Sports car racing: Difference between revisions

While GT cars are at least in theory based on road -going versionsmodels, some GT1 cars in the mid to late 1990s were effectively purpose-built sports-prototypes which spawned exotic production cars with [[homologation]] production limits of 25 cars (for small manufacturers, such as [[Saleen]]) or 100 cars (for major manufacturers like [[Daimler AG]]).

The original form of GT1 racing was dropped in 1998 because of rising costs. The GT1 class was for the purebred supercars[[supercar]]s and purpose-built race cars, such as the [[McLaren F1 GTR]], [[Ferrari F40]], [[Porsche 911 GT1]], [[Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR]], [[Toyota GT-One]] and [[Nissan R390]] – while the first two were a derivatives of roadgoing sports cars, the German and Japanese contenders were pure-bred racing cars – virtually sports prototypes. Rising costs coupled with declining entries led to the death of this class, and it was replaced by what was then GT2 (FIA, which evolved into the current GT1) and [[Le Mans Prototype]] (LMP, by the ACO).

In Japan, the [[Super GT]] series divides cars into two classes, called '''GT500''' and '''GT300'''. These cars are less restricted than their European and American counterparts, with cars often sporting tube frame clips and forced induction kits. Teams are also free to change engines with other models made by the manufacturer. The numbers in the classifications refer to the maximum power (in horsepower) available to each class; this is achieved through the use of engine restrictors. Proponents of the series claim that the Super GT cars are the fastest sports cars in the world, while critics deride the cars as being outside the limits of 'acceptable' modifications. In recent years however, rule changes in both GT500 and GT1 (aimed at eventually allowing both classes to compete with each other in the future) have brought the cars closer to each other, although GT500 cars still have a notable advantage in terms of aerodynamics and cornering performance (enough to compensate for GT1 cars greater power).