Auto World News

Highly promising start for the Ford GT Matech Racing !

Having just arrived this Wednesday at the Adria International Raceway in order to take part in another equivalency test in view of the FIA-GT3 championship, the Matech Racing team have already scored their first victory. They completed an incredible race against time in order to bring this project to fruition, namely to bring a Ford GT up to race norms, in a serious test session with a highly successful machine ….

Better than a regulation, it is a technical philosophy that the teams appointed by the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile and SRO Motorsport Group have to apply to ensure the development and the manufacture of cars retained for the FIA-GT3 Championship. A championship that experienced an enormous success as from the first year it came into being, enough to be at the root of numerous projects.

Amongst which Matech Racing, a Swiss structure who put it into their head to bring a myth back to life, namely the Ford GT40 ! In just a few months, the team run by Christian Schumacher, with workshops located within a stone’s throw of the Nьrburgring in Germany, managed to convert the Ford GT into a race car. And after several test runs on the world renowned Eifel circuit, the Matech team headed off for Adria, for a first official run, and especially to take part in this now reputable equivalency test handled byChristophe Bouchut in person.

And the least one can say is that the Ford GT did not go unnoticed. Not only did this beauty prove itself to be fast, clocking up the best lap time of the day, but its overall preparation dumbfounded more than one, starting with Christophe Bouchut himself ! “Notwithstanding its young age, this Ford GT really impressed me «, the official FIA-GT3 driver commented.” Right from the word go she was really easy to handle, and especially fast. I reckon this car has an enormous potential. Believe me they’ll be talking about this car in this type of race. We now need to see how it compares with the references in the category, but Matech Racing really carried out come great work …»

Apart from the lap times clocked by the Ford GT, it is also the practical side of the car that took Bouchut aback. «We know that she has great looks, and the effect she has on people is guaranteed. Once at the wheel I thought it would take quite a few minutes for the mechanics to fix and adjust the various elements, such as the windscreen, the dashboard, and the pedals; without forgetting the various bodywork components. Well in fact quite the contrary! In just a couple of seconds, everything was OK, and I was out on the track. In fact in an endurance race situation, such accessibility allows the mechanics to work quickly which is an undeniable advantage. Everything has been well thought out, offering maximum efficiency …»

A perfect christening for the Matech Racing Ford GT, which will be back on track in Dijon next Tuesday and Wednesday for a further series of tests. And we are leaving the final word to Christophe Bouchut. «In my career as a driver I have come across lots of cars. Well I can tell you one thing; this Ford GT has loads of spirit... truly impressive!”

A first victory for the Matech Racing Ford GT!

For the second meeting of the 2007 FIA-GT3 European Championship the port of call was the street circuit of Bucharest, some 3,111 km in length around the buildings of the Rumanian parliament. A new experience for these GT monsters; some of them unfortunately making an early acquaintance with the concrete safety walls. In these unusual conditions the Matech Racing Ford GTs proved their extreme competitiveness by clinching their first victory this Sunday!

The Matech Racing team took on this city rendezvous in a highly methodical manner. There was no question of going out to titillate those walls during the free practice sessions but rather to concentrate on a perfect set-up for the race. Notwithstanding the fact that the two cars, driven by Thomas Mutsch and Martin Bartek on the one hand (#43), Romain Bera and Stefan van Campenhoudt on the other (#44), took the start in 12th and 30th place respectively, this first race being dotted with numerous incidents and not forgetting the arrival of rain, these Ford GTs made an impressive come back up through the pack … "The #43 was the first car to call at the pits to take on grooved tyres, team manager Christian Schumacher told us, which gave us quite an advantage. Thomas went out determined to do battle, just behind Stйphane Daoudi, whose Ferrari was still shod with slicks. A major crash between two Aston Martins then occurred, and the race was neutralised right through to the finish. Outcome: Obviously the Ferrari never swapped tyres – she came in during the following lap – and even though strategically we held the advantage she came out on top. Having said that, a 2nd place as from the car’s 3rd race is pretty brilliant!" The only small regret, an administrative imbroglio prevented Mutsch and Bartek from getting on to the podium, before Stйphane Ratel personally admitted that the race marshals had made a mistake. Placed within the top 5 at the time of the first neutralisation, car #44 came in one lap later than the #43, namely at the same time as the major number of competitors in the pack, and with all the problems that could cause. As such Bera and van Campenhoudt finished the race in 13th place.

After this excellent start to the weekend hopes were high for the following morning’s race, especially as Thomas Mutsch was in second spot on the grid. The German driver was in top form and promptly took the lead. As soon as the rain appeared the Ford GT #43 came into the pitlane a first time to take on grooved tyres. A few laps later Thomas was back to hand over the wheel to Martin who promptly took the rap of ….a Stop & Go for having carried out a driver change outside of the pit-stop framework ! "Christian promptly went off to see the Clerk of the Course, Martin Bartek told us, but in the time allocate was unable to explain to them that in fact the driver change had taken place during the second pitstop and not the first one as erroneously indicated on the monitors. So in fact I inherited a Stop & Go, and talking about a Stop & Go, this was a complete stop which lasted a full minute. Absolute hell!" And Martin Bartek set off hell for leather, completing a brilliant come back from 16th to 8th place at the finish.

Luckily for the Matech Racing team, car #44 with van Campenhoudt and Bera had a quieter time on the track, thanks also to some well orchestrated strategy. Having found himself in the lead under the rain, after a prompt visit to the pitlane, the Frenchman had a flat in the last few laps….but still managed to control the Ford GT and take the chequered flag as overall winner, some 5 seconds ahead of a Porsche! "What a week-end!” Christian concluded. "Not only has the Ford won a race after only its 4th outing in the FIA-GT3 European Championship, but our two cars finished the meeting in one piece, which wasn’t the case for some of the others. The Ford GT’s chassis is pretty good, and whereas the engine output is under that of the Dodges and Corvettes we have no cause to envy the Ferraris or other Astons .Many thanks to the entire Matech team. Champagne for all!"

Ярлыки: 2007, Ford

Caparo T1 breaks cover during final stages of test and development

Caparo Vehicle Technologies a new and advanced automotive engineering consultancy formed a year ago by the rapidly expanding Caparo Group to provide carmakers globally with a centre of excellence in lightweight vehicle design is putting the finishing touches to the first car it has ever produced.

The Caparo T1 is a high performance two-seater sports car with highly resolved aerodynamics, which has been designed with the looks and performance close to that of a Formula One race car. With series production about to commence, the car will be built for discerning customers seeking the ultimate track day experience in a road driveable vehicle. The Caparo T1 also serves as a technology flagship for demonstrating the companys high level vehicle design and engineering capabilities.

We said a year ago, at the outset of this programme, that the only way to truly convince carmakers that we have the experience and skills to design a safe, reliable, cost-efficient and high-performance car is to actually design and build one, says Ben Scott-Geddes, the cars co-designer and operations director at Caparo Vehicle Technologies. We've now done so were proud of what we've achieved and we now have something real and tangible to discuss.

Releasing full details of the cars specification during the final stages of prototype testing and development, the company has revealed that while customer cars are being readied for start of production, preparations are also well in hand for the T1s first public appearance as a running car and star attraction at the Goodwood Festival of Speed on 22-24 June 2007 which effectively becomes the vehicles launch date.

With distributors appointed in the UK, USA, South Africa and Dubai and more dealers under evaluation the company has a fast-filling order book. The handover of the car to the first customer is scheduled for July.

The biggest attraction for customers and the most striking aspect of the cars specification is its headline figure of 1,045bhp-per-tonne power-to-weight ratio. The Caparo T1 is the first series production car ever to break through the 1,000bhp-per-tonne barrier. This has been achieved by installing a home-grown 3.5-litre Caparo V8 engine, which produces 575bhp (425kW) at 10,500rpm and 420Nm (310lbft) at 9,000rpm, into an extremely lightweight body and chassis constructed of advanced composite materials and weighing just 550kg.

The Caparo T1 is around one-third the mass of the average family saloon. Its carbon/aluminium honeycomb monocoque features a separate composite crash structure at the front, while the rear sub-frame specifies aerospace grade steel. The non carbon-fibre steel suspension illustrates the companys ability to specify structural materials that can deliver the maximum performance at the lowest possible cost.

This means the Caparo T1 is lighter and faster even than a race-winning Le Mans sportscar. In terms of power-to-weight ratio its closest rival would be the latest super-bikes, which are now capable of delivering 175bhp into 185kg thereby just falling short of the magic 1,000bhp-per-tonne figure. Apart from these two wheelers and Formula One cars, no other road or track car comes anywhere close to the Caparo T1s power-to-weight ratio and highly efficient aerodynamic properties.

This supreme power-to-weight ratio results in a 0-60mph time of less than 2.5 seconds and the ability to reach 100mph within five seconds. Braking performance is no less impressive with 100mph to standstill being delivered in 3.5 seconds.

Were absolutely delighted with the progress weve made throughout the test and development programme, says engineering director and T1 co-designer Graham Halstead. The aerodynamic efficiency was already well established through wind tunnel testing of a scale model even before we built the first prototype. With tens of thousands of miles of durability trials and specific testing now under our belts we have progressively fine tuned the specification of the vehicle to meet and exceed even our high performance objectives.

The combination of highly resolved aerodynamics and chassis make the vehicle predictably safe and responsive to driver inputs, adds Scott-Geddes. The car drives and handles extremely well both on the road and track and this was the number one consideration in such an uncompromised high performance vehicle.

The Caparo T1 not only looks and performs like a Formula One car but it also helps us to demonstrate new and advanced technology to vehicle manufacturers in the aerospace, automotive, defence, marine and motorsport industries, says Richard Butler director Caparo Vehicle Technologies and chief executive of Caparo Vehicle Products. Already, were working on a number of highly confidential client projects, applying the same approach to aerodynamics, choice of materials and efficient vehicle design, which has allowed us to develop the T1.

Ultimately, our goal is to help carmakers to create a new generation of more fuel-efficient and lightweight family cars with significantly lower CO 2 emissions more in keeping with the needs of the 21 st century, says Angad Paul chief executive of the $1.2bn turnover Caparo Group, a fast-growing automotive Tier 1 supplier, which created Caparo Vehicle Technologies to back the T1 project. We will help carmakers achieve their objectives by continuing to invest in advanced technology in order to develop new lightweight materials and commercialise their manufacturing processes so they are affordable for mass production.

Given the cars performance potential - the engine has already been successfully bench tested to 700bhp on methanol - we are now looking into the possibility of introducing for our customers an international T1 race series, says commercial director Sean Butcher. Our objective is to give customers an affordable and reliable season on the track without incurring the extraordinary costs of running a real Formula One car.

Customers comprise private individuals with a passion and desire for ultra high performance and corporate clients requiring an affordable yet prestigious track car for the fast growing market of hospitality race experience events, added Butcher.

In terms of colour and trim each of these highly exclusive hand-built cars, which has a starting price of £190,000 (excluding taxes), will be tailored to suit individual customer requirements.

Caparo V8 engine specification:

* Bespoke 3.5 litre normally-aspirated fuel-injected V8
* 575bhp (425kW) at 10,500rpm
* 420Nm (310lbft) at 9,000rpm
* Original concept tested at up to 700bhp (515kW) on methanol
* Limited to 10,500rpm for reliability but designed for maximum 12,000rpm
* 90 degree V8, 4 valves per cylinder, 4 overhead camshafts
* 93mm bore / 64.3mm stroke
* Finger follower valve train system
* Lightweight titanium valves
* Aluminium head
* Aluminium block
* Steel billet flat plane crankshaft
* Internal piston cooling system
* Aluminium / Nikasil liners
* Gas filled ring cylinder head sealing system
* Dry sump with one-piece sump / ladder frame for increased stiffness
* 8 butterfly throttle system
* Electronic sequential fuel injection system with twin-spray fuel injectors
* Engine concept is essentially to Indy racecar specification but with revs dropped to 10,500rpm for extended reliability in Caparo T1
* Pectel SQ6 engine control unit (ECU)
* Engine is fully stressed but installed in T1 to take torsion loads only
* Longitudinal, lateral and vertical loads taken up by tension and compression links to the rear of the chassis
* Engine runs on 98RON pump fuel at a fuel pressure of 5bar
* Fuel system is a return top tank system to eliminate fuel vapourisation
* Engine bottom end modified from race engine specification to increase main bearing tolerances and help cold start of the engine
* A bespoke carbon air-box and filter tray has been designed and installed to suit the Caparo T1
* Air filter is a mesh and washable filter system
* All up engine weight with ancillaries is circa 116kg

Caparo T1 vehicle specification

Overall description

* Advanced technology composites for ultra lightweight construction
* 575bhp V8 engine / 550kg kerb weight
* 1,045bhp-per-tonne power-to-weight ratio for ultra high performance
* Fully tuneable aerodynamics
* 2-seater
* Rear mid-engine layout
* Built for discerning customers but also technology flagship for Caparo Vehicle Technologies - demonstrating principles of lightweight vehicle design which can also be applied to everyday cars

Aerodynamics

* Front cockpit road aero screen, other options available for track use
* Ground effect diffuser
* Adjustable front twin element wing
* Adjustable rear single element wing
* Adjustable fowler flaps
* Low drag body design
* Range of wing options for road and track

Steering

* Magnesium cased lightweight high ratio steering rack
* Bespoke removable steering wheel

Capacities

* Dry sump tank 8 litres
* Fuel tank 70 litres

Body

* Carbon fibre multi part body with tuneable aerodynamics
* Designed in sections for easy repair
* Carbon/glass and Nomex panel construction

Chassis

* 2-seater carbon/aluminium honeycomb monocoque
* Separate front composite crash structure
* Rear tubular aerospace grade steel space-frame

Suspension

* Streamline double wishbone front and rear
* Tuneable front and rear anti-roll bar
* Five-way adjustable race dampers

Safety

* Central safety cell with high strength steel roll hoop
* Composite front crash structure
* Head protection system
* 6-point harness for driver and passenger compatible with HANS (head and neck restraint system) device
* Fire system

Electronics

* Fully tuneable engine ECU
* Bespoke wiring aerospace grade loom
* Multi-function race dash including data logging
* Speed sensors for traction and launch control
* Fly-by-wire throttle for optimum tuning

Gearbox

* Bespoke magnesium pneumatic paddle-shift gear change
* Paddle-shift gear change control
* Limited slip differential
* Equal length hollow tripode driveshafts
* Various gear and final drive ratios available

Brakes

* 355mm diameter steel race discs front and rear
* Fully floating discs
* Front 6 pot billet machined race callipers
* Rear 4 pot billet machined race callipers
* Fully adjustable brake bias pedal box
* Pad compound options available

Equipment

* Road legal SVA approved road version and full track versions available
* Road and track parts fully interchangeable
* Wet weather canopy/bib screen or race screen
* Further bespoke options to individual customer requirements

Weight

* 550kg (dry weight)

Ярлыки: 2007, Caparo, Test

2007 PORSCHE® CAYMAN™ COMBINES COUPE ARCHITECTURE, MID-ENGINE DYNAMICS

Boxster® based hardtop offers gorgeous and aerodynamic package

Just as Porsche builds the Boxster and Boxster S roadsters, so it expands the Cayman sports coupe lineup for 2007 with the Porsche Cayman, a Boxster-based hardtop powered by a 245-horsepower, 2.7­liter horizontally opposed “boxer” six-cylinder engine – and now with Porsche’s exclusive VarioCam® Plus variable intake-valve timing and lift technology that broadens the torque curve, increases fuel economy and helps to reduce emissions.

New for 2007 is a revised and updated Tiptronic® S automatic transmission, a standard Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) and optional new 19-inch wheels with the same design as the 2007 911® Turbo.

But just as with the Boxster itself, the sports coupe’s story isn’t sheer acceleration – though it sprints from a standing start to 60 miles per hour in just 5.8 seconds (0-100 km/h in 6.1 seconds). The 2007 Porsche Cayman’s story is one of amazing and balanced dynamic capabilities that come from its mid-engine design and mechanical architecture and what that means to the sort of fine-tuning done by Porsche’s legendary team of engineers.

But the 2007 Porsche Cayman is more than just another performance sports car. Its well-equipped passenger compartment was designed and engineered to be comfortable and well appointed for long-distance driving, whether on two-lane mountain roads or wide-open stretches of Interstate highway.
Like the Porsche 911 models and Cayman S, the power unit of the 2007 Cayman features VarioCam Plus technology. Maximum output of this six-cylinder power unit is 245 horsepower, with torque peaking at 201 lb-ft between 4600 and 6000 rpm. The 2.7-liter power unit comes with a lightweight crankshaft and a high compression ratio, with output of 91.2 hp per liter.

Linked to the standard 5-speed manual transmission, the 2007 Cayman not only accelerates quickly – and up to a speed of 160 miles per hour (258 km/h) on the test track, but is rated at 23 miles per gallon in city driving and at 32 mpg on the highway and meets ULEV II (ultra low-emission vehicle) standards.

Ярлыки: 2007, Porsche

Stronger and faster: The new VW Touareg Facelift from JE DESIGN

VW tuning specialist JE DESIGN from Leingarten/Germany presents now a complete styling suite for the new VW Touareg type 7 L (facelifted).

The Touareg R 5 has been given a performance boost, which increases the basic power of the 2.5 l TDI engine from 128 kW / 174 bhp to 152 kW / 206 bhp. Following this performance enhancement, the maximum torque goes up to 460 Nm. JE DESIGN also supplies a performance enhancement package for the Touareg V 10 5.0 TDI, which gives the brawny VW 259 kW / 352 bhp, equating to an increase of 29 kW / 39 bhp. Following this enhancement, the maximum torque is increased from 750 Nm to 855 Nm. Placed between R 5 and V 10, the 3.0 V6 TDI completes the available engine offering. 165 kW / 225 bhp and 500 Nm are the standard values of this engine. A power plus of 45 kW and a torque increased by 50 Nm propel the Touareg in 8,9 seconds from zero to 100 km/h (standard: 9,9 sec) and enable a top speed of 207 km/h (plus 6 km/h).

The styling suite includes a front spoiler, a set of side sills with an air inlet, which makes the car look lower, and a rear apron attachment. The rear apron attachment is also available for models with Park Distance Control. Moreover, JE DESIGN offers cartridges for double headlights consisting of fog lamps and upper beam headlights for its front spoiler. The self-adhesive roof fin "Shark Attack" rounds off the overall image of the JE DESIGN Touareg.

Additionally JE DESIGN offers their customers LED lights for the entrance area integrated into the side skirts and the rear apron.

Striking to the eye are also the stainless steel twin tailpipes, each with two 84 mm tailpipes on the left and right, which help to create that chunky look. To lower the suspension in vehicles with air suspension, JE DESIGN offers an electronic suspension lowering module, which allows the vehicle to be lowered by approx. 35 mm. For vehicles with conventional suspension, JE DESIGN also supplies a height-adjustable Variant 3 KW coilover suspension from stainless steel with adjustable rebound and pressure damping, which allows the suspension to be lowered by approx. 30 to 75 mm. Alternatively, a set of springs for the original shock absorbers for lowering the suspension by approx. 30 mm.

By way of tyres, JE DESIGN offers the AZEV wheel rim R in the size 10 x 22" ET 50 for or as a complete set of wheels equipped with 295/30 R 22 tyres.

A spectacular body kit "WIDE BODY" for the new VW Touareg is in preparation.

Ярлыки: 2007, Je Design, Volkswagen