Simon Evans to join V8 Supercars with Super Black Racing

21 February, 2015

Super Black Racing, New Zealand’s only V8 Supercar team, has gained another driver — Simon Evans, the talented BNT NZ SuperTourer racer. Evans will soon be getting behind the wheel of another Ford Falcon, this time as part of the V8 Dunlop Development Series in Australia.

With his recent success in the local SuperTourers series, the Dunlop Development Series is the next logical step for Evans, and one he is looking forward to.

“Representing Super Black Racing as the only New Zealand team in the V8 Supercars at the moment just makes it even more exciting. It’s great to have their support, as it can be really hard for drivers to break out of New Zealand,” Evans says.

It’s not going to be a walk in the park for him, though; this will be his first time racing in Australia, other than racing kart. Evans will face the added challenge of having to learn each and every track during the allocated practice sessions.

For Super Black Racing, the opportunity to help Evans was one they couldn’t ignore.

“The [Super Black Racing] team was started to help New Zealand drivers break into different levels of motorsport, so when this became a possibility, we had to make it happen,” said Tony Lentino, Super Black Racing team owner.

Both the team and Simon Evans will be waiting for the big day of February 26, the Clipsal 500 held in Adelaide, heralding the official start of both the 2015 V8 Supercars season and the Dunlop Development Series.

Merry Christmas from NZ Classic Car magazine

The Classic Car magazine team is taking a few weeks’ holiday from the work computer and heading to the beach for some kickback time.
Merry Christmas, and have a wonderful summer holiday to all our readers, followers, and fans. Enjoy this special extra time with the family. We will be posting archive articles again in mid to late January.
Have fun, be good and be careful out there.

Two engines instead of one?

Popping two motors into a car is not only complicated, it doesn’t always end well. Donn Anderson recalls early attempts, including John Cooper’s ill-fated original Twini Mini built 58 years ago

For a boost in performance, better traction, and perhaps improved handling to some, two motors seems an obvious solution. It would also eliminate the need to develop a larger engine replacement from scratch, but would that outweigh the not inconsiderable technical difficulties?
The idea of using a pair of engines dates back at least 86 years to the Alfa Romeo Bimotor single seater racing car that was officially timed at 335km/h, or 208mph. Taking a lengthened Alfa P3 chassis, the Italians fitted two supercharged straight eight 2.9-litre and 3.2-litre engines, one in front of the cockpit, and the other behind the cockpit.