Hej! We just returned from our daily dose of Rally Sweden, and are happy to report that PG Andersson is still leading the S-WRC category that Proton Motorsports is contesting in. After 16 stages, the Swede leads Craig Breen in his Ford Fiesta S2000 by 2:14.4, while Pontus Tidemand in his Skoda Fabia S2000 is a further 1:58.2 behind. PG is 14th overall, behind the WRC boys.

His Proton teammate Alister McRae, who is of course the 2011 FIA APRC champ, is seventh in the S-WRC category. As detailed in our previous report, the Scotsman, who last drove in this ice and snow rally in 2004, went wide in SS3 and hit soft snow, landing his car in the ditch. That incident put him out of contention but the Super Rally format allows him to continue running, and potentially collect points for the team.

Our day started very early here in Karlstad, the rally base. It was still dark when we set out to catch some live action, and two hours later we arrived at Sagen to watch SS12, the first of today’s two stages on this 14.23 km stretch.

The hike up the hill to watch the cars zoom past was tough, not so much because of the cold (temperature is still stubbornly stuck below zero C), but because of the thick layer of soft powdery snow. It’s climbing on shifting ground, and everytime a foot is buried in snow, some ice gets in the shoe – wet feet is not good!

But we found a rather good vantage point, allowing us to see the cars come in the frame sideways for an S, before powering out past the cheering crowd. You get a better view on TV, but the atmosphere at the stages is amazing and can’t be replicated.

It feels like the whole of Scandinavia is here for Rally Sweden, and the fans are loud and jolly, some helped by the potent drinks they bring to keep warm. Bonfires, singing and red cheeked small children complete the camp party like scene.

From Sagen, we headed to Hagfors Airport, which serves as a major Service Park for the rally. It’s here where the team trucks and tents are at, and many fans packed the place to catch a glimpse of the drivers and cars. At the Proton tent, PG Andersson came in for service after the Hagfors Sprint stage in the city.

In between his pasta and coffee, he told us that the car was sliding too much, and although spectators love it, too much sideways isn’t the fastest way.

PG felt it immediately since he started the day. “The studs disappeared already on the first stage. Something makes it spin on the top and breaks the studs and makes it very slippery. Now we have to save on the tyres, but except that, everything is OK,” he said. The reason behind the trouble was ice build up in the dampers, making them sticky.

A set of new Reiger dampers fitted, and off he went, after some food in the stomach of course. Alister McRae came in for service too, but it was so much more relaxed on his side of the garage. It’s important to keep going though, as there’s always a chance someone might drop out.

At the front of the pack, ex Ford teammates Mikko Hirvonen and Jari-Matti Latvala are having a friendly duel of their own. Hirvonen, now Seb Loeb’s teammate at Citroen, came into Hagfors service 18.6 seconds behind Ford’s Latvala. Another popular figure and branding master (he has his own merchandise and booth) Petter Solberg is in third.

World champ and living legend Loeb is down in sixth after SS16. The Citroen DS3 WRC driving Frenchman is not having a great rally that’s for sure. “It’s not so fun to drive in this situation, but it’s like that. We have to try and score some points. You cannot win every time,” the man said.

Below are the pics I took from SS12 Sagen and Hagfors service park. It’s not just car shots – I’m hoping you can have a “feel” of the rally while enjoying the Malaysian weather (yes, I do miss the heat). More updates tomorrow.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Greetings from snow covered Norway! But aren’t we covering Rally Sweden, you ask. Well, the Swedish rally has a few stages running in neighbouring Norway and we’re now at Kongsvinger, where the cars are having their first remote service after five special stages.

The rally officially started yesterday night – SS1 was a super special stage in the rally’s base city of Karlstad, Sweden. A horse racing ring in the small town of 60k turned into a rally showcase for the locals, who came out in droves despite the temperature dropping to below -10C.

It wasn’t a walk in the park for yours truly – my luggage containing heavy winter wear got lost in transit – but it warmed the heart being with the enthusiastic crowd, ranging from grandmothers to young dating couples and tiny babies. Their passion for rallying is so strong, you’ll need to see to believe.

The rally isn’t won and lost in that short 1.9 km showcase (MINI’s Dani Sordo came out tops) so the real start is today, where the cars slip and slide in a white landscape. Leading the overall standings is Citroen’s Mikko Hirvonen, with a small lead (just 2.9 seconds) over ex Ford teammate Jari-Matti Latvala, who was tops in qualifying.

By the way, qualifying replaces shakedown, where the fastest cars get to choose their start order, usually in the middle. Going first and setting a trail is always trickier. I learnt that those who go first must contend with soft snow covering the surface. Not so much grip for the studded tyres, which “bite” harder into hard ice once the soft snow is cleared.

Mads Ostberg’s Adapta Ford Fiesta is third, while Hirvonen’s superstar teammate Sebastian Loeb is in fourth leaving Kongsvinger. Behind Loeb’s DS3 is another famous rally name, Petter Solberg, driving for the works Ford team. This duo was hit by unwanted delays – Loeb collected a 10sec penalty while the Norwegian (the only guy with his own merchandise and booths) spun on home soil in SS4.

In the S-WRC category (S for Super 2000) which Proton is contesting in, homeboy Per Gunnar Andersson came into Kongsvinger in the lead, with a slim 7.4 second advantage over unheralded Pontus Tidemand in a Skoda Fabia S2000. Ireland’s Craig Breen, who won the category in Monte Carlo after PG retired on the last stage, is in third with his Ford Fiesta S2000.

Alister McRae, Proton’s APRC champion, had his winter rally dreams dashed – the Scotsman put a wheel into the soft snow and lost control on SS3. His Neo was stuck, and co-driver Bill Hayes had to walk 2 km to find helpful spectators to push the car out of the ditch. No serious damage, and McRae will start tomorrow under Super Rally rules. He’s won’t be winning the S-WRC category, that’s for sure, but can still collect points for Proton.

We caught up with PG at the service park and he appears very confident in bringing home Proton’s first points of the season and winning his class. The popular Swede said he lost a bit of time in SS3, a tight and technical stage where he couldn’t get a good rhythm. But things went well after that, so let’s hope all goes smoothly from now. Overall, PG is 15th.

Stay tuned for updates.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Formula 1 is set to resume next month, and with the Petronas Malaysia Grand Prix being the second race of the 2012 season, expect to see a host of promotional activities coming about in the weeks ahead. Petronas has already kicked off its pre-race branding, with its roving F1 car – housed in a see-through display and mounted on a truck – doing the rounds in KL late last month.

The display showcased the 2011 MGP W02 car, and roamed KL streets over a period of three days, making pit stops at KLCC and Pavilion as well as the Petronas service station in Jalan Klang Lama. It also made an appearance in the Federal Territory Day Parade in the city, held on January 28.

The participation in the parade as well as the roving agenda is part of the activity helping to create a buzz about the upcoming race, which is set to run on March 23-25. Expect just about everyone who has some form of involvement in the circus to follow suit shortly.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Rally Sweden, the second round of the 2012 FIA World Rally Championship, will start slightly over a day from now. Yours truly would have been just two hours away from Stockholm now, but due to a technical problem on our B777, I’m now in sunny Putrajaya (32C) instead of freezing Karlstad (-6C). Anyway, the long journey to winter wonderland starts tonight, God willing, and we’ll bring you some live reports from Sweden.

Those of you who follow world news would know that Europe is suffering from a cold snap now, with severe snow and record low temperatures. Many have died, and I’m hoping that my winter wear will hold up. This job can be hazardous you know

Thankfully, Proton Motorsports, which is competing in the S-WRC category (S for Super 2000) in WRC, had a better run up to the event than us. The men driving the yellow Satria Neo S2000s in Sweden are homeboy Per Gunnar Andersson and Alister McRae. PG drove superbly in the season opening Monte Carlo Rally, but an unfortunate technical problem meant that he had to retire from the S-WRC lead (9th overall) on the last day with just 20+ kilometres to go.

Click to enlarge list

Putting the disappointment behind him, the Swede prepared for Sweden in style, with a Super 2000 victory in the KNA Rally Finnskog in Norway days ago. Of the 42 entries, he finished ahead of fellow S2000 Ford and Skoda teams and fourth overall in a warm up event that included the Citroen and Ford WRC teams. Let’s hope the good form continues.

“We’ve put the disappointment in Monte Carlo behind us. It’s quite obvious that the Satria Neo S2000 has the pace and performance, and we’re back in Sweden to prove this point. Rally Sweden is an incredibly exciting event which will see competitors battling it out on ice and snow for what is a proper winter rally. We have a competitive package, and alongside experience as well as local knowledge, we’re confident the Satria Neo S2000 will live up to challenge,” PG said.

After KNA Rally Finnskog, the team spent a trouble-free day testing the Neos. “The rally in Norway went very, very well for us. The odd very cold day in Britain aside, this was the first time the Satria Neo had ever run in anything like these conditions and it worked perfectly straight away. We fitted a stronger heater to make sure the screen was clear and put some warm jackets in the back for the guys, but apart from that, this was the same car which won in Malaysia at 40 degrees. On Saturday it was winning S2000 in temperatures 70 degrees colder!” team boss Chris Mellors exclaimed.

Some might be surprised with the inclusion of Proton’s APRC champ Alister McRae. The reason he was drafted in for Sweden is because PG’s regular teammate Italian Giandomenico Basso is more of a tarmac specialist. The Scotsman has competed in Rally Sweden seven times before, finishing as high as fifth overall. He last drove here in 2004. “It’s fantastic to be back. Rally Sweden will also give us a chance to test the 2012 Satria Neo S2000 ahead of the start of this year’s APRC,” said McRae.

Rally Sweden has attracted a total of 85 entries and will be contested over 24 special stages covering a competitive distance of 360km. The rally begins with a 1.9km super special stage in Karlstad tomorrow (looks like we’ll be missing that one) and continues on Friday with nine special stages which will see competitors driving through classic Norwegian stages in the town of Kongsvinger.

Heading to KLIA now, stay tuned for updates!

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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The champions have unveiled their 2012 Formula 1 car – Infiniti and Red Bull Racing will be looking to the new RB8 to continue where the RB7 left off last year, which was to score 12 victories, 27 podiums and 18 pole positions on its way to bag both the Contructors’ title and Drivers’ crown for Sebastian Vettel.

The Renault 2.4 litre V8-powered car features more prominent branding of the Infiniti name in the livery, given the deepening of the partnership between the two companies that was announced in October last year. With that, the RB8 wears enhanced logos on the racing car along with the drivers’ overalls and gloves, team personnel and equipment.

Testing on the new car has begun in Jerez. Will the RB8 make it three in a row for Seb and RBR?

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Lotus, formerly known as Lotus Renault GP, has pulled the wraps off its 2012 Formula 1 challenger. Called E20, it’s named after Enstone, the team’s base in UK. It’s the 20th F1 chassis designed at the Oxfordshire facility. The men charged with driving the black and gold cars are Romain Grosjean and returning champ Kimi Raikkonen.

The target for the duo is fourth in the Constructors’ championship this year, set by team owner Gerard Lopez of Genii Capital. Last year, the Lotus sponsored Renault team started strongly with two podiums in the first two races, but eventually finished a distant fifth, just six points ahead of Force India.

“The hopes are to be able to get one season together and do what we were expecting last year. We hope to have a strong car, and have strong drivers, one of which is of course an ex-world champion. We hope to bring the car up to the front of the pack and probably try to aim for fourth as a reasonable goal for this season,” Lopez said.

On another note, “we’re obviously extremely proud that finally the Lotus name is a clear concept for everybody in Formula 1 now,” the owner added. The former Team Lotus, owned by Tony Fernandes, will race as Caterham this season.

The E20 wears familiar black-gold clothes, but there are new sponsor logos from Rexona and Clear Anti-Dandruff shampoo on the flanks.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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The FIA World Endurance Championship now has Toyota as a full time entrant for 2012. The Japanese carmaker formally registered itself to give WEC promoter Automobile Club de l’Ouest the minimum two manufacturers it requires in LMP1, as agreed with FIA. Normally an Audi vs Peugeot affair, the French company ended its endurance racing programme last month.

“It was originally planned to enter only selected races, which would have fallen short of the number required to be considered a full-time entrant. Due to the unexpected changes faced by the WEC, that plan has been revised,” Toyota said in a statement.

“The circumstances for the championship changed suddenly in the last weeks and Toyota Racing considers it important to work together with the FIA and ACO to establish a successful future for endurance racing. We have done everything we can to show our support and we look forward to an exciting season,” it added.

Toyota’s original plan was to contest individual races on invitational basis. The team has so far announced a single car entry at Spa and two cars for Le Mans 24 Hours in June. It’s not known if this latest development will include more races for the TS030 Hybrid race car. “There is a clear limitation on what we can do budget-wise and resource-wise,” a Toyota Motorsport GmbH spokesman told Autosport.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Honda’s FIA World Touring Car Championship will be the 5-door hatchback you see above, developed with Mugen and J.A.S. Motorsport, but what’s under the engine hood is more interesting – a Honda R&D developed bespoke 1.6 liter engine that’s not found in any current production Honda car!

Honda’s two car WTCC entry will be powered by a 1.6 liter 4 cylinder direct injection turbo engine, developed in accordance with FIA’s Super 2000 regulations. The cars will be managed by J.A.S. Motorsport, and will be entered in every race in the 2013 season.

A typical race covers between 50km to 60km in distance, and the full racing season covers 12 racing weekends, with 2 races per weekend. All vehicles who compete in the championship are based on mass production cars with more than than 4 seats. 

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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McLaren has unveiled its 2012 Formula 1 car, the MP4-27, at the team’s Woking base. With two British world champs in Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button, McLaren finished last season with six victories and second in the standings, behind champions Red Bull. The MP4-27′s brief is therefore simple – beat the bulls.

The 2012 car looks a lot like last year’s machine, but McLaren says that the MP4-27 chassis has been substantially revised, with all major systems updated or redesigned. No more U-shaped sidepods too, to comply with new regulations.

“We have set ourselves tough and ambitious targets, and we aim to deliver those by the first race and have a championship-winning car. This car is a complete rework from nose to tail, and there is very little that is carried over. A bit of the fuel system is the same, but almost everything else on the car has changed,” said Tim Goss, McLaren’s director of engineering.

“There were a few features we have pushed quite hard from the beginning of the project. I am proud of the whole team and the efforts so far, and from now we go to the next phase of the project which is really wringing the performance out of it. We have a good track record of that – we have big plans, upgrades for the front wing, rear wing, floor and bodywork are already planned,” Goss added.

Elaborating further, technical director Paddy Lowe said: “The regulations are trimming us into narrower and narrower boxes. We don’t see big radical changes from one year to the next year. This car looks very similar but underneath a great deal of changes have taken place.

“Every part has been assessed for weight and performance. If you add all that up, you get a car that is quicker. Teams are tasked to find that 1% to 2% performance improvement – but nevertheless there are obvious innovations.

“We have done a lot of work around the back end, and there is a lot more tidy packaging there, and we have had to do a lot of work on exhausts. That has given the aerodynamicists a great challenge, not only to find the downforce but also in creating the right balance. You need downforce but also you have to be able to use it in the right area.”

Are we looking at the machine to break Red Bull and Seb Vettel’s total domination?

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Here’s what BMW’s 2012 DTM challenger looks like in full livery. This livery features the green of Castrol EDGE, Castrol’s flagship motor oil, and the blue of Aral Ultimate high-performance fuel. Other visible brands include Bosch, Hankook, Sonax, Dekra and Puma. Suspension makers Sachs and H&R are present, too.

“For many years we have put our faith in high-performance Castrol lubricants, and have celebrated countless successes together on the racetrack. For that reason, everyone here at BMW Motorsport is delighted that we are able to build on this established partnership in the DTM. Castrol EDGE and Aral Ultimate are high-performance brands, which suit our DTM project perfectly,” said BMW Motorsport Director Jens Marquardt.

This won’t be the only look for the M3 DTM, though. One of the six BMW entries will run in this Castrol EDGE look, so expect to see the traditional BMW corporate livery of the past 20 years on the other cars.

The driver lineup looks as good, with DTM champion Martin Tomczyk and long-time Mercedes driver Bruno Spengler joining regular factory drivers Andy Priaulx, Augusto Farfus, Joey Hand and Dirk Muller. Schnitzer, RBM and RMG are the three teams.

The German tin top race series flags off at Hockenheim at the end of April.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Want to catch some MotoGP action for free? Sepang International Circuit will be opening its main grandstand for free viewing of the annual MotoGP pre-season test, to be held from tomorrow (31 January) till Thursday (2 February). This is the first of three official test sessions before the season starts in Qatar on 8 April.

This three-day session will give fans a first glimpse of the new 1,000 cc MotoGP bikes, which replace the 800 cc bikes from this year. For the riders, not only will they have to get to know their new machines, it will also an emotional return to the track that claimed the life of San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Marco Simoncelli last October.

The key factory teams will have unchanged line ups. Casey Stoner will defend his world title alongside Repsol Honda teammate Dani Pedrosa, the Yamaha factory team have Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies, while Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden will be flying the Ducati flag.

The off-season saw some transfers, including that of Andrea Dovizioso (Yamaha Tech3) and Alvaro Bautista (Honda Gresini). Hector Barbera will now be the sole rider of the Pramac while Karel Abraham will continue with Cardion AB Racing Team. Colin Edwards and Randy de Puniet joined Forward Racing and Aspar Team respectively, where they will ride new CRT-spec machines. A total of 21 riders will form the MotoGP grid this year.

Besides getting to watch the tests for free, those who make their way to Sepang will get to buy special early bird tickets for the 2012 Malaysian MotoGP (21-23 Oct). In addition, for every MotoGP ticket purchased during the test session, fans are entitled to a 50% discount on 2012 Formula 1 Malaysian GP hillstand tickets from as low as RM30.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Th Lotus F1 Team, formerly called Lotus Renault GP, has announced that its 2012 challenger will be named E20, a departure from the R tagged chassis names of the Renault team. Officially, the E20 name is to commemorate the 20th F1 chassis designed at the team’s base in Enstone, the team’s HQ since 1992. To be driven by Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean for 2012, the E20 will be unveiled on 5 February on the team’s website.

“Our naming of the chassis to recognise Enstone’s importance to the team’s evolution highlights our recognition of the contribution of the facility and the personnel who work tirelessly every year to produce the very best car possible. We certainly hope that this is the case with the E20 and we are looking forward to revealing the car to the world and seeing it out on track for the first time,” said team boss Eric Boullier.

“There are a number of technical changes from last year and we have an exciting new driver line-up to extract the maximum from the E20 through the twenty Grands Prix of the 2012 season, including the 500th race for this team through its different incarnations. We hope that the E20 proves to be a performing Enstone design,” the Frenchman added.

Meanwhile, returning world champ Kimi Raikkonen is feeling positive after a two-day test at Valencia last week. It was quite a session for the Finn, as he returned to an F1 car’s cockpit for the first time in over two years.

“It went well today and overall the two days have been helped me a lot. Even though I was using a two year-old car and the Pirelli demo tyres, I learnt about working with the team and the engineers which means I can focus on the new car once we get to Jerez for the first official test. It was great to be driving an F1 car again and from that respect I feel very positive,” he said.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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This is not something we’ve heard of the first time, but Volkswagen is considering joining Formula 1, according to a report from Germany. Apparently, VW’s motor sport representative Wolfgang Durheimer told prominent business mag Wirtschaftswoche that he has come up with a preliminary plan for the future, which includes F1.

“Later this year I will put forward proposals to the executive group for (involvement in) not only the racing series that we do already,” he said. “It is true, in America, Asia and the Middle East, we are not sufficiently represented in motor sport,” added Durheimer.

Wirtschaftswoche cited sources in saying the first step for VW in the premier four-wheel racing series is to be an engine supplier. The VW badge is already seen in F1, as the brand is linked commercially with the Red Bull rookie team Toro Rosso.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Earlier this week, we told you about Toyota’s return to endurance racing when the Japanese company unveiled its TS030 Hybrid challenger. Here’s a video of the hybrid racer seeing some track action at Paul Ricard in France. In the two and a half minute clip, TS030 gets off the mark with an unmistakable EV soundtrack, before more familiar racing noises come into play.

As a recap, the TS030 Hybrid is the successor to the TS010 and TS020 cars which participated at Le Mans with podium success during the 1990s. The new 4.65 metre car sits on a brand new carbonfibre LMP1 chassis that has been developed and produced at Toyota Motorsport GmbH.

It is powered by a THS-R (Toyota Hybrid System – Racing) powertrain consisting of an all-new 3.4-litre normally-aspirated petrol V8 and hybrid system, the latter featuring a capacitor storage system developed by official team partner Nisshinbo.

The front motor system is produced by Aisin AW, while the rear motor system is developed by Denso, with regulations limiting hybrid systems to recovering a maximum of 500 kJ between braking zones, whilst restricting deployment to only two wheels.

Click here to read all about it, and view the pics.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Caterham F1 Team, the rebranded Team Lotus owned by Tony Fernandes, has unveiled its 2012 challenger. The CT01, as it is called, comes with a “platypus-style” nose, which is unusual, but expected to find its way to many other 2012 cars due to new regulations. The team retains its green and yellow theme from the Lotus Racing days.

From these enhanced images, the CT01 appears to be more advanced aerodynamically than its predecessors. Expert F1 eyes also picked out tight-sculpted, low rear bodywork and slim and short sidepods, the latter maximises the low drag effect in that area.

“The regulations have changed to limit the height of the nosebox to try to ensure that noses don’t get too high. Our challenge is that you always want to get the chassis as high as possible to allow clean air flow to the underside of the car, and what you see on the CT01 is our solution to that,” explains tech chief Mike Gascoyne.

“As we’re the first car out it is obviously stirring up a lot of debate, but because of the 2012 regulations I think you’ll probably be seeing this type of nose on most of the cars this year,” the Brit added.

Unlike before, this car isn’t burdened with lofty targets from the start. “I think we need to see the car on track first and get feedback from the first tests. Until we run the car, we only have numbers and simulation data to work with. But every team wants to move up the grid and we’re no different. We finished 10th in the last two years, which has been our target, but now I think it’s time we moved forward again. Let’s see what happens we get out on track,” said Gascoyne.

Moving forward from just being the “best of the new teams” is to be a solid midfield team, and that should be a realistic target for 2012. The CT01 will hit the track at Jerez next month for testing.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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This mean racing machine you see here is the Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3, which conforms to FIA GT3 regulations. It has been developed by NISMO and JR Motorsports (JRM), the official partner for this project, throughout last year.

The car’s credentials for GT3 racing worldwide has been proven via a series of extensive tests, included three competitive outings. They will be hoping that it follows the success of the GT1 Nissan GT-R that won the 2011 FIA GT1 World Championship.

The 3.8-litre V6 twin-turbo engine is based on the pre-2012 upgrade standard road car unit, developing 530 PS and 612 Nm of torque. Power is delivered via six-speed transaxle that drives the rear wheels, activated by a semi-automatic paddle-shift system. The stripped out, roll caged car weighs in at 1,300 kilos.

Designed with customers in mind, driveability has been an important factor. Therefore, as well as featuring a chassis that inspires confidence, suspension set-up and driver controls can easily be adjusted to suit a range of preferences, according to NISMO.

Sales and customer support for the 298,000 euro NISMO GT3 will be handled by NISMO for Japan, Asia, North America, South America, and Oceania, while JRM will cover Europe, Russia and the Middle East.

The road going R35 GT-R was recently upgraded for 2012. Click here to read our previous post and view the pics. There’s also a new Track Pack option for those who want to exercise their Godzilla on track, without stretching to the GT3.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Where one journey ends, another begins. Last week, the FIA World Endurance Championship lost Peugeot; this week, Toyota unveiled its entry, the TS030 Hybrid, which is set to join the fray in specific races.

The TS030 Hybrid is the successor to the TS010 and TS020 cars which participated at Le Mans with podium success during the 1990s, and the new 4.65 metre-long car sits on a brand new carbon-fibre LMP1 chassis that has been developed and produced at TMG.

The TS030 Hybrid is powered by THS-R (Toyota Hybrid System – Racing) powertrain consisting of an all-new V8 3.4 litre normally-aspirated petrol engine and hybrid system, the latter featuring a capacitor storage system developed by official team partner Nisshinbo.

Testing and evaluation is continuing on the merits on the front motor system – produced by Aisin AW – and a rear motor system developed by Denso, with regulations limiting hybrid systems to recovering a maximum of 500 kJ between braking zones whilst restricting deployment to only two wheels.

In announcing the arrival of the TS030 Hybrid, which made its first roll-out on track at Paul Ricard earlier in the month, the company also revealed its intention to race two cars in specific races. The Toyota Motorsport vehicle will make its race debut on May 5 in the Six Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, the second round of the FIA World Endurance Championship,and two TS030 Hybrids will be entered in the subsequent Le Mans 24 Hours on June 16-17.

A driver line-up of Alex Wurz, Nicolas Lapierre and Kazuki Nakajima has already been confirmed for one car, while discussions are still ongoing to finalise the driver line-up for the other.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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P-G Andersson has stretched Proton’s lead in the Super World Rally Championship (S-WRC) category in Monte Carlo. Combing the icy roads through snow, rain and fog on the third day of the rally, Andersson’s Satria Neo S2000 held on to 9th overall and extended his overnight lead from 23 seconds to 1 minute 40 seconds over the second-placed S-WRC car, Kevin Abbring’s Skoda Fabia S2000.

Abbring dropped two places to 12th overall, while Irishman Craig Breen remains third – and 15th overall – in the S-WRC class, a further five minutes behind in his Ford Fiesta S2000. Bryan Bouffier, in a Peugeot 207 S2000, continues to hold 4th place in the S-WRC class, but has moved up to 18th overall.

The third day saw three special stages being contested in the mountainous region of Southern France, which included tackling what is reputed to be one of the most difficult stages of the rally, the 24.13km Cimetiere de Vassieux – Col de Gaudissart route.

Reigning world champion Sebastien Loeb continued to dominate Monte Carlo, leading Dani Sordo’s MINI by more than two minutes. Sordo, in the meantime, has taken advantage of Petter Solberg’s misfortunes to build a gap of more than a minute – the third-placed Norwegian damaged the wheel of his Ford Fiesta and subsequently suffered a puncture.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Proton is currently in the lead in the 2012 FIA Super World Rally Championship (S-WRC) category on the second day of the Monte Carlo Rally, with P-G Andersson running in ninth spot overall.

Only 59 cars of the 89-strong entries remain at the end of the second day of the event, which has already claimed some 30 retirements. Among them was the S-WRC front runner, Frenchman Sebastien Ogier, who was running sixth overall and leading the class in his Skoda Fabia S2000 when his car was involved in a high-speed crash five kilometres from the finish, ending his race.

Ogier’s retirement saw Andersson inherit the lead in the S-WRC class, with Germany’s Kevin Abbring in the Skoda Fabia S2000 in second place and 10th overall, some 23 seconds behind. In third place – and 15th overall -is the Ford Fiesta S2000 of Craig Breen, while fourth and 20th overall is Bryan Bouffier in the Peugeot 207 S2000.

“The Monte Carlo Rally is all about pacing yourself to the finish. There is a very fine line between driving at your limit and being careful enough not to be caught out by the tricky and changing conditions of the terrain. We’ve had a good run so far, and with two more days of rallying remaining we are going to be extra cautious, as the changing conditions on the special stages make it extremely difficult and tricky,” Andersson said.

“Our goal here is to get the Satria Neo S2000 to a strong overall finish and, if all goes well, a podium finish in the S-WRC category on our debut,” he added.

Current world champion Sebastien Loeb extended his overall lead in Monte Carlo, claiming victory in five of the day’s six special stages. The Frenchman overcame the icy conditions to currently hold a one minute 37 second lead ahead of Spaniard Dani Sordo in the Mini, while Ford’s Petter Solberg is in third, a further three seconds adrift.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Racing, and winning, is good for the brand, but it takes up a lot of resources, which is not abundant in lean times. So many manufacturers have pulled the plug on racing recently, and this time it’s Peugeot announcing that it will end its endurance racing programme with immediate effect.

This means that Peugeot will cease to challenge Audi in sportscar racing, something the French manufacturer has been doing very well. Peugeot ran variants of its diesel 908 prototype in the famous Le Mans 24 Hours and the Le Mans series since 2007. The lion’s finest hour was the Le Mans victory in 2009. Last year, Peugeot won the inaugural Intercontinental Le Mans Cup title.

“This decision has been taken in the context of a difficult economic environment in Europe. Peugeot has chosen to concentrate resources on its sales performance in 2012,” Peugeot said in a statement yesterday.

Peugeot’s decision means that this year’s World Endurance Championship will be a lonely affair. Looking further ahead, Toyota has a new LMP1 programme and Porsche is set to join the sport.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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The mini battle for the remaining race seat at Williams F1 has concluded. The Grove based team has announced that Bruno Senna will partner Pastor Maldonado in the 2012 season. Those who lost out include last year’s man Rubens Barrichello, ex Force India man Adrian Sutil, dropped Toro Rosso youngster Jaime Alguersuari and Tonio Liuzzi.

The nephew of three-time world champ Ayrton made his F1 debut with Hispania back in 2010, but was left without a seat for 2011. He came into the picture after Lotus Renault GP dropped Nick Heidfeld in Belgium, managing eight races, but the team, now called Lotus, have Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean for 2012. The 28-year-old Brazilian will make his debut with Williams on 9 February at Jerez for the first test of the year.

“Bruno only started racing when he was 20 years old but quickly proved his talent in F3 and GP2. In a tightly fought 2008 GP2 season, Bruno finished second in the Championship with notable victories in Monaco and Silverstone, the latter in the wet. The circumstances of Bruno’s two seasons in F1 have not given him an ideal opportunity to deliver consistently so it was essential that we spent as much time with him as possible to understand and evaluate him as a driver,” said Frank Williams.

“We have done this both on track and in our simulator and he has proven quick, technically insightful and above all capable of learning and applying his learning quickly and consistently. Now we are looking forward to seeing that talent in our race car,” the founder added.

Driving aside, Senna is bringing sponsorship money to Williams as well, including from long-time supporter Embratel, but he insists that it wasn’t about money. “I am sure about that. They have been putting us through the paces with all sorts of testing, and they did not even talk about the sponsorship at the start – they wanted to assess me before anything else,” he told Autosport.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Proton Motorsports and renowned Japanese automotive parts manufacturer Carrosser Co Ltd (CUSCO) announced at the Tokyo Auto Salon that the Satria Neo will officially go on sale in Japan for motorsports use. CUSCO is the authorised Proton reseller in Japan and is responsible for the importation and distribution of the Neo in Japan.

This is the fruit of Proton Motorsports and CUSCO’s joint-development to produce Group N 1600cc Proton Satria Neo rally cars, which was first put on display at the 2011 Tokyo Auto Salon.

The cars competed in last year’s Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) and made a clean sweep of the 2WD categories, winning the APRC 2WD Manufacturer’s title, APRC 2WD driver’s title (Karamjit Singh) and APRC Junior driver’s title (Akira Bamba). Meanwhile, in the Japan Rally, Shuhei Muta also drove the Satria Neo to win the JN3 Class title.

Developed for the Japanese domestic market, the rally cars are sold by CUSCO to those competing in the Junior Rally Championships in Japan and Asia Pacific. Proton and Carosser have also jointly-developed Group N components for rally use on the Neo. A well known name in aftermarket performance parts, CUSCO is the only independent firm in Japan to compete in all categories of the All-Japan Championships: track racing, rallying, dirt trials and gymkhana.

“Besides the collaboration on vehicles, we are also looking to expand our business, not only in Malaysia, but globally in terms of jointly-developing performance parts and accessories together with Carroser,” said Datuk Abdul Razak Dawood, head of Proton Motorsports.

“The main objective of this joint-development is to further deepen the prosperous relationship with Proton Motorsports by presenting the Japanese market with a sporty automobile that has proven its capability as a solid motorsports base machine. Moreover, Carrosser will strive to dedicatedly support various teams and end users utilising Proton machines in any given genre of motorsports, especially the APRC,” said Carrosser President Tsutomu Nagase.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Today will see drivers Giandomenico Basso and Per Gunnar Andersson lead Proton’s return to the World Rally Championship (WRC) when the Malaysian manufacturer competes at the Monte Carlo Rally for the opening round of the 2012 FIA Super World Rally Championship (S-WRC).

Proton’s participation in the S-WRC comes 10 years after it first won the FIA Production Car World Rally Championship in 2002. Last year was a successful year for the Proton team, which was crowned champion in the Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC), clean sweeping every title on offer.

This is Proton’s second visit to the historic rally after making its debut last year on the Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC), which is run on a similar but shorter route. Yours truly was freezing himself with the team there last year, sharing the heartbreak of two retirements after so much promise. Better luck this time guys!

Anyway, the S-WRC is a companion series to the WRC and is driven on the same special stages. First introduced in 2010, it is limited to production-based cars homologated under the Super 2000 rules. The S-WRC also splits the Production World Rally Championship (P-WRC, previously open to both Super 2000 and Group N4 cars) into two separate competitions.

Proton will compete in five of the seven S-WRC rounds in 2012, and we hear that some privateers will also get behind the wheel of the Satria Neo S2000.

“We start the Monte Carlo Rally and the 2012 S-WRC season with what is a winning car, having clinched last year’s APRC title, and given the positive results we have achieved in testing throughout the winter break, we look forward to a strong and competitive season ahead,” said Datuk Abdul Razak Dawood, Head of Proton Motorsports.

The 2012 Monte Carlo Rally will be run over 18 special stages totaling 430 km of competitive distance in temperatures as low as five degrees. This year’s 80th edition marks the return of WRC to Monte Carlo after a three-year absence. Flag off is at the French city of Valence with two stages to be run twice before heading to the mountainous Ardeche, Haut Loire and Drôme regions, eventually finishing in glamorous Monaco.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Williams F1 Team may have just emerged from a disastrous season, but their race seat alongside Pastor Maldonado is the most coveted in the paddock. With no more vacant positions in the top teams, losing parties in the annual musical chairs are all vying to drive for the Grove based squad. They would have loved to have Kimi Raikkonen, but…

Maldonado’s place in the team is secure – with Williams still looking for a title sponsor to replace telecommunications firm AT&T, his Venezuelan oil money backing is invaluable. Big money is harder to come by these days, anyway.

The mini contest to be his teammate is led by Force India reject Adrian Sutil, who faces competition from last season’s Toro Rosso drivers Jaime Alguersuari and Seb Buemi, although the latter is out of the reckoning – he has just been revealed as the test and reserve driver for champions Red Bull Racing. Also in the mix is Bruno Senna, who drove for Lotus Renault GP last season, and HRT man Tonio Liuzzi.

Pestering the team to retain his services is veteran Rubens Barrichello, who is hoping to race in his 20th Formula 1 season. The Brazilian argues that his experience and steady hand is good for the team. “It would be clever of the team to keep the drivers and keep on going. I’m not pushing them, I’m just trying to show them that is the way to do it,” he said.

Reports claim that Rubens’ case may be stronger now that Williams legend and co-founder Patrick Head has departed from the F1 team. Head is said to have grown weary of Barrichello’s criticism of the team’s direction.

Who do you think deserves the seat best?

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Throughout the 2011 Formula 1 season, we’ve seen plenty of on track skirmishes. In some of the battles, it was clear who was in the wrong, while some were more debatable. The FIA has now issued new rules regarding defending positions, to put it clear for all.

The ruling body has decided that drivers defending their position will be allowed to move back onto the racing line, but must leave enough room between their car and the edge of the track. Only one move will be allowed.

“More than one change of direction to defend a position is not permitted. Any driver moving back towards the racing line, having earlier defended his position off-line, should leave at least one car width between his own car and the edge of the track on the approach to the corner,” reads the new regulation.

Another newly clarified rule states that lapped cars will be allowed to unlap themselves and then join the back of the field during safety car periods.

“If the clerk of the course considers it safe to do so, and the message “LAPPED CARS MAY NOW OVERTAKE” is shown on the timing monitors, any cars that have been lapped by the leader will be required to pass the cars on the lead lap and the safety car. This will only apply to cars that were lapped at the time they crossed the Line at the end of the lap during which they crossed the first Safety Car line for the second time after the safety car was deployed.

While this is going on, “the cars on the lead lap must always stay on the racing line unless deviating from it is unavoidable”.

The 20-race 2012 season starts in Australia on 18 March, before the teams head to Sepang the following week for the Malaysian GP. Bahrain is back in the calendar and F1 returns to America for the United States GP in November.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Perhaps it’s the current slump, but many forget that Williams is the third most successful team in Formula 1, behind only Ferrari and McLaren. The team had it’s worst ever year in 2011, finishing the season with just five points, and last of the established teams. It’s with this background that Williams director of engineering and legend Patrick Head is leaving the team after 34 years of service.

Head has stepped down from the outfit’s board of directors with immediate effect. He will from now focus on the company’s thriving hybrid business and will remain a board director of Williams Hybrid Power Limited.

“Patrick and I have been in partnership for 34 years. During that time, he has been the leader of the technical team that has won the majority of our race wins and championships. This is a remarkable legacy and one which will be treasured and definitely not forgotten.,” said founder and friend Frank Williams.

“Patrick is a very straightforward, hard working and truly gifted engineer who comfortably operates at a world class level. I will miss him very much, as I am sure his colleagues will, and he will always be welcome at Grove. Indeed, Patrick will still be seen around the factory as he continues to be involved in the development of our hybrid power activities,” he added.

In the glory days of the 1980s and ’90s, Head drove the team’s engineering department to win 113 grands prix, seven drivers world championships and nine constructors’ titles for Williams. As Frank said, a remarkable legacy.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Former WRC champion Petter Solberg will drive for Ford in next year’s World Rally Championship, after completing a test for the works team. The name is no stranger to rally fans, but if you don’t follow the sport, there’s a chance you might have seen ‘Solberg’ on the rear window of a Subaru rally car replica.

The Norwegian (they’re all Scandinavian) is 37-years old now, and he last won the WRC title in 2003 with Subaru. He hasn’t been out of the sport, though, running his own team for the past three seasons.

Solberg signed a single year deal with Ford, and he takes the place of Mikko Hirvonen, who’s leaving for Citroen. In the game of WRC musical chairs, Mikko is taking the place of Sebastien Ogier, who has gone to join the new Volkswagen WRC team.

Solberg will partner Jari-Matti Latvala, who is Ford’s lead driver. To be co-driven by Chris Patterson, the ex Subaru man will be driving a Ford (the Fiesta WRC) for the first time since Rally Finland 2000.

“The addition of Petter Solberg to the team brings one of the sport’s most experienced and flamboyant drivers back to the team where he started his top-level career. A drivers’ world title and 13 world rally victories are testament to his abilities and his vast experience will be a great asset to our line-up,” said Ford of Europe’s senior manager for motorsport, Gerard Quinn.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Proton, which dominated the 2011 FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) with a clean sweep of the eight titles on call, has confirmed its participation in the 2012 APRC championship. The champions will begin the defence of the crown at the International Rally of Whangarei – New Zealand that runs on March 30-April 1.

The news actually came via an International Rally of Queensland-related statement through the Proton Cars Australia route, which announced that the works squad will be returning to contest the IROQ in May as well as an overview of the team’s 2012 APRC plans.

The factory-backed Proton Motorsports team announced Scotsman Alister McRae and Swede Per-Gunnar (P-G) Andersson as its drivers in the APRC. McRae, who is about to tackle the 2012 Dakar endurance rally in South America in a car of his own manufacture, is of course the defending APRC champion as well as 1995 British Rally champion, while Andersson is the 2004 and 2007 Junior World Rally champion.

Proton Motorsports also made a simultaneous announcement that it will expand the six-round Asia Pacific programme into an entry in the 2012 World Rally Championship for S2000-category cars, starting with next month’s Monte Carlo Rally.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Welch Motorsports, which ran a Proton Persona built to Next Generation Touring Car series specifications in the second half of the 2011 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, is set to expand its presence in the championship to two NGTC-regulation Protons for the full 2012 race season.

The 2011 car began participation just after the mid-season break, debuting at Snetterton, driven by Daniel Welch, the son of team principal John Welch. It’s the second NGTC car to compete with the TOCA engine, which is built by Swindon Engines – the NGTC-spec “unbranded” turbo direct injection electronic throttle engine has a 2.0 litre displacement and makes over 300 horses, with the option for an overboost as well.

The current Proton Persona BTCC car has in the meantime gone on display in the UK at Surrey-based West End Garage’s showroom in Woking. As the supplying Proton dealer for Welch Motorsport, WEG will have the BTCC vehicle on show for a bit, and has sent us some photos of the car on display.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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Some karting-related news. The BHPetrol Racing Team had a pretty successful foray at the CIK-FIA Asia Pacific Championships at Kartodromo De Coloane in Macau two weekends back, with Tan Weiron – who made his debut in the KF1 category – finishing a commendable 8th out of the world-class 15-driver grid, and 13-year-old Daim Hishamuddin finishing third in the Formula 125 Junior Open race in the last round of the 2011 Asian Open Karting Championship (AKOC).

“It has been a good and bad weekend at my first ever KF1 experience. We didn’t have any testing and we came right into this race, and it is tough to be competing at the top of the field without any experience. Still, it has been an interesting weekend racing against very good drivers. I have lots more to learn in the years to come and I would like to compete in more KF1 races to gain more exposure,” Weiron said about his inaugural KF1 race experience.

Team principal Rodney Francis Magness of BHPetrol Racing Team said the outing was a good experience for the team, as it was its first time competing in KF1. “Everything went better than expected and Weiron’s best lap time was just two-tenths off the fastest guy on the track. Considering Weiron has zero experience in this category, it was a praiseworthy performance against top factory teams and their drivers, especially on the super soft Bridgestone tyres,” he said.

“As for Daim, he has indeed been having a lot of bad luck this year in the AKOC, but he still managed to produce some good results with a steady progression into the Junior category. It is a good sign that he’s learning and maturing as he races more and more,” Magness added. The team said its plans and driver lineup for the 2012 season are to be announced soon.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:51:27 +0000.

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