September 30th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Motorsports, Classics

2009 Coronado Speed Festival - Click above for high-res image gallery

Ever since we first attended the Coronado Speed Festival, we’ve made sure to mark our calendars and set aside the weekend every year for the annual vintage races in San Diego, CA. The sunny skies, the cool ocean breezes, and dozens of classic sports cars make for a fantastic combination that’s more than worth the two hour drive from Los Angeles.

This year, the responsibility for handling the event was given to the Historic Motor Sports Association (HMSA), an organization that encourages the restoration, preservation and use of historic sports and racing cars. For the most part, the event was the same, but the lineup of cars did see a few changes.

Some of our favorites from previous years, the Ferrari 250TR and Aston Martin DBR2 ,were sorely absent, but a Historic NASCAR class brought out some of the most legendary stock cars to battle it out on the road course. On-track entertainment was also provided by the Shelby Mustangs, Corvettes, and a beautiful Bizzarrini 5300 GT Corsa in the 1962-1966 Production Cars over 2000cc, the legendary muscle cars in the 1966-1972 Trans-Am class, as well as racecars in the seven other groups. Browse through the high-res gallery below to find your favorites.

Photos copyright (C)2009 Drew Phillips / Weblogs, Inc.

2009 Coronado Speed Festival, the 12th annual race at the base originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 28 Sep 2009 16:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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September 30th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Motorsports, Acura, Audi, Porsche, Peugeot, Diesel

The American Le Mans Series held its flagship race, the Petit Le Mans over the weekend at Road Atlanta, and it was more petit than normal. The race is scheduled to run for 10 hours or 1,000 miles - whichever comes first. However, the rains that have plagued the Atlanta region for the past two weeks just couldn’t hold off any longer Saturday afternoon. After relatively clear running Thursday and Friday for practice and qualifying, the clouds returned Saturday for race time. After sporadic showers and drizzle throughout the first several hours, the clouds really opened up in the fifth hour.

The safety car came out for a full course yellow for a while, but the ground around the track was already waterlogged, making proper drainage impossible. With cars aquaplaning everywhere even on full rain tires, continued running became impossible and the race was red-flagged at 4 hours and 52 minutes in hopes the rain would subside. Unfortunately, it never did and the race was called at 9:30pm. Click on the jump to find out what happened while the cars were still running.

[Images: Chris Graythen/Darrell Ingham/Getty]

Continue reading Spoiler Alert: Rain, Rain Go Away! Downpour makes Petit Le Mans even more so

Spoiler Alert: Rain, Rain Go Away! Downpour makes Petit Le Mans even more so originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 28 Sep 2009 15:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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September 30th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Motorsports, Performance, Canada, Specialty

Jacques Villeneuve Academy at ICAR - Click above for high-res image gallery

There’s nothing like a Montreal summer. Once the sun starts to shine on the island metropolis after a long winter, the city transforms into a burgeoning oasis of festivals, street cafes and exotic sports cars. And grand prix or no grand prix, the world’s second largest francophone city stands as one of the greatest motor sport destinations in North America, easily on par with anything Daytona or Indianapolis can throw at it.

You’d expect to hear a lot about racing drivers hailing from this capital of motorsport, but while the likes of Tagliani and Carpentier have made their mark, one name looms larger than any other: Villeneuve. Following in the footsteps of his father Gilles - the beloved fallen Ferrari driver for whom the city’s F1 circuit is named - to say nothing of his eponymous uncle, Jacques Villeneuve took both the Indy 500 and CART title in 1995 before going on to win the Formula One world championship two years later. And while his track record since may fall short of his earlier successes, the name still carries a lot of weight. Especially in Montreal. So when JV opened up his own racing school just outside the city, and we found ourselves in town for a few of those precious summer days, we could hardly resist the opportunity to see what the Jacques Villeneuve Academy had to offer. Follow the jump to read what we found, and more importantly, what we learned.

Photos copyright (C)2009 Noah Joseph / Weblogs, Inc.

Continue reading Autoblog gets schooled at the Jacques Villeneuve Academy

Autoblog gets schooled at the Jacques Villeneuve Academy originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 28 Sep 2009 14:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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September 30th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Motorsports

Continue reading Race Results: F1 action lights up at the 2009 Singapore Grand Prix

Race Results: F1 action lights up at the 2009 Singapore Grand Prix originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 28 Sep 2009 10:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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September 30th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Motorsports, Videos, Acura

Scott Sharp’s accident at the Petit Le Mans Thursday practice session - click above to watch the video after the jump

Earlier, we told you about the Patron Highcroft racing team’s marathon 20 hour build of a brand new Acura ARX-02a the day before the Petit Le Mans. The reason the crew had to work even harder than normal on a race weekend was a crash during Thursday’s afternoon practice that left many observers astonished as Scott Sharp walked away unharmed.

Sharp’s LMP1 Acura was heading into turn 3 at Road Atlanta when it apparently made contact with another racer exiting the pit lane. This caused the Acura’s front end to lift, and that’s never a good thing in one of these high-powered prototypes. Into the air the car went. After makng 3.5 revolutions, Sharp managed to crawl out of the car’s remains with just a clump of mud stuck to the top of his helmet.

“I really don’t know what happened,” Sharp said. “I was heading up the hill in sixth gear and felt a hit in the right rear. The wheel arches are very high with the wide front tires on the Acura - I didn’t see a thing - only felt the contact. I knew it was a big one and I am just really grateful to Acura and all the boys at Patrón Highcroft Racing for building such a strong car. I’m shattered for Duncan, all the guys, Brabs and Dario (Franchitti). We went through this last year and I can’t believe it’s happened again. I was just thinking to myself how much I like this place when next thing I’m headed upside down with a mouth full of Georgia clay.”

Heading into Atlanta, Sharp and co-driver David Brabham were tied at 142 points and leading the LMP1 drivers championship race, a position they maintained by finishing sixth in yesterday’s rain-shortened Petit Le Mans. The video of the crash is available after the jump. Thanks for the tip, Ryan.

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading VIDEO: Scott Sharp’s Acura prototype completely destroyed during Petit Le Mans practice

VIDEO: Scott Sharp’s Acura prototype completely destroyed during Petit Le Mans practice originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 27 Sep 2009 19:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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September 30th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Motorsports

On Friday, prior to this weekend’s Petit Le Mans, the American Le Mans Series announced its planned 2010 schedule. Tentatively, nine of this year’s 10 venues are carried over, with only the St. Petersburg, FL street race going away. There are a couple of date changes for the existing venues, however. The Utah race, which had been run in May in recent years, will move to a July slot after the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The big change for 2010 however, concerns the annual race at Laguna Seca. This California event has long been the season-ender following Petit Le Mans. In 2010, though, it moves to the May 22 slot and the race length grows to six hours (it’s currently a four-hour event). Unfortunately for fans in Michigan, the Detroit race won’t return in 2010 because of its local sponsors’ poor financial situation; organizers still hope to revive the race in 2011. The schedule is after the jump.

All photos Copyright (C)2008 Drew Phillips / Weblogs, Inc.

[Source: American Le Mans Series]

Continue reading ALMS announces 2010 schedule; Laguna Seca moves to May, becomes 6-hour enduro

ALMS announces 2010 schedule; Laguna Seca moves to May, becomes 6-hour enduro originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 27 Sep 2009 17:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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September 30th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Motorsports, Acura

A mere 42 hours after Scott Sharp walked away from a horrific 3.5-revolution crash during practice for the Petit Le Mans, a freshly-built Acura ARX-02a was rolled out for the morning warmup on Saturday. The Highcroft crew put in marathon sessions Thursday and Friday to ensure that their pre-race work did not go in vain. Unlike Formula One teams, ALMS teams don’t typically bring a spare car along with them, even to a big race like Petit Le Mans.

Sharp’s crash happened at 3:43 PM EDT on Thursday, and by 6 pm a spare carbon fiber tub was picked up from the Honda Performance Development shop in California. As the tub was being shipped across the continent, the crew at Road Atlanta set about stripping down what was left of the crashed car. In the end, only 10 percent of the old parts were re-used on the new car.

The new tub arrived at the track at 9:30 AM Friday morning and the team went to work; a whole new race car had to be built up from thousands of parts. 15.5 hours after they started, the engine was fired at 1 AM. By 5:45 AM, setup was complete and at 9:45 AM Saturday morning the car hit the track. SPOILER ALERT: Petit Le Mans was ended early due to heavy rains, with the Highcroft Acura finishing sixth overall, 4 laps down from the winning Peugueot.

Update: Time lapse video of the build is embedded after the jump.

[Source: American Le Mans Series]
Photos Copyright (C)2009 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.

Continue reading REPORT: Patron Highcroft team builds new Acura prototype in just over 20 hours [w/VIDEO]

REPORT: Patron Highcroft team builds new Acura prototype in just over 20 hours [w/VIDEO] originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 27 Sep 2009 12:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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September 30th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Motorsports, Technology, Mazda, Alternative Fuel

When we spoke with American Le Mans Series CEO Scott Atherton at the Detroit Auto Show last January, he revealed that discussions were being held between the series and parties interested in racing with a new fuel. At the time, he declined to reveal the nature of the fuel but expected to announce something during the 2009 season. We’re now down to the second to last race of 2009 and a fourth series fuel has finally arrived.

Dyson Racing’s LMP2 #16 Lola-Mazda is running unclassified at this weekend’s Petit Le Mans because its fuel tank will be filled with a blend of biobutanol and ethanol. This is the first use of butanol in an ALMS car. Dyson has been working with its primary sponsor BP and engine supplier Mazda to develop the new fuel which is currently produced from sugar cane but can also be produced from cellulosic sources. Butanol has several advantages over ethanol including higher energy density allowing mileage and power closer to that of gasoline. What’s more, because it doesn’t have the same tendency to absorb water (which causes corrosion), it can be blended with gasoline in higher concentrations without modifying the engines. Hopefully, we’ll see cars running for points fueled by butanol all season long in 2010. Check out our high-res gallery below and the official press release after the jump.

[Source: American Le Mans Series]
All photos Copyright (C)2009 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.

Continue reading Dyson Racing debuts ethanol-biobutanol blend at Petit Le Mans

Dyson Racing debuts ethanol-biobutanol blend at Petit Le Mans originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 26 Sep 2009 16:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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September 30th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Motorsports, Rumormill

Formula One impresario Bernie Ecclestone has made no secret of his desire to see his series make a stop in the Big Apple - Manhattan, in point of fact. To that end, our friends at 0-60 thought they’d help him out by drawing up a suggested courses - in fact, in an oddly prescient move, they had already done so, publishing the fantasy circuits in the pages of their Winter 2008 issue.

In any case, with Ecclestone reportedly reaffirming his interest in the Big Apple today, 0-60 has decided to publish the story and the routes online. The routes through Central Park are inspired, although we suspect that more than a few of NYC’s anti-car intelligenstia would take issue with that notion. No matter, you can peruse their efforts by clicking on the link below.

[Source: 0-60.com]

REPORT: Bernie wants F1 in NYC, 0-60 already has the plans originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 25 Sep 2009 17:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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September 30th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Motorsports, Videos, Audi, Diesel

With the American Le Mans Series returning to Road Atlanta this weekend for its flagship event, the Petit Le Mans, Audi has returned to take on the French. Peugeot, of course, won this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans after a multi-year battle with the diesel-powered Audis. So far, in the first three open practice sessions on Thursday, Peugeot’s diesels continued to have a speed advantage over the Audi entries, with Frank Montagny setting the fastest time of the week so far during the night practice session at 1:07.912, three-quarters ahead of the second Peugeot, and the Audis also running third and fourth.

Earlier on Thursday, one of Audi’s reserve drivers for the ten hour race, Mike Rockenfeller, conducted a backstage tour of the Audi paddock where the crew were preparing the cars for the first practice. This is back in an area that spectators don’t get to see much of. As the cars were being taken out to the track, Rockenfeller went into the big tent behind the pit where the engineers were pouring over telemetry data on their screens trying to figure out how to make the R15 faster. Check out the videos after the jump.

[Source: Audi]

Continue reading VIDEO: Mike Rockenfeller guides a tour of the Audi pit at Petit Le Mans

VIDEO: Mike Rockenfeller guides a tour of the Audi pit at Petit Le Mans originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 25 Sep 2009 15:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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