Mazda RX-8 Grand-Am GT Racing

[mikeyb]

MazdaSpeed Motorsports Development Announces Grand-Am Racing Program <O</O

MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development announced the continuation of its partnership with Florida-based SpeedSource, Inc. to produce a Grand American Road Racing Association Rolex Series GT-class Mazda RX-8. Set to make its competition debut during the 2006 Grand Am season, the Grand Am GT RX-8 is based on a tube-frame chassis jointly developed by SpeedSource and Riley Technologies, and powered by Mazdas three-rotor 20B rotary engine. <O</O

Mazda has always been a leader in both amateur and professional motorsports, said Steve Sanders , manager, MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development. Developing a Grand Am GT-legal car is the next step in expanding our already successful Grand Am program. And expanding our support to competitors interested in racing the RX-8 at the next level is a logical extension of our motorsports program. <O</O

Renowned chassis developer Riley Technologies worked closely with SpeedSource to design the steel tube-frame chassis. A six-speed EMCO sequential transaxle puts the three-rotor power to the wheels. <O</O

Downing/Atlanta was responsible for developing the high-strength carbon-fiber body panels that mimic the shape of the <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com /><st1:Street><st1:address><FONT face=Arial>Mazda RX-8 street</FONT></st1:address></st1:Street><FONT face=Arial> car, except with a no-nonsense racing stance. In addition, the body develops considerably greater downforce than the stock body would, while minimizing drag. <O<IMG class=inlineimg title=</O</FONT>

The 20B three-rotor engine is the cornerstone of Mazdas Grand Am GT RX-8 program. With its compact size and light weight, the rotary engine brings with it a vast history in sprint and endurance racing. Revving to over 9,000 rpm, the 20B rotary engine will sound quite unlike any other engine on the grid.<O</O

Coordinating the development for SpeedSource, Inc was team owner Sylvain Tremblay. Tremblay and staff are an experienced Grand American team, with a long history with Mazda and extensive knowledge and experience in tuning and racing rotary engines. Tremblays SpeedSource team took top honors with their Mazda RX-8 in the Grand Am Street Touring division, winning the drivers and manufacturers championships. <O</O

Being able to offer these high quality components to race teams from a single source simplifies the entire build process. Components ranging from a bare chassis to a complete car can be purchased from SpeedSource. A complete car, including chassis, full drivetrain and engine management system, suspension, wheels, tires and bodywork is priced from $280,000. Comparable racecars are priced higher, yet may provide lower performance. <O</O

MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development also will be offering the Downing/Atlanta bodywork panels as well as the Mazda 20B rotary engine on a made-to-order basis. MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development will offer a lucrative contingency awards program for the RX-8 in Grand-Am GT for the 2006 season. <O</O

On any given weekend, there are more Mazdas on the road-race tracks of <st1:country-region><ST1America </ST1</st1:country-region>than any other brand of vehicle. Mazdas motorsport involvement even extends to the nations premier road-racing circuit, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

source:http://www.worldcarfans.com/news.cfm/newsid/2051118.005<O</O

 

[Antoine]

Beat ya to it...but posted in the racing/motorsports forum...leave it to Mikey to get the best pic

http://www.msprotege.com/forum/showthread.php?t=123616921
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[tsunami]

sweet... that is sick!!!!1!!!1111

 

[Amemiya]

Sweet car. I love the look of the huge wing.

 

[REMillers]

WOOT!!! Lets go now and remake the 787!!! Please!!!

 

[03MzdSpdSTP]

is that body made out of carbon fiber???? sweet race car.....too bad the street version is such a disappointment.

 

[REMillers]

is that body made out of carbon fiber???? sweet race car.....too bad the street version is such a disappointment.

Teh?
(enguard) (monkey) (bike) (chair) (drinks) (cabpatch)

 

[Roywhitep5]

238 hp out of a 1.3l n/a engine dosent seem too bad to me...... thats why im getting one

 

[REMillers]

238 hp out of a 1.3l n/a engine dosent seem too bad to me...... thats why im getting one

Sweet, they are fun cars.

Not a Rx7 which some try to compare it to, but still a great GT/Autox car. Loads of fun, and get many looks as they are sexy (with the appearance package) and people don't see them much.

 

[Roywhitep5]

i test drove a g35 and ran a red light so i think im better off with less power

 

[03MzdSpdSTP]

238 hp out of a 1.3l n/a engine dosent seem too bad to me...... thats why im getting one

sure didn't feel like a 238hp. Have never seen any dyno with more then 165hp so its still overrated. The AP2 S2000 dynos at 230whp with 240 advertised. My msp never had problems keeping up with rx8s on and off the track. Another thing is that so called 1.3L eats gas like a 6.0 V8. Could be a great car for 18k...... but for around 30k I wouldn't even cross shop.

 

[SHMENGIE]

Goddam that thing is ugly! It looks dirty.....dusty and crappy!

Yea yea yea I know it is carbon fiber, expensive, high tech, light as hell. And that car is fast as hell and probably handles like it is a slot car.

But it is ugly plain and simple.

 

[Roywhitep5]

well it dosent have any paint yet. its just plainl cf not the fancy weave we normally think of

i've heard of rx8's dyno around 200whp stock and there are also supposed to be problems with not having the front wheels spining & computers or something & blah blah blah

my priority is handeling

 

[ZoomZoomH]

hey Kyu, stop spreading useless rumors on cars you don't own

 

[REMillers]

Correct, it has been shown that the 8's Engine management will retard the timing and increase the fuel ratio if it detects the rear wheels spinning faster than the front. This has been shown with and without the traction control turned on.
In addition the autos are much much slower and actually a slightly detuned verison of the engine (4 port vs 6 port)

The Rotarys have for the most part been fuel hogs, the current one is the same. Also you can't view the 1.3 rotary in the same light of a 1.3 piston, in fact the 1.3 rotary is closer to a 3-4 liter piston engine. Have to find it again but rotarygod from the 8 forums wrote a very specific outline of why this is.


Feeling wise the Rotarys will not have the punch of a normal engine, the power line is smoother...well that and the lack of torque

Its a well rounded car, not super great at any one thing but capable at all. Great highway cruiser, track and city car.

Oh and reliabilty, Consumer reports has ranked it as the most improved and very realiable. Edmunds ranks it as one of the cheapest cars to own repair wise.
When taken care of the rotary can last extremely long, a lot of learned both company wise and owner wise with the Rx7 and other rotary cars.

 

[03MzdSpdSTP]

I never said they were bad cars. Just way over priced for what you get. for about 18k that car would be good but for 30k?? noway.
As for the gasmilage, i think everyone will agree that they rather take a 6.0L LS6 400hp engine getting 18mpg average over a 1.3 making 238 (soppoosely) getting 14mpg.

 

[REMillers]

22-25k No one should pay full price for it.

and perhaps, though I'm not as upset as I was with the Protege. Hmm getting 27mpg when it was suppose to get more, yet with the the 8 I'm getting 20-25mpg.