RE: Rod Millen to drive Pikes Peak Toyota
Thursday 9th May 2013
The announcement that Seb Loeb will take a break from his continued domination of his final WRC season to drive at Pikes Peak this year has sparked plenty of interest in America's foremost hillclimb challenge. And now that Peak veteran Monster Tajima has revealed that he’ll be going back to petrol power this year after an ill-fated dabble in the EV category, his main rival Rod Millen’s job has been made a little easier.
Millen's old rival Tajima will be petrol-powered61-year-old New Zealander Millen, whose son Rhys set the course record last year in the Time Attack category, will pilot an updated version of the Radical-based Toyota EV P002 in which Fumio Nutahara took the record for an electric vehicle in2012. Some of the updates are under the skin, such as the beefier electric motors and tweaked powertrain; others – we’re looking at the ruddy great spoiler Toyota Motorsport GmbH has planted on the nosecone here – are a tad more obvious.
Rod Millen to drive Pikes Peak Toyota
Caution: contains spoilers. Massive ones, front and rear.
Millen's old rival Tajima will be petrol-powered
Those new motors chuck out a total of 544hp and a not-inconsiderable 884lb ft torque, a rather healthy increase over the 476hp and 664lb ft of last year's car. And while those extra aerodynamics will drop top speed from 149mph to 143mph, Toyota’s confident of success, citing the fact that TMG’s ability to adjust the powertrain’s operating parameters from track to track allowed the EV P002 to improve on its 2011 Nurburgring lap record by over 25 seconds in just a year. Were the same sort of margin to be applied to the Pikes Peak course, it could potentially see Millen in the running not just to break Nutahara’s 10min15.38sec electric course record, but potentially to challenge his son’s 9min46.146sec overall record too. If it wasn’t close at the top before, then, it certainly is now!
Discussion
I would not be surprised to see the outright record eventually being held by an electric car - the reducing air density as you go up the climb dramatically reduces the available power to petrol/diesel cars, even with forced induction. Whereas the electric cars will be able to generate the same power/torque at the top as at the bottom.
Tajima's machine - is that a GT86-a-like? (it probably still won't have enough power for some
)
Tajima's machine - is that a GT86-a-like? (it probably still won't have enough power for some
)patmahe said:
Interesting to see the shift in design now that the course is mostly (maybe even all?) asphalt.
I love the Group B style cars that the asphalt/gravel combination required.LMP's are great and all, but there's something about silhouette racers that brings out the 8 year old in me
RenesisEvo said:
I would not be surprised to see the outright record eventually being held by an electric car - the reducing air density as you go up the climb dramatically reduces the available power to petrol/diesel cars, even with forced induction. Whereas the electric cars will be able to generate the same power/torque at the top as at the bottom.
Tajima's machine - is that a GT86-a-like? (it probably still won't have enough power for some)
How about a petrol engined car up to 5,000 feet and then booster rockets Tajima's machine - is that a GT86-a-like? (it probably still won't have enough power for some
)
marshall100 said:
One of the last few wonders of motorsport, is it available to watch on tv anywhere?
Was also wondering ... http://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/2013/04/pikes-p...
oh lord help me, but i love pikes peak - one of my bucket list items to see. the last bastion of no rules, no limits, just build the fastest car - yeah! somewhat surprising it survives in the US of A, home of the lawsuit, but let's be thankful it does survive.
and good luck to millen sr, millen jr, takshima-san, monsieur loeb and all the other hairy-chested drivers who will take on the challenge.
and good luck to millen sr, millen jr, takshima-san, monsieur loeb and all the other hairy-chested drivers who will take on the challenge.
Rod Millen is such a total legend. I used to have a photo of his PPIHC Celica on my wall when I was a kid. I couldn't believe it when they brought the Celica over to Goodwood for the first time. Absolute goosebumps when I first saw it out on the hill. Vividly recall the way it would bob and duck and weave under braking and acceleration - it was so accelerative that dynamically it looked like a radio controlled car. Crazy.
When they brought the Tacoma over for the first time Millen was kind enough to talk me through it. He was just such a charming guy and we had a fascinating chat about how yaw angles affected ground effect, etc. That kind of interaction is what turns respect into idolism. I was mortified when he stuffed it coming out of Molcomb a couple of years later, but at least the main man escaped uninjured.
This year's PPIHC is shaping up to be mega. Loeb seems astounded by the performance of the 208. I wonder if they'll get that little pairing to the FoS this year...
When they brought the Tacoma over for the first time Millen was kind enough to talk me through it. He was just such a charming guy and we had a fascinating chat about how yaw angles affected ground effect, etc. That kind of interaction is what turns respect into idolism. I was mortified when he stuffed it coming out of Molcomb a couple of years later, but at least the main man escaped uninjured.
This year's PPIHC is shaping up to be mega. Loeb seems astounded by the performance of the 208. I wonder if they'll get that little pairing to the FoS this year...
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