R32 Skyline Shows The Way For A Daily-driven Supercar

Before the Nissan Skyline R35 GT-R was marketed in the U.S. and before Nissan famously bested Porsche’s time at the Nurburgring, enthusiasts around the world were already playing with the R35’s predecessors. Even before the appearance of Mitsubishi’s Lancer Evolutions and Subarus WRX Imprezas, the few car nuts who knew about the Skyline already appreciated the giant-slaying capabilities of these twin-turbo AWD cars. This R32 GT-R from Australia has been in the care of a car enthusiast from Australia, who has had different cars in his stable, but has always kept this R32 in his hands.

Over the years, this car has been continuously improved and cared for, to the point that practically no performance aspect of the car has not been upgraded, down to the carbon fiber radiator stays. In its current form, the RB26DETT DOHC inline-6 was rebuilt by IS Motor Racing with HKS pistons and rods, a pair of HKS GT-SS turbos, Tomei Poncam Type-B camshafts, Tomei metal head gasket and adjustable cam gears. An HKS fuel pump, Nismo FPR and Nismo 555cc injectors handle fueling duties while a Power FC is used to control the engine. Horsepower calculations show 408hp going to the wheels, courtesy of the AWD drivetrain. There are GT-R engines with thousand horsepower outputs but the owner of this car wisely opted for a tamer setup so that the car could used without fuss on the street.

18-inch RAYS CE28Ns and Toyo R888 semi-slicks are used for the rolling stock, while AP Racing 6-pot fronts and 4-pot rears handle the braking duties, which are needed when the Ikeya Formula adjustable arms, Section tension rods, Tein RA coilovers, Cusco swaybars and HKS Kansai braces are used at the track. An ACPT carbon fiber propshaft has replaced the original steel unit.

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Outrageous Z3 M Hopes To Top 1Lap Race

The 1 Lap race is an 8-day race featuring cars where the main qualifying requirement is that they be street legal. Otherwise, it’s basically a run what you brung affair. But lest you think that a thousand-horsepower beast will do the trick, the mix of events (time trials, drag racing, autocrossing and skid pad challenges) ensure that the most well-rounded car wins. To this end, a lot of interpretations have been entered since the race’s inception and for this year, one of the entries is a Z3 M Coupe that the owner hopes will have what it takes to take top honors.

The body features a carbon fiber hood (55 lbs saving), roof (saving 40 lbs), front bumper cover with splitter and cooling ducts, Grand-Am spec CF rear wing and carbon fiber front and rear quarter panels. Underneath, CCW 18x9.5 and 18x 11 wheels, Michelin PS2 tires, Rotora 6 piston 355mm front and 4 piston 330mm rear brakes, TC Kline Double adjustable shocks and camber plates, H&R swaybars, Ireland Engineering subframe bushings and rear toe adjusters and RRT subframe reinforcements make up the upgraded components.

The engine is a Dinan-built race spec BMW S62 V8 with custom 3-ring composite Mahle pistons, race cams, billet steel crank, solid lifters, Carillo rods, valve springs and valve retainers. A dry sump system side mounted on the oil pan lubes the internal works and engine management and traction control are handled by a Pectel SQ6 ECU. Horsepower calculations put the engine’s output in the 600 hp range and an OS Giken clutch and LSD were installed to handle that power.

The one lap starts on April 30 and ends on May 7.

Engine startup video.

Revving the S62.

Source article is here.

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1966 Datsun Pickup Benefits From Miata Drivetrain

Although everyone loves a car with a fire-breathing engine, huge amounts of horsepower are not a strict necessity for a fun and unique ride, as demonstrated by this 1966 Datsun pickup. By his admission a Datsun pickup nut, the builder of this pickup is also a road racer. As a project, he decided to marry the body and chassis of a 1966 L520 Datsun with the drivetrain and suspension of a 1990 MX5 Miata.

The original frame on the pickup, as well as the Mazda subframe, were modified to allow the Miata subframe to fit, thus ensuring that this pickup would have independent suspension, front and rear, as well as disc brakes at all four corners. Since this road racer runs a Miata racer, he was very familiar with the proper suspension angles and settings that would work, and this knowledge was put to use in fitting the Miata suspension to the pickup. With the project vehicle being lighter than their Mazda race car, at around 2300 pounds, the owner intends the pickup to have a 50/50 weight distribution through the use of ballast where it is needed. Where the previous engine was a carburated 1300cc engine, the pickup now runs the Miata DOHC fuel-injected engine, slightly massaged to deliver 135 rear wheel horsepower. If you think that’s not enough, ask the thousands of Miata owners who drive their cars around with grins on their faces.

Gearheads know that light cars don’t need much power to have good power-to-weight ratios. Horsepower calculations predict that this car would do 0-60 mph in under 7 seconds. Admittedly, today’s modified cars would do that number in 3 seconds less but the fun here is not in straightline speed but the driving dynamics that a nimble car offers.

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Bowler Nemesis EXR Shames "Sport" SUVs

The Porsche Cayenne and BMW X5/X6M are powerful AWD SAVs that have proven to be popular to the point that they have become vehicles that pander to the luxury aspect of looking rugged, instead of being rugged. The offroader featured here puts these “sport” SAVs to shame with its radical styling and performance capabilities. The Nemesis EXR from Bowler Offroad Ltd. is a roadgoing offshoot of the company’s Dakar-spec racers. The Nemesis takes styling elements such as grille, headlights and rear lights from the Range Rover Sport but the similarities stop there.

The Nemesis is constructed from tubular steel in a spaceframe design that incorporates the roll cage as an integrated structure of the frame, which is compliant with motorsport safety regulations. Body panels are made from a composite called Twin-tex and in the areas where high strength is needed with light weight, carbon fiber is used to give a vehicle weight of 3850 pounds. The roadgoing Nemesis EXR is fitted with a 5.0 liter supercharged V8 from the Jaguar XKR and horsepower calculations predict up to 600 horsepower on tap, but test versions were limited to 500 horsepower. Although race versions of the Nemesis are fitted with a manual ZF 6-speed, the EXR has a 6-speed automatic. Fully independent suspension offers 300 mm of ground clearance front and rear. The EXR uses standard Range Rover Sport brakes, but weighs almost 1500 pounds less so braking power is more than sufficient for this offroader. The driveline is composed of a 60/40 torque split limited slip center differential with over-lock and limited slip front and rear differentials. A 415 litre capacity racing fuel cell to allows the vehicle to run the longest Dakar Rally stages.

On tarmac, the Nemesis hits 62 mph in 3.9 seconds, on to an estimated top speed of 140 mph. At an estimated cost of $190,000, the Nemesis EXR is certainly not cheap but compared to the Cayenne and X5/X6 M-variant BMWs, the Bowler Nemesis is the king of the hill.

Source article is here.

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Trial Celica Still A Cool Car After Several Years

Trial is a Japanese tuner whose experience goes back decades. In 2003, they came out with a demo car for the 7th generation Toyota Celica. This demo car generated so much interest and respect that it became one of the tuner cars featured in Gran Turismo 4 and 5. As befitting a demo car, no part of the car was left untouched.

Starting with the body, a functional aero kit was designed inspired by Japan’s GT300 series. Parts developed for this kit and installed on the car were the front bumper, side skirts, rear bumper and rear wing. Typically, a big brake kit and fully adjustable coilover suspension were also installed. A rollcage and fuel cell conform to international motorsport standards.

Toyota gifted this Celica with a high-revving 2ZZ-GE 4-cylinder 1800 cc motor which produced around 190 horsepower driving a 6-speed manual transmission. Obviously not enough for the Japanese tuner, Trial proceeded to install a 3ZZ engine conversion kit to bump displacement to 2 liters, using a stroker kit which includes a custom crank, Carrillo rods, and Wiseco 8.8 compression pistons. This rotating assembly was fully balanced and blueprinted, including the sleeves, clutch, flywheel, and crank pulley. A TRIAL/Blitz supercharger was also installed, as well as a custom exhaust manifold, titanium muffler, HKS oil cooler and custom oil pump and fuel system. Although no official figures have been released, horsepower calculations estimate an output of more than 280 horsepower driving the car’s weight of 1140 kilos.

These mods resulted in a Tsukuba Circuit Time of 1:06.8 which when compared to one of the fastest S2000s in Japan at that time, could only manage a 1.10 on the same track. In its heyday, it held the distinction of being one of the fastest roadgoing front-drive cars anywhere. Drag Hondas could accelerate faster but were good only in a straight line.

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Singer 911 Offers Vintage Looks With Uncompromising Performance

The car you see here is a brand-new 911, of the type produced from 1969-1989. However, this car is not manufactured by Porsche but by Singer Vehicle Design. It’s not a restoration, or a replica for that matter. Singer in fact calls it a reincarnation, and it starts with a Porsche 911 long-wheelbase floorpan, retaining the original wheelbase, the A-pillar position, the roofline, suspension and transaxle mounting points. Additionally, the unibody is stitch-welded to improve rigidity and strength. Every other component that has been installed is from the best refinements of over 40 years of Porsche 911 modifications.

The resulting Singer 911, as it is called, is a carbon fiber-bodied masterpiece, with the suspension converted from torsion bars to the Macpherson strut and Carrera SC rear trailing arm with coilover set-up used on vintage racing 911’s. Moton dampers with remote oil reservoirs and Eibach springs are installed on all four corners. Brembo calipers and 930-series rotors make up the brake system while Fuchs-inspired lightweight wheels are shod with modern Michelin Pilot Sport Cup tires.

The engine used in the Singer 911 is from the 993, the last iteration of the air-cooled series. Its 3.6 liters are increased to 3.8, using titanium connecting rods and the crankshaft from the 997 GT3. Custom-engineered billet aluminum heads play a major part in producing the engine’s 425 horsepower and 8000 rpm redline. AMotec M800 ECU also adds launch control, traction control and data logging, very welcome features that were never even envisioned in the original 911s. A 6-speed Getrag transmission transfers the power to the rear wheels.

Performance is 3.9 seconds to 60 mph, with a top speed in excess of 170 mph. With a claimed weight of 2400 pounds, determining the other statistics of this car is possible with a performance calculator.

The Singer 911 costs $200,000 but to those who can afford it, the car is a truly iconic automobile that everybody recognizes and that has been rebuilt to the best specifications that money and today’s technology can get.

Source article here.

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KTM X-Bow Offers Race Car Performance In Street-Legal Guise

KTM is a renowned and respected motorbike builder and its race team has won the prestigious Dakar Rally several times. Its bikes are synonymous with uncompromising performance. In 2007, KTM introduced a concept car to the public, naming it the X-Bow.The X-Bow weighs only 790 kilos, thanks to its carbon fiber monocoque. In terms of weight reduction and safety, carbon fiber is the material of choice for Formula 1 teams. To this carbon fiber tub were attached a dual-wishbone suspension. Audi provided the 4-cylinder turbocharged powerplant, which provides 240 horsepower from its mid-engine location. A 6-speed gearbox transfers power to the wheels. In terms of outright horsepower, 240 is laughable, compared to the other thousand-horsepower mills featured previously on this blog. However, be reminded that the engine has only 790 kilos to push around so the power to weight ratio of 308 hp/ton compares very favorably with that of well-known sports cars.

Proof of this is its 0-60 time of 3.9 seconds with a top speed of 140 mph. Using a performance calculator, the car should do less than 12 seconds in the quarter mile. It’s been called a street-legal race car and this description is no hyperbole. In fact, there are videos of the KTM X-Bow out-accelerating cars like an Aston Martin and similar sports cars.

The next video will show an X-Bow chasing a Porsche Turbo.

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