Maxxd.com – Modified and Performance Car News

  • Bloodhound land-speed record project up for sale, again

    The Bloodhound Land Speed Record (LSR) project is once again up for sale. A team blog post said Bloodhound is still looking to make a World Land Speed Record attempt in 2022, providing a new owner (and additional funding) can be found.

    The coronavirus pandemic hindered fundraising efforts and delayed the project by a full year, current owner Ian Warhurst said in the post. Warhurst rescued Bloodhound from oblivion in 2018 after another funding shortfall, but he has reached his limit.

    “At this stage, in absence of further, immediate, funding, the only options remaining are to close down the program or put the project up for sale to allow me to pass on the baton and allow the team to continue the project,” Warhurst said. “I will, of course, be cheering from the sidelines when Bloodhound smashes through 800 mph.”

    Bloodhound LSR

    Bloodhound LSR

    Bloodhound last ran in November 2019, reaching 628 mph on the Hakskeenpan in South Africa’s Kalahari Desert. The goal of the project is to become the first wheeled vehicle to reach 1,000 mph, and beat the current record for a steerable car of 763 mph, set in 1997. Bloodhound’s driver is the man who set that record, former Royal Air Force fighter pilot Andy Green.

    For the 2019 test, Bloodhound relied solely on a Rolls-Royce EJ200 jet engine from a Eurofighter Typhoon fighter plane. For the record attempt, the team will add a cluster of hybrid rockets from Norwegian defense firm Nammo. Combined output from the jet engine and rockets is estimated at 135,000 horsepower.

    Installing the rockets and transporting the car to South Africa for the record attempt will cost about $10 million at current exchange rates, according to the team. Work needs to restart within the next few months in so the car can be ready for a 2022 record attempt, the team said, adding that the alternative would be to put the car into long-term storage “with no certainty of being able to restart the project.”

    Source

  • SINGER ACS IS THE OFF-ROAD 911 KING

    Built to demolish off-road stages, the Singer ACS is a 2021 interpretation of the legendary 911 rally cars that Porsche built in the 1980s. Watch as Tuthill Porsche shows what it can do.

    [embedded content]

    What is the Singer ACS all about?

    The Porsche 911 Reimagined by Singer All-terrain Competition Study (ACS) was undertaken by Singer, in partnership with Richard Tuthill. The idea actually came as a result of a request from a Singer client for a modified air-cooled Porsche 911 that could compete in off-road racing.

    The client didn’t just request one, though, no, he requested two. The first of which is featured here in Parallax white, and focuses on high-speed desert rallying. The second is finished in Corsica Red and is built for high-speed, high-grip tarmac stages.

    Modifications developed for the Porsche 911 Reimagined by Singer All-terrain Competition Study include:

    • Off-road competition capability, conceived with events such as the Baja 1000 and Dakar Rally in mind, but suitable for a range of surfaces
    • Dramatically increased ride height, suspension travel and overall strength
    • Carbon fibre body panels suited to quick replacement and easy underbody access
    • Permanent AWD
    • A twin-turbocharged, 3.6L, air-cooled flat-six with power starting at 450hp
    • Sequential racing transmission with front, centre and rear limited-slip differentials

    Singer ACS: Tech Specs

    • 1990 Type 964 Porsche 911
    • Core strengthening to monocoque for heavy duty off-road use, carbon fiber body panels and off-road race modifications including:

    Suspension, wheels and brakes:

    • Specialised long-travel suspension with twin, 5-way adjustable dampers per corner (8 dampers total)
    • Forged aluminium 8×16” wheels with BF Goodrich All-Terrain tyres
    • 4-piston, monobloc steel disc brakes with hydraulic handbrake

    Engine:

    • 3.6L twin turbo-charged, air-cooled, Porsche flat-six
    • Water-to-air intercoolers, with individual-bank charge coolers housed within the plenum and cooled by clamshell-mounted radiator
    • Tuned for the demands of each event, power starts at 450hp and 420lb ft torque

    Transmission:

    • 5-speed sequential dog-box enabling flat-shifting. Manual and paddle-shift capable
    • Permanent AWD
    • Front, centre and rear, mechanical, plated limited-slip differentials

    Additional Specialised Equipment:

    • Long-range fuel tank
    • 2 x full-size spare race wheels and tyres in front trunk area and rear storage area
    • Full FIA specification roll cage
    • Bespoke competition seats with FIA certification
    • Rehydration system for driver and navigator
    • State-of-the-art GPS race navigation system

    Source

  • HONDA NSX NA1 REVIEW

    The Honda NSX NA1 arrived in 1989, upset the applecart, stayed for 16 years, then left behind an iconic status like no other. What’s it like to drive one today though?

    Ask any petrolhead about legendary Japanese cars and I guarantee the NSX will feature on the list. And, depending on how old you are, the Honda NSX NA1 will appear higher and higher up on that list.

    Wherever you drive the NSX you’re treated with respect. It’s odd. So, let me explain. You see, if you’ve ever had the luxury of driving a flash car, particularly a supercar, you’ll know that 90% of other drivers will think you’re nothing more than a flash bastid. No matter what you think behind the wheel, the people looking at you are simply judging you for being flashy. But the NSX, it’s different. OK, today calling it a supercar would be hard pushed, but in 1989, this was THE everyday supercar. That’s what Honda set out to build and that’s exactly what they did. The NSX demands your attention but brings with it nostalgia that’s universally loved.

    Honda NSX NA1

    It’s a special car this, there’s no two ways about it. Finished in Formula Red, it has that air of Ferrari about it, and to be frank, if you were clueless about cars you’d probably assume it was an old Ferrari. It sits beautifully low, but the body is very long. The engine is mounted just behind the driver’s seat and pours the most delectable sound into the cabin when you trickle through the rev range. Delightful, not intrusive, it add to the whole experience.

    You guys know the story by now. New Sportscar eXperimental was the project header, hence the name NSX, and it combined a passion for building a light sports car with brilliant chassis dynamics, coupled with strong power as well as everyday usability and reliability. From where I’m sat, even today, Honda absolutely nailed the brief.

    Honda NSX NA1

    Honda NSX NA1 – The Drive

    This particular car is fitted with the F-matic automatic transmission – I thought I’d get that bit out of the way first – so go ahead, boo and hiss, but please read on. I was lucky enough to receive the NA1 NSX immediately after having the NA2 for a week, which presented a brilliant opportunity to compare the two directly. And thankfully, the NA2 was a manual, which helps comparisons even further.

    Sadly, though, the automatic transmission kills every piece of driver involvement you could want in an NSX. You feel disconnected from the drive as the gearbox takes an age to slot into gear, whether that’s up or down the ratios. Pin the throttle and you could have your lunch before it decides to drop into second and onto VTEC. It’s sad because I know that this car perfectly balances involvement and performance in manual iteration. I felt myself shaking my head on more than one occasion, it’s sad that a transmission can completely disrupt the way the NSX drives.

    Honda NSX NA1

    You can take control of the gears, although that’s not with wheel-mounted paddles, but instead the old-fashioned way of manually selecting a gear and locking it in with the aeroplane-style drive selector. This improves your involvement slightly at least, and drastically improves performance. Using the gear selector, you can get the car to work with you and finally feel what the 3.0-litre V6 can actually do. It’s not a slow car by any means, and this is all the more apparent with selecting the ratios, although at times they can be far too long for their own good, mainly because that auto is just four speeds.

    Moving away from its foibles, there are many good parts to shout about here. The NA1’s steering puts the NA2 to shame, it’s loaded with feel and is much heavier in its operation than the later car. It helps the front end to feel sharper and more honed, which is odd given that you’d expect the later cars to improve upon the original. I’d go as far to say as the front end feels darty; eager to dive into the apex and out again. On the right road it felt natural and a series of corners flow together with a sense of fluidity. It just feels right. In fact, the best way to drive this car is to ride the brakes into the corner, use the gear selector to pinch second and get on the throttle early. The joy of limited torque is very little oversteer. You’ll push the nose out before the rear gives up the ghost.

    Honda NSX NA1

    The performance is strong, regardless of the gearbox. You get a nice shove as it transitions into VTEC around the 6krpm range. The tone changes, too, naturally, as the more aggressive cam takes over and it surges onwards. I must admit, I think I prefer the NA2s bored 3.2-litre engine. It adds a bit more eagerness and feels stronger no matter where you are. OK the gear ratios are shorter, which helps and, having not seen the power curve, I would hazard a guess and say that it makes more power everywhere as that is what it feels like from behind the wheel.

    How about the day to day stuff? Well, rather ironically, this is where that transmission starts to make sense. I sit in a decent amount of traffic during my commute to and from the office, so having an auto is a luxury. It pulls itself through traffic smoothly with the gentlest of touches on the throttle. You have to remember that the NSX NA1 was designed to be comfortable, and that’s exactly what it is day to day. The cabin is roomy, the seats brilliantly comfy, and everything is within easy reach. Knock the Japanese for their use of cheap plastics inside all you want, at least we can actually reach all of the dials without moving forward in our seats! The cockpit is designed around the driver so everything is within easy reach. The seating position is nice and low so you start to feel part of the car. Couple that with the dynamics and the NSX is almost an extended part of you, the driver.

    Honda NSX NA1

    I guess that gearbox is actually a God-send day to day. I knocked it for its performance earlier, and still do, but sit in the traffic and you suddenly start to think that this really was the perfect everyday supercar that Honda set out to build all those years ago.

    Verdict

    Forget about the automatic transmission for a moment and the NSX delivers brilliance, even today. It has enough pace to do away with the usual hot-hatches, but does so with such elegance. The pop-up headlights add to its nostalgic look, and those elongated lines and low front end all point towards a serious supercar. But that’s not what the NSX is about. It’s more than just a supercar, it’s a piece of motoring hall of fame and should be treated so. No wonder prices lately have begun to climb at around £40k for a nice example, although Type Rs are comfortably over £100k. I just wish this one had a manual…


    Source