Motorsports

Kia unveiled concept versions of the Grand Carnival and Soul at this week's SEMA show.Most SEMA show cars are modified to go faster, but Kia has taken a marginally different approach with its 2014 concepts. Hyundai's efforts include a Genesis coupe that wouldn't look out of place in the Bathurst 12 Hour race, but Kia has unveiled a pub on wheels, an ice cream truck and a mobile garage based on the practical Grand Carnival and Soul models.Ballast Point SedonaThis Sedona has been transformed from a people carrier to a beer carrier. In our corner of the world, the Sedona is better known as the Grand Carnival, the third-generation of which is due to hit our shores next year.Featuring a redesigned, reinforced, heavy duty roof, plenty of mahogany and storage for up to four kegs of delicious craft beer, the Ballast Point Sedona (Grand Carnival) would be the perfect vehicle to have on the hill at Sydney Motorsport Park while you lap up a sunny afternoon of racing action.The only downside with the mobile pub is that the designated driver is the only one getting home, naturally all the passenger seats have been removed to maximise beer storage space.Smitten Ice Cream Soul EVNeed something to compliment the beer? How about nitrogen-chilled ice cream served from the back of an electric car?While nitrous-oxide is used to fuel high-performance cars, removing the oxygen from the equation means you can use nitrogen to fuel tasty treats.Much like the Ballast Point pub on wheels, the rear section of the all electric Soul has been gutted to make room for the ice cream equipment and storage space.It also has a custom trailer, which is joined to the tailgate of the Soul to make a bench from which the -196 degrees Celsius ice cream can be served.The Smitten Soul also has the traditional waffle-cone speakers on the roof so you can play Greensleeves, or something a bit more contemporary.Ultimate Karting SedonaIf all this sitting around watching racing and indulging in beer and ice cream has you feeling the need for speed, the Ultimate Karting Sedona concept car is what you need.Simply hitch the go-kart trailer, throw another go-kart on the roof, grab a mate and head off to the nearest track.The two of you will have all you need for a day of racing, with the back of the Sedona (Grand Carnival) transformed into a garage complete with tools, race gear and checkerboard rubber floor.You don't even need to bring a marquee, as the custom roof racks contain an awning to keep the sun and rain away while you prepare your machinery for the on-track battle.High-Performance K900The K900 (or Quoris as it's known in some parts) is Kia's equivalent of the Hyundai Genesis, and a car that isn't sold here. It's a bit of a shame, because this high-performance concept - developed by Kia racing drivers Mark Wilkins and Nic Jönsson - looks a bit swish.The 5.0-litre V8 engine has had twin turbochargers added underneath the boot (yup, underneath the boot. It helps reduce heat, they say) to bump the power output from 313kW to 485.The lowered sports suspension, 21-inch gloss black alloys and bright red brake callipers give the K900 a sleek, sporty look.Inside there are tan leather seats with black suede accents and 11-inch seatback monitors for the rear passengers that show footage from iRacing.com Motorsport Simulations. Which is grand if videos of motor racing video games are your thing.In the boot, along with a viewing porthole so you can see the turbochargers, are custom compartments to store your racing gear, presumably if you've run out of space in the Ultimate Karting Sedona.Pirelli World Challenge GTS OptimaSo why the focus on motorsport? Well, Kia are celebrating winning the manufacturer championship for the GTS class of the Pirelli World Challenge in the US this year.And joining the concept cars on display at the SEMA show is the No.30 GTS Optima that was driven by Mark Wilkins throughout the season, finishing third in the drivers' standings.Being a production series, the GTS Optima features the same 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine from the road-going Optimas available in the US. In Australia, the Optima only comes with the 148kW/250Nm naturally aspirated 2.4-litre four-cylinder engine.However the front-wheel drive Optima has been tuned so it produces 274kW, which is 126kW more than the Australian road-going models.The six-speed sequential transmission helps the 1300kg GTS Optima hit a top speed of 260km/h.

New fourth-gen Mazda MX-5 to spawn global one-make racing series in 2016.Mazda has announced that the upcoming fourth-generation MX-5 will form the basis of a new global race series starting in North America, Europe and Asia in 2016.The track-prepped MX-5 racer was previewed at this week’s SEMA show in the US, with the showcar wearing a discreet aero bodykit, single outlet exhaust and larger wheels than the roadgoing example revealed in September.The interior has also been stripped out to make room for a race-spec rollcage, steering wheel and instruments, along with a racing seat and harness for the driver. What is shown may not be the final form that takes to the grid in 2016. Further development will occur over the coming months, with the final specifications confirmed when the car goes on sale in 2015.Mazda has confirmed that the Global MX-5 Cup racers will use the 2.0-litre Skyactiv-G petrol engine destined for the road car in some markets.Each regional series of the Global MX-5 Cup will run identical production-based machinery, and the season will culminate in with a Global Shootout grand final at the end of the year held at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in the US.The prize for winning the Shootout will be a one-day test in Mazda's Skyactiv-D LMP2 prototype racer, which competed this year in the Tudor United SportsCar Championship in the US.Single-make global series like this are not new, with Porsche's Carrera Cup running in Australia for a decade and in Germany since 1986. However this is Mazda’s first tilt at a factory-backed single-make series.Previously, their involvement has been limited to the US-based MX-5 Cup and Spec Miata series. Mazda has also hoted the MX-5 Challenge since 2011, which pits motoring journalists from Australia and Europe against each other in conditions not typical of the topless sports car.There’s no mention of an Australian leg of the Global MX-5 Cup at this stage, but exact locations of circuits are yet to be confirmed.

Ken Block swaps Fiesta for Mustang with his latest gymkhana weapon.Size doesn't matter, they say. Tell that to Ken Block.The US stunt/racing driver/entrepreneur has upgraded his Ford Fiesta with its relatively puny 1.8-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine to a 1965 Ford Mustang sporting a 6.7-litre V8.While it might take its design cues from the iconic original Mustang that celebrates its 50th birthday this year, the only original components you'll find on Block's version are the head and tail lights, as well as the pony badge on the front. The rest - much like the recent Project Sandman - is 100 per cent modern race car.This is hands-down the best Gymkhana car I’ve had yetThe naturally-aspirated V8 engine produces 630kW and 975Nm which is put to the road by a bespoke 6-speed sequential transmission that distributes the power to all four wheels. Ford only ever put the power to the back two.The suspension is custom-built, and the 18" wheels are shod with Pirelli tyres in a compound made specifically for Block. Not even a Formula One team gets that sort of attention from the Italian rubber company.Motorsport connections don't stop there as Block says the design of the car has also been influenced by current generation WRC and DTM cars, bringing together the classic Mustang silhouette with all the performance benefits of modern aerodynamics and carbon fibre construction."The attention to detail with the fabrication and bodywork blows my mind," Block said."This is hands-down the best Gymkhana car I’ve had yet."The car is currently on display at the SEMA motor show in Las Vegas, but those unable to get there in person will see it in Block's upcoming ‘Gymkhana SEVEN’ video.Block's previous gymkhana efforts have seen him display immense car control and driving skill in a variety of different locations, including usually busy streets of downtown San Francisco.More recently, Block has been getting around the ski slopes of Canada in a Ford F-150 RaptorTRAX. It can also do burnouts, despite its lack of wheels.

Triple Eight takes us behind the scenes for the build of their V8 Supercar Holden Sandman tribute.Part trip down memory lane, part engineering masterpiece, all thoroughbred V8 Supercar. Red Bull Racing Australia's (RBR) Project Sandman certainly turned heads when it was unveiled at Gold Cost 600 V8 Supercar round in October.Now RBR take us into the workshop and give us a peek at the design and build process that brought the Sandman to life.

Holden talent, Red Bull cash and Triple Eight race engineering are behind V8 Supercar Sandman. There is still life in the Holden panel van. Nearly 40 years after the original, and despite a death sentence hanging over the Commodore, the Holden hero has been reborn and reimagined as a V8 Supercar Sandman.It picks up the roof and back door from the Commodore Sportwagon, side guards from the ute, a bunch of hand-formed side panels and a unique quarter window copied from the original panel van.There is no chance of it becoming a production model but it has just begun an Australia-wide tour, making special appearances at V8 Supercar races including the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide and the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne.The new-age Sandman is the result of Holden talent, Red Bull cash and Triple Eight race engineering.It can hit 100km/h in less than three seconds and would easily top 270km/h at a track like BathurstBut, ironically, the inspiration came from Bathurst winning team boss Roland Dane, an Irishman whose shaggin' wagon dream car was turned into a reality by 21-year-old Holden designer Tom Grech."When I was a nipper, I used to get a copy of Wheels magazine every month from my godfather in Adelaide. Then I saw the original Mad Max movie and thought the Sandman was pretty cool," Dane says."I wanted something different for the race team to use for our passenger ride days. I was thinking we could do a station wagon but then I realised we could do a panel van."When I spoke to Holden about it, they were keen to get on-board. And here we are." It took a lot of hard work for a good idea to become a 240km/h reality, much of it by Grech. He was hand-picked for the job by another of Holden's prodigies, Peter Hughes - who designs the Commodore warpaint each V8 Supercar season."I'm a creative designer for interior and exterior in the advanced studio at Fishermans Bend," Grech says."I thought door handles and chromed trim would be my job. But they've thrown me in at the deep end and I'm involved in whole car designs for GM's global brands, Chevrolet, Cadillac."Then this came along."I'm stoked. It's a pretty awesome thing, just because it's my first car. It came together so quickly, in just three months. All the other projects in the studio take so long because we're looking out to cars in 2025." The heart of the Sandman is a retired V8 Supercar racer, which was parked last year after failing to win favour with five-time champion (soon to be six) Jamie Whincup.It's been tweaked for more speed and spectacle, picking up a bigger engine, F1-style paddle gearshift and grippier Michelin tyres, with the bodywork laid over the top.Grech did the original sketches and then it was down to the fabricators at Red Bull Racing in Brisbane to create the bodywork."That's not just fibreglass. It's all steel, with carbon fibre panels inside. It's not a bodgie job, it's properly built," says Dane. "It took hundreds of hours. We used as many original Holden panels as we could." The car's silver paintjob reflects Red Bull's involvement. There is also a pair of carbon fibre surfboards on the roof."The idea was to carry over a lot of existing parts," Grech says. "Proportionally speaking, it's more radical because it's lower, shorter and wider."He did much of the early work, from research in history books to hand sketches and CAD drafts, as an after-hours project, but it was quickly adopted as an official Holden concept."It's great that this has happened. Holden has a big commitment and big ideas for the future, not just turning into a national sales company. It shows they are also committed to motorsport projects," says Grech."I'd love to see more exciting one-off things like this." Mechanically, the car is pure V8 Supercar, from its 475kW Chevrolet V8 engine to the six-speed sequential manual gearbox to old-school rear-wheel drive. It can hit 100km/h in less than three seconds and would easily top 270km/h at a track like Bathurst.The Sandman fired up for the first time last week and was unveiled alongside an original Sandman with racy red bodywork on the Gold Coast.Not surprisingly, Craig Lowndes drove the old-timer while Jamie Whincup got the new car.Over the weekend of the Gold Coast 600 the car completed a series of demonstration runs and drew huge crowds whenever it emerged from its pit garage. It still needs some work, and will grow a subtle rear spoiler to try to tame some unruliness over 200km/h, before being paraded across the country.There is zero chance of a production model, but Dane is happy and Holden is also keen to show the car."I think it's really cool. It's turned out really well, Dane says. 'Everyone who sees it seems to like it."ALL ABOARDLots of people have a Sandman story and this is mine.It's definitely the newest, since it was only written on Sunday morning on the streets of Surfers in the newest Sandman of them all. And it's all Roland Dane's fault.The boss of the Red Bull Racing team is the man who decided to transform a superannuated V8 Supercar into a born-again Holden panel van, then asked young gun Andrew Thompson to give up his weekend for some chauffeur work, and finally blustered me into taking a ride."Come on. What are you, a coward?" he says.That's exactly how I feel as Thommo idles down to the end of the pitlane. "Ah, don't worry. It's pretty good. Mostly...," he tells me as we wait for the green light.Mostly what? I know it will crank up to 240km/h but I wonder how the Sandman bodywork will work over the top of a genuine race car just like those handled by Jamie Whincup and Craig Lowdnes.I don't have long to wait. He drops the clutch, the rear wheels spin madly and dissolve into tyre smoke, and then we're in fourth gear and heading for the hairpin.It takes most of the first lap for my brain to catch up with my eyeballs. The scenery is firing at me, the concrete canyons create a giant V8 thunder chamber, and I can see skid marks and gouges where cars have smacked walls.I realise I've just ridden in the world's fastest SandmanMy ride is actually better than a V8 Supercar, since the Sandman has a Formula One-style paddle gearchange and grippy Michelin tyres, but it still gets nasty at times.Especially when Thompson locks the back wheels at 200km/h into the first turn and the car jumps sideways.He gathers it up before I realise we're in trouble, then pushes hard for the rest of the lap. Now I can see and feel what the racers feel, from the heat in the cabin to the wheelspin out of the slow corners and the effort required to keep the car under control and pointing down the road.Then it's over. We roll back into the pits and a huge crowd gawks at Holden's new hero car."Well, what did you think?" Thompson grins."Honestly, I'm not sure," I say.It takes a minute for my heart rate to drop enough for me to reflect. And then I realise I've just ridden in the world's fastest Sandman.History indeed.REMEMBER THE LAST ONEThis is the second time the Sandman has been brought back from the dead. The first was in 2000, when Holden rocked the Sydney motor show with the unveiling of a unique concept (above) that celebrated the original Sandman from the 1970s.Based on a VU Commodore, the Sandman panel van was a converted ute with a bold psychedelic paint job that included murals - with beach and bush goddess themes - by Mambo art director, David McKay.It also starred at the Detroit show in 2001, but only after a local artist was called into add some modesty to the scantily clad women airbrushed on to the side panels.The artwork was eventually restored to its original Mambo condition and the car is on display in the heritage collection at Holden headquarters at Fishermans Bend in Melbourne.Why we love the SandmanIt's a born-again icon It uses production body panels It could become a production car Why we don't love the SandmanNo mural on the side No shag-pile carpet insideHolden will not build it

Australasian Safari class-winning Isuzu MU-X SUV to compete in 2015 Dakar Rally in South AmericaIsuzu Motorsports is taking their class-winning MU-X SUV to the other side of the world to compete in the 2015 Dakar Rally, which starts in Buenos Aires on January 4.The MU-X entered in the Dakar is the same car that won its class in both the Finke Desert Race in June and the Australasian Safari in September this year.Based on the production MU-X available in showrooms, the racing version features the same 3.0-litre turbodiesel engine although it has been tweaked to produce 180kW and 600Nm - about 50kW and 220Nm more than the roadgoing version.Isuzu Motorsports team boss Bruce Garland - who finished 11th outright in the 2009 Dakar Rally - will step aside from driving duties this time around, with Adrian Di Lallo filling the seat alongside five-time Dakar competitor and Bruce’s usual co-driver Harry Suzuki.We always want to beat the Toyota HiLuxesDi Lallo piloted the MU-X to class victory and fifth outright in this year's Australasian Safari and is confident the production-based SUV has what it takes."The car's got what it takes to finish, obviously it'll be really challenging, but we have the right equipment and a very good chance at placing well in the production class and we'll be doing our absolute best," he said.The team is also quietly confident, however spokesman Dave Harding is mindful of the event's gruelling nature."We're quietly confident we can finish and post a good result," he said."There's so much luck involved, it's a pretty foolish person that says 'we'll finish on the podium'."We'd like to be one of the top-running diesels."The team also know who they have to keep their eyes on in order to succeed."We always want to beat the Toyota HiLuxes," Harding said.Although the Dakar hasn't run its traditional route between continental Europe and the Senegalese capital in seven years, the now-South American race is still regarded as one of the most arduous off-road rallies in the world.The 2015 edition of the Dakar will cover 8,500km across Argentina, Bolivia and Chile over 15 days. This year's event will also include 'marathon' stages; longer stages during which mechanical repairs are prohibited.The Dakar starts in Buenos Aires on January 4 and concludes January 17 after looping over the Andes mountain range to Iquique on the Chilean coast.

Project Sandman mixes Holden history with V8 Supercar engineering.Ahead of this weekend's Gold Coast 600 V8 Supercar round in Surfers Paradise, Red Bull Racing (RBR) Australia have taken the covers off Project Sandman, their in-house take on the old Holden panel van icon which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year.Work began on the Sandman back in April, in collaboration with the Holden Design Department.While the shape and the name might be bringing back fond - or not so fond - memories of years gone by, the Tribute Edition Sandman is more than a trip down memory lane.Underneath the evocative, mattress-fitting body, (yes, Red Bull Racing claim it can still fit a short mattress in the back) is a race-spec V8 Supercar.Sitting on the 888-032 Car of the Future V8 Supercar chassis used by Jamie Whincup during the 2013 season, is the same 5.0-litre V8 engine used by the RBR racer, along with the same suspension, brakes and running gear.Unlike the V8 Supercars, the Tribute Edition Sandman features paddle shifters on the steering wheel, rather than the floor-mounted sequential shifter seen in the series.It sounds like a race car, it's faster than our race cars in a straight lineAnd while the V8 Supercar Commodore runs on Dunlop control tyres, the Sandman's 18-inch wheels are wrapped in Michelin-branded rubber. The different rubber will help dissuade any notion the car could be used for sly tyre data collection.RBR also plan to upgrade the circa-650hp/485kW race-spec engine to a 5.7-litre V8, once they finish building it, which will give the Sandman 705hp/526kW.The team say the differences are because they wanted to push boundaries, with Jessica Dane, the team’s Media Manager, saying "we wanted to create a piece of engineering art".Red Bull Racing driver Craig Lowndes says that car holds its own against the race-trim sibling."It sounds like a race car, it's faster than our race cars in a straight line," he said.Sadly, the Tribute Edition Sandman won't be hitting showrooms. The one-off special will be kept by the team as a promotional vehicle and for use during ride days.That's unfortunate, because the two 6ftx18 3/4" carbon fibre surfboards on the roof would certainly be a talking point in the beach carpark on a Sunday afternoon.The stiff, low-slung race suspension would also make nigh on impossible to get the Sandman 'a-rockin', which might detract from its appeal...for some.Red Bull Racing have no plans to bring a road-going version of the Sandman back to Australian roads, although RBR spokesperson Peter Jameson hopes it "inspires Holden" as the manufacturer moves towards the end of local car production in 2017.This isn’t the first time we’ve seen a Supercar take on a commercial Holden. In 2001 Garry Rogers Motorsport - back when they were a Holden-backed team - built a VU Commodore Ute V8 Supercar as a show and ride car.For now, the Sandman can be seen as part of the Gold Coast 600 event in Surfers Paradise which runs from October 24 to 26.

University students break electric speed record with solar-powered vehicle.Students from the University of New South Wales have designed and built a solar powered electric vehicle which recently set a new world speed record for vehicles of its type.The Sunswift eVe is now the fastest ever electric vehicle to cover a 500km distance, with an average speed of 106.966km/h.The previous record of 73km/h had stood for 26 years before it was toppled by the 100-strong Sunswift eVe team.The record was set back in July at the Australian Automotive Research Centre (AARC) in Victoria, with former V8 Supercar drivers Karl Reindler and Garth Walden behind the wheel. The record was formally acknowledged this month by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), the worldwide governing body for motorsport.Hayden Smith, a third-year engineering student who serves as Sunswift's Project Director said moments like this happen rarely."It's not often you can confidently say you made history before you even graduated," he said."If there is one thing we've learned, it's that you're never too young to make an impact," Smith said.And the impacts might not stop at just a speed record.Since 1996, the UNSW Sunswift team has built four generations of solar-powered vehicles that have set a number of distance and speed records both nationally and globally.For their fifth generation, Sunswift departed from the futuristic-spaceship style of design and instead built the eVe solar car to more closely resemble a typical coupe.They are now in the process of modifying the eVe so it can meet Australian road standards and be registered for road driving like any other car.The Sunswift team are hoping they will be able to take a street-legal eVe out on the road within a year.

Ford fans might not want to believe it, but the exclusive story by News Corp Australia’s James Phelps in the lead-up to last weekend’s Bathurst 1000 is true.Ford is planning to pull out of V8 Supercars once it stops making cars in Australia at the end of 2016.It has already cut funding and will trim the budgets even further over the next two years -- even though the last official Ford-funded team just delivered the company back-to-back wins on the mountain, in an unprecedented last-to-first victoryPlease, Ford. Rethink this decision.But emotion carries little weight in such heavy boardroom decisions. Ford won’t say this publicly, but privately it thinks motor racing is bad for its image. It wants to reposition as a technology leader, and move upmarket.I have one word for Ford on this: Toyota.The Japanese giant sells more blokey four-wheel-drives and utes than any other brand in Australia. Toyota also sells a tonne of hybrid cars globally (it just passed the 7 million mark this week). In other words: you can market both. Successfully.I completely understand why Ford wants to move its brand upmarket. Even Ford dealers admit the cars are better than the brand’s image.But to walk away from the core V8 audience is madness. Ford walked away from motorsport and V8s before. And the fans forgave them when they came back. I’m not so sure fans will be so forgiving a second time around.One more thought: if the V8 Supercar audience isn’t worth talking to, why did Ford have so many advertisements all through the telecast on Sunday?Please, Ford. Rethink this decision. Ford race teams need genuine financial support to remain competitive, not a few body panels donated in kind.

Toyota Peformance Racing star Chaz … Wait. That doesn't sound right. Let's start again. Hyundai charger Chaz Mostert … Nup. That doesn't work either.Beginning any story about Bathurst's newest champion with anything other than Ford would just not be right. But sadly we may soon be calling the kid who shocked Mount Panorama a Toyota top gun, a Hyundai hero, or maybe even - and God forbid - a Holden driver.As revealed by News Corp Australia last week, Ford have told high-ranking V8 officials that they do not have a future in the sport.They may elect to give Ford Performance Racing - the one and only team they sponsor this year - some help next year, with the team committed to racing the new model Falcon. But after that they are out.They want to kill off the famous Ford v Holden rivalry; the great Australian sporting war. It's the war they just happen to be winning despite their apparent lack of interest as Mostert helped them to back-to-back Bathurst titles on Sunday following Mark Winterbottom's epic win last year. They won't commit to Ford Performance Racing despite the team proving they are not just one of Australia's best sporting teams, but also brands.They are fast, popular and right now facing an uncertain future because Ford can't see the value in taking $2 million a year from a $60 million marketing budget and spending it on … wait for it …cars.Sure, we all know the car market is changing. Apparently the only people buying cars are 22-year-old, latte-sipping, poodle-walking girls. But even if this is true, isn't it still the father that ultimately takes his daughter to the dealer to have the final say?A bloke called Bruce, who hates poodles, drinks Nescafe and has watched every Bathurst 1000 since he was born? Let's take the emotion of a car company using cars to sell cars (yeah, stupid right?) and look at the pure advertising.Ford need to be as visible as possible. Since announcing they are shutting down their Australian operations at the end of 2016 and axing the Falcon, people think the company is in decline. Some people even think that Ford will not exist in Australia soon. The company needs to be as visible as possible, so what can FPR do?Well how about the 3.7 million people who sat in their homes watching a 300km/h advertising board win Bathurst? And the 193,647 that were at Bathurst watching the Ford poster beat Nissan, Holden and Mercedes.There is that. And then there are the other 14 rounds of the championship. The ones that hundreds of thousands of fans go to and spend $60 to become mobile advertising boards themselves by buying the shirts, hats, and flags. Wait … they pay to advertise your brand? Yep.They do much more than that. They buy cars, too. Sure, maybe there won't be any V8s on the road soon, but these people will still be driving something. Ford, do you still want them to be driving a Ford?Chaz Mostert's Bathurst win could not have come at a better time. Surely it will make Ford see what they will lose if they go. Wake up Ford. You have been warned.