Friday 30th March 2012

Pikes Peak: Monster Tajima goes electric

Hill climb legend to run zero emissions for the first time in Colorado

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Pikes Peak legend (and senior Suzuki exec) Nobuhiro 'Monster' Tajima is to scale the famous Pikes Peak hill climb this year using an electric vehicle.

Monster's switch to battery power now means that the fashion for electric propulsion has reached even the most extravagant, petrolheaded reaches of the motorsport universe.

But Tajima probably needs a bit of a new challenge, as he has won the Colorado race every year since 2006, last year becoming the first person to break the 10-minute barrier.

The zero-emissions prototype will be developed by Team APEV (that's the Association for the Promotion of Electric Vehicles, if you were wondering) and Tajima's Monster Sports outfit is getting involved to help victims of the 2011 Japan earthquake disaster as well as promoting environmental education projects for children and "projects to promote active participation from the senior citizens of Japan."

Which is thoroughly commendable, but we'll probably be saving more of our cheers for the two Brit RS200 entries of Mark Rennison and Liam Doran.

From the looks of this sketch the APEV team had better get a hurry on, too - the 2012 running of Pikes Peak International Hill Climb takes place on July 8...

[cazzer]

Someone grew up watching too much Speed Racer.

Still I spose it's the perfect application of electric power.
Big shove of torque, don't worry about getting home after.

[cazzer]

PaulMoor said:

American hillbillys? "petrolheads" in the UK said the same... "Four wheel drive. Thats for farmers". The same people that are saying electric has no place. The same people who said drev has no place at Le Mans (And still do...) Racing is not about using the "right" fuel, its about being the fastest, whatever that takes and if anyone knows how to go fast on the peak...

bks, racing is about entertaining the public.
It has nothing to do with technological advancement or "being fastest" or any of that other crap.
If there were no spectators there would be no tracks to race on.

A large section of the racegoing public don't want diesel at le-mans or electric cars at pikes peak, not because they're luddites, but it isn't entertaining.
And entertainment is what its all about.

[cazzer]

hairykrishna said:

cazzer said:

A large section of the racegoing public don't want diesel at le-mans or electric cars at pikes peak, not because they're luddites, but it isn't entertaining.

What utter nonsense. 14 second gap between 1st and 2nd at Le Mans last year after a solid 24 hours of close racing. Both diesels. You think that's not entertaining? Why?

Because the result was a foregone conclusion.
It would be a diesel. Not sure which one. But one of em.

They're dull, sound bloody awful, and skew the results.
How close was the nearest petrol engine?

[cazzer]

hairykrishna said:

cazzer said:

Because the result was a foregone conclusion.
It would be a diesel. Not sure which one. But one of em.

They're dull, sound bloody awful, and skew the results.
How close was the nearest petrol engine?

That makes no sense. If there were no diesels it'd be a petrol. Not sure which one. But one of them.

Current regulations seem to favour diesel although it could just be that the 2 big players really want to market their diesel road cars. So what? To me the fact that it was the closest Le Mans for 40 odd years and genuinely a bloody good race was a great deal more important than what the winning car was burning.

You keep saying they're dull. Why are they dull? Is it anything other than the noise? I personally don't even mind the noise. The swooshy stealth bomber effect is just another one to add to the crazy mix on the grid.

It wasn't a race though was it.
It was going to be one of the diesels...end of.
So in that case why not just have a 6 car grid. Let the rest of us have the lemans we want without diesels spoiling it(for the people that don't want them there).
Go and have a 6 car diesel le-mans see how many people turn up.

[cazzer]

hairykrishna said:

cazzer said:

It wasn't a race though was it.
It was going to be one of the diesels...end of.
So in that case why not just have a 6 car grid. Let the rest of us have the lemans we want without diesels spoiling it(for the people that don't want them there).
Go and have a 6 car diesel le-mans see how many people turn up.

It was going to be Audi or Peugeot. They have massive amounts of cash to throw at it and that's what you need to win Le Mans outright these days. If there were no diesels it'd still effectively be a 6 car race but they'd be using petrols. It was the best Le Mans for years. I don't understand how diesels 'spoil it'. What, precisely, is wrong with them? Do you have any objection other than the noise? Please don't just say 'they're dull' again without explaining why they're dull.

Ok. I don't like diesel engined cars full stop.
I really dislike diesel engined racing cars.
I hate how they sound, even the smell of the exhaust. WRT le-mans I dislike the fact is isn't a level playing field.
I dislike that fact that two manufacturers have really skewed the ract/results over the last few years by throwing untold millions at the development of the racing diesels just to push their rep barges.

I used to go to le-mans every year. I haven't been since the diesels started.
I'll stick to the classic from now on.
And I'm not alone.

I'm sure a number of people have stopped going because of it. I bet no-one has started going because of it.

[cazzer]

True, but the diesel is just a cynical marketing ploy. Nothing to do with "racing"

[cazzer]

KDIcarmad said:

cazzer said:

hairykrishna said:

cazzer said:

A large section of the racegoing public don't want diesel at le-mans or electric cars at pikes peak, not because they're luddites, but it isn't entertaining.

What utter nonsense. 14 second gap between 1st and 2nd at Le Mans last year after a solid 24 hours of close racing. Both diesels. You think that's not entertaining? Why?

Because the result was a foregone conclusion.
It would be a diesel. Not sure which one. But one of em.

They're dull, sound bloody awful, and skew the results.
How close was the nearest petrol engine?

No race is ever a foregone conclusion, Le Mans more so as it 24 hours. Looking at F1 we all the winner will come from one of 4 teams 9 times out of 10. Still millions watch it.

As to petrol cars being better than diesel, that's a personal matter. The reg currently suit diesel cars, so build a diesel or improve the range of the petrol to equall there fuel range.

I thought racing was about being the "fastest" not being the most economical.

[cazzer]

No, because the wrong fuel, wrong sound, wrong smell ruins the whole thing.

Like I said, I'll stick the to classic and leave you to yer oil burner racing.