By: Marshall Pruett June 7, 2018 6:00 AM Acura is returning to the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb with a four-pronged assault on the June 22-24 event.Led by Peter Cunningham in the Open class for a second time with his ex-Pirelli World Challenge Acura TLX-GT, the American arm of the Japanese brand will also pursue victory in the Exhibition class with Nick Robinson driving a 2018 TLX A-Spec; his brother James Robinson will take the wheel of a 2017 NSX in Time Attack 1. Courtesy of Jordan Guitar, the competition debut of Acura’s 2019 RDX in the Exhibition class will also take place.Cunningham, the most successful driver in PWC history, was an instant success on his PPIHC debut in 2017 with the all-wheel-drive twin-turbo V6-powered TLX-GT, and aims to lower his time on the mountain thanks to aero and engine advancements that have been made.“What we managed to do with the engine was squeak a little more power out,” the RealTime Racing founder told RACER. “It’s the same engine from last year with the same turbos, but Honda Performance Development engineers have found more power. We have an updated front aero package with new dive planes and a revised splitter we developed with TotalSim, and they spent some time working out what we really needed up front. We have the same rear wing, but with different endplates and more angle to balance out the front.”The RTR-prepped TLX-GT, which sports a new livery, will also make use of a new tire partner for this year’s ‘Race to the Clouds.’“The rules, through last year, required DOT-specification tires, and that has changed so we’ll have Pirelli slicks on the car,” Cunningham added. “We’re hoping to improve our relative performance, and in testing, it’s hard to know where you’re at, but we showed well compared to the cars we were up against that were testing.”As one of very few manufacturers to make an annual commitment to the event, the assortment of race cars and production cars fielded by the brand brings more character to Pikes Peak. On the personal side, Cunningham looks forward to the camaraderie found within the Honda/Acura camp.“The three other members of the team are Honda associates from Ohio, and in the case of Nick and James, they’ve been there multiple years, and Jordan Guitar, who’s a successful rally driver for a Honda-associated team, will make his debut with the 2019 RDX.“What I like most about this is how so many people from within the company volunteer, get dirty, do what’s needed, and it’s a very enjoyable way to showcase the cars and just have fun together,” he said. “It’s unlike anything you’ll find at a regular racing event.”

By: RACER Staff June 4, 2018 3:42 PM NASCAR Hall of Fame crew chief Ray Evernham and his custom-built 1936 Chevy Sedan, nicknamed “The Ghost,” have entered the 96th running of The Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, set to take place on June 24.The Ghost is designed to look like a modified from the 1960s but features state-of-the-art mechanics and electronics and is powered by an 850-plus horsepower Chevy SB2 engine. It’s dubbed The Ghost because of its pearl-white paint scheme. “I’m truly honored to have been given the opportunity to compete in the 96th running of the Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb,” Evernham said. “The hill climb at Pikes Peak is an event I have always had tremendous respect for but, to be honest, is never one I envisioned myself competing in. It is one of the premier and most historic racing events held anywhere in the world so to earn a spot in the field is like a dream come true.“The Ghost is a culmination of my 40-plus years of experience in auto racing. We wanted to design and build the car from the ground up the way we did in the 70s and 80s. No computers, no lasers, just using the knowledge we have accumulated through the years. “On the outside, the car looks like the modifieds I grew up watching race at short tracks in New Jersey but, on the inside, it is packed with all of the latest and greatest racing technology you can get. Countless hours have gone into getting both the car and me ready for this event. We can’t wait to get on the mountain to see what it can do.”Evernham joins a Pikes Peak Challenge-Exhibition Class that features Hill Climb superstar Rhys Millen behind the wheel of a 2018 Bentley Bentayga, Scott Birdsall with his 1949 Ford F1, “Old Smokey,” Honda Brake design engineer Jordan Guitar, Californian Ross Murray in a 2015 Dodge Viper, and Donald Greenberg with his 2015 Viper.

By: RACER Staff June 24, 2018 3:00 PM Romain Dumas, Volkswagen and the fully electric I.D. R Pikes Peak made history together at today’s Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. Driving the 500-kW (680 PS) I.D. R Pikes Peak in the unique race up the 12.42-mile, 156-turn public toll road which climbs from the start at 9,390 ft. to a power-robbing 14,115 ft. elevation, Frenchman Dumas defeated a field including cars with conventional drivetrain technology. In doing so, he not only broke the previous record for electric vehicles, but also bettered Sebastien Loeb’s all-time record from 2013 in a Peugeot 208 T16 by a full 16 seconds, delivering a time of 7m57.148s.
For Dumas, it was a fourth Pikes Peak victory, to go with his pair of overall victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.“The I.D. R Pikes Peak is the sporty forerunner of Volkswagen’s fully-electric I.D. family. Today, we saw what this technology is capable of,” said Dr. Frank Welsch, Member of the Board of Management of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand Technical Development. “Every Volkswagen employee can be extremely proud of today’s result. I congratulate the team from the bottom of my heart. With a combination of outstanding engineering skill, passion and commitment, the team has managed to create a fantastic racing car in just eight months. The Volkswagen I.D. R Pikes Peak has now set the fastest time in the history of this hill climb, which spans more than 100 years – that speaks volumes for electric mobility.”Peter Cunningham won the Pikes Peak Open class with his Acura TLX GT, with a time of 9m27.352s.This year’s TLX GT featured a power-enhanced J35 twin-turbo V6 motor with new software mapping, new transmission gearing, revised suspension geometry and Pirelli racing slicks. Long-time Acura racing partner and owner of RealTime Racing, Peter Cunningham, was last year’s Pikes Peak Rookie of the Year.“I’m so proud of our Acura and RealTime Racing team, who, as usual, brought their A-game to the top of the mountain,” said Cunningham. “We had some incredibly tough competition this year, but all of our hard work, building on the great fundamentals of the Acura TLX, paid off in a big way again this year.”Other class winners included Paul Dallenbach in Open wheel (9m37.135s), David Donohue in Time Attack 1 (9m37.152s) and Carlin Dunne in Heavyweight (9m59.102s).