A race car you can eat? Sounds like the perfect combination for an era when the drivers were fat and tires were skinny.The Broadmoor Resort in Colorado springs has been building the sweetest car in the world since 1964, and each year they choose a vehicle to replicate in dessert form.This year, their selection was a Pierce-Arrow Touring Car from 1918.The vehicle is special to the resort, as in 1922, it was transformed into The Broadmoor Special by owner Spencer Penrose, master mechanic Angelo Ciminp and chauffeur Harry McMillen.The vehicle would go on to compete in the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, where it took fourth place in 1926 and 1930.The time-lapse video of its construction shows 15 pastry chefs adorning the vehicle model with the tasty treats. It took two weeks to bake all the pastries.According to the Broadmoor Blog, the vehicle is composed of over 375 pounds of all-purpose flour, 425 whole eggs, 300 pounds of dark chocolate, 47 pounds of molasses, 412 pounds of butter and myriad other ingredients.The car looks impressive, but wouldnt have happened if it werent for the two magical wood workers that made the frame for the cookies to sit on.The real vehicle will be on display at the Penrose Heritage Museum, which is open Monday through Saturday from 9 to 5 pm and Sunday from 1 to 5pm. The museum is owned and operated by the El Pomar Foundation, a charitable foundation established by Spencer and Julie Penrose in
Origin: This 1918 Pierce-Arrow race car is made out of dessert
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McLaren releases road-going version of its GT4 race car, the 620R
McLaren has revealed itll market a road-going version of its 570S GT4 race car which itself is a race version of its street cars called the 620R.Powered by the same 3.8-litre twin-turbocharged V8 engine as the GT4, the 620R makes 610 horsepower and 457 lb.-ft. of torque, which helps it get up to 100 km/h in just 2.9 seconds, then on to a top speed of 322 km/h.That power is sent to the rear wheels via a seven-speed gearbox, which is not borrowed from the race car.What is borrowed from the race car is the aerodynamics, chief among which is the rear wing which helps develop 185 kilograms of down force at 250 km/h. That stickiness is only aided by real slick tires, which offer an eight-per-cent larger contact patch. The entire car has been lightened as well a total 1,282 kilograms dry means its 31 kilograms lighter than the standard 570S. Carbon-fibre racing seats with five-point harnesses helped with that weight loss, as did the lightweight brakes with carbon-ceramic discs.Only 350 examples of the special-edition vehicle will be built, in three exclusive colours: McLaren Orange, Silica White and Onyx Black with McLaren racing livery. A Senna GTR livery will also be available. If you want different colours, MSO will be happy to oblige to your wildest imaginations. Deliveries will start February 2020. The price?
Origin: McLaren releases road-going version of its GT4 race car, the 620R
Lamborghini’s Urus ST-X to get its own race series
When the Urus was first unveiled, Lamborghini had some pretty lofty goals for the super-SUV, and one of those included taking it racing. Now, that dream has come true in the Urus ST-X.The vehicle will make its debut at the 2020 Super Trofeo, which is Lamborghinis one-make race starring the Huracan supercar.The four class winners of that series will get a chance to race against professional drivers in a race comprised of only ST-Xes.Lambo says the race for the jacked-up supertruck will be held at a special track, and we dont know about you, but when we hear that an SUV is going racing, were thinking dirt track something akin to a rallycross, perhaps, since that would be pretty cool. To find out, well have to wait until the final round of the 2020 Super Trofeo.Not much has changed to make the Urus race-ready. A FIA-approved roll cage and fire-suppression system had to be fitted for regulations. Larger intakes and a few more vents are what we can see. Better change out those low-profile tires before it hits the track, though.Powering the Urus is a 641-horsepower V8, a modified version of the 4.0-litre unit found in the A8. The Lamborghini also has four-wheel-drive courtesy of Audi, so in our eyes, this is essentially the reincarnation of the old rally
Origin: Lamborghini’s Urus ST-X to get its own race series
Micra Cup: The little race series that could
The masterminds behind the Micra Cup: series founder/promoter Jacques Deshaies and Nissan Canadas Didier Marsaud.Andrew McCredie BOWMANVILLE, Ontario In 2014, Nissan Canada had the daunting task of reintroducing the Micra after a two decade-plus absence. That fourth-generation model was already four years old when it arrived here that year, and its most notable feature was its price: with a base model under $10,000 it was the least expensive new vehicle in Canada. Viewed another way, the cheapest.Needless to say, positioning the Mexican-built, 1.6-litre four-door sedan would be a challenge for Nissan Canada execs like Didier Marsaud. That is until Quebec journalist Jacques Deshaies came calling with a crazy idea.Five years later at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park and on the eve of the 62nd race in the Nissan Micra Cup, the two men reflected on the wild ride of establishing a racing series that has become part of the Canadian racing ladder system.We created the Micra Cup because we were bringing back a model to Canada that had not been here for 23 years with a name that most people did not know or remember, explained Marsaud, Nissan Canadas director of corporate communications. And as it was the least expensive car in the Canadian market, we wanted to demonstrate that this car is fun, reliable and works. The exclusive-to-Canada series features six race weekends in Ontario and Quebec between May and September, with drivers competing in 109-horsepower Nissan Micra base model S cars that are equipped identically. The appeal to drivers is two-fold: as a true spec style series what separates winners from losers is the driver, not the car; and for about $30,000 you can compete in the entire series. Plus, unlike so many feeder series, the Micra Cup gets exposure on TV and social media. For the first time at Circuit Mont-Tremblant, the two races this weekend will be aired live on the series Facebook page (Coupe Nissan Micra Cup) and on its YouTube channel, Micra Cup TV.Goals set, and achievedFor Deshaieswho has owned a race team, driven race cars and served as president of the 2004 Trois-Rivieres Grand Prixhis goal when he pitched the idea to Marsaud, and eventually then-Nissan Canada president Christian Meunier, was at the five-year mark to try and convince the young drivers in karting that their next step up the racing ladder is Micra Cup.Looking at the current grid, and noting that he signed up two young karters for next season just a day earlier, the affable Quebecer said he has achieved that goal. In fact, this weekends season finale double-header at Circuit Mont-Tremblant sees rookie Marco Signoretti, a former karting, battling series veteran Kevin King, a karting instructor, for the overall drivers championship.Likewise, Marsaud said he and Nissan had achieved their goal. And that was to raise awareness about the Micra.I love motorsport and a lot of people in Nissan Canada love motorsport, but our job is not to do motorsport, he said. Our job is to sell cars.Canadian-made grassrootsThe success of the Micra Cup hasnt gone unnoticed by others in the company, notably Nissan Global Motorsport Director Michael Carcamo.When Didier brought us the concept, we were over the moon, he told me in the Nissan pits at the Brooklyn Formula E race in August. It was really going back to the grassroots, an opportunity to give people something that we dont think is very common today. And thats an accessible racing platform. And making it a one-series highlights on one side the fact that we can produce a reliable and great racecar at a low cost. And at the same time the drivers get to be the stars of winning the race.And as Deshaies notes, when a manufacturer invests in a race series with one or two cars, sometimes they win, but most likely they dont. In the Micra Cup, each race the podium is three Nissans.Drivers’ thumbs upRacer Kevin King missed the opening race of the first season, but has competed in every race since, and he said that what has impressed him the most about the Micra Cupapart from the intense on-track competitionis how Nissan has supported the series.When the program started there was lots of talk about a lot of PR, and that Nissan (Canada) was going all in, the Trois-Rivieres native said. Throughout the years you have seen they are putting in a lot of effort, and I know all the drivers really appreciate that. Valrie Limoges has also been driving in the series since that first season, and she echoes Kings sentiment about the quality of the competition, adding she loves the fact that its a driver-focused series.There are some things drivers and crews can do on the set up of the cartire pressures and suchbut its mostly the driver, she said. I have learned that I am really, really competitive in my mind and that I really love racing. I have more expectations that will hopefully lead to something good in the future.Western alienationAs to any regrets, Deshaies said his only one is not being
Origin: Micra Cup: The little race series that could
Bentley is building 12 new examples of its 1920s ‘Blower’ race cars
Bentley is joining the likes of Aston Martin and Jaguar in offering new recreations of one of its classic models but, being Bentley, it has to do things a little bit differently.The U.K. marque will bring back the iconic 4 1/2-litre Supercharged Blower for a limited run of 12 vehicles, one for every race the original four Team Blowers entered. Each vehicle will be identical to Tim Birkins original race cars that raced in the late 20s.As we continue to commemorate 100 years of Bentley, we are combining a look to our past with the very latest digital technologies and techniques to create something truly extraordinary, Bentleys chairman and CEO, Adrian Hallmark, said in a release.The four Team Blowers are the most valuable Bentleys in the world, and we know there is demand for genuine recreations that can be used, enjoyed and loved without risk to the prized originals.Although the Blower Bentleys never won an endurance race, they had the distinction of being the fastest car in the world in their time, which was enough for James Bond author Ian Fleming to write the vehicle into his stories as the original preferred choice of the British spy. Subtle. To build the cars properly, Bentley will disassemble its own Blower Bentley chassis number HB 3403 into individual components, which will then be cataloged, 3D-scanned and digitally modeled. High-tech scanning complete, the parts will then be made using the original molds and tooling jigs, as well as traditional hand tools.It will take the coachbuilding masters at Mulliner two years to build the 12 vehicles. The price is available upon asking, but we can guess it wont be a cheap
Origin: Bentley is building 12 new examples of its 1920s ‘Blower’ race cars
Smallest race car in history, Allard Atom, restored and up for sale
The Allard Atom, the smallest race car in the world, was a product of circumstance. Hemmings details in its blog how, in the 1950s in England, Ronnie Greene, the manager of a track in London called Wimbledon Speedway, noted there was a national thirst for automotive speedway racing and few tracks dedicated to the sport.He also noted that Wimbledon Speedway was designed for motorcycles and would not support a field of full-sized vehicles racing down it.So he tasked racer and founder of the London-based Allard Motor Company, Sydney Allard, with building a car that would use the 500-cc JAP engines common in racing motorcycles at the time and give the local race fans something else to cheer. With a wheelbase of four-and-a-half feet and a front track (the wider of the two) of three feet, the Allard Atom is hardly larger than a ride-on mower. But the 500-cc engine, which runs on pure methanol, was said to accelerate the car at the same rate as Formula 1 cars of the era, pushing its tiny body to a top speed of 150 mph (241 km/h). To save space for the driver and engine, there’s no transmission or brakes. Instead, drivers were expected to adjust speed in the corners. This was to be the first vehicle in the British ‘midget racing’ series. Unfortunately, only two Allard Atoms were ever made. One was crashed and FUBAR’d, and the other is right here. The last remaining Allard Atom has been fully restored and shows the original red-and-black colour scheme, punctuated with a gold star on the nose. It is scheduled to cross the block at Coys’ Blenheim Palace auction where it is expected to fetch from £10,000 to £15,000 ($17,000 to
Origin: Smallest race car in history, Allard Atom, restored and up for sale
Aston Martin Valkyrie will race at Le Mans in 2021
Aston Martin has confirmed that its upcoming Valkyrie hypercar will take part in the 2021 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race. New rules put in place by Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO), Le Mans’ governing body, effectively replace the top-rung LMP1 category, a field in which Toyota’s Gazoo Racing has been the only factory-backed team since the departures of Porsche and Audi, with a new ‘hypercar’ class. Aston Martin, along with McLaren and Ferrari, had been campaigning for race-prepared versions of roadgoing hypercars to be allowed to participate in the famous endurance race, with the vision that such a category would make it more affordable for manufacturers to partake and thus encourage more works teams. The new regulations allow the bodywork of competing cars to take more obvious brand design cues, meaning they will more closely resemble their production counterparts. Active aerodynamics will also be permitted, because such technology has started to become more relevant to roadgoing vehicles. Aston Martin says at least two Valkyries will be specially developed for entry into the 2020/21 FIA World Endurance Championship. The Valkyrie, a collaboration between Aston Martin and Red Bull Advanced Technologies, produces a combined 1160bhp and 546lb ft from a Cosworth-developed 6.5-litre V12 and a 160bhp electric motor from Croatian EV manufacturer Rimac. Technical details of the racing Valkyrie remain scarce, but Aston has confirmed that it will receive a track-prepped variant of the high-revving V12 and retain its distinctive carbonfibre bodywork. The FIA has implemented a 980kg limit on cars in the new hypercar class – just below the Valkyrie’s estimated one-tonne kerb weight. The announcement comes as Gaydon marks the 60th anniversary of its DBR1/300 racer taking first and second place in the 1959 race, while the 2021 event will take place on the centenary of the British brand’s first Le Mans entry. Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer said: “We have always said that we would one day bring Aston Martin back to Le Mans with the intention of going for the outright win when the time was right. Now is that time.” It remains to be seen which manufacturers will challenge Aston Martin for victory in the hypercar division, but the McLaren Speedtail and recently revealed Ferrari SF90 Stradale seem obvious candidates for homologation. Aston Martin will use this year’s event to display a newly completed DB4 GT Zagato Continuation model, the first of 19, which was hand-built over 4500 hours at the firm’s heritage centre in Newport
Origin: Aston Martin Valkyrie will race at Le Mans in 2021
Ford wraps the race GT in new Le Mans liveries for its final season
The factory Ford Le Mans GT team for the 2019 seasonFord Four years ago, Ford roared back to Le Mans with its factory GT program, intent on marking the golden anniversary of sending Ferrari to bed without their supper. They did so in fine style, winning the 2016 event and standing on the podium where so many greats have stood before. Ford will close another great chapter at Le Mans for the factory team, choosing to bow out of the race after the 2019 soirée. To mark the occasion, Ford has revealed a special series of “Celebration Liveries” for the Ford Chip Ganassi Racing Ford GTs ahead of the 2019 Le Mans 24 Hours. Each of the four factory Ford GTs will bear a livery that celebrates the success of the manufacturer at Le Mans, both in the present day and during the 1960s when they kicked Ferrari around like an unloved rag doll. The #66 Ford GT raced by Mücke, Pla and Johnson has a black livery that echoes the Ford GT40 of Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon, the one that won Le Mans in 1966. The Ford GT40 piloted by Dan Gurney and A.J. Foyt to victory at Le Mans in ‘67 is evoked in the #67 livery, a whip which will be handled by the trio of Priaulx, Tincknell and Bomarito. Marking more recent history is the #68 car, racing in the same colours as when it won Le Mans in 2016. At the wheel this year are Müller, Hand and Bourdais. With all this success, why not add a fourth car? The #69 Ford GT of Dixon, Briscoe and Westbrook takes its design cues from the Ford GT40 that came second to the black car during Ford’s 1-2-3 finish in 1966. An outfit called Keating Motorsports is fielding what’s referred to as a customer team this year as well. It’ll bear #85 and race in the GTE Am class. It’ll use the same livery design as the four factory Fords but in the colours of its title sponsor, Wynn’s. The Ford GTs will be on track in their new celebration liveries this Sunday (June 2nd) for the official Le Mans Test. Fans will be able to follow the 24-hour race on June 15 to 16 from inside the cockpit of the factory Ford GTs via
Origin: Ford wraps the race GT in new Le Mans liveries for its final season
Watch a Chinese safety car take out the leaders of a race
An accident involving a safety car on the track of a recent Chinese Touring Car Championship event serves as a great example of why you should always, always shoulder-check. Take notes on how this ‘safety car’ merges out in front of a pack of speeding race cars, and then, please, please always do the opposite. Video footage of the race shows the competitors coming down the track at speed when the safety car, a white Nio SUV, makes a wide and seemingly deliberate turn out in front of the speeding cars. The two lead drivers, teammates and brothers David and Juan Carlos Zhu, either don’t see the new obstacle in front or don’t have enough time to react and are forced to swerve to avoid the un-safety car. The movement causes the two BAIC Senova D50s to clip, with the rear vehicle then contacting the boards hard. The friendly oops, sorry, didn’t see ya there wave of the safety car’s driver was probably poor consolation for the racers who were forced out of the competition. Nothin’ safe about
Origin: Watch a Chinese safety car take out the leaders of a race
Maserati just wants to build race cars again, won’t go full-EV
A Maserati 6C 34 at the Panini Motor Museum.David Booth Maserati will have a totally new lineup by 2022, complete with a full suite of hybrid, PHEV and electric vehicles, but if you thought the marque was looking forward to a fully battery-driven future, well, North American head Al Gardner has a different plan. According to Gardner, Maserati needs to go back to its roots, which of course means racing cars. The Maserati brothers founded the company in 1914 and produced some great motorsports-focused machines, but never quite managed to keep up with the likes of Alfa Romeo and Bugatti. All that Maserati seems focused on these days is crossovers and electric vehicles, but Gardner says the brand will never go fully electric. This is a brand that needs combustion engines, he suggested. It needs that raw emotion. So Maser won’t lose the brand’s core values, even if it’s using engines from one of its oldest competitors, Ferrari. FCA CEO Mike Manley says there’s no problem with Maserati’s products, it’s a problem of awareness, Motor Trend reports. That’s why Maserati will receive some additional support from FCA in the sales and marketing department to help boost sales. The brand struggled with its first quarter 2019; shipments were down 41 percent and net revenue fell 38 percent. That’s not exactly stellar. Manley said the brand is gaining momentum again, though, after slowing sales in China, and the onslaught of new products that will be released, including performance versions of its Levante SUV, should help,
Origin: Maserati just wants to build race cars again, won’t go full-EV
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