CSCC Motorsports School Turbo Tin Tops Series
14th September 2017
CSCC Motorsports School Turbo Tin Tops Series
The Classic Sports Car Club has announced its tenth race series: Turbo Tin Tops. Sponsored by The Motorsports School, based at Mallory Park, this is the only race series to cater exclusively for front wheel drive turbo and supercharged cars and hybrids.
A full season of eight 40 minute pit-stop races is planned for 2018, including at Spa Francorchamps. Classes are designed to suit all makes and engine capacities, with hybrids being able to drop down a class.
CSCC Director, David Smitheram, wrote outline regulations back in 2014 but has been waiting for the right time to launch this new series. Manufacturers have been steadily replacing normally aspirated hot hatchbacks and coupes with forced induction models over the last ten years. With the announcement that the latest Suzuki Swift Sport will be turbocharged later this year, the normally aspirated front wheel drive breed is now sadly extinct.
When the government recently announced that there will be no new diesel and petrol cars from 2040 the mainstream press widely misquoted the details. New petrol cars do still have a future beyond 2040, but in the form of hybrids, with manufacturers adding supplementary battery powered motors to the internal combustion engine. Turbo and Supercharged hatchbacks and coupes are now the norm, with hybrid technology likely to trickle down from Supercars and Le Mans prototypes in the coming years. The FIA (and therefore MSA) have very complex rules on what you can and can’t do with a hybrid, so this new series will accept homologated models only, these cars automatically drop down a class to help compensate. Suitable models currently include the Honda CRZ, VW Golf GTE and the new Mini Cooper S E, with more to follow.
The prevalence of forced induction cars and likely future use of hybrids meant that now is the perfect time to launch this new series, the first in the UK to cater exclusively for front wheel drive forced induction cars of all makes. With simple eligibility rules and great value 40-minute pit stop races where two drivers can share the experience and costs CSCC Director, Hugo Holder, predicts this will be a successful series from the outset.
The CSCC’s long standing Tin Tops series for normally aspirated hatches and saloons was created back in 2005 and continues to go from strength to strength.
The Motorsports School based at Mallory Park and also operating from Rockingham and Donington Park are supporting Turbo Tin Tops from the start. Chief instructor and owner Pete Edwards said: “The Motorsports School are delighted to be associated with the CSCC and its new Turbo Tin Tops series.” For many years Pete Edwards has raced with the CSCC in various series and believes that we will make a great partnership. “Our aim is to be recognised by our customers and members for providing the highest quality racing and driving standards, and to always exceed the expectations of those who race in this new exciting series. We strive to achieve excellence in the performance of every one of our company activities. The Motorsports School feel we can do this with the CSCC.”
www.classicsportscarclub.co.uk
‘CSCC Turbo Tin Tops’
www.themotorsportsschool.co.uk