32 replies to this topic

[LarryKing]

Boy, SCCA Pro Racing really blew it. You've got the Big 3 each making a pony car, yet the SCCA sticks to their 'funny car' formula for Trans Am. They're are missing a HUGE marketing opportunity

When I'm in charge Trans Am will return to its roots - stock sheet metal, stock suspension points, rear-drive, stock block and heads V8 power, 2-door coupes, with Penske cheating like a mo-fo.

What's that you say? "This already exist in Grand Am?" Go away, you're wrong. I'm not interested in your short-sided views. Who cares about the current Trans Am series? Nobody, that's who.

Now, on to solving world hunger - "Move to where the food is."



Dan Gurney for President.

[naparsei]

Agreed. In the meantime, I bring you: http://www.historict....com/index.html

[AJ Roderick]

so basically how AS is now......

[LarryKing]

AJ, honest answer, no Googling, who was the 2011 Trans Am champion?

[AJ Roderick]

tony ave

[Caveman-kwebb99]

It was Ricky Bobby

[LarryKing]

Kyle is correct. It was Ricky Bobby in a Monte Carlo.

[Caveman-kwebb99]

^{Me thinks it was an Olds Cutlass Supreme?}

[LarryKing]

Supreme eh, that's the richest kind.

AJ, I'll take your word that you knew Ave off the top of your head, I sure as hell didn't, but, again honestly, do you give a crap about the Trans Am series? I watched the Trans Am race at Mid-O a couple years ago, only because it was part of an SCCA event that I was at anyway. It was boring as shiz. I think there might have been 8-10 cars total and half of them were clapped-out GT-1s. I'm pretty sure one car was an Olds Cutlass Supremo.

[Caveman-kwebb99]

Burt Reynolds drove a Trans Am, and so did David The Hoff Knight Rider... What else do we need to know about Trans Am?

[LarryKing]

BTW, A Sedan is the final resting place for 1984 Camaros and Fox-body Mustangs.

I'm talking about new, factory-supported, Camaros, Mustangs and Challengers.

Big difference.

[AJ Roderick]

Trans am = GT1 cars. Tony Ave won just about every race this year, basically untouched. He would be 3-4 seconds quicker. Only reason he lost a race was from his car breaking. Local racer Amy Ruman just bought a new trans am car for the next season. They are saying if she doesnt win with that car, then she just cant drive. I grew up around GT1 cars so I know a few of the Trans am drivers..


And yes, it is boring. and they are lucky to even get 10 cars.

[Glenn]

Trans am = GT1 cars. Tony Ave won just about every race this year, basically untouched. He would be 3-4 seconds quicker. Only reason he lost a race was from his car breaking. Local racer Amy Ruman just bought a new trans am car for the next season. They are saying if she doesnt win with that car, then she just cant drive. I grew up around GT1 cars so I know a few of the Trans am drivers..


And yes, it is boring. and they are lucky to even get 10 cars.

Its like watching drag racing from corner to corner BRRRRRRRAAAAT......sloooooooo.......BRRRRRRAAAAT.......slooooooooo

Last event I saw was @ VIR the leader NEVER hit an APEX at NASCAR, I can just imagine how much quicker he would have been "on line"

[LarryKing]

Back to my original rant - the SCCA is missing an opportunity to create some real excitment. At least, I think it would be exciting to see a 'retro' Trans Am series.

[Jim Drago]

tony ave

I think Tony may be volunteering his services in the club soon...

[Jim Boemler]

Back to my original rant - the SCCA is missing an opportunity to create some real excitment. At least, I think it would be exciting to see a 'retro' Trans Am series.

I agree, and I suspect the OEMs would as well. You could always take up promoting such a thing, and make it happen...

[Michael Colangelo]

Maybe something like SCCA T2 but promoted better and restricted to modern, late model Mustang GT, Camaro, Challenger, 370Z, and Hyundai Genesis (yes, Hyundai). All based on street cars, no body-in-white factory race cars. Buy a car from local dealer, add limited suspension mods (springs, single-adjustable dampers, sways), brake cooling (heavy cars), and the usual safety gear. Go race. Kind of like B-SPEC but with cars people actually equate with performance.

$35k car new, add $10k to turn into race car.

[DES4]

Back to my original rant - the SCCA is missing an opportunity to create some real excitment. At least, I think it would be exciting to see a 'retro' Trans Am series.

In absolute agreement. Actually, all sanctioning bodies have lost sight of what made racing as exciting as it was in the late sixties.

The Trans-Am forced development of pony cars and their powertrains. It necessitated a better performance car from the manufacturer.

A good example of this is the competition between manufacturers in NASCAR in the late sixties. Were it not for NASCAR mandating that the parts used on the race cars had to be production bits available to the general public, we would never had seen the likes of street motors like the 426 Hemi or 429 Boss. Limited runs of special aero cars, such as the Torino Tallegeda, Cyclone Spoiler II, Daytona Charger and Roadrunner Superbird existed for homologation purposes only, and remain icons from their era. It forced development of street cars and made racing far more exciting, as manufacturers were keenly involved. Compare that to a NASCAR "stock car" today... nothing in common with its street counterpart. The Ford/Chevrolet/Dodge rivalries also made the racing far more interesting to watch; these days, the mention of the "manufacturer" of a modern NASCAR race car is academic and really, there's no correlation.

... but the short of it is that racing really needs to return to its roots.

[AJ Roderick]

I think Tony may be volunteering his services in the club soon...

How so?

[LarryKing]

Right you are DES4 - I liked NASCAR better when they used factory sheet metal. About the only thing that differentiates the cars now is the 'headlight' stickers.