Racing
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Since the first 911 entered production in 1963, Porsche has been faithful to the iconic sports car’s rear-engine layout, Beetle jokes notwithstanding. But when it comes to performance, it appears Porsche has finally reached the limits of having so much mass so far out the back. How do we know this? Because the automaker just unveiled a 911 race car with the engine positioned in front of the rear axle, i.e. a mid-engine layout. The car is the 2017-spec 911 RSR, which Porsche unveiled Wednesday at the 2016 Los Angeles auto show. It replaces the current RSR introduced for the 2013 season...
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In spat with shareholders, Ron Dennis loses head role at McLaren
The rumors that emerged in October suggesting Ron Dennis was about to leave McLaren after 36 years have proven true. The 69-year-old, Chairman, CEO and founder of the McLaren Technology Group, is set to leave the company once his current contract expires at the end of 2016. He has been placed on...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Watch Sebastian Vettel hoon the LaFerrari Aperta
Four-time Formula One world champion Sebastian Vettel recently took time out from his busy schedule to test drive the Ferrari [NYSE:RACE] LaFerrari Aperta. He starts out on the road but eventually heads to the track where, naturally, he turns off the car’s electronic nannies and manages to...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2016 Formula One title fight down to final race with Hamilton win in Brazil
The winner of the 2016 Formula One World Championship will go down to the wire after Mercedes AMG’s Lewis Hamilton took victory on Sunday in the penultimate round, the Brazilian Grand Prix at Autódromo José Carlos Pace. The title fight is between Hamilton and his Mercedes AMG...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Formula E could be in Ferrari's future
The scream of a Formula One V-6 is about as quintessential as Ferrari [NYSE:RACE] noises go these days, but that may all change in the future if the Italian sports car builder moves into the growing Formula E field. Ferrari CEO Sergio Marchionne told reporters from Motorsport that the FIA's Formula...
Andrew Ganz -
2016 Formula One Brazilian Grand Prix preview
There are now just two races left in the 2016 Formula One World Championship and taking the penultimate spot is the Brazilian Grand Prix, which is on this weekend at Sao Paulo’s legendary Autódromo José Carlos Pace, commonly known as Interlagos. The championship is very much...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Mercedes-AMG’s GT3 will be lining up on the grid for the 2017 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, which kicks off next January with the Rolex 24 at Daytona. The cars will be entered in the GT Daytona (GTD) class, designed for production-based race cars built to GT3 specifications. Rivals include race cars based on the Aston Martin Vantage, Audi R8, BMW M6, Ferrari [NYSE:RACE] 488 GTB, Lamborghini Huracán and Porsche 911. Acura and Lexus are also set to join with their respective NSX and RC F GT3 cars. AMG won’t be competing with a factory team. Rather, it will partner with...
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Porsche wins 2016 World Endurance Championship
Porsche has done it again. The automaker from Stuttgart was named the winner of the Manufacturers’ title in the 2016 World Endurance Championship at the conclusion of the 6 Hours of Shanghai on Sunday. There’s still the 6 Hours of Bahrain on November 19 but Porsche enjoys an unbeatable...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Michael Schumacher showing 'encouraging signs' in recovery says former Ferrari technical head
Updates have been rare regarding Michael Schumacher's condition since his ski crash in 2013. Now an update brought to us by former Ferrari technical head Ross Brawn says the race car driver has shown some "encouraging signs" in his recovery. Previous updates on Schumacher's condition haven't been...
Joel Feder -
Honda reveals new NSX-GT Super GT racer
Acura’s new NSX is the basis of Honda’s 2017 entry for the Japanese touring car series known as Super GT, replacing the NSX-GT Concept that Honda has used since 2013. Honda in October conducted the initial shakedown of the new NSX-GT race car alongside the rival Nissan GT-R Nismo GT500...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
VW to quit WRC after 2016, focus on customer racing
Volkswagen and its Polo WRC has dominated the World Rally Championship since entering in 2013, but the automaker, which has just clinched its fourth-straight Drivers’ and Manufacturers’ titles, on Wednesday confirmed it is quitting the sport after the 2016 season. The announcement means...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Ford unveils Mustang GT4 customer race car at 2016 SEMA show
One of the most romantic dreams in sports car lore is the gentleman’s racer. This is a car that can be driven for all your day-to-day needs and then on the weekends taken to the track, fitted with a more aggressive set of tires and transformed into a competitive racing machine. The current...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
A critical component of a successful racing team is its ability to accumulate and understand many points of data. Motorsports engineers thrive on racing data, as it helps them figure out how to make the car and driver a faster symbiotic unit. In the still fairly virgin world of the Formula E Championship, there's not a ton engineers can do during the race as live data is limited. Between the races, however, there's a lot to digest and examine. Engineering Explained chatted with the team behind TE Connectivity and Formula E team Andretti Racing to get a deeper dive into the world of sensor...
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Virtually stock Ford F-150 Raptor to tackle 2016 Baja 1000
The Baja 1000 is one of the most punishing races in the world. It’s also the breeding ground for Ford Motor Company’s [NYSE:F] F-150 Raptor pickup trucks, with early mules often entered into the grueling off-road race during development. Thanks to this tough regime, the Raptor can...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Let's go for a ride along in a 600-hp Subaru Rallycross car
Jason from Engineering Explained sits in the passenger seat for this ride along. He's accompanied by David Higgins (yes, brother of the also crazy-talented Mark) and the pair are set to explore a lap of the Global Rallycross Los Angeles course. The car here is a Subaru racing machine that's capable...
Jeff Glucker -
Limited edition 2017 COPO Camaro ready to slay dragstrips
In 1969, Chevrolet's Central Office Performance Order program became the source of dealer-ordered, factory drag cars that would go on to post many victories at the dragstrip. On Monday, Chevrolet introduced the 2017 COPO Camaro show car in Nevada. The show car, which is chassis number 01, will be...
Kirk Bell -
Hamilton closes in on Rosberg with Mexican Grand Prix win
Mercedes AMG’s Lewis Hamilton took home the win on Sunday at the 2016 Formula One Mexican Grand Prix, with fellow Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg crossing the line second, 8.3 seconds behind his teammate. It means there are now just 19 points separating the two drivers. It also means that...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2016 Formula One Mexican Grand Prix preview
The 2016 Formula One World Championship is coming to a close—there are now just three races left on the calendar—but the title fight is still very much alive, albeit between the two Mercedes AMG drivers only. The first of the final three races is on this weekend in Mexico, only the...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Audi has confirmed earlier reports that it is about to end its participation in the World Endurance Championship. Audi will exit the sport at the end of the 2016 season, in the process ending 18 years of prototype racing. (The final race will be the 6 Hours of Bahrain on November 19.) During those years, Audi managed 13 wins in the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans, the highlight of the WEC. “After 18 years in prototype racing that were exceptionally successful for Audi, it’s obviously extremely hard to leave,” Audi motorsport boss Wolfgang Ullrich said in a statement...
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2017 Race of Champions is bound for Miami
The Race of Champions has been thrilling motorsports fans for decades. The first ROC event was in 1988 and it was held in Paris with a lineup of drivers that would make your eyes bulge from your head. The winner that year was Juha Kankkunen and he earned the very first Champion of Champions title...
Jeff Glucker -
2017 Michelin Challenge Design imagines Le Mans in 2030
Michelin loves pushing the envelope when it comes to future automotive design. The tire company often holds design challenge contests that give gifted folks a topic and let them loose. For the 2017 challenge, which is so futuristic that it's taking place in 2016, the contestants were asked to...
Jeff Glucker -
Lamborghini Super Trofeo Middle East series announced
Since its first season in Europe in 2009, the Lamborghini Super Trofeo has since expanded to Asia and North America—and from 2017 it will also run in the Middle East. Lamborghini on Monday announced that its one-make racing series will have a Middle Eastern competition, with races to be held...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2016 Formula One title fight alive with Hamilton win at USGP
Mercedes AMG’s Lewis Hamilton led from pole to claim victory on Sunday at the 2016 Formula One United States Grand Prix, held at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. It was his 50th career win but more importantly it helped reduce the points gap with teammate Nico Rosberg in the 2016...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2016 Formula One United States Grand Prix preview
Formula One has made several attempts in past decades to regain a successful foothold in the United States, but it seems to have finally struck gold with the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. And with F1 now under the control of American media giant Liberty Media, it’s likely there...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran