Zakspeed causes astonishment with new car during test and set-up runs
As usual, the VLN opened the motorsport season at the Nürburgring. To warm up, the test and set-up runs were on the program on 16 March, before the first race of the year a week later was all about points and placings.
Despite the cold and wet weather, numerous fans gathered at the Nordschleife to see the racing cars on the track for the first time in the new year. However, many cars were not yet present at the first test opportunity on the Nordschleife.
The fans were wide-eyed at the Zakspeed team's trailer, as the mechanics unloaded a Viper GT3-R from the current series exactly 20 years to the day after Zakspeed first appeared with the Chrysler Viper at the test and set-up runs in 1999. Enthusiasm was immediate, even more so when the team announced that they would also be entering this car in the first VLN race. The necessary BoP classification was completed on Friday evening before the race.
For the most part, other GT3 teams used this test day to collect important data, but the public's favorite, the time-honored Manta of Olaf Beckmann and Peter Haas, was also busy doing its laps again. It goes without saying that this car would also be seen again at VLN1.
Adverse conditions prevent the event from going ahead as planned
After most of the test day was carried out in low temperatures and rain, the spectators at the Friday test before VLN were able to wander around the track in T-shirts and watch the action on the track in mild temperatures and sunshine. Once again, it was the GT3s that were busy testing, with a few TCRs also joining them. The evening session was generally more crowded, with the V-Class cars now completing significantly more laps than in the morning. As expected, the participants with the older cars held back on Friday, as the older car is also more susceptible to defects.
On Saturday morning, however, the picture was completely different: no more sunshine and pleasant warmth. Thick fog and freezing temperatures prevented the event from running as planned and kept riders and spectators alike waiting. As it became increasingly likely that the event would be canceled, the weather finally cooperated. The fog lifted and training was able to start four hours late. Due to the late hour, however, it was shortened from one and a half to one hour. Over 170 vehicles were registered for the season opener. So it was going to be a short and crisp qualifying session. It goes without saying that the GT3 cars in the SP9 class will be battling it out for pole position and race victory. Instead, we would like to take a look at the older participants in the first VLN race.
The race from the perspective of the older participants
One of the interesting cars provided the big scare of the event shortly after the start of qualifying. The Jetta of the XXL Racing Team, which was also popular with the fans, collided with the BMW 325i of Beat Schmitz on the approach to the Brünnchen, and the resulting spin caused the Jetta to catch its front wheel on the kerb, resulting in a spectacular six-point rollover. Much to the relief of the numerous spectators at the scene of the accident, however, the driver was able to get out of the totally destroyed car on his own, and the subsequent examination at the Medical Center did not reveal any serious injuries either.
Unfortunately, not only was the race over for the Jetta before the start, but worse still, the damage was so extensive that it could not be repaired. After the race, however, fans spontaneously organized a fundraising campaign to help the team rebuild the vehicle and secure its planned participation in the 24-hour race in 2020. Some fans and drivers were reminded by this campaign of the good old sporting spirit in the VLN, in which not only winning and scoring points is paramount, but also treating opponents with respect and fairness.
For Konstantin Wolf, training also did not go according to expectations. His E30 M3, which we already reported on at the end of last season, unfortunately suffered gearbox damage on the first lap of practice. Since the Fuchsröhre, only sixth gear was available to the driver. It was a challenge to complete the lap at all, but unfortunately there was no chance of taking part in the race. So, unfortunately, the start had to be abandoned. However, Konstantin wants to start the M3 again at the VLN2.
Also at the start with an M3, but from the E36 series, was Florian Quante. His team competes with the E36 M3 in the V5 class, i.e. near-production cars with gasoline engines up to 3000cc without turbochargers. For the most part, current Porsche Caymans start there. However, as long as the technology of the much older BMW plays along, the driver says that it is possible to keep up with the Caymans and even annoy them. The car will be used until the 24-hour race, at which a start is also planned. Other vehicles of the team are also at home in Bavaria, a BMW 325i of the E90 series is used in the V4 class (gasoline engines up to 2500cc) and a BMW E92 M3 GTR starts in the SP8 class. The SP classes stand for the VLN Specials, so these are much more radical versions of the cars than in the near-series classes, the SP8 stands for petrol engines up to 4000cc.
Like so many drivers, one of the most important reasons for Quante to compete in the VLN is the Nordschleife itself. Furthermore, a well-functioning team for a successful participation. The team's three cars are currently looked after by around 15 people, including mechanics and master mechanics as well as data engineers, but also people from completely different professions who are motorsport enthusiasts with heart and soul. He described the start of the season as mixed, with the 325i having to retire from the race after an accident in fourth place and the M3 also not being able to finish due to differential damage. However, both vehicles are currently being prepared for the start in VLN2.
Of course, the 32-year-old from Hesse also has the desire to compete for one or two class victories or even for the championship, but the focus is clearly on the fun of racing itself.
Jonas Spölgen also took part in the first VLN race with a BMW, but his E36 325i was entered in the SP4 class. He also owns a BMW E90 330i and competes in the RCN. He also described the VLN as the greatest racing series in the world, the track and the fans are simply unique and it is great fun to drive there. Compared to more modern cars, driving the older car is more difficult due to the lack of technology such as ABS or other aids. However, he was able to finish the race as class winner.
The TJ Racing Team again used their familiar cars, the more modern Astra OPC and the older Opel Calibra. However, the former car crashed at the start of the training session and could not be repaired before the start. The Calibra, a former DTC Light car, started in H2, as did the aforementioned Manta, among others. Unlike its older brand colleague, however, the Calibra was unable to finish the race and retired in the second half of the race. The Manta, on the other hand, was able to finish fourth in its class.
Three Renault Clio 3 RS cars shared first to third place. For us, these are still relatively modern cars, but due to their year of construction at the beginning of the 2000s, they are already eligible to compete in H2. The next Clio followed in fifth place, before another older E36 appeared in sixth place. Compared to the previously mentioned E36s, however, this was a compact. The 318ti of the Belgian Nationale Autoclub Excelsior squad drove unspectacularly but steadily to the finish.
Father-daughter team on the road in the H2 class
The E36 318is with start number 622 of Anna and Romeo Loewe also drove in the same class, but not in the classification. Although the car reached the chequered flag after almost three hours of driving, they were not classified due to the large gap. The driver of the older BMW explained that they had a technical problem from the start of the first lap of the race, but were able to solve it at the "Breitscheid exit" and thus still finish the race.
She also willingly gave further insights, firstly about the car itself, the BMW 318is E36 Coupé from 1992. For weight reasons, the doors and side windows as well as the trunk lid and hood were replaced with plastic parts, otherwise the car is in standard condition, apart from the racing-related modifications.
The goal for this year is to keep the car free of damage and dents as well as the bones of the drivers, and if this is successful, the father-daughter team will consider taking part in next year's 24-hour race. Anna Loewe competed in the VLN with her father for the first time in 2017, and in 2014 they already took part in the RCN with the current car. She started motorsport ten years earlier, also together with her father, at trackdays and tourist drives on the Nordschleife. However, the car back then was a Porsche 944. She finds the VLN fascinating, as so many other drivers keep saying, because of the Nordschleife itself. The enormous length with its changing road surfaces, differences in altitude and the blind bends and crests is the great challenge of the track, while the lack of assistance systems in the older cars is the challenge of driving itself.
Self-build in the SPX class
If you take a closer look at the entry list, you will come across the Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus SCG003 in the SPX class. Behind the meaningful name is the home-built car of the US-American billionaire Jim Glickenhaus. Many younger spectators shout "Ferrari" in fascination as the exotic car drives past, but they are wrong. The home-built car, which looks like a prototype from Le Mans, has a 3.5 liter V6 Twin Turbo from Honda under the hood. For this race, the flounder shone in bright red, which is another reason to mistake it for an Italian. Nevertheless, the car is fast. Starting from 18th on the grid, he was able to fight his way up three places in the race to finish 15th.
Decision only made on the last lap
The battle for overall victory completes the picture of the very large starting fields and different cars at the VLN. As expected, the GT3 cars decided the victory among themselves. Rowe Racing was able to finish on the podium with both BMW M6 GT3 cars. However, the Manthey Porsche 911 GT3R came between the victorious car with starting number 99 and the sister car with 98 and secured second place. Annoyingly for the Nürburgring-based Manthey team, they were still leading going into the final lap of the race, but an unfortunate Code 60 phase cost them victory. But this is just another example of the thrilling races on the impressive track in the Eifel. You never know what challenges the next lap and corner will hold for the driver. But everyone is already looking forward to the next VLN race, and hopefully the weather gods will have mercy this time so that the lights can turn green punctually at 12 noon on April 13.
Watch the complete VLN1 race again
Thanks to Youtube you can watch the whole race again today.
