WRC Rally Finland 2014 : Jari-Matti Latvala la voulait tellement…/ A victory Latvala desired so much…

A 29 ans, Jari-Matti Latvala a remporté sa 11e victoire mondiale, une de ses plus belles d’après lui. Ce 3e succès de la saison lui permet de rester dans la course au titre Pilotes 2014, même si l’affaire semble corsée.

« Tu es ici pour gagner ». C’était lemottode Christoph, son préparateur mental, pour ce Neste Oil Rally Finland. Et même dans les moments les plus difficiles, le pilote Finlandais n’a jamais oublié ces consignes-là…

« Dès les essais, j’ai su que j’avais les armes pour gagner », a reconnu Jari-Matti Latvala après une cérémonie du podium émouvante. « On a parcouru 600 km sans aucun souci, les réglages étaient parfaits. J’ai été totalement rassuré et confiant à l’issue de l’ES1. Je voulais tellement cette victoire ici, pour moi, mes amis et ma famille qui sont venus me soutenir, mais aussi pour tous les Finlandais qui méritent qu’un « Flying Finns » remporte à nouveau cette épreuve. » 

« Après notre problème de freins, je me suis dit non, pas comme en Espagne l’an passé ou en Sardaigne cette année, pas trois fois ! Jamais je n’ai perdu le moral, bien au contraire. Il m’a fallu 5 ou 6 km dans la spéciale suivante pour comprendre les réactions de l’auto avec trois freins, et on a roulé ainsi le plus vite possible. On est resté en tête, je n’avais aucune inquiétude pour dimanche matin. »

Leader depuis l’ES1 et meilleur performer du rallye avec 14 ES remportées, Jari-Matti Latvala mérite amplement cette seconde victoire en Finlande. « Jari-Matti a effectué beaucoup moins d’essais que Seb l’an passé, ce fut une saison difficile pour lui. Cette année, il roule autant que son équipier en test et les résultats sont là », commentait Jost Capito, patron de VW Motorsport. On aurait tendance à penser que Jari-Matti a franchi un cap ce week-end, mais, attendons l’Allemagne… Il n’a encore jamais gagné deux rallyes d’affilée…

Sébastien Ogier a fait contre mauvaise fortune bon cœur ce week-end. Le Français fut d’humeur chagrine une bonne partie du week-end jusqu’à dimanche où il avait retrouvé le sourire, après avoir remporté la Power Stage. « C’est un bon résultat pour nous dans l’optique du championnat. Je n’ai pas eu un bon feeling avec la voiture jusqu’à samedi après-midi. Avec 3s4 d’écart, je savais que ce serait difficile sur ces spéciales rapides où les écarts se creusent rarement. Jari-Matti mérite amplement cette victoire. » Avec 44 points d’avance sur son équipier, Seb Ogier est plus que favori à sa propre succession.

Kris Meeke a signé son 3^e podium de la saison, mais contrairement au Monte-Carlo et à l’Argentine, il n’en a pas hérité. En Finlande, le Britannique est allé chercher cette 3^e place, grâce à un meilleur temps (ES7) et 26 top-5 en 26 spéciales ! « J’ai joué avec les grands ce week-end, mais j’ai encore des progrès à faire. Je me suis particulièrement appliqué dans les 500 1^ersmètres de l’ES1 pour avoir confiance. Si tu commences à hésiter sur ce rallye, tu perds vite le rythme. Ce résultat est important pour la suite de ma carrière… »

Hésiter, perdre le rythme, c’est exactement ce qui est arrivé à Mikko Hirvonen, Mads Ostberg et Andreas Mikkelsen qui ont vite perdu le podium de vue. « Après mon tout-droit vendredi après-midi, j’ai commencé à gamberger, à perdre le fil. Ici, ça ne pardonne pas » avouait le pilote Ford, vainqueur en 2009. « Avec tous ces jumps et ces sommets aveugles, c’est plus compliqué qu’en Pologne, oui. Mais je suis heureux de ma 4^e place », expliquait de son côté Andreas Mikkelsen.

Hayden Paddon a marqué les esprits, pour sa rapidité en spéciale et dans le team Hyundai Motorsport pour son professionnalisme. Le Néo-Zélandais a signé deux 4^e meilleurs temps et filait vers la 6^e place avant une panne de direction assistée. « C’est un système hydraulique, il n’y avait rien à faire. C’est arrivé au milieu de l’ES24, il restait deux spéciales à disputer. » Hayden a fait le job en ramenant sa i20 WRC à la 8^e place. Juho Hänninen aurait pu se battre pour la 4^eplace sans une erreur dans l’ES6. Le Finlandais signe finalement une seconde 6^e place consécutive. Le reverra-t-on au volant cette saison ?

Last weekend saw Jari-Matti Latvala, 29, claim his 11th world class win. “One of my finest,” he believes. His third success of 2014 keeps him in contention for the 2014 Drivers’ title, but he faces a tough task.

“You’re here to win!” That was the message repeated by Latvala’s mental trainer, Christoph, throughout Neste Oil Rally Finland and the Finn remembered it, even in the difficult moments.

“During our test, I knew we had a car to win,” he remarked after Sunday’s moving finish ceremony. “We completed 600km without a problem and the set-up was perfect. I felt totally reassured and confident after SS1. I so wanted to win this one – for me, my friends, my family who were all there to support me, and for the Finnish fans who deserved to see a Flying Finn back on top.

“After my brakes problem, I thought: ‘no, not again, not like Spain last year, or Sardinia this year; not three times’. But I never gave up. On the contrary, after using the first five or six kilometres of the next stage to understand how the car handled with just three braked wheels, we pushed as hard as we could. We kept the lead and I was never worried on Sunday morning.”

Having led from start to finish and after winning 14 of the 26 stages, Jari-Matti fully deserved his moment of home glory. “He did much less testing than Ogier in 2013 and it was a tough season for him,” noted VW Motorsport boss Jost Capito. “This year, they both get the same time testing and look at the result! Some may think Jari-Matti has moved up a notch this weekend but wait for Germany. He has never won two rallies in a row.”

Sébastien Ogier did his best to make the most of a difficult week in Finland. His mood was sombre most of the time, although his smile returned on Sunday after winning the Power Stage: “It’s a good result for the championship. I didn’t have a good feeling with the car until Saturday afternoon. With the gap standing at 3.4s, I knew it would be hard to beat Jari-Matti on these fast stages. He fully deserved to win.” With a cushion of 44 points at the top of the championship standings, however, the Frenchman has a strong chance of defending his Drivers’ crown.

Kris Meeke earned his third podium finish of the year and, unlike in Monte Carlo and Argentina, it did not fall into his hands. This time, the Briton was fastest on SS6 and finished every stage inside the top five: “I was up with the big boys this week but I still need to progress. I focused really hard on the first 500 metres of SS1 to get my confidence. If you hesitate on this rally, you soon lose the pace. This result is important for the rest of my career.”

Indeed, Mikko Hirvonen (Ford), Mads Ostberg (Citroën) and Andreas Mikkelsen (VW) all seemed to lose the pace after hesitant starts and they were soon eliminated from the battle for the podium. “I lost the plot after my ‘straight-on’ on Friday afternoon. You can’t get away with things like that here,” admitted Hirvonen, the event’s 2009 winner.

“The jumps and blind crests make this event more complex than Poland, for sure. But I’m pleased with fourth,” commented Mikkelsen.

Hayden Paddon’s speed and professionalism made a mark at Hyundai Motorsport. The New Zealander posted two fourth-fastest times and was heading for sixth place when he was delayed by power steering failure. “It was the hydraulics. There was nothing we could do about it. It happened in the middle of SS24, with two more stages to come.” Hayden nursed his i20 WRC to eighth spot.

Team-mate Juho Hänninen could have hoped for fourth had he not made a mistake on SS6. He eventually collected his second sixth place in a row, but will we see him on another WRC event this year

BSMC III 2014 Post-Show Teaser

BSMC III 2014 Post-Show Teaser from BSMC on Vimeo.

Iron Bikers 2014 Kids With Lenses

Iron Bikers 2014, awesome motorcycle week-end in Paris, on the Carole road race track. Shot by Kids With Lenses.

We Are Racers : Michelin & Porsche Le Mans documentary:

PACIFIC MC CO DESERT SCRAMBLER

Nobody thinks twice about custom builders taking angle grinders to ageing “Universal Japanese Motorcycles”, but when sparks fly from rare pieces of classic Brit machinery, the occasionally uneasy relationship between classic purists and custom aficionados can become stretched. But when a bike has been crafted with the care and respect that is put into the builds of The Pacific Motorcycle Co. you simply end up with a bike that satisfies every niche of biking admiration.

Based in Nelson, New Zealand, The Pacific Motorcycle Co. specialise in both customising bikes and in classic restorations - “but sometimes the two get mixed up, on purpose,” as was the case with this beautiful 1965 Triumph TR6 SR Desert Scrambler.  You may well recall the story of their ’69 BSA A65 which arrived in a wondrous consignment of old Brit machinery that they had shipped to New Zealand from the United States.  This Triumph emerged from the same Aladdin’s cave.  The majority of the bikes that made the voyage arrived in a a sorry state and the TR6 was no exception, but it showed enough potential to earn the nickname “Fonzie” and be ear marked for much further attention.

“The plan was to restore, but with a twist, as the TR6 SR was built for the American market and in particular Desert Racing, she was to receive a look of a classic scrambler. At first glance of the original, it seemed a very long and arduous task, but with a clear picture of what she could become, the teardown started.”

The process was extensive, all parts were disassembled, the engine was completely stripped down, rebored and fitted with new bearings, pistons, rods, seals, valves, guides and any other bits it craved. Whilst its inners lay in pieces the cases were vapour blasted and given a coat of flat black powder coat along with the frame. Once the motor was completed, it went back in the frame with electronic ignition and a 12 volt conversion. The colour matched engine cases and tank (complete with rack and grippy knee pads) supply the bike with great visual balance, sandwiching the bright clean engine and pipes in deep black.

Those high straight through exhausts allow the engine to project its glorious rasp as it fires toward the horizon. The wheels were stripped, blasted then coated and fully rebuilt with new spokes, nipples and bearings before being shod in dual purpose modern rubber befitting of the bikes multi purpose proclivities. The rear shocks are modern YSS units.

The original seat pan was narrowed and fitted with high density foam to provide a slimmer profile without sacrificing the comfort, it was then upholstered in black with classic grey banding.  A high level front mudguard was fabricated and fitted whilst the original rear was cut down for balance. The headlight is the restored original fitted with a black stone grill whilst the rear light was modified from an old “Sparto” unit that was pilfered from a Ducati Desmo single that was residing in a corner of the shop.

After featuring so many modern Bonneville scrambler customs it is splendid to see how perfectly the original stacks up when given a similar treatment. The regulation enforced extra weight and bulk in modern machines that builders try so hard to hide is gloriously conspicuous by its absence. In selecting the vintage donor the Pacific Coast boys were left with the job of bringing the best out of the motorcycle as oppose to hiding the worst of it. It is a job very well done. Their own words to end, “No frills, just an old Triumph that’s had an attitude adjustment!”

See more from Pacific Motorcycle Co on their Bike Shed Page, and on their Facebook page.

via The Bike Shed

‘11 Royal Enfield 500 – MotoVida Cycle Inc.

Royal Enfields. Is there nothing they can’t do? Whether it’s carrying yaks around Tibet, being sent off to war with machines guns attached or ferrying riders on trans-continental journeys, it seems that there’s not a thing on god’s green earth that can stop them. And now we can add another notch to the bike’s belt – that of beach cruiser. Strange as it may seem that classic, sand-loving bicycle and signifier of all things holiday is just what Canadian bike builder Brent Giesbrecht used as inspiration for this simple yet impressive build. And the results are so bang-on we can almost feel the sand in our swimmers right now.

“My name is Brent Giesbrecht and I’m from Kelowna, Canada. I’m the owner of MotoVida Cycle Inc. Kelowna is a city of about 130,000 people that’s full of orchards, vineyards, wineries, golf courses, micro breweries and lakes. It also has a great, laid-back, west coast vibe.”

Brent also tells us that he has always loved the beach cruiser bikes that fill Kelowna’s waterfront boardwalks. And with their pastel colors, fat tires and brown leather seats, can you blame him? OK, so maybe not so much on the pastels… but still.

“I wanted to try and capture that beach bike look and feel on a Royal Enfield, so I started with a ‘11 Royal Enfield 500 EFI. It was stock except for an off-road pipe and an ECU. Once I stripped everything off the bike and was left with the frame and swing arm, it became pretty clear that it was leaning towards the bobber end of the spectrum. So somehow, a beach-bobber idea started to brew.”

Brent thought that the top yoke, gauge cluster and headlamp assembly seemed a little cumbersome, so he found a trials yoke and a separate headlamp setup from an older 350 Enfield which did the trick. He also added some gaiters to cover up those skinny Royal Enfield front legs.

Finding the original tool and air boxes a little too bulky, Brent removed them thinking that maybe some thinner, off-the-shelf saddle bags would look better in their place. But after a month of fruitless searching trying to source the right items, he decided to visit his local saddlery, where he bought himself a nice chunk of hide and taught himself to use a sewing awl. “One bag is equal to 370 stitches,” he says, wearily.

“Then, after finding a set of Italian barrel handgrips in blue and white, the color choice was done. I really love the Royal Enfield wing logo on the engine cases, so I decided to incorporate that into the paint design - I wanted it to be bold, too. Local painter Todd Regier obliged.”

Brent flipped and reversed the ‘bars, chopping an inch or two from either side. This was to be temporary, but the bend of the bar matched the contour of the top yoke exactly, so naturally they stayed. The rear fender is a chopped-down, aftermarket item which is held in place with the leftover front fender struts.

The seat is from Sinister and is a clearly a very nice piece, although Brent suggests that the more miles he puts on the bike, the more he is thinking about a change. The rubber is Kenda K761s, as he felt that the original setup was “a bit too Kate Moss and needed to be butched up a bit.” Personally, we think a house brick would look masculine if Kate Moss was standing next to it, but that’s probably just us.

To finish, Brent puts his glowing stamp of approval on the bike – and it’s one that turns out to be very close to his heart. “All in all I am very pleased with the outcome. To be honest, I built this one for myself and it brings a huge smile every time I ride it.”

Brent practices his huge smile

[Photos by Darren Hull]

via PIPEBURN

‘51 BSA Star Twin ‘Greasy Gringo’ – Dan Daughenbaugh

“If something’s worth doing, it’s worth doing well.” That’s what my Dad often says. But quite obviously, my Dad has never met Pennsylvania’s Dan Daughenbaugh. And if he had, he would undoubtedly have even more sage-like advice to dispense on exactly how Dan is going about his attempt at a world land speed record. There’s the barbecued third-hand engine. The less-than-perfect welds and the drain pipe exhausts. And let’s not forget the tangled mess of un-aerodynamic cabling right up there where the wind hits the bike. But you know what? If I were to attempt to build and run a land speed bike of my own, this is exactly how I would want it to be. What’s that, Dad? Sorry, I can’t hear you over the roar of the crowd celebrating my amazing victory.

“The motor was found after a Philadelphia bike shop burnt to the ground.”

Dan’s passion, apart from going very fast, is vintage British bikes. And this couldn’t be more clearly illustrated than by his choice of motor. It’s originally from a 1951 BSA Star Twin and it has more than a little history under its belt. “The motor was found after a Philadelphia bike shop burnt to the ground. A few days later they had a Fire Sale and there it was, blackened and charred. All the pot metal parts had melted off, but the cases were still good.”

The build is impressive as it is original. After stopping every passer-by in their tracks at the National Triumph Rally in Oley, Pennsylvania last month, it took home first place for the people’s choice award. The bike has also been lettered and numbered by Philadelphia’s most sought-after traditional sign painter, Gibbs Connors.

Dig a little deeper and you’ll discover all of the work Dan’s done to make the old motor run a hell of a lot faster than it’s early 50′s contemporaries.“The motor is a real mongrel inside. The stock crank is a well-known weak link in the design and at the power levels I wanted to make, it was pretty much guaranteed to fail. So I machined a crank to fit from a 70′s BSA Lightning on my old 1940s mill.”

“With that done, I wanted to use longer rods to lower piston speed and take advantage of less rod angularity. I settled on Carillio Triumph 650 units that were 1/2 an inch longer than originals. These had to be narrowed by .160 to fit. Let me tell you, there’s nothing like milling away at brand-new $600 rods. I’m also running Triumph Trident pistons in a standard size, with a .063 spacer under the barrel to keep them from hitting the head. Compression comes in at 13.6:1 and I run it on a Methanol/Nitromethane mix.”

“The valvetrain is a mix of modern Ford V8 parts and Titanium pieces.”

“The camshaft is a Harmon & Collins roller unit that was made in the 60′s, I have never seen another one like it. I made the pushrods out of aluminum and the valvetrain is a mix of modern Ford Mustang V8 parts and titanium pieces.”

Since the bike’s first record-breaking run at the ECTA Ohio Mile in May 2014, where it managed an official 90.142mph, Dan has rebuilt the top end, made a brand new stainless 2-1 exhaust and refreshed the transmission, making sure to including a new set of high quality bearings. He also upgraded the wheel bearings, just so they wouldn’t feel left out. “I’m hoping with the new upgrades that we will go well above the current 111mph record.”

And just when you think the whole story couldn’t get any better, we’ve saved the best bit ’till last. Actually, the best bits. See, Dan’s work has attracted some attention in the form of a bunch of guys who are putting together a documentary on his exploits. Knowing a modern-day Burt Munro when they see it, they’ve decided to create a little film they are calling ‘A Line in the Salt’. Interested? We thought so. You can find out more byclicking through to their Indiegogo page. Or maybe you’d like a little taster first? Then take look below and enjoy.

[Via The Post Agency]

The Talbot-Lago T26 Grand Sport Coupé is a road-bred racer

Among the countless sensational news stories, it’s easy to forget that there are many seriously special non-Ferrari lots going under the gavel during the Monterey car week. This Talbot-Lago T26 Grand Sport Coupé, to be offered by Bonhams at its Quail Lodge sale, is one of them…

For today’s discerning collector, provenance is everything – only the very best original examples, with transparent and documented histories, will suffice. This matching-numbers 1948 Talbot-Lago T26 Grand Sport Coupé, with its rakish fastback body by Oblin, presents a rare opportunity to own one of the most exclusive automobiles ever produced. It virtually guarantees entry to the world’s most prestigious historic rallies, motorsport events and concours d’elegance.

Fast, powerful

Following World War II, Anthony Lago was among the quickest to get his company back on track. One of his early visions was a road-going but sporty chassis, perfect for the once again flourishing coachbuilding trade and as close to the famous pre-War Grand Prix cars as was technically possible.

The resultant T26 Grand Sport could well have been the fastest and most powerful passenger car in the world, boasting a Grand Prix car-derived chassis and a highly developed 4.5-litre six-cylinder engine, but it was also astronomically expensive. As such, just 28 chassis were built, each cloaked in individual and exclusive coachbuilt bodies.

An (almost) perfect provenance

Chassis 110106 has had quite a life, as evident from its glorious patination, especially inside. Delivered to the Belgian Talbot-Lago concessionaire in 1958, it was then sold to British racing driver 'Goldie' Gardner, who commissioned Vanden Plas to build a one-off cutting-edge body. The off-the-wall result wasn’t, admittedly, the Belgian coachbuilder’s finest work, but it was nevertheless shown at the Brussels Motor Show in 1959. 

There was a subsequent string of owners, one of whom had the car re-bodied by Martial Oblin in the pretty (and much lighter) coupé body it wears today. After enjoying moderate success in period, on events such as the gruelling Liège-Rome-Liège and the Spa 24 Hours, the car has since been regularly used as intended, as well as on various track days. Bar one accident at Spa in 2002 (the roof didn't cave in, thanks in part to Oblin’s clever ‘Superleggera’ construction), the car is remarkably original – just take a look at those seats.

Brutally enticing

The beauty of this T26 Grand Sport is that it’s the quintessential all-rounder. Elegant and stylish, it’d look just as ‘right’ on the concours lawns at Pebble Beach as it would bounding along the Côte d’Azur. Yet underneath it’s a hairy-chested 190bhp racing car, more than capable of holding its own on the toughest historic rallies and motorsport events. Billed by Bonhams as ‘brutally enticing’, the car will be offered at its Quail Lodge sale next month with an attached estimate of £650,000 to £880,000. Are you man enough?

Bonhams' Quail Lodge sale is taking place on 14 August. You can find the full catalogue in theClassic Driver Market. 

“Elvis’s BMW 507: lost & found” exhibition comes to Munich

After nearly 60 years, the BMW 507 formerly owned by Elvis Presley returns to its birthplace. You can currently visit the Roadster, still untouched, in the BMW Museum – but when the exhibition closes, it will be restored at the Classic Center...

The special exhibition Elvis's BMW 507: lost & found runs until 10 August 2014. More information on the BMW Museum can be found on its own website.

Photos: BMW

BMW 507s you can buy in the Classic Driver Market. 

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