Spencer Penrose graduated last in his class from
Harvard in 1886.
That did not deter him from becoming an adventurer and developer of many of Colorado’s landmarks, including the Broadmoor Hotel and the Pikes Peak Highway.
That did not deter him from becoming an adventurer and developer of many of Colorado’s landmarks, including the Broadmoor Hotel and the Pikes Peak Highway.
In 1916, after widening the narrow carriage road
to the 14,110-foot summit, Penrose established a competitive hill climb to
promote the route to tourists. “The Race to the Clouds” was first run with open
wheel class vehicles.
The 1916 winning time was 20-minutes, 55.6-seconds.
The 1916 winning time was 20-minutes, 55.6-seconds.
The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb now includes
nearly every class of competitive automobile. The fastest time on the 7-mile
course was established in June 2013 by Sebastien Loeb, at 8-minutes,
13.8-seconds, driving a 875-hp mid-engined Peugot 208 T16.
For the 93rd running of the race on Sunday (6/28) Honda Performance Development and Honda Research and Development associates fielded 13 vehicles in 11 different classes. Former Indy Lights Champion Alex Lloyd, and Japanese Super GT legend Tetsuya Tamano were tapped to pilot the Honda B-Fit spec and an all-electric vehicle on a CR-Z chassis, respectively.
Honda has had winning cars in at least one class-victory in each of the past 13-years.
But not this year.
The 2015 Penrose Cup winner is Rhys Millen with a run time of 9-minutes, 32.4-seconds…the first win by an electric vehicle. Millen drove a 1-megawatt eO PPOE developed in Latvia that produced 1,367-hp.
Batteries not included.
No, wait—they were.
The 2015 Penrose Cup winner is Rhys Millen with a run time of 9-minutes, 32.4-seconds…the first win by an electric vehicle. Millen drove a 1-megawatt eO PPOE developed in Latvia that produced 1,367-hp.
Batteries not included.
No, wait—they were.
Beginning next month, you can order a
factory-prepped Dodge Challenger specifically intended for drag racing. The next-generation
Mopar Dodge Challenger Drag Pak will offer the option of a supercharged
354-cubic-inch Gen III HEMI engine or
a naturally aspirated 426-cubic-inch Gen III HEMI engine.
Where might one drive such a vehicle, you ask?
FCA says the dream machine is “designed for
passionate Sportsman racers who compete in nationally sanctioned drag
racing series, such as the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA).”
You can order your Mopar Dodge
Challenger Drag Pak “through authorized Dodge dealerships” starting July
23. The MSRP
for the naturally aspirated 426 version of the Drag
Pak is a “cubic inch appropriate” $99,426, with the 354 supercharged race car
available for $109,354 MSRP. Apparently, size does matter.
Order two.
Order two.
Imagine dropping a serious performance engine
inside your favorite SUV, and than tweaking the package with some major attitude.
Nissan did just that in 2011 with its JUKE-R crossover supercar. The 2015 JUKE-R
2.0 concept made its global dynamic debut at Goodwood Festival of Speed in the
UK on Thursday, and it was pretty impressive.
It looks as good as it tastes.
The front and rear bumpers are made from 100% carbon fiber, and the nose has been retooled with larger vent intakes to cool the 600-hp NISMO engine. The hood has bare carbon cooling ducts that have been repositioned for better efficiency.
The rear exhaust cowlings have been reshaped, and are made of high-temperature carbon fiber. LED lights are used extensively, front and rear and in between, including turn signal repeaters in the side rear view mirrors. The JUKE-R 2.0 rolls on the new GT-R wheels, and comes in your choice of colors, so long as you like Matte Black.
The front and rear bumpers are made from 100% carbon fiber, and the nose has been retooled with larger vent intakes to cool the 600-hp NISMO engine. The hood has bare carbon cooling ducts that have been repositioned for better efficiency.
The rear exhaust cowlings have been reshaped, and are made of high-temperature carbon fiber. LED lights are used extensively, front and rear and in between, including turn signal repeaters in the side rear view mirrors. The JUKE-R 2.0 rolls on the new GT-R wheels, and comes in your choice of colors, so long as you like Matte Black.
When the Mini Cooper hardtop first came on the scene in 2002, I was enthralled. I had to drive one. And it performed as expected, with snappy response from superior geometry with all four tires place essentially at the corners of the chassis. I thought, ‘there’s no way to improve on this.’
I
was wrong, because the Mini Clubman appeared with just a little more cargo
space tucked under its elongated top. Funny thing about that process…the Mini became
less and less “mini” with each iteration. And the inevitable has occurred—the first
Mini mini-van.
The new and improved 2016 MINI Clubman is 10.9 inches
longer and 2.9 inches wider than its “little” brother, with a wheelbase that is
4 inches larger. The not-so-mini 17.5 cu ft luggage compartment can be extended
to as much as 47.9 cu ft by folding down the rear backrest.
Fortunately, Mini has beefed up its power plants
to handle the bigger, better Clubman. In addition to the standard 134 bhp
3-cylinder engine, the new MINI Cooper S Clubman also offers a 4-cylinder,
189hp engine. Mini also offers an 8-speed Steptronic transmission for the Mini
Cooper S Clubman, but you’d miss all the fun in the standard 6-speed manual
tranny.
One thing is clear: This is not your mama’s mini van.
One thing is clear: This is not your mama’s mini van.
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