GT Racing - GT1, GT3, Blancpain Endurance Series & National GT SeriesSports Cars
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Beechdean AMR is taking a sabbatical from British GT to focus on ELMS and Le Mans.
I wouldn't be surprised if we see them return with a new Vantage GT3 model. The current one is comparitively long in the tooth. Same could be said for the GT4 as well.
I wouldn't be surprised if we see them return with a new Vantage GT3 model. The current one is comparitively long in the tooth. Same could be said for the GT4 as well.
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Any chance of the DB11 being a platform for a new Aston Martin racing car? I know there is zero chance and AMR are happy with the Vantage but from the perspective of dreams, I think the DB11 would be an ace replacement and looks the biz. But then I am handicapped by not having a great deal of inside technical and mechanical knowledge of racing cars. I wouldn't know whether the DB11 would comply with the rules regarding what car's can be homologated.
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They did test a twin turbo V8 version of the DB11. Whether or not that was just testing for the next Vantage I don't know. But they need an engine around the 5.0L mark for GTE, while in GT3 and GT4 they can use the twin turbo V12 in the DB11 since there really aren't heavy restrictions on engines for those two classes that I know of.
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Cost is an indirect restriction I would say.
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I've only seen this
http://sportscar365.com/industry/emil-frey-planning-jaguar-f-type-gt3/
We need an update.
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It was discussed in depth during the Spa 24h, Emil Frey want to do it and from memory Jaguar have given permission for them to do it, but Emil Frey want factory technical support as well as funding, obviously, and Jaguar have denied it to focus on Formula E,
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As a fan of GT racing, I'll agree with you.
As a pragmatist, GT3 has already reached its zenith and is showing early signs of decay. Allocating any amount of budget or resources for a single team to race with no guarantee of competitiveness to promote an image that your brand already exudes is foolhardy.
The last time Jaguar did that, a tragic accident turned the whole project upside down.
As a pragmatist, GT3 has already reached its zenith and is showing early signs of decay. Allocating any amount of budget or resources for a single team to race with no guarantee of competitiveness to promote an image that your brand already exudes is foolhardy.
The last time Jaguar did that, a tragic accident turned the whole project upside down.
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British GT grids are not what they used to be for GT3, with many teams opting for GT4, which could indicate a trend going forward. Am drivers may pick cheaper GT4 rides.
I dont think GT3 is going to disappear over night or maybe at all, but the class is not getting cheaper.
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Ah. Well I hate to say it, but British GT is suffering alone. Most other series have been seeing sizable grids, and even though the costs are rising there's quite the grids across the rest of the globe. Though I will say that GT4 is a growing class as well.
Exactly. IMSA is only out of a few of the manufactures because of their entry fee and also the teams favoring certain cars. Should also mention the amount of GT3's in Japan/Asia between both the SuperGT and that other endurance series they have.
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@catamount39 Super Taiku?...I feel like I butchered the spelling 
I wish there was a reliable way to watch that, because from what I gather, it's full of all sorts of interesting race cars
I wish there was a reliable way to watch that, because from what I gather, it's full of all sorts of interesting race cars
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Taikyu.@catamount39 Super Taiku?...I feel like I butchered the spelling
It is. GT3 cars, sports sedans, sports cars, roadsters, small hatches. MZRSport record their races. I do wish there were a dedicated live broadcast.
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That they are going to be fazed out of VLN/ADAC 24 hours over the next couple of years, I heard on radio Le Mans, (don't know what the source is though) which is why all the German manufacturers are making GT4's now?
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ADAC and VLN are small (compared to the other examples), not exactly a concern. And while VLN dropping GT3 is sad, its not a concern either. Not globally. The VLN is a niche series, and only the N24 would be considered "important" by non-German makes.
That's not saying GT3 isn't becoming more expensive to run by the gear. Nevertheless, the grids are at there highest numbers yet in many places. IMSA had 55 cars at Daytona, a bulk being GT3. The 24 Hours of Spa had a massive grid last year, with Blancpain being equally sizeable.
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The biggest thing GT3 has going for it is that it's a customer-based formula with many manufacturers able to set up a consumer-style distribution of cars and actually make money from selling them (or at least recoup the costs to develop the cars).
This means brands like Ferrari-Michelotto, Audi, Lamborghini and Porsche can populate the field, while Acura's, Cadillac's and Corvette's can do their piece-meal factory/customer team deal. So even if a brand doesn't want to set up the distribution and support network to put their cars around the world, they can still have a pair of cars in a series and get recognition from it while knowing that there's going to be competition in the grid.
Still, as GT4 gets filled with cars made by the same brands or manufacturers that sell products in GT3, and as budgets of GT3 increase, I expect to see those bumper grids slowly shift down until the new GT convergence talks blend everything with GTE.
Blancpain was GT3-GT4 once, and I expect that it'll become GT3-GT4 again here in the future (if it isn't already... I haven't exactly been paying attention to it lately).
And I don't expect the current level of attendance in IMSA forever. With PC kicking the can and the influx of Acura, Lexus and Mercedes, grids are big this year. But in a season or two, when Amateur's start sorting out who the winners are and the losers are, or get tired of paying to run an 11-12 race Calendar with two of those being the D24 and Sebring 12, we'll see a decline in grid numbers. I think 12-14 full season entries is likely a healthy number long term, but if it drops below even that then IMSA might start exploring it's options.
Still, as long as Ratel, IMSA, ACO and the FIA remain committed to specs and platforms, it makes for a healthy long term view. Nothing kills a class more than uncertainty. Who wants to buy a car that they can't race in a year?
This means brands like Ferrari-Michelotto, Audi, Lamborghini and Porsche can populate the field, while Acura's, Cadillac's and Corvette's can do their piece-meal factory/customer team deal. So even if a brand doesn't want to set up the distribution and support network to put their cars around the world, they can still have a pair of cars in a series and get recognition from it while knowing that there's going to be competition in the grid.
Still, as GT4 gets filled with cars made by the same brands or manufacturers that sell products in GT3, and as budgets of GT3 increase, I expect to see those bumper grids slowly shift down until the new GT convergence talks blend everything with GTE.
Blancpain was GT3-GT4 once, and I expect that it'll become GT3-GT4 again here in the future (if it isn't already... I haven't exactly been paying attention to it lately).
And I don't expect the current level of attendance in IMSA forever. With PC kicking the can and the influx of Acura, Lexus and Mercedes, grids are big this year. But in a season or two, when Amateur's start sorting out who the winners are and the losers are, or get tired of paying to run an 11-12 race Calendar with two of those being the D24 and Sebring 12, we'll see a decline in grid numbers. I think 12-14 full season entries is likely a healthy number long term, but if it drops below even that then IMSA might start exploring it's options.
Still, as long as Ratel, IMSA, ACO and the FIA remain committed to specs and platforms, it makes for a healthy long term view. Nothing kills a class more than uncertainty. Who wants to buy a car that they can't race in a year?
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GT3 will start failing when 3rd party companies like Reiter, Callaway and Emil Frey cant build competitive machinery anymore, which from memory there wasn't a Reiter engineering car in the Blancpain series until Spa 24h, companies like these keep GT3 interesting with eccentric cars like the Gallardo and Camaro, companies like these are currently thriving in GT4 at the moment while there is little factory involvement,
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The parallels between 2007 GT3 and 2017 GT4 are fairly strong. '07 had a lot of skunk works GT3, with Vipers and Astons being modified for the spec, while Reiter, Callaway, Ascari, Morgan and others were competitive.
Then Audi showed up and the flood gates were opened.
GT4 does have the benefit of a slow burn and build over the last ten years, but I think it's only a matter of time before they get out of hand. Maybe be 2027.
Then Audi showed up and the flood gates were opened.
GT4 does have the benefit of a slow burn and build over the last ten years, but I think it's only a matter of time before they get out of hand. Maybe be 2027.
