WRX S4” in Japan. The WRX S4 sports sedan combines Subaru’s all-wheel drive (AWD) sports performance with unique overall safety features and quality. Teamed with Sport Lineartronic transmission, the 2.0-liter high-performance direct injection turbo engine maximizes output and torque for impressive power performance. Figures show 221 kW (300 PS) at 5,600 rpm and 400 Nm at 2,000–4,800 rpm. It is the first model in the WRX series to be equipped with Subaru’s own EyeSight driving assist system for enhanced overall safety. Comprehensive body and chassis enhancements have achieved a high-quality ride, greatly reducing driver burden to support safe and comfortable driving.
ROLLS-ROYCE
Phantom Drophead Coupe Waterspeed
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he Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupé Waterspeed Collection, which was conceived to celebrate Sir Malcolm Campbell’s act of setting a new world water-speed record in 1937, features a number of exclusive Bespoke design and engineering features, perfectly executed to create a thoroughly contemporary tribute to Campbell’s famous craft. A specially created ‘Maggiore Blue’ color scheme flows like water over all the surfaces
SALEEN FOURSIXTEEN
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of Waterspeed, outside and in. Nine layers of paint are applied before an exhaustive process of hand-sanding and the application of a cutting-edge powdered lacquer is undertaken. For the first time in Rolls-Royce history, the exterior finish extends to the engine, creating a homage to the power behind Campbell’s records. The finish also adorns the car’s specially developed, fully-polished eleven-spoke wheels, providing a subtle decorative accent.
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ront aero management vents help ensure that the Saleen FOURSIXTEEN model maintains a low pressure field as air acceleration increases around the chassis. Assisting the lower aero management is the unique V-shaped hood architecture efficiently directing hot air away from the drivetrain cooling system all while generating valuable downforce across the front section. Propelling the new FOURSIXTEEN is the 3-phase, four pole AC induction motor and copper rotor with the upgraded Saleen drivetrain including an all-new 11.39:1 final gear ratio for quicker acceleration. Also new
for the FOURSIXTEEN is a Saleen specific MAXGRIPTM locking differential that allows each wheel to efficiently apply rotational force and maximize traction and grip in performance environments.
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VOLVO XC90
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tilising the new Scalable Product Architecture technology the new XC90 marks the beginning of a new chapter for Volvo’s. The new XC90 will be the first of its cars to carry the company’s new more prominent iron mark, which has the iconic arrow elegantly aligned with the diagonal slash across the grille. Together with the T-shaped “Thor’s Hammer” DRL lights, the iron mark introduces an entirely new face for Volvo’s forthcoming generation of cars. To add more visual muscle from the sides, the XC90 comes with a range of wheel sizes up to 22 inches.
The new XC90 offers a range of two-litre, four-cylinder Drive-E powertrains. The top of the range XC90 Twin Engine, which combines a two-litre, four-cylinder supercharged and turbocharged petrol engine with an electric motor, offers an combination of power and clean operation: around 400 horsepower with CO2 emissions of around 60 g/km (NEDC driving cycle). The XC90’s interior is the most luxurious to have been designed for a Volvo. The most striking feature is a tablet-like touch screen control console, which forms the heart of an all-new in-car control system.
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The next generation Mercedes CLS
CULT DESIGN
Mercedes-Benz has comprehensively revised both the fourdoor CLS Coupé and the CLS Shooting Brake. These two iconic designs now have a more incisive front section. As the interior has been enhanced even further, there are many new details waiting to be discovered. In terms of performance, the AMG versions – the CLS 63 AMG Coupé and Shooting Brake take pole position with an output of up to 430 kW (585 hp).
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hen Mercedes-Benz launched the CLS ten years ago it established the fourdoor coupé segment, thus underlining the brand’s leadership role in automotive design. For the first time, here was a vehicle combining the elegance and dynamism of a coupé with the comfort and functionality of a saloon. What is more, the CLS was the first vehicle to be available with dynamic LED High Performance headlamps, making it iconic in terms of its lighting system. In 2012 Mercedes-Benz continued this success by introducing the CLS Shooting Brake. This sporty five-door vehicle once again demonstrated the premium brand’s creative design credentials. Due to their charisma both the CLS Coupé and the CLS Shooting Brake have established themselves as style icons, and continue to stand out as exceptional in their segment.
The CLS-Class’s exciting design and thrilling proportions were subtly adapted to these high-tech demands. As before, it has a
long bonnet, a slim window line with frameless side windows and a roof with a dynamic rearward slope. With the unique, low roof flowing back to its rear end, the five-door CLS Shooting Brake provides up to 1550 litres of load space for luggage or sports and leisure equipment. All in all, the designs of the latest-generation CLS Coupé and CLS Shooting Brake are more dynamic than ever. Examples include an expressive new diamond radiator grille, a pronounced front bumper with large air intakes, MULTIBEAM LED headlamps and new, darkened rear tail lights with multi-level functionality. TAKING THE LIGHTING SYSTEM INTO A NEW DIMENSION Both models are already equipped with LED High Performance headlamps as standard. Alternatively, both vehicle models are optionally available with new MULTIBEAM LED headlamps as designed and developed by Mercedes-Benz.
Prof Dr Thomas Weber, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG responsible for Group Research and MercedesBenz Cars Development: “We’ve produced iconic designs on wheels in the shape of the CLS Coupé and the CLS Shooting Brake. The exciting lines of the most recent versions once again set the pulse racing. With new, high-tech additions such as innovative MULTIBEAM LED headlamps (which start a new chapter in lighting design), nine-speed automatic transmission and advanced multimedia system, both models also define a new technological leadership position.”
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With three transmission modes, 9G-TRONIC offers a control strategy that is adapted to the relevant traffic situation or the driver’s personal preferences. In ECO mode upshifts are performed sooner, and the handling is gentler overall to support an economical driving style at lower engine speeds. In SPORT or MANUAL modes the control strategy shortens the response and shift times, and there is higher revving in the gears to support a dynamic and sporty driving style. Transmission modes are activated with a switch on the centre console.
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Since MULTIBEAM LED technology combines the best of today’s lighting technologies and is able to adjust the light distribution very quickly and automatically to virtually any road and traffic conditions, it always ensures thus far unrivalled broad and bright illumination of the road surface and edge of the carriageway for high performance and precision without dazzling other car drivers. The camera-based Adaptive Highbeam Assist Plus system supplies the information required for illumination. If it detects oncoming traffic or vehicles in front with their lights on, each of the 24 individual, high-performance LEDs in a matrix light source is controlled electronically so that various areas of the road surface can be masked out, depending on the situation. Combining the matrix light source with proven LED Intelligent Light System technology, the headlamp control system improves on the precision of today’s light sources and sets a gap with a minimal width for the main beam. In this way, other car drivers are not dazzled but drivers of the CLS Coupé and CLS Shooting Brake always benefit from the best possible illumination of the road and carriageway edges. These antidazzle, main-beam headlamps can be kept on permanently. In addition to the camera on the windscreen, this new lighting system uses four control units per vehicle, which calculate the ideal light pattern 100 times per second and control all 24 high-performance LEDs in each precision LED module quickly and individually. Each LED is dimmable in 255 stages. As well as the high-performance, precision LED module, each MULTIBEAM LED headlamp contains a module for the low-beam headlamp, which can be swivelled up to 12 degrees to the outside for an active light function with special features that have never been achieved before. The latter is likewise
camera-controlled. For example, an anticipatory function means that the active light function starts to swivel before the driver has even turned. The bend is therefore illuminated effectively as soon as possible. This active light function will also swivel back to the straight-on position before the corner ends, allowing the driver to identify dangers earlier when entering and exiting bends. The anticipatory control allows an additional range of between 30 and 60 metres, depending on the traffic situation. Another unique feature is used at roundabouts: before entering onto a roundabout, the cornering light function is activated to the left and right to ensure maximum visibility on all sides at an early stage. For this purpose the navigation system supplies the positions of roundabouts on the route to the headlamps. SPORTY INTERIOR FEATURING MODERN LUXURY Ample space; simple, sporty elegance; hand-crafted perfection, and premium materials are hallmarks of the CLS family’s stylish interior. A new, free-standing colour display in the head unit with a 20.3 cm screen diagonal (8”) will help to define the dashboard’s contemporary styling. Also new are the redesigned three-spoke sports steering wheel and many refined details, which contribute to the interior’s high quality look and feel. The central control panel in the centre console now has four buttons rather than just two previously, thus speeding up operations in many cases. With five attractive interior colours, six types of trim and different qualities of leather to choose from, including Leather PASSION Exclusive, the possibilities for individualisation are vast. The new AMG Line Plus supplements the existing Exterior Sports package and AMG Line design and equipment lines and, as
the expression of exclusive sportiness and dynamism, increases the potential for individualisation. By the end of the year a special Night package is set to extend the selection further. New designo interior packages are also available. EFFICIENT, SPORTY ENGINES Thrilling dynamism and exemplary efficiency are the strong points of the five engines available for the next-generation CLS-Class. All are compliant with the Euro 6 standard. New to the class is the CLS 220 BlueTEC with a fourcylinder diesel engine featuring fourth-generation common rail direct injection, two-stage turbocharging and BlueTEC technology. It generates 125 kW (170 hp) with maximum torque of 400 Nm.
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All CLS 63 AMG models come with the AMG RIDE CONTROL sports suspension with electronically controlled damping system, steel suspension at the front and air spring system at the rear. Hallmark AMG features including more negative camber on both axles and track widened by 24 millimetres at the front provide more stability at high cornering speeds and better road feel. The S-Model and the CLS 63 AMG with all-wheel drive are fitted with an optimised 3-link front suspension including axle components made of aluminium. The driver benefits from both more grip and agility as well as decidedly neutral handling characteristics on fast bends. The markedly more performance-oriented elastokinematics are exclusive to the S-Model, and offer the driver even better feedback and grip at the critical limits.
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The four-cylinder diesel engine in the CLS 250 BlueTEC, meanwhile, has 150 kW (204 hp) and torque of 500 Nm available on demand. Surpassing these figures, the V6 diesel engine in the CLS 350 BlueTEC delivers 190 kW (258 hp) and 620 Nm of torque.
The CLS 500 hits its power peak at 300 kW (408 hp) and up to 600 Nm of torque. In future, four models (rather than the previous two) will be offered with permanent all-wheel drive. The newcomers are the CLS 250 BlueTEC 4MATIC and the CLS 400 4MATIC.
Equally new is the V6 petrol engine with exhaust gas turbocharging in the CLS 400. Endowed with a biturbo drive system, it has a 3.5-litre displacement. Thanks to its high output potential and extremely high torque at low engine speeds, this engine sets new benchmarks in its segment. Compared to its predecessor, which had a naturally aspirated engine, output is 20 kW more at 245 kW (333 hp). Its torque increases by 110 Nm to 480 Nm and is available in the wide engine speed range from 1200 to 4000 rpm.
Maximum performance and efficiency: the AMG 5.5-litre V8 biturbo engine 410 kW (557 hp) to 430 kW (585 hp) and 720 to 800 Nm – the AMG 5.5-litre V8 biturbo engine ranks among the world’s most efficient series-production eight-cylinder engines when it comes to peak output, torque and fuel consumption. The CLS 63 AMG with 410 kW (557 hp) and rear-wheel drive consumes 9.9 litres per 100 kilometres (NEDC combined; 231 grams CO2 per kilometre). The variant with 410 kW and performance-
oriented AMG 4MATIC all-wheel drive and the S-Model with 430 kW (585 hp) and allwheel drive come in only slightly above at 10.4 to 10.6 litres per 100 km (243 grams to 248 grams CO2/km). All CLS 63 AMG models already meet the second stage of the EU6 emissions standard. NEW AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION WITH NINE GEARS Other leading-edge technology includes a nine-speed automatic transmission with hydrodynamic torque converter in the premium segment: 9G-TRONIC is deployed in the CLS 220 BlueTEC, CLS 250 BlueTEC, CLS 350 BlueTEC and CLS 500. This innovation builds on the strengths of 7G-TRONIC PLUS, which continues to set standards in terms of efficiency, comfort and dynamism.
With nine forward gears 9G-TRONIC lowers fuel consumption whilst simultaneously boosting ease of shifting and agility. THE USUAL HIGH MERCEDES STANDARD OF QUALITY In order to make maximum safety accessible to all, in future the CLS-Class will be equipped with many new and feature-enhanced assistance systems. COLLISION PREVENTION ASSIST PLUS is already part of the standard equipment. It can help to avoid rear-end collisions – by way of autonomous brake application if necessary. The latest assistance systems from the SClass are also available as optional extras.
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MERCEDES CLS
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These include DISTRONIC PLUS with Steering Assist and Stop&Go Pilot, BAS PLUS with Cross-Traffic Assist, PRE-SAFE® Brake with pedestrian detection, PRE-SAFE® PLUS, Active Blind Spot Assist, Active Lane Keeping Assist, Traffic Sign Assist, Active Parking Assist with PARKTRONIC including parking in end-on spaces, as well as a 360° camera. IDEALLY NETWORKED In future, a completely new multimedia generation will offer intuitive operation in the CLS Coupé and CLS Shooting Brake, featuring elaborate animations and visual effects which present all functions in a clear and attractive manner. A choice of infotainment system (Audio 20 CD or optional COMAND Online) is available in conjunction with the new, free-standing display in the head unit with a 20.3 cm screen diagonal (8”). Both enable the internet to be surfed without restrictions when the vehicle
is stationary. A Bluetooth®-capable mobile phone with data option is all it takes. Equally new is a now standard and integral Media Interface for connecting an iPod® or iPhone®. Mercedes-Benz Apps such as Weather, GoogleTM Local Search with StreetView and Panoramio, destination/route download and Facebook can be used while on the move in conjunction with COMAND Online. Audio and video playback is possible from various sources, for example via Bluetooth®, from an Apple iPod® or iPhone®, from an SD card, USB stick or CD/DVD. COMAND Online additionally comes with the LINGUATRONIC voice-operated control system; digital TV/radio reception is a further option. MODERN-STYLE NAVIGATION In the version with pre-installation the basic Audio 20 CD system can be supplemented with the user-friendly Garmin® MAP PILOT
navigation system. Its merits include 3D views with exact representation of streets and buildings, and photo-realistic Cross-Traffic and Lane Assistants. The navigation software and map data are stored on an SD card, which is simply inserted into the dedicated slot of the Audio 20 CD with pre-installation for the Garmin® MAP PILOT. The fast 3D hard-disc navigation of COMAND Online with topographical map display, photo-realistic 3D buildings and 3D map rotations, as well as display of NASA satellite images, makes for a sensory experience. System features include an animated compass and Google Maps displayed on the head unit. The navigation system is also able to provide real-time information about the situation on the roads when COMAND Online receives traffic data via the internet by means of the Live Traffic Information service.
TELEPHONY VIA BLUETOOTH® WITH HD VOICE AS STANDARD Both the basic Audio 20 CD system and COMAND Online come as standard with basic telephony, which connects the mobile phone with the vehicle via a standardised Bluetooth® interface, featuring HD Voice. This latter feature significantly improves voice quality. What is more, in conjunction with convenience telephony the fast LTE network can be used if a compatible smartphone is provided on an appropriate contract. In Europe, the next-generation CLS-Class launches with a new package of services known as “Mercedes connect me”. Mercedes-Benz emergency call and an accident, maintenance and breakdown management solution, among other services, are made available via a standard COM module with its own SIM card integrated into the vehicle. Via “connect.mercedes.me” customers are able to connect with their vehicle anytime and anywhere using the internet to find out how full the tank is, for example.
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MERCEDES CLS
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MERCEDES CLS SPECIFICATIONS The models for the German market at a glance
CLS 63 AMG Coupé
CLS 63 AMG 4MATIC Coupé/ Shooting Brake
Displacement 5461 cc 5461 cc Output 410 kW (557 hp) 410 kW (557 hp) at 5500 rpm at 5500 rpm Max. torque 720 Nm 720 Nm at 1750–5250 rpm at 1750–5250 rpm Fuel consumption / NEDC combined 9.9 l/100 km 10.4 (10.6) l/100 km CO2 emissions 231 g/km 243 (248) g/km Efficiency class F F Acceleration 0-100 km/h 4.2 s 3.7 (3.8) s Top speed 250 km/h* 250 km/h* * Electronically limited; figures for CLS 63 AMG Shooting Brake in brackets All facelifted CLS 63 AMG models the market launch is scheduled for the end of September.
CLS 63 AMG 4MATIC S-Model Coupé/Shooting Brake 5461 cc 430 kW (585 hp) at 5500 rpm 800 Nm at 1750–5000 rpm 10.4 (10.6) l/100 km 243 (248) g/km F 3.6 (3.7) s 250 km/h*
The CLS Coupé comes with steel springs and a DIRECT CONTROL suspension as standard. It is available in two variants: • As a comfort suspension with selective damping system which adjusts automatically to the condition of the road surface, for four and six-cylinder engines • As a sports suspension with selective damping system and firmer damping characteristics in conjunction with the AMG Line and Exterior Sports package
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MISS OF THE MONTH
Pictures Copyright  Automobiles Peugeot
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With EXALT, Peugeot unveils its imposing vision of the sedan by following the approach initiated in 2012 with the Onyx concept
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PEUGEOT EXALT
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W
ith its sleek and athletic lines, EXALT embodies the power of Peugeot design. Sitting on wide tracks and powerfully rounded wheel arches, this 5-door hatchback expresses its style over a length of 4.70m. The alliance of flat surfaces and straight cut lines reconciles aggressiveness and softness. EXALT chooses to be radical by deleting all superfluous materials, keeping only what is really useful. Its specification comprises materials from the melding of cultures and French and Chinese knowhow. Each one of the materials used has been rigorously selected for their efficiency. In homage to the art of the French motor car from the twenties and thirties, its bare steel bodywork is hand-formed by a master panel beater. One of a kind, it reinterprets the historical codes that make up automobile passion: taut and dynamic lines, a high waist line, a raked windscreen, a low roof (just 1.31m), a very slender profile that conceals a cabin that is still spacious, tightly shaped side panels with basalt fibre sills and 20-inch wheels. The long bonnet grows out of the particularly expressive front end, where the twin headlamps, set in the bumper, integrate the brand’s recognizable signature lighting. In the middle, the powerful grille emerges from the bodywork and provides the backdrop for the doubly symbolic lion. This is because this animal is both the emblem of the brand and in Chinese culture, the expression of power and prestige.
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PEUGEOT EXALT
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“I was inspired by the musical world for this project. Colour is a fundamental notion in it. Notes combine together to create a score which is profoundly moving. This is how technology and tradition merge together in EXALT. In the Peugeot i-Cockpit, a digital instrument panel is side by side with toggle switches. The result is pure, timeless�. Alessandro Riga, Peugeot EXALT interior stylist
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PEUGEOT EXALT
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To improve the drag coefficient, the rear of EXALT is trimmed in Shark Skin, an efficient textile. Thanks to its technical grain structure, this material resulting from bio-mimicry markedly improves the aerodynamic performance of the vehicle, with the aim of reducing its fuel consumption. Its use is elevated by a straight line making the transition between the rear door and the quarter light, the transition between the grey of the steel and the red of the Shark Skin. This material contributes towards EXALT’s aerodynamic performance – with a SCx of 0.6 – in association with other elements: an air extractor in the rear bumper, the curve
of the roof, the profiled mirrors. With such remarkable aerodynamics, the mark left by EXALT on its surroundings is essentially visual. A horizontal band in the hollow of the rear spoiler shows the width of the car and the sculpted facet of the lighting signature. The tailgate works with an innovative pantograph mechanism. This arrangement allows maximum opening while needing less space externally. The tailgate with its integral motorised hobby flap reveals a boot with a low load sill. Trimmed in wood, it presents a particularly satisfying appearance and facilitates the handling of luggage.
INSTINCTIVE DRIVING The Peugeot i-Cockpit delivers an intense driving experience dedicated to enjoyment. The small wheel trimmed in leather and “chiné”, a natural wool-based mixed fabric, and the digital instrument panel are intuitively arranged in front of the driver for improved operation and reading. On the extended centre console, two folding touch screens emerge from the dashboard. The upper screen gives access to the on board computer and the Hi-Fi and navigation systems. The second screen presents a permanently visible control bar to provide access to the automatic air conditioning and the Pure Blue system.
Nine Toggle Switches are located on the dashboard, evocative in their design of the world of music. They are arranged in two groups, two to the left of the small steering wheel, seven to the right. This distribution was adopted because of the human brain’s ability to easily remember up to seven elements, for their position and their function. Furthermore, the driver is free to associate Toggle Switches with functions, as desired: access to navigation with a particular switch, vehicle settings with another, etc.. Activation of the black light system can also be assigned to one of the Toggle Switches.
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PEUGEOT EXALT
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“Peugeot EXALT is made of raw and natural elements associated with innovative and efficient materials. The idea was to finish the car with useful touches and to do it intelligently with the constant objective of optimising processes to economise on the use of materials and reduce waste. This responsible approach is also applied in the local sourcing of materials, such as black ebony from the tropical forests of South East Asia�. Sophie Gazeau, Peugeot EXALT Colours and Materials Stylist
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PEUGEOT EXALT
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Built into the headlamps, this system is particularly useful during the transition between day and night. Visibility issues are reduced and driving becomes more relaxed with black light, improving the noticeability of road markings.
Black ebony wood has been selected for its rare qualities and its indigenous roots to the Asian continent. Combining a lion with bamboo stems and leaves, its creation was entrusted to a Chinese master craftsman using traditional techniques.
VISIONARY DESIGN Peugeot EXALT advances the approach initiated by the Onyx concept in 2012. Regarding the work carried out on the body of the vehicle, bare steel is used to accentuate the expressive lines of the vehicle. Associated parts such as the wheels are also in bare steel in order to highlight the markings left by the milling machines.
Finally, carbon fibre gives way to basalt fibre, a natural composite. Produced by smelting the basalt stone, it reduces the use of petrochemical resources.
Steel remains bare in all areas where it does not come into contact with the bodies of the four occupants. At the elbows and arm contact points, EXALT is trimmed in warm toned wood. From the bottom of the windows, it gives way to a natural wool-based “chiné” mixed fabric used to trim the door panels, the dashboard and the interior roof. Each occupant has a special welcome on board the PEUGEOT EXALT, whether the driver or a passenger. The bucket seats made of composite material associate seat squabs and backrest in natural wool-based “chiné” mixed fabric with the side areas in aged leather. Fabric and leather are worked together in a process that optimises the use of resources. So to avoid off-cuts and waste, the fabric is shaped using clamps. Leather for use in cars has always been selected for the absence of markings then tanned to make it perfect. Optimising the skins, EXALT makes us of imperfections in appearance to make each one a unique signature.
HIGH PERFORMANCE DRIVE TRAIN Weighing just 1,700kg, Peugeot EXALT is powered by a plug-in HYbrid4 drive train with a total maximum power of 340hp shared between the four wheels. The chiselled bonnet houses the 1.6 THP 270hp developed by PEUGEOT Sport. Coupled to a 6-speed automatic gearbox, this 4-cylinder petrol engine develops a specific power output of nearly170 hp per litre, making it one of the best in the world. At the rear, the multi-link rear axle contains a 50 kW electric machine for electric or hybrid phases of operation. This machine also intervenes to recharge the battery through energy recovery braking. On deceleration, braking is produced by the resistant torque of the electric machine. In this way the HYbrid4 technology converts into electricity the kinetic energy that would otherwise have been dissipated as heat through the brake discs and pads. Intelligent technology, HYbrid4 instantly adapts to the driver’s wishes by selecting the most suitable mode: pure electric, petrol only, petrol-electric hybrid.
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CLASSIC
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by Niccolò Gargiulo
T
he Monterey Classic Car Week, which always takes place in August on the Monterey Peninsula in California, is the most important classic car gathering in the world. The week long festivities include classic car auctions, art displays, classic cars tours, motorsport races and, of course, the traditional Concours d’Elegance. The Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance is much more than just a competition to find the most beautiful car. It is a celebration of the passion and dedication of an elite group of individuals dedicated to preserving automotive history. This year’s Councours d’Elegance saw a marvelous 1954 Ferrari 375 MM Scaglietti Coupe conquer the Best of Show award. 217 other cars from 15 countries divided across 27 classes had to settle for other prizes given the provenance, quality of restoration and undisputed elegance of the winning Ferrari. According to Nic Waller, a member of the Concours Selection Committee, it was a close run thing but a fine decision: “It could not go to a better or more unique Ferrari. It’s been to Pebble before, about 15 years ago [when it won First in Class], but it’s since been re-
Barry Rowe’s 2014 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance poster
This is the last of the four 1939 Talbot-Lago T150C-SS Pourtout Coupe ever built (Photo: Rolex – Tom O’Neil)
Ruxton cars displayed at Pebble Beach (Photo: Rolex – Tom O’Neil)
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PEBBLE BEACH
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The one-off 1935 Bugatti Type 57SC Competition Electron Torpedo (Photo: Rolex – Tom O’Neil)
1963 Ferrari 250GTO Berlinetta leading 1958 Turner 950S in the Group 3A race (Photo: Rolex – Stephane Cooper)
restored and a lot of time and effort taken to bring it back to exactly as it was when it was first delivered to Roberto Rossellini.” Rossellini is perhaps as good a testimony for the car’s elegance as one could need. As a filmmaker, whose Roma città aperta won the Palme d’Or at Cannes in 1946 and who was married to Ingrid Bergman, he knew a thing or two about art and beauty.
The 1963 Shelby 289 Cobra Factory Team Car was built for racing
(Photo: Rolex – Tom O’Neil)
1938 Talbot-Lago T150 C SS, winner of the Quail Best of Show 2014 (Photo: Rolex – Tom O’Neil)
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PEBBLE BEACH
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This 1935 Bugatti Type 57S is a one-off (Photo: Rolex – Stephane Cooper)
Aside from the world famous Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, which is the final act of the Monterey Classic Car Week, two other events are worth a closer look. The Rolex Monterey Motorsport Reunion at the Laguna Seca Raceway provides the possibility for historic racing cars to compete once again in different classes. The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering is the display of the finest in automotive design and engineering with a focus on sporting and racing machinery. The Rolex Best of Show is the coveted prize, and is determined in a unique manner with entrants agreeing among themselves the winner in their category, and then electing the overall winner from those entered in the Rolex Circle of Champions. This year the Best of Show went to a 1938 Talbot-Lago T150 C SS.
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PEBBLE BEACH
1938 Delahaye 135 MS Figoni & Falaschi Torpedo Grand Sport (Photo: Rolex – Tom O’Neil)
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This 1958 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa Scaglietti Spyder won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1958 driven by Phil Hill (Photo: Rolex – Tom O’Neil)
1939 Lagonda V12 Rapide Drophead Coupe (Photo: Rolex – Tom O’Neil)
The 1902 Toledo Model A Stanhope Runabout was also known as the “Billings”, after its designer, frederick Billings (Photo: Rolex – Tom O’Neil)
1939 Talbot-Lago T150C-SS Pourtout Coupe (Photo: Rolex – Tom O’Neil)
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PEBBLE BEACH
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The Best of Show 2014, this 1954 Ferrari 375 MM Scaglietti Coupe, was ordered by film director Roberto Rossellini (Photo: Rolex – Tom O’Neil)
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GLOBAL NEWS
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The entire Cadillac Escalade SUV line gets 8-Speed transmission, Surround View camera and 4G LTE connectivity
PLATINUM!
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CADILLAC ESCALADE SUV
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adillac announced numerous enhancements to the just-launched 2015 Escalade, including the new range-topping Platinum Collection model launching in the fourth quarter this year. Escalade Platinum features elegant, handcrafted luxury additions to both the exterior and interior while the entire Escalade range gets new technical features, highlighted by the addition of 4G LTE connectivity, a new 8-speed automatic transmission and a Surround View camera system to help increase visibility. “Since the launch just a few months ago, the next-generation Escalade has proved exceptionally desirable among luxury SUV
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buyers,” said Uwe Ellinghaus, chief marketing officer, Cadillac. “Now, within the same year we are able to elevate the Escalade line with the Platinum Collection, as well as deliver enhancements through the entire Escalade range.” The 2015 Escalade Platinum extends and upgrades the use of premium materials within the Escalade’s cut and sewn interior. First and second-row seats are wrapped in Nappa semi-aniline leather, while the dashboard, upper door panels and center console are clad in hand-stitched and hand-wrapped leather. Customers can choose between two distinct interior environments, each paired with sueded microfiber headliner trim and unique exotic wood accents.
Escalade Platinum Collection is also designed to provide passengers with unsurpassed comfort and convenience. Heated and cooled 18-way power front seats are standard, and include a massaging function on the driver’s seat. A pair of seven-inch LCD screens, embedded in the front head rests, supplement the overhead 9-inch screen, while a cooled center console compartment can keep chilled beverages handy. Platinum models also include premium floor mats and Platinum-branded door sill plates. Escalade Platinum models ride on 22-inch wheels and the model is distinguished by chrome accents, Platinum exterior badging, and a unique grille mesh design. All Escalade models wear the new, streamlined Cadillac Crest.
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CADILLAC ESCALADE SUV
In addition, all Escalade models – from the standard Collection through to the Platinum – feature a host of technology upgrades. Vehicle performance is aided by the new eight-speed automatic transmission that is standard on all models, as well as a twospeed transfer case standard on four-wheel drive models. An electronic hands-free liftgate already standard on Escalade will also feature hands-free closing capability. Like the new ATS sport sedan, Escalade includes OnStar with 4G LTE connectivity with a WiFi
( hotspot capable of connecting up to seven devices and inductive wireless device charging. Surround View, which provides a bird’s eye view of the area immediately surrounding the vehicle. The enhancements add just $1275 to Escalade’s starting price in the U.S., for a total of $73,965, including destination. The top-of-the-range 2015 Escalade Platinum is priced from $90,270, including $995 in destination.
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PIC OF THE MONTH
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Photo © General Motors
The 2015 GMC Sierra 3500 HD won the overall title in the 2014 Ultimate Heavy Duty Challenge 1-ton diesel category following testing by truck experts from Cars.com, PickupTrucks.com and Mrtruck.com
globalmag
RACEGM
#
7
September 2014
The new Formula E is ready to start
KING POWER
THE HYUNDAI’S FIRST TIME
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PIC OF THE MONTH
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The Lexus TOM’S RC F driven by Kazuki Nakajima and James Rossiter started from pole position and ran on to win the long and prestigious Suzuka 1.000 km., round 6 of the 2014 Japanese SuperGT Series
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FRONT PAGE Quiet Please! - VIDEO INDYCAR Power! Countdown to the aero kits FORMULA 1 Enrico’s Notebook RALLY The Hyundai’s first time WTCC The Jose’ Maria Challenge NASCAR WHELEN EURO SERIES A very hard battle INTERVIEW Chip Pankow, Global RallyCross PADDOCK MIX RACE GLOBALMAG is an extra issue of digital monthly magazine CARS GLOBALMAG. Chief Editor: Vittorio Gargiulo All rights reserved. All materials present in this magazine including, but not limited to texts, photographs, illustrations, video clips and other materials are protected by copyrights and/or other intellectual property. The material and content provided in this application is for your personal, non-commercial use only, and you agree not to distribute, copy, extract or commercially exploit such material. You further agree not to reproduce, distribute, perform, display, modify, adapt, translate, prepare derivative works from this magazine.
FRONT PAGE
Formula E, the new global electric racing series is ready to debut. The first event is scheduled for September 13 in Beijing (China)
PIT STOP CHAMPIONSHIP CALENDAR Beijing (China) Putrajaya (Malaysia) Punta del Este (Uruguay) Buenos Aires (Argentina TBA Miami (USA) Long Beach (USA) Montecarlo (Monaco) Berlin (Germany) London (United Kingdom)
13 September 2014 22 November 2014 13 December 2014 10 January 2015 14 February 2015 14 March 2015 04 April 2015 09 May 2015 30 May 2015 27 Jume 2015
QUITE PLEASE! Formula E is a new FIA championship featuring Formula cars powered exclusively by electric energy. It represents a vision for the future of the motor industry over the coming decades, serving as a framework for research and development around the electric vehicle, accelerating general interest in these cars and promoting sustainability. Commencing in September 2014, the championship will compete in the heart of 10 of the world’s leading cities - including London, Beijing and Miami - racing around their iconic landmarks. For the inaugural season, 10 teams, each with two drivers, will go headto-head creating a unique and exciting racing series designed to appeal to a new generation of motorsport fans. Operating as an ‘open championship’, the series gives car manufacturers and constructors the opportunity to showcase their electrical energy innovations in a racing environment, designing cars to the technical specifications set out by the FIA.
Sam Bird
Jarno Trulli
QUITE PLEASE!
Katherine Legge
Formula E has recently completed two full event simulations as the world’s first all-electric single-seater championship gears up for its first race in Beijing on September 13. Both events took place at Leicestershire’s Donington Park, where a temporary pitlane and pitboxes were assembled to mimic those that will be in place at the street circuits the series will visit. Accreditation procedures, operational and IT infrastructures and even television broadcasts were also meticulously tested.
During the second simulation, for the first time the 10 teams ran all four of their cars as the two non-qualifying sessions, qualifying and an endurance test were completed to the schedule that will take place at the races. This meant that all of the teams and drivers had the opportunity to simulate the unique car change pitstops – and at the second simulation – a full standing start. While a number of issues were encountered, which was the reason for running the simulation, overall the events were considered to be a success.
Antonio Felix Da Costa
QUITE PLEASE! Alejandro Agag, CEO of Formula E, said: “Putting on a major sporting event in the heart of cities around the world is a massive undertaking and requires careful preparation. We want the Formula E Beijing ePrix to a fantastic spectacle, which is why we’re leaving nothing to chance by rigorously testing all the systems beforehand. Overall we’re very pleased with how things went.” Organisers have also revealed the raceday
Jaime Alguersuari
timetable for each Formula E event, which takes place all in one day. The 10 teams and 20 drivers will have two non-qualifying sessions in the morning – lasting 45 minutes and 30 minutes - followed by a qualifying session split into four groups of five cars with the order selected at random beforehand. The race itself will last approximately 60 minutes with the race distance (exact number of laps) determined on the day.
PIT STOP Teams & Drivers AMLIN AGURI – Katherine Legge / Antonio Felix Da Costa ANDRETTI AUTOSPORT – Franck Monatgny / Scott Speed AUDI SPORT ABT – Lucas di Grassi / Daniel Abt CHINA RACING – Nelson Piquet Jr. / Ho Pin Tung DRAGON RACING – Mike Conway / Jerome d’Ambrosio E.DAMS RENAULT – Nicolas Prost / Sébastien Buemi MAHINDRA RACING – Karun Chandhok / Bruno Senna TRULLI – Jarno Trulli / Michela Cerruti VENTURI FORMULA E TEAM – Nick Heidfeld / Stéphane Sarrazin VIRGIN RACING – Jaime Alguersuari / Sam Bird
QUITE PLEASE!
PIT STOP Sebastien Buemi (e.dams-Renault) set the fastest time on the final day of pre-season testing at Donington Park ahead of the opening round of the all-electric FIA Formula E Championship in Beijing on September 13. The Swiss driver set a lap of 1:31.792s to top the timesheets over three-tenths clear of his teammate Nicolas Prost, during a day where the 10 teams focused their attention on race simulations. Buemi, who has now topped four of the five pre-season tests, was the early pacesetter clocking a 1:32.519s, edging out Virgin Racing’s Sam Bird and Dragon Racing’s Jerome d’Ambrosio in the morning session. Meanwhile, Bruno Senna ended the day fourth fastest for Mahindra Racing ahead of Bird, who just pipped Audi Sport Abt’s Lucas di Grassi into sixth place. Karun Chandhok finished seventh for Mahindra Raching ahead of d’Ambrosio and Venturi’s Stephane Sarrazin. Nick Heidfeld rounded out the top 10 in the second Venturi car, with all 10 covered by less than a second. “We’re really happy with today, especially being the last test before Beijing,” said Buemi. “We still have a few issues with the car which we need to work on and also to better understand the limits of the car. Overall we’re feeling good for the first race but we’ll have to wait and see, a lot of teams are also looking quick.”
Action from the second Formula E event simulation at Donington Park.
QUITE PLEASE!
Franck Montagny
QUITE PLEASE!
PIT STOP Rimac Automobili will supply the new all-electric FIA Formula E Championship with one of its exclusive Concept_One supercars. The fully-electric one-of-a-kind car, which can accelerate from 0-60mph in the same time as a Formula E single-seater, will be supplied for use by the championship’s Race Director during all race events, allowing them to conduct track inspections and other duties whilst producing zero emissions. The Concept_One will also be used for passenger laps during Formula E events. Based in Croatia, near Zagreb, Rimac Automobili is a family of enthusiasts, engineers and designers that set up in 2009 to find new ways of making cars faster, and to prove to the world that electric cars can be fun – complementing the ethos of the Formula E championship.
RGM
INDYCAR
POW
Photo by: Chris Jones
Will Power won his first Verizon IndyCar Series championship. Power provided Team Penske with its 13th IndyCar championship and the first since 2006 with Sam Hornish Jr.
WER! Graham Rahal and Will Power
Final Point Standings 1. Power 2. Castroneves 3. Dixon 4. Montoya 5. Pagenaud
671 609 604 586 565
6. Hunter-Reay 7. Kanaan 8. Munoz 9. Andretti 10. Bourdais
563 544 483 463 461
POW ER!
Will Power earned his first Verizon IndyCar Series championship with a ninth-place finish in the MAVTV 500 at Auto Club Speedway on Saturday August 30. Power, who entered the 18th race of the season with a 51-point lead over Team Penske teammate Helio Castroneves, had been the championship runner-up in 2010, 2011 and 2012. It was the ninth consecutive year that the series champion was determined in the season finale.
“That was one of the hardest races ever. Oh my God, I was crying over the line. It just went on and on. I slowly made up position and the car wasn’t great. But, man. Got to thank Verizon and Roger Penske and Tim Cindric. It’s surreal, man. I can’t believe it.” said Power, who finished 62 points ahead of Castroneves. “I’m so mentally exhausted now. I’m just so exhausted. My hands are like numb from holding onto the wheel so tight. Man, I want to be a lot more excited but I’m just
so drained. That was just mega. I can’t believe I won it. The last 14 days have been the worst in my life, just mentally, just emotionally-just so bad. Not sleeping and stressing. I feel bad for my wife. Keeping her up at night, just bad. You never think it can happen until it happens. I can’t believe I’m champion. I can’t believe it. I didn’t think it was over. Just knowing how things have gone in the past. God.
When I took the lead, I thought ‘This is good. I believe we’ve got a pretty good shot here.’ When they said he got a drive though I said ‘Hey, this is it. We can do this. We can win it.’ It’s unbelievable. That’s 15 years of hard work. I started taking it seriously in 2000. That’s just 15 years of hard work.” “Tonight showed everyone the strength of our team,” said team owner Roger Penske, who has won the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race 15 times.
POW ER!
Castroneves, who started from the pole and led 41 laps, was assessed a drive-through penalty for a pit lane entry violation on lap 218 that put him a lap down. He finished 14th in the race and second in the championship for the fourth time in his career. “It’s another second, but well done to Will,” said Castroneves, a three-time Indianapolis 500 winner. “It stings a little bit, but it motivates me to come back stronger next year and win a championship. Talking about the team, obviously, it’s great. I was pushing extremely hard. I knew the only way for us to get in front was through the pits and my ins and outs seemed to be working very well except for my last one and I got a drive though.
Juan Pablo Montoya
PIT STOP Less than 24 hours after winning the Verizon IndyCar Series championship, Will Power got his chance to celebrate. Power - along with other drivers, teams and manufacturers - were recognized during the INDYCAR Championship Celebration at Club Nokia at the LA Live entertainment complex in downtown Los Angeles. Mark Miles, CEO of Hulman & Co., the parent of INDYCAR, presented Power and team owner Roger Penske with a $1 million championship bonus check and replicas of the Astor Challenge Cup, the Verizon IndyCar Series championship trophy. In addition to the championship bonus, Power accepted the Jostens Champions Award, a ring valued at $10,000. He also won the Sunoco Diamond Performance Award and its $75,000 prize for winning the most races and the Verizon P1 Award for scoring the most points among pole winners. Matt Jonnson, chief mechanic for Power’s No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, accepted the Verizon IndyCar Series Chief Mechanic of the Year Award. Jon Bouslog of Team Penske accepted the Team Manager of the Year Award. Carlos Munoz of Andretti Autosport - HVM accepted the $50,000 Verizon IndyCar Series Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award, while Jack Hawksworth won the Tony Renna Rising Star Award. Charlie Kimball claimed the $25,000 TAG Heuer “Don’t Crack Under Pressure” Award for advancing the most cumulative places during the season. Juan Pablo Montoya was voted favorite driver by Verizon IndyCar Series fans. Jim Campbell, Chevrolet’s vice president of performance vehicles and motorsports, accepted the manufacturer’s award on behalf of Chevrolet. Helio Castroneves of Team Penske was honored as the secondplace finisher in the championship while Scott Dixon of Target Chip Ganassi Racing was honored for finishing third.
POW ER!
So my bad. Guys, thank you for a great season. I really appreciate that. Well done, Will! You are the champ, man, good job. So, I hope the rate in his house doesn’t increase now, because every time I go and sleep in his house he charges me. But in the end of the day, great season for Team Penske.” Tony Kanaan, the 2004 series champion, won the 250-lap by 3.6750 seconds over Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammate and 2013 champion Scott Dixon. Kanaan was the 11th different winner of the sea-
son, which tied the Indy car single-season record set in 2000 and matched in 2001. Ed Carpenter, who won at Auto Club Speedway in 2012 and was runner-up in 2013, placed third and Juan Pablo Montoya finished fourth. “It’s been a long time coming,” said Kanaan, who claimed his first victory since the 2013 Indianapolis 500. “We had a team meeting this afternoon and Chip Ganassi said if you win you can brag about it for seven months.” Tony Kanaan
PIT STOP “First of all I want to wish Mikhail Aleshin a speedy recovery,” said Carlos Munoz. “As a rookie this year, I think it was the strongest rookie field IndyCar ever had. In general, we had the podiums and everything and that was great, and that’s why I feel really nice to be Rookie of the Year. As I said before, the competition this year was really tough. I’m just really happy; this is just the beginning, hopefully, of my career in IndyCar for many years. It’s always nice to have this honor in your resume. I think we finished the season strong, so I’m happy.”
POW ER!
PIT STOP IndyCar’s new regulations recently released include no in-season on-track team activity but the re-introduction of Open Tests before selected races. Provisions have been made in the rulebook for potential Firestone tire tests, new Verizon IndyCar Series teams and first-year drivers. A team is permitted a total of 14 test days, comprised of engine manufacturer tests, team tests, Open Tests and full-size wind tunnel tests. Full-season entrants are allocated a maximum of 10,000 total miles for use in all on-track activity from the first race or Open Test of 2015 to the end of the race season. “The reason for changing the testing regulations is about trying to contain the costs and fit into our new schedule,” INDYCAR president of competition Derrick Walker said. “Competition drives teams to test as much as they can because they’re trying to win races, but combined with the schedule it’s hard on the team members. Now we’re making provisions for race events to have promoter day tests, where the cars will be on the track and hopefully the promoter sees that as an opportunity to open up the stands for fans and sell race tickets.” The first Open Test is scheduled for March 16-17, 2015, at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama. It will be the initial opportunity for teams to test manufacturer road and street course aero kits to debut at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 27-29. Other Open Test venues include the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, MidOhio Sports Car Course and Sonoma Raceway.
RGM
INDYCAR
COUNTDOWN TO THE AERO KITS Honda Performance Development’s Steve Eriksen: “Aero kits will ‘generate quite a bit of interest”
TONY KANAAN Photo by Chris Jones
Honda Performance Development vice president and COO Steve Eriksen believes that fans will clearly see a distinction between Honda and Chevrolet cars through the aero kit program introduced for the 2015 Verizon IndyCar Series season. “INDYCAR has defined some boxes, and you have to work within the boxes. But, apart from that, it’s pretty open,” Eriksen said. “It’s so open on the rules that you’re going to see quite a bit of variation I think between the cars, the details particularly. I think you’ll end up in sort of like a sports car situation where people are going to be looking at all the little details on the car, and it’s going to generate quite a bit of interest.” As part of its long-range focus on innovation and competition, INDYCAR announced in June 2013 that aero kits would be introduced in 2015 and include separate specifications for speedways and road/street courses and short ovals. Chevrolet and Honda Performance Development, along with its project partners, will supply aero kits to their designated entrants for the 2015 Verizon IndyCar Series season.
AEROKITS
SÉBASTIEN BOURDAIS Photo by Chris Owens
T
he full aero kits will debut at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 27-29, 2015. The manufacturer testing window for up to six on-track days opens Oct. 6 and closes Jan. 18, 2015. Verizon IndyCar Series teams will take delivery of the street/road course aero kit March 1, with on-track and wind tunnel testing scheduled to open March 13 depending on the racing schedule. The speedway aero kit will follow. “Just as we’ve done in INDYCAR aero development years ago, just as we do on the sports car side, the bulk of the development is done in the digital domain,” Eriksen said. “Then we have had a series of wind tunnel tests to verify that the correlation between the virtual world and the real world is where we need it to be. We’ve done quite a bit of that testing.
That so far has shown very good correlation, so we believe that the projected performance targets that we’re seeing are going to be met in the real world.”
E
xamples of areas open for development by INDYCAR-approved aero configuration manufacturers include sidepods, engine cover, rear wheel guards, front and rear wing endplates, speedway front wing main plane and the Indianapolis 500 rear wing mainplane. Beginning with 2016, additional engine manufacturers and/or third party vendors will be eligible to be an INDYCAR-approved supplier. Correspondingly, Chevrolet and Honda will be permitted to re-homologate three of the identified boxes. “Basically if you look at the regulations, there’s a series of
GRAHAM RAHAL Photo by Chris Jones
boxes,” Eriksen said. “The boxes surround certain sections of the car. You might have a side pod box, you might have a front wing box, a rear wing box, engine cover box, etc. In 2016, you’re allowed to do three boxes, take three of those boxes, and revise them further. If the rules stay the same as they are now, you’ll see a 2015 car, then you’ll see an updated 2016 car. As long as a team stays with the same manufacturer, the base components would stay the same. Then just those three boxes, whatever you chose to update, you’d buy those new parts.” According to regulations, Chevrolet and Honda are to offer two aero kits to each of their entrants at no more than $75,000 per complete kit (excluding fasteners for all circuits). Each entrant is eligible to purchase two kits
of the re-homologated components for 2016 at a cost not exceeding $15,000. Eriksen said early tracking of the performance level indicates it will be impressive.
“
It’s the same as what we do on our engine program. We go through and set a performance target that we expect to achieve. We monitor, just as on the engine program, our progress towards that target over time. Based on that, you can impute an expected performance. We’re doing the same thing with the aero kit. We do a tracker of the performance of the aero kit. You can watch over time as it approaches our target. At this point it looks like we’ve got the likelihood of reaching the target we set. It’s going to be a pretty impressive performance.” RGM
FORMULA 1
ENRICO’S NOTEBOOK www.enricozanarini.com
19 August 2014
T he R e d Bul l h a zar d One very good thing about Dr. Marko and Red Bull is that they do push young guns to the limit. By doing so they aim to discover who is the real talent in F.1, who can take so much pressure and subsequently take little time in deciding if he deserves a seat in the highest category of motor sport. Yesterday Red Bull announced 17 year old Max Verstappen to be the youngest ever driver to debut in the Formula One Championship. I have been involved in drivers management since the early 90’s and when the young Dutchman was selected
Helmut Marko
photo: Andreas Kolarik/Red Bull Content Pool
to be part of the Junior Red Bull program one week ago, I thought they would, sooner or later, give him a shot in a Toro Rosso. However, I must admit that I never thought he would land a F.1 seat at the end of this year. For sure, I thought, they would monitor him for one more season at the wheel of an intermediate open wheeler such as a Renault 3.5 or a Gp2, and at the same time keep him under close eye by gifting him with a reserve driver role in the Faenza’s squad. That would have made much more sense. This strategy would have given young Max the opportunity to learn more about F.1 by being present at all F.1 technical briefs during GP week-ends, familiarize himself with all the complex procedures, carry on much of the simulator work and run all the testing possible under the current regulations. That would have been already a big leap forward for such a talented young man. But this time Red Bull and Dr. Marko decided to break the schemes, and go for the kill. They must know something that I do ignore…
Enrico Zanarini is one of the most expert and successful managers of the Formula 1circus. Since the mid 80s he’s playing a primary role in the paddock by supporting the career of drivers as Eddie Irvine, Giancarlo Fisichella, Vitantonio Liuzzi just to mention a few. Enrico also manages the activity of important sponsors as he’s at the head of one of the main international sport/management agency. He has recently started writing his reflections about Formula 1 on his own blog and he has also accepted to publish the more interesting thoughts on RACE GLOBALMAG. We are happy to host his “behind the scenes” insights and truly free point of view, even if sometimes these don’t perfectly match the RGM point of view.
RAL LY
Hyundai Shell World Rally Team celebrate first historic victory
’ i a d n u y h the
e m i t t s r i f ’s The Hyundai Shell World Rally Team scored a sensational maiden victory in the FIA World Rally Championship with Thierry Neuville leading team-mate Dani Sordo home for an historic 1-2 finish in the team’s only ninth WRC event.
THE HYUNDAI FIRST TIME
T. Neuville / N. Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 WRC)
The script for the German Rally was straight out of a fairy tale: from a major crash in shakedown on Thursday that threatened Neuville’s participation in the event, the mechanics working a remarkable 18 hour shift to fix the car in time for Friday morning’s start to winning the team’s debut WRC event on Sunday afternoon. It has been a dramatic rally but one from which the Hyundai i20 WRC has emerged victorious.
Neuville (#7 Hyundai i20 WRC, codriver Nicolas Gilsoul) put the drama of shakedown firmly behind him when the stages got underway on Friday morning. The Belgian has not put a foot wrong since and has determinedly made his way up through the classification since the opening day. He was fully in contention for a podium at the start of Sunday, embroiled in a close battle for second but the retirements of the two Volkswagen
leading cars in consecutive stages elevated the Belgian to the rally lead. Neuville then kept his focus to bring the #7 Hyundai i20 WRC car home for the win – his first in WRC. The Belgian brings home also two extra points for being second fastest in the Power Stage – the last stage of the rally. “I am really happy for the entire Hyundai Shell World Rally Team said Neuville - And everyone back at the factory in Alzenau. Everyone has worked so hard in the past year to get us to where we are this season so to celebrate my debut WRC win with them is very special.
D. Sordo / M. Martí (Hyundai i20 WRC)
THE HYUNDAI FIRST TIME
It is even better that we have a 1-2 in our home event. I am particularly thankful for the team’s hard work this weekend. The conditions were very difficult so we had to take it steady to the end. It’s a great result and one which we will certainly never forget.” Sordo (#8 Hyundai i20 WRC, co-driver Marc Martí) also had a competitive rally in Germany, an event he won so memorably in 2013. The Spaniard, in his first WRC event
since Argentina in May, got quickly reacquainted with the car and the team to post impressive stage times from the start of the rally. He was in the hunt for a podium at the end of Friday but he lost a lot of time on Saturday afternoon when he aquaplaned into a spin. Nonetheless, he kept going and benefitted from others’ misfortune in Sunday’s opening stages to take second place behind his team-mate. He then drove masterfully not only to keep the car on the road
PIT STOP One thing is certain after the Rally Germany: the 2014 World Rally Championship will again be behind the wheel of a Volkswagen. However, the works team from Wolfsburg also suffered disappointments at its home round of the FIA World Rally Championship. While Andreas Mikkelsen/Ola Fløene finished third to present Volkswagen with its first podium at the manufacturer’s home event, a mistake whilst leading just 70 kilometres from the end ultimately cost Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila the win. Sébastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia (F/F) also failed to finish the Rally Germany. The World Championship leader skidded off the road whilst leading on day one of the rally. This was followed by another crash on Saturday, after which he was unable to re-join the race.
but also to defend his second place – his first podium of 2014 and contributing to the team’s incredible 1-2 result. Sordo said: “This is a great result for the whole team and a testament to all the people who work so hard in the team and at the factory – said the Spanish driver - To get our first 1-2 is fantastic. Normally, I would prefer to be the one scoring the win but I am happy with second and I am pleased for
Thierry. It has been a tough rally so we were focussed on getting to the finish safely. I have to say the team has really developed a lot since I was last competing, both in terms of the operations and the car performance.” The Hyundai Shell World Rally Team is understandably overjoyed with the 1-2 result and becoming a winning WRC manufacturer so early in its young programme. The team has demonstrated its intent to
THE HYUNDAI FIRST TIME
2014 FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers’ Standings
German Rally Overall Final Classification
1) T. Neuville / N. Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 WRC) 3:07:20.2 2) D. Sordo / M. Martí (Hyundai i20 WRC) +40.7 3) A. Mikkelsen / O. Floene (Volkswagen Polo R WRC) +58.0 4) E. Evans / D. Barritt (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +1:03.6 5) M. Hirvonen / J. Lehtinen (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +1:10.5 6) M. Østberg / J. Andersson (Citroën DS3 WRC) +1:22.7 7) M. Prokop / J. Tomanek (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +4:52.8 8) D. Kuipers / R. Buysmans (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +9:18.1 9) P. Tidemand / E. Axelsson (Ford Fiesta R5) +11:35.4 10) O. Tanak / R. Molder (Ford Fiesta R5) +11:37.2
S. Ogier J.M. Latvala A. Mikkelsen M. Østberg T. Neuville M. Hirvonen E. Evans K. Meeke M. Prokop H. Solberg J. Hänninen B. Bouffier D. Sordo R. Kubica O. Tanak
points 187 143 110 74 73 73 57 54 37 26 20 18 18 12 11
B. Guerra H. Paddon C. Atkinson P. Tidemand J. Melicharek D. Kuipers N. Al-Attyiah M. Gamba C. Breen J. Protasov L. Bertelli J. Ketomaa K. Al Qassimi K. Kruuda
8 8 6 6 4 4 3 2 2 2 2 1 1 1
2014 FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers’ Standings Volkswagen Motorsport Citroën Total Abu Dhabi World Rally Team Hyundai Motorsport M-Sport World Rally Team Volkswagen Motorsport II Jipocar Czech National Team RK M-Sport World Rally Team Hyundai Motorsport N
points 305 138 131 128 109 42 21 12
the WRC and shown steady improvement throughout the season but winning was never on the agenda in this learning year. Team Principal Michel Nandan said: “I feel a little bit like I am still dreaming. We could never imagine that coming here, in just our ninth WRC rally, that we would be celebrating a 1-2 result. It is quite remarkable and very special. It has been a busy weekend with some tough conditions and requiring everyone to be at the absolute top of their game. Our team has been absolutely first class and it is thanks to each of them – here and at Alzenau – that we have this result today. The drivers have been on competitive form since the first stage and they thoroughly deserve this. We wanted to use this year as a learning year and we won’t let this result carry us away. However, we have made continuous progress and our Hyundai i20 WRC is improving all the time. We benefitted from the unfortunate retirement of other drivers today but we were genuinely fighting for the podium and that reflects the progress we have made as a team. For now, we will enjoy the moment and thank everyone for their support of our young team.”
All results remain subject to official FIA confirmation.
RGM
WTCC
Does Lopez have a claim on the world crown?
THE JOSE’ MARIA CHALLENGE
Although most of the insiders had predicted Citroën’s domination in this year’s WTCC, not many of them had indicated José María López as the favourite for the Drivers’ Championship. The Argentine driver had already impressed in the first half of the season, leading the standings from the opening race at Marrakech. However, by pocketing a full booty of points in his home event at Termas de Río Hondo, López has staked a very serious claim on the World Champion’s crown. Should he eventually claim the title, he would be the second Argentine in history to become FIA World Champion after… Juan Manuel Fangio (1957) and the first South-American since Ayrton Senna (1991).
THE JOSE MARIA CHALLENGE
Gabriele Tarquini Honda
Jose Maria Lopez CitroĂŤn
PIT STOP
Rob Huff Lada
The Argentine event marked the greatest day for LADA Sport Lukoil since they joined the WTCC. Rob Huff put in a remarkable effort to give the Russian manufacturer its first leading laps and podium result. James Thompson provided the icing on the cake by scoring points in both races: tenth and ninth. Team principal Victor Shapovalov said: “I am very very happy, it was a great result for the team and a reward for the efforts we have put in this season and especially since the last race. An incredible day that made us very proud.” Huff echoed: “I was so happy to give the team its first WTCC podium. A lot of improvements went into the car, fantastic team work and we were much more competitive. The podium celebration was as enjoyable as any I have ever had. To be able to do this for the guys on the team really meant a lot. I am optimistic for the remaining races, Beijing is tight and twisty with no need for strong aero, which may play to our strengths. Shanghai and Suzuka may be tough, but I really think we could be up for another podium in Macau, or even a race win.” Thompson added: “That was a fantastic weekend for the team! I am very happy for Rob, it was a deserved podium for all of us! All the cars performed well this weekend and I was happy to score points again. I was very satisfied with the car’s drivability, pace and consistency.”
THE JOSE MARIA CHALLENGE Lopez’s record during the current season has been relentless so far: seven wins out of fifteen races, five other podium results, four pole positions out of eight qualifying sessions, only one scoreless race (the second one at Moscow Raceway, due to a gearbox problem) and 38.75 points on the average per event, despite the cancellation of the Slovakia Ring’s second race because of torrential rain. Should he continues on this pace, he may target new WTCC seasonal records for victories and points scored; both are currently held by Yvan Muller: nine race wins in 2012 and 433 points in 2011.
Gianni Morbidelli Chevrolet
Actually, the Frenchman appears to be the only real obstacle between López and the title, but race after race his task becomes more difficult, with a gap of sixty points to fill in the remaining four events. Mathematically is possible, as 220 points are still at stake, but this means that Muller needs to recover more than 15 points at each of the next race meetings. Considering that so far Muller has scored more points than López in three events only (France +11, Hungary +10 and Belgium +2), the odds are not in his favour…
PIT STOP For the next WTCC event at Beijing Goldenport (October 5), the Honda Civic and Chevrolet RML Cruze cars will run on different weights compared to the latest meeting in Argentina. According to the calculation of the Compensation Weight based on the three previous Events, the Citroën C-Elysée remains the reference model and receives once again the maximum compensation weight of 60 kg in addition to the minimum weight of 1100 kg. No changes as well for the LADA Granta cars that will keep on running with no handicap weight on board. The Russian vehicles have showed a significant increase in pace in Argentina, which resulted in a reduction of the gap calculated on the basis of the three latest events from 2.2 to 1.9 seconds. The Honda Civics were also able to get closer to the Citroëns (from 0.7 to 0.6 seconds) and this resulted in their Compensation Weight being increased from 20 to 30 kilos. On the contrary, the gap between Citroën and Chevrolet RML expanded from 0.5 to 0.7 seconds, meaning that the Cruze cars will benefit of a 20-kilo break, carrying 20 extra kilos instead of 40. Compensation weight Beijing: + 60 kg : Citroën C-Elysée + 20 kg : Chevrolet RML Cruze
+ 30 kg : Honda Civic ± 0 kg : LADA Granta
RGM
NASCAR WHELEN EURO SERIES
Q&A with Championship leader Anthony Kumpen
A VERY HARD BATTLE Pictures: NASCAR Whelen Euro Series / Stephane Azemard
In less than 3 weeks 35-year old Belgian ace Anthony Kumpen will enter the playoffs of the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series as the leader of an incredibly tight general classification, with four drivers separated by just 10 points and many other still hoping to join the title hunt. Despite joining the Official European NASCAR Series this year, the PK Carsport driver is relying on his huge and successful experience in GT racing to handle the pressure of a battle that promises to be memorable. After winning a record 6 Zolder 24 Hours and taking part in Iconic races like the Spa 24h and the Le Mans 24h, Kumpen has put together a strong regular season, highlighted by 6 top-5s and 8 top10s in 8 races, with a 39.75 points per race average that leaves atop
of the standings with a 7-points advantage over the reigning champion Ander Vilarino. One of the few mistakes he made in his first season in NASCAR? It happened in the season opener at Valencia, when he and his team mate Bert Longin fought for the lead entering turn one in the closing minutes of the Saturday Race and Yann Zimmer was quick and smart enough to overtake both, relegating Kumpen in third position. All in all however the championship leader is looking forward to the title hunt that will begin in Italy on September 20-21 and also to build solid bases for the next season.
Anthony Kumpen
NASCAR THE VERY HARD BATTLE You are leading the championship thanks to very consistent performances, but you miss a win. What is your evaluation of your regular season? “Up to now we are really satisfied with our debut in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series. As a team, we made very few mistakes and both drivers and the car have a very
strong pace. We are just looking for that 1% extra, but we are very close to our goal: winning races. I should have won a race in Valencia, but I can only blame myself: I made a mistake.” What is your strategy approaching the playoffs? “At Tours we decided to race with a little bit of reserve, without
taking too many risks, but at Magione we definitely have to finish in the top-5, which won’t be easy, because the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series field is very strong. The battle will be very hard to win. We never raced in Magione and to compensate our lack of experience there we planned a test day before the race to gather as much data as we can about the track and be ready for the race.�
Ander Vilarino
Frederic Gabillon
NASCAR THE VERY HARD BATTLE Do you think you still have something to figure out to perform even better? “We can still progress. Each member of the PK Carsport Team is doing a very good job, but they also need some time to get used to the championship, the races and the car. Everything was new for us and of course other teams have a little bit of an advantage due to their experience in the championship. But we are gathering a lot of important data, so that we can avoid to find the right setup only at the end of the race weekend.” The playoffs will start with 4 drivers in 10 points and various drivers can join the title hunt. Who do you think will be your strongest opponent? “I think the top-4 of the general classification basically have the same pace. We are all very fast, but Ander Vilarino and Frederic Gabillon have more experience in the Series. This gives them a slight advantage compared to Borja Garcia and myself. Vilarino is of course a two times NWES champion and I think he’s the favorite for the title. He is also a very correct driver and fair play is for him just as important as it is for me. In the entire Series there is a lot of respect between the drivers.”
Anthony Kumpen
Borja Garcia
NASCAR THE VERY HARD BATTLE You are involved in lots of different forms of motorsport. Do you think being so eclectic gives you an advantage? “The more you race, the faster you will be and the more experience you will gather. And yes: I drove several types of race cars, but I never drove a NASCAR car until the beginning of 2014, but it is an advantage to race several cars and championships, because except from the experience you will also be able to adapt to the car and the Series relatively fast. In September I am racing three different cars in three different championship, to start with the Zolder 24 Hours in a Wolf GB08 CP-Prototype, followed by the Belgian Racing Car Championship in an Audi R8 LMS Ultra and then the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series in my Chevrolet SS. A lot of variety and lots of fun!”
After four different events, how do you feel about the atmosphere NWES creates for the fans? “I’m racing since about 20 years and I’ve taken part in many international and national championships as well as races such as the Le Mans 24 Hours or the Sebring 12 Hours. But to be honest, I’ve never seen a Series in which the fans are of utmost importance as in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series. Fans are great and there is a fantastic atmosphere, lots of animation and very well organized attractions. Sponsors that are supporting me since many years visited me during a NWES weekend and were positively surprised by everything they saw on and around the track. That says enough, I suppose. If we will be on the NWES grid in 2015? You can be sure of it, we will be there…” RGM
PIT STOP
Being Italian and driving for an Italian team whose headquarters are not far from Magione, Eddie Cheever III – the man who won the most pole positions this year and is therefore leading Race And Win Pole Award – is definitely the best choice to introduce the Autodromo dell’Umbria, the 2.5 Kilometers track that will host the NASCAR Whelen Euro Semifinals on September 20-21. “The track is pretty challenging and will offer the fans a very interesting show thanks to its peculiarities and the possibility to view almost
everything from the grandstands,” said Cheever, who sits 6th in points, 43 behind leader Anthony Kumpen. “The last sector, after the long straight, will make the difference between a fast lap and a slow one. It is a sequence of corners which requires to find the perfect rythm if you want to take advantage of it. Another critical corner is the Curvone, the fast bend at the end of the straight, because there are a few bumps in the braking zone and it take just a slight mistake to go wide or even out of the track.” Qualifying in front will be key to a good results, especially considering that the Semifinals will award double points. “There are some places to overtake at Magione, but starting from the first couple of rows will be an important advantage. I already made my mistakes this year, so I will have to go on the attack and try to win both races on my home track!”
Eddie Cheever III
INTERVIEW
“We are always “We are alwa looking at looking at new things”
new things”
2014 Global Rallycross Calendar May 18 June 22 July 20 July 26 August 3 August 23 September 20 September 27 November 11
Barbados Washington, DC New York, NY Charlotte, NC Detroit, MC Daytona, FL Los Angeles, CA Seattle, WA Las Vegas, NV
ays
�
by Niccolò Gargiulo
The Red Bull Global Rallycross is gaining more and more success in the United States and abroad. In its fourth year the series is pushing for even more attention, demanding more from the cars, bringing the sport closer to fans and delivering spectacular races. And thanks to long term deals with Red Bull and NBC Sports it looks like Global Rallycross is on the right path to more prosperity. During the inaugural Florida GRC event at the Daytona International Speedway we sat down with Chip Pankow, founder and Chief Operating Officer of Global Rallycross, to talk about the state of the series and plans for its future.
A talk with Chip Pankow, founder and Chief Operating Officer of Global Rallycross
GLOBAL RALLYCROSS
Bucky Lasek
“It has been an exciting season for us because we had two big changes this year: we had Red Bull coming as our title sponsor and that allowed us to upgrade our events, improve fan experience from entertainment to good hospitality and we can make the tracks look even more interesting. And in addition to that we also have a new TV deal with NBC. Both of these are long term agreements and
both of them are great partners, they are both contributing to the growth of the series. The series always has to continue to grow and these are great partners to make that happen.” WHAT IS THE SECRET OF THE SUCCESS OF GLOBAL RALLYCROSS? “The secret is that it is different than the motorsport content that
PIT STOP No changes for GRC Lites “Lites by definition were not made for a lot of changes says Mr. Pankow - Lites should be a very very stable platform and we should always be changing drivers through Lites and having them grow up in Lites and move on to Supercars. We are looking at exciting things to bring new exposure to Lites on our platforms and we are working hard to make that happen, but the platform itself is a great racing platform with really great racing cars.”
people have seen for almost a hundred years. When motorsport first started, car manufacturers used it as a way to show reliability. A long race was a good thing. Now everybody accepts that a car would run 100.000 miles. We started looking at it and saying: what do people want? How do they take their entertainment? What have videogames done to younger generations? And we made our entertainment in
these bits and pieces which for us are Heats, and that is I think a big part of the secret of it. We have incredibly fast cars, they accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h faster than a Formula 1 car … we just proved that out in Barbados by lining up next to Lewis Hamilton’s Formula 1 car. We run rally cars, which are used to being alone in the woods by themselves, 10 cars at a time.
GLOBAL RALLYCROSS It’s a contact sport and it’s really fast, one heat is done in four or five minutes and then we run another heat and another and another. There are winners and losers and finally we get to the final and we have one big winner. So it’s an exciting format and that’s part of our secret.”
Austin Dyne and Sverre Isachsen
WHAT ARE THE PLANS FOR THE FUTURE? “We are always looking at new things. We are looking at what we can do as far as qualifying format, we want to keep pushing the envelope with the cars, we
are always looking at our formats more than anything else, we are looking at our courses and course design. How can we make the courses better, what other elements can we introduce into the courses, how can we make things even more interesting for the fans.”
ARE YOU LOOKING TO RACE OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES? “The U.S. is a big market, very important market, it’s important to our manufacturers and we can have a really good championship and business here in the U.S..
GLOBAL RALLYCROSS If we have the right opportunities we will go overseas, it’s just a lot of logistics. There is a lot of cost in that, but if we can find the right situation to travel we absolutely will.” AND WHAT ABOUT THE FIA WORLD RALLYCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP? “It’s different. Rallycross has been around for a long time. When
Ken Block on his roof in Barbados
I was first working with my partner on the concept of Global Rallycross we looked at that and we saw great things about it and things that we would change. And because we didn’t have the costraints of history and what the sport already was, we could choose what we liked. In our opinion we can do many things much better and make it more entertaining and re-position the sport, and that is what we’ve done. As it is now
we are on different paths. They‘ve got the traditional European circuits, what we do is much different. We like to bring our show into the city center, bringing to the fans. We did a big race in New York, a big race in Washington, where we could see the U.S. Capitol from our race control. We like to do those types of events, we think that is what is going to grow this sport, what’s going to propel the sport forward. Tanner Foust, Rhys Millen and Nelson Piquet Jr.
GLOBAL RALLYCROSS We definitely share a lot of elements but there are lot of things that are different that sets the two of us apart each on our own way. I think there is definitely room in the world for both of us.” ARE THERE ANY NEW MANUFACTURERS INTERESTED IN JOINING GRC? “There are a lot of manufacturers interested. Global Rallycross has been very fortunate from day 1 to have a lot of manufacturer’s sup-
Rhys Millen in Washington DC
port. We had Volkswagen coming in this year with a very serious effort and in our next race in Los Angeles we expect to see their new cars, the new Beetles which are made by Volkswagen Motorsport. And that’s really exciting for us. There are other manufacturers looking at the sport, can’t tell you who they are right now. But they are big manufacturers and I just look at that manufacturer’s involvement to deepen our field and improve the competitiveness.”
Bucky Lasek, Rhys Millen (winner) and Ken Block on the podium at Daytona
RGM
PADDOCK MIX
Marcus Grönholm tests the Polo R WRC Volkswagen Motorsport has secured the services of former World Rally Champion Marcus Grönholm: the 46-year-old Finn, winner of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) in 2000 and 2002, will support the works team at test sessions with the Polo R WRC. Grönholm boasts a vast wealth of experience acquired from 150 WRC rallies enormous, 30 of which he won, and his findings will provide invaluable assistance when it comes to testing and further developing the World Rally Car. “To get behind the wheel for the World Championship winning team from Wolfsburg is obviously a great opportunity for me,” said Marcus Grönholm. “I am really looking forward to testing and having the chance to work on the further development of what is currently the best rally car out there – the Polo R WRC.”
Grönholm took his place at the wheel of the Polo R WRC for the first time during the gravel tests in Fontjoncouse (southern France) in early August and he will assist the Volkswagen WRC team at selected tests. Grönholm’s career as a works driver in the World Rally Championship began in 1999 at Peugeot. In only his second year as a pro, the Finn won four rallies and claimed his first World Championship title. Two years later he added a second title with Peugeot. The father of three subsequently switched to Ford, where, at the end of the 2007 season, he brought the curtain down on a dazzling career that included 30 wins, 60 podiums and 540 stage wins.
Dixon and Hinchcliffe to join in Lights car development Reigning Verizon IndyCar Series champion Scott Dixon and three-time race winner James Hinchcliffe will add their insight and provide feedback in the development of the Dallara IL15 chassis.The veteran drivers will share testing duties Sept. 5-6 on the 2.439-mile, 14-turn Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. The test days are open to the public to watch from the Turn 2 viewing mounds.
The new Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires car made its on-track debut Aug. 4 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course with 2013 Verizon IndyCar Series Rookie of the Year Tristan Vautier behind the wheel. Conor Daly, who competed in the 2013 Indianapolis 500 and currently competes in GP2, and Vautier split driving Aug. 12 and 14 on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval. Hinchcliffe watched part of the Aug. 14 test.
“It is always fun being part of something new, and helping to develop this race car is a cool opportunity. I am a big believer in the Lights series; racing in Indy Lights made me the driver I am and prepared me to step up to the Verizon IndyCar Series,” said Hinchcliffe, who was runner-up in the 2010 Indy Lights championship. “I think this new car is a big step in revitalizing the series. Being in on the ground level and helping to push the series in this direction is something I am looking forward to.”
Cooper tires. Without aid of the chassis set-up dialed in for the 2.5-mile oval, Daly topped the Indy Lights pole-winning lap speed for the 2014 Freedom 100.
The car is powered by a turbocharged, 2.0-liter, four-cylinder AER P63 engine and runs on
“I’m excited to see the new car and the direction the series is taking,” said Dixon, the 2000 Indy Lights champion. “It’s a very important stepping stone on the road to the Verizon IndyCar Series. I look forward to driving the new car at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course and hope to help with the ongoing development.” RGM
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