All posts by Francis Mitterrand

News

Formula GP2 spotted on the highway

Seeing super expensive cars on the highway is nothing new, but when you meet a Formula 2 car that is not road legal, it is news. Yesterday, YouTube channel Racing Clips released a video from the Czech Republic showing a Formula GP2 car cruising down the highway.

Driving such cars on public roads is not legal, and this is not the first such case. Three years ago, a similar car was spotted on the same highway from Prague to the German border, and the case was investigated by the police. The owner of the car was found, but he stuck to his statement that he was not driving the vehicle. The police failed to prove the opposite, so the owner of the car went unpunished.

It is a Dallara GP2/08 based on the 2006 Ferrari. It is powered by a 4.0L naturally-aspirated V8 engine with 620 hp (462 kW) @8,500 rpm. Power is sent to the rear wheels by a Hewland six-speed sequential semi-automatic transmission. It is equipped with a carbon/aluminum honeycomb monocoque chassis, double-steel wishbones, pushrod-operated, twin-dampers and torsion bars suspension (front) and spring suspension (rear), Hitco carbon brake discs with Brembo 6-piston calipers and pads, and Bridgestone Potenza (dry and wet) O.Z. racing wheels.

The comments on the video are positive. Many believe that the Dallara GP2/08 engine sounds much better than those of current Formula 1 cars. Of course there were also humorous comments such as those addressed to the Ferrari Formula 1 team because of their mistakes that led to several bad results this season.

Source: Racing Clips via YouTube

Auctions, News

One of a kind 911 Carrera GTS for 50 years of Porsche in Taiwan

In 1972, Porsche presented the first generation of one of the most popular cars in history, the 911 Carrera. That same year, Porsche introduced the 911E model for the Taiwan market. Now, half a century later, the Stuttgart-based company has revealed a special edition of the unique 911 Carrera GTS-50 Year Anniversary One of Kind.

The car was developed by Porsche Taiwan and is painted in Irish green. It is based on the 2022 Porsche 911 Carrera GTS, so under the hood is a 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged flat-six engine with 473 hp (353 kW) and 420 lb-ft (569 Nm) of torque. That’s enough power to push the car to 62 mph in just 3.3 seconds with a top speed of 193 mph (310 km/h). Power is transmitted to the rear wheels via an eight-speed dual clutch automatic transmission.

In addition to the Irish green, the Porsche 911 Carrera GTS-50 Year Anniversary One of Kind is decorated with Matte White Taiwan outline of the famous Taiwanese coast of Formosa and the inscription “Porsche” on the door, as well as matte black rims with central locking with the Porsche logo on it. The inspiration for the color was nature, the forests of Taiwan, just like the first sold Lizard Green 1972 911E model.

The dark interior of the car is decorated with black leather seats with white stitching. On the door sills there is an illuminated inscription “50 Years Porsche in Taiwan”. There are also white “50 Years Porsche in Taiwan” and “911 Carrera GTS” lettering on the passenger side of the dashboard.

In order to thank the Taiwanese society, Porsche announced that it will sell this unique car at an auction, and that the money will be donated to Porsche Taiwan’s “Dream Together”.

Source: Porsche

Auctions, News

1995 Ferrari F50 is for sale

Mike Tyson was the youngest heavyweight boxing champion of the world and one of those “bad guys” who are difficult to approach, because you never know how he will react. Everything that can be associated with him is collectible, including the 1995 Ferrari F50 from his private collection.

Ferrari introduced the F50 model in 1995, and by 1997 a total of 349 examples were produced, of which 55 were with US specifications. This 1995 Ferrari F50 is excatly one of those 55. It is powered by a 4.7-liter V12 engine with 513 hp (382 kW) @ 8,500 rpm which is enough to push the car to 62 mph in 3.6 seconds with top speed of 202 mph (325 km/h). Power is transmitted to the rear wheels via a 6-speed manual transmission.

The car is painted in Rosso Corsa color and was bought new by Rick Black, an official Ferrari dealer (Beverly Hills Sports Cars). Since then, it has changed several owners until it was bought by Mike Tyson in 2001. Tyson sold it the same year to Kevin Marcus, co-founder of Infospace, and after that the car was sold to several other owners. In May of this year, $75,000 was invested in the car. The clutch, tires and front suspension lift and air conditioning systems were serviced, and the Alcantara panels and front under-panels were repaired.

The F50 has a carbon body, Brembo ventilated disc brakes, fully independent double-wishbone suspension with pushrod-operated coil-overs, soft top, and only has 5,320 miles (8,561.7 km) on the odometer.

The car comes with a Ferrari Classiche certificate, tools, books, luggage, window sticker, copy of Certificate of Origin, and Marcel Massini Report.

Source: Gooding & Company