Blog

Kahne and Driving for the 2013 Nationwide Series Season
JR Motorsports will provide rides for Kasey Kahne and {Brad Sweet} for the upcoming Nationwide Series season this year. Great Clips will push its sponsorship from Turner Motorsports to JRM to support the Nationwide Series endeavor. Clips recently signed a support for three Sprint Cup races for Kahne’s No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet this year. Kahne ran 15 races for Turner Motorsports in the No. 38 Great Clips Chevrolet in 2012. His eminent finish was second at Bristol in March 2012. In the 191 NNS starts, the 32-year-old racer has managed to top seven victories.
In 2012, Kahne reigned fourth in the Sprint Cup standings in his first season with the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports team. His victories in many races meant Kahne became known as one of the most reliable racers in the NASCAR competition. Recently, Kahne was invited to deliver a good sportsmanship talk at the Victory Lane Players Club chalet in Miami, as part of a fund raising event. He mentioned his love for poker during his speech; saying that the sport helped him with his racing strategies. Poker, apparently, is a favorite of many well known athletes and racers, including the famous driver Stirling Moss.
Meanwhile, Kahne will be working out the season’s driving duties with Sweet, who will turn 27 on January 19. Sweet has been included in two top 10s in 18 races, including a career-high sixth-place finish at {California Speedway} last March. Sweet also raced a limited Truck schedule for Turner Motorsports.
January 10, 2013
Join the team Oly Express for Le Mans Classic 2012
Since its first edition in 2002, the Le Mans Classic has become the biggest and most exclusive vintage race in the world. Held on the big 24 Hours track, Le Mans Classic is a once in a lifetime experience. Stay with us at a 16th century Chateau and enjoy full access track-side privileges. Exclusive Team Packages are available for a limited time. Don’t miss out on this dream opportunity for racing fans – Spots are going fast, reserve yours today!

The Team Oly Express Luxury Package includes:
5 days / 4 nights accommodations at the Team Oly Express Chateau.
Team credentials for pit and paddock access as well as spectator areas
Full admission to the infield of the circuit including the car shows and Le Mans Heritage concours
Meet and greet Team Oly Express for a welcome drink at the Chateau on Thursday evening
French country breakfast served every morning at the Chateau
After race BBQ with Team Oly Express at the Chateau
Official Team Oly Express shirt
Friday, Saturdau and Sunday Trackside catering (optional)
Racetrack to Chateau and back shuttle service (optional)
Grandstand seating (optional)
Contact us to book your ultimate stay at Le Mans Classic 2012 now!
E-mail: oly.express@free.fr
Phone in the USA: +1 360-402-0171
Phone in France: +33 672-918-078

April 15, 2012
1997 Chrysler Viper GT2 racecar returns to Le Mans
It's back to the track of its glory days. During the 24 Hours of Le Mans of 1997, this very Chrysler Viper (yes, it was a Chrysler in Europe and a Dodge in the USA), was the only works car that finished the famous race. Driven by Justin Bell (GB), Pierre Yver (France) and John Morton (USA), chassis number C3 was defending the MOPAR colors in La Sarthe. It has now found a spot in the Le Mans 24 Hours museum. However, it will not rest still, as it is scheduled to run again on the big track during the coming Le Mans Classic!
April 3, 2012
TC Motorsports to power DeltaWing on Huile de Frites
TC Motorsports announces today that it will provide technical support for a private entry in the 24 Heures du Mans at the historic Circuit de la Sarthe near Le Mans, France June 16-17, 2012. Endurance racing is in TC Motorsports' blood, having successfully run long distance races across North America in GRAND-AM Continental Tire Challenge, NASA 25 Hours of Thunderhill, and countless other races ranging from 4-12 hours at the regional level. TC Motorsports celebrates 10 years in the high performance sports car business this year, and going to Le Mans is one of the best anniversary gifts possible. A decade of hard work has finally paid off! Going to Le Mans rides on the heels of a successful Formula 1 test program by TC Motorsports in 2011. Carlo Sparacio, Team Principal of TC Motorsports, explains their involvement at Le Mans: "We have been selected as an engine supplier for a privateer team from the United States who will campaign a DeltaWing Le Mans sportscar. The engine will be our successful F1 V8 engine derived from mating two 1.6L Mazda Miata engines together, along with some updates to meet ACO rules to run diesel fuel. We've made some small changes to run biodiesel at Le Mans. The biodiesel will be "huile de frites" sourced locally in France. The engine will make about 300 BHP. We have 4.5 hours on the engine in a test cell in Mooresville, NC and it has been extremely reliable so far. I think we have a winner." The team is currently in negotiations to bring on the American Heart Association as the primary sponsor of the car. Pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca (makers of CRESTOR) and Paula Deen Enterprises, LLC have already been secured as technical advisors for the fuel delivery and filtration system. The team is looking forward to the challenge of running the new engine at Le Mans in June. Team Principal Taryn Sparacio said, "We're looking forward to a great race. Needless to say, we'll have a lot of great food to eat during the race like French fries, fish and chips, doughnuts, lumpia, fried chicken, etc. And, if the engine doesn't make it to the checkered flag, we'll have lots of cooking oil to take home."
April 1, 2012
GreenGT H2 to mess with the big boys at Le Mans
The GreenGT H2 is the first prototype electric/hydrogen competition car. The GreenGT H2 project was selected in June 2011 by the French Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO), as an innovative project. GreenGT was invited to participate on the June 3rd Test Day of the 2012 Le Mans 24 Hours event. As the autonomy of lithium/ion batteries was found to be inapropriate for endurance racing, hydrogen very quickly became the prefered option. In 2011, a 100 kW fuel cell that can be mounted in both competition and road cars was developed under GreenGT’s guidance. This fuel cell system has been tested and is now operational. Since then, GreenGT has begun the construction of a new high power fuel cell system that provides a linear power of 340kW, or 460Hp. In parallel, a new lightweight twin-engine powertrain, providing up to 400kW or 540Hp, has been developed for this prototype. Control electronics and telemetry of the last generation will ensure the very best performance of the prototype on the track. To comply with FIA regulations and safety standards, a specific chassis has been designed. This was built for GreenGT by Gerard Welter & Vincent Soulignac, well known to Le Mans fans, in compliance with the new technical constraints required for GreenGT and its innovative concepts.
March 3, 2012
Audi R8 set to race all over the globe with ULTRA
The Lamborghini Gallardo sister car, namely the Audi R8, will continue its world of motorsports conquest in 2012. After winning the australian Bathurst 12 Hours, here is more to come. The first four examples of the new customer sport race car, the Audi R8 LMS ultra, have been delivered ready for the 2012 season. Two other vehicles were shipped to Japan at the same time. This marks the start of part two of a success story: Since 2009, Audi has produced more than forty examples of the first generation of the R8 LMS and has achieved 119 international victories with the vehicle. And now its successor is ready to go. Two race customers collected the first examples of the new Audi R8 LMS ultra at the Audi plant in Neckarsulm. They will be collected in Japan by Nova Engineering, one of quattro GmbH’s four international service partners, and will then be presented to local customers there. Audi Sport customer racing will have delivered 20 examples of the new model by the end of April. The new Audi R8 LMS ultra boasts numerous technical modifications in comparison to its predecessor. The new GT3 sports car is state of the art in everything from its passive safety to much improved aerodynamics, a more efficient cooling system, and modifications to its chassis. At a purchase price of 329,900 euros (plus VAT), Audi’s newest customer sport race car is an attractive offer. This GT3 race car bearing the four rings also boasts very long intervals between overhauls. For example, the powerful V10 engine, which is based on a mass-produced engine, regularly clocks up 20,000 kilometers or more of racing before needing its first overhaul.
March 3, 2012
BMW M1 Procar win at Dakar Historic Grand Prix
Stanislas de Sadeleer and Christian Traber participated in the first Edition of the « Grand-Prix de Dakar Historic » on de Saleleer’s BMW M1 Procar which took place on the « Baobabs Race Track », 60km south of Dakar. It was a first but great experience to drive this car on the African Continent. Except for a race in Kyalami in 1979, it is the first time ever a BMW M1 Procar raced on the African Continent.

It was a 4 hour Endurance Race with min. 4x drivers change. This is exceptionally long and hard for both the car and the drivers in such hot and dusty environment. The car was specially prepared with strong air filters in order to save the engine. Also the the drivers where told not to Rev. the engine above 8000 Rpm to keep it cool enough to finish the race and to save tires and fuel. At the finish line Stanislas and Christian took first place and won the race. They managed to bring the car home without any mechanical problems or unexpected pitstop over this long period.
December 17, 2011
Granny Andrea on Le Mans 24 Hours GTE AM podium
She was all smiles as she got out of her sizzling Doran Ford GT. And she had good reason to smile, because she became the first women to be on a Le Mans 24 Hours podium since 1931! Andrea Robertson, mother of one and grandmother of three, and her husband David, associated to driving instructor David Murry finished their first (and probably last) Le Mans 24 Hours with flying colors as 26th overall and 3rd in GTE AM class!
While David Murry managed so-so-OK lap times in the 4min15 range, car and team owners, as well as, gentleman and lady drivers Andrea and David Robertson, were more in the not-so-quick 4min30 plus lap times.
Even as many pro drivers from Audi and Oreca complained loudly about the irrationnal lines they drove (that is why such amateurs will probably not allowed to race at the Le Mans 24 Hours in the coming years), the numer 68 Ford GT did its laps and the flamboyant trio had a dream come true finish. Our favourite was clearly Andrea, who does not dye her hair, does not have silicon body enhancements, is a true speaker and just had the time of her life!
Way to go, Madame! Now here is one granny who sure has a great story to tell her grand kids and grand grand kids by the fireplace during the coming winters!
Pictures by Christophe Schwartz
June 16, 2011
MOPARSHOP Season opening Easter party
Mopar Fans! YOU are invited to our annual Season Opener Party! Family-friendly atmosphere, nice cars and good music included. We expect at least 50-70 old Mopars, as usual, on our season opener partys, but this is more a people meeting than a car meeting! Everyone insterested in Mopars is welcome! It doesn’t matter if you own one or not. Go grab some of your car buddys, come over and have a party in a nice atmosphere with people who share the same hobby. – Admission is free, as always! – Affordable food & drinks – MoparOnlyParking on our premises (plus enough parking space around them for all other makes) – Part sales open until 18:00 (if you want to pick up parts only, please contact us before so we can prepare them for you) – HEMI bar serving longdrinks to quench your thirst – caipi, cuba libre, jacky/coke – Want to stay overnight? Check out nearby hotels and B&B’s here. – starting 15:00, open end! – we are happy about every visitor Our adress: Moparshop – Otto-Hahn-Str. 10 – 59399 Olfen – Germany
April 11, 2011
Barnfind to be the 1970 Daytona 500 winning Hamilton Plymouth Superbird

Since we published the story about the #28 Dodge Charger barnfind, the history of the car appears to have popped out really big within the MOPAR community! It looks like it is the long lost Pete Hamilton Superbird. There is a very interesting discussion about it on the Randy Ayers NASCAR modelling board. As you might guess, the modellers are much more knowledgeable about history and details of these racecars as any crew chief from back in the day may be able to recall. So here is the discussion!
And here are a few very interesting quotes!
Rocket Resto on the origin of the car :
" The article on the car is in Mopar Muscle which I just got today. Please correct me if I'm wrong here but this is the history of the car as told by the magazine (which should always be taken with a grain or 1,000,000 grains of salt):
Raced as Hamilton's Superbird
Rebodied into a 70 Road Runner (non-superbird) and brought out to the Jan 71 Riverside race
Owned by Doc Faustina on the West Coast, Bought from Petty at Riverside after Jan 71 race
Painted car dark blue #5 and raced it three times in 71 probably in Sportsman
Reskinned as a 71 Charger, was silver and white #5, raced until 76
Sold and repainted gold and brown as #28, raced at small tracks
Mystery Years………..
Bought by Chuck Shafer from barn in Iowa (pictures from link above)
Bought by Todd Werner from estate of Chuck Shafer
Restored by Petty Garage "
Aero426 on what matches and what seems a mistery :
" The original car had straight passenger door bars. The 2010 under constructon photo in the magazine shows that at some point, the car has apparently been updated with bars extending into the door cavity. When the donor car was stripped down, one would think there would be still be some witness marks on the cage where the old bars were. I have played with the color to enhance the bars. You can clearly see they do not extend into the door cavity. This photo was taken during the Daytona 125.
I am not suggesting it isn't the car. I just don't understand why things appear the way they do. "
" It would seem that they unknowingly removed an original design feature when rebuilding the front clip. Follow your red hash marks three forward of the shock tower. Those bars had the mount for the original bolt-in tubular hoop that runs across the car. The hoop was present on the donor, but moved forward for the small block. Yet the mount was still there. Why they would choose to remove an original feature showing on ALL the existing underhood shots or Pete's car is a mystery to me. The replacement bars are welded in too high. "
Bruce Kepley on the story behind the restoration:
" A bit about the article regarding the Pete Hamilton Superbird…
The article in Mopar Muscle is very in depth and the provenance of this car is pretty much without question…
Todd Werner (whom I've met several times, you've seen him on TV with his Sox and Martin original race car collection) had a friend who passed away, a genuine car guy, who had this stored for years thinking that it was one of Petty's original '70 Plymouth short track cars…he had convinced Todd so that upon his passing his estate sold the car to Todd…
Not wanting to spend money on a restoration without clarification Todd trailers the car down to Petty's shops in Randleman where they now do cars for the public…he shows the car to Richard who says that he believes it's one of his cars but he wants Maurice and Richie to look at the car….
Maurice and Richie look at the car for one afternoon and ask Todd if he can stay until the next day, which of course he does…Keep in mind that Todd is just looking for authentication that it's only a Petty car…
Maurice and Richie come back the next day with photos, pour over the car for another few hours and then call Todd into a meeting where it's revealed that it's the lost Hamilton Superbird…it has been reskined several times and the proof came out when the car was restored with Petty blue paint in the cracks and damaged areas matching damage that was later sustained on the car as a short track car…
Todd contracts Petty Enterprises to restore the car but leave some of the interior wrinkled sheet metal intact for historical reasons…I've found some rare cars in my past (71 hemi charger 4 speed export car) and, believe me, if you're a Mopar man you AUTHENTICATE everything…
So, there you are…read the article, it's amazing and today the car is a beautiful restoration of an Historic Nascar find… "
All I can say after reading this discussion on Randy Ayers is that this is better than any story written in Hollywood!
November 12, 2010