Caterham today unveils its fresh new branding, designed to spearhead the Caterham Group’s continuing international expansion and diversification into new sectors.
The new corporate identity features a bold new selection of green tones and a coloured Union Flag emblem, all reflecting Caterham’s proud British heritage.
Since Malaysian entrepreneurs Tony Fernandes and Datuk Kamarudin Meranun purchased the Caterham brand in 2011, the original sportscar company has been joined in the Group by Caterham Technology & Innovation (CTI), Caterham Composites, Caterham Bikes, Caterham Moto Racing Team, Caterham Challenge and the F1 and GP2 race teams.
The rebrand will be applied across all arms of the Group and has been designed to mirror the brand’s commitment to deliver ‘accessible fun’ across its whole spectrum of businesses.
Tony Fernandes, Caterham Group Co-Chairman said: “The Caterham coloured Union Flag emblem is our celebration of Caterham’s British heritage. The Caterham brand has been in existence for over 40 years and, in simple terms, is a brand that puts smiles on people’s faces. It is a proud British brand, one that celebrates Britain’s engineering prowess and we, in turn, are proud to showcase our British heritage.
“This is an exciting time for Caterham across all our interests; our F1 team is embarking on its fifth season with everything in place to make serious progress this year. On the roads, Caterham Cars goes from strength to strength, winning universal praise for launching its fastest ever road car, the 620R and the same acclaim for our lowest-priced model, the 160. We also have our roadcar partnership with Renault, which started in F1, and that is now firmly into the development phase of our first product, which will be on the roads in early 2016.
“In late 2013, we launched Caterham’s first two-wheeled ventures, while CTI is involved in a number of fascinating projects. Many of these we cannot talk about for confidentiality reasons, but there is a team in Hingham, working very closely with Caterham Cars and Renault on our new road car, bringing their skill set to bear alongside a major international car manufacturer.
“Caterham Composites, our specialist composite design and manufacturing consultancy in Germany, is also working on a range of concepts, including a project with Airbus Group on new, lightweight aircraft seats. The benefits of that project are obvious, and they are a good example of how we are creating innovation and revenue across the Group.
“Overall, this is an incredibly exciting time to be part of Caterham in all its guises. I am very pleased to see that companies of the stature of GE, Airbus Group and Dell / Intel continue to share our vision and I am excited about seeing how much further we can grow in 2014. I firmly believe that we will look back on 2014 as the year the Caterham story really began.”
Co-developed with 2015 Corvette Z06, sharing chassis, engine technologies and aerodynamics strategy
Makes competition debut Jan. 25 at the 52nd Rolex 24 At Daytona
Continues legacy of Corvette Racing, which includes 90 global victories and 10 manufacturer championships since 1999
Chevrolet today unveiled the Corvette C7.R race car, which was co-developed with the all-new 2015 Corvette Z06. They represent the closest link in modern times between Corvettes built for racing and the road, sharing unprecedented levels of engineering and components including chassis architecture, engine technologies and aerodynamic strategies.
“When it comes to endurance racing, Corvette has been the benchmark of success for nearly 15 years,” said Jim Campbell, U.S. vice president, Performance Vehicles and Motorsports. “A great deal of the team’s success can be attributed to the symbiotic relationship between Corvette Racing and the production vehicles. The 2015 Corvette Z06 and new C7.R will be more competitive on the street and track due to successful design of the Corvette Stingray – which itself is heavily based on the C6.R race car.”
Corvette Racing will field two C7.R race cars in 2014, starting later this month at the 52nd Rolex 24 At Daytona on Jan. 25-26. The race kicks off the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship – a new series debuting this year after the merger of the American Le Mans Series and GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series. The C7.R will compete in the GT Le Mans class in 11 races around North America.
The team is also is expected to compete in June at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – a race Chevrolet and Corvette Racing have won seven times – in the GTE Pro class.
Since the team’s competitive debut in 1999 with the Corvette C5-R, Corvette Racing has earned unmatched success. The C5-R and C6.R led Chevrolet to 90 victories around the world and 10 manufacturer championships in the American Le Mans Series. In 2013, Corvette Racing won five races and swept the manufacturer, team and driver championships in the GT class for a second consecutive season.
A key part of the team’s success is the technology transfer between Corvette production cars and race cars.
“Corvette Racing sets the gold standard for technology transfer between the track and street,” said Tadge Juechter, Corvette chief engineer. “We are continually taking what we learn in competition, and applying it to improve production Corvettes – which then make better race cars. As a result, the new Corvette Z06 is the most track-capable production Corvette ever while the new C7.R is poised to be even more competitive on the race circuit.”
Many of the architectural and aerodynamic features of the C7.R are based on equivalent components and technologies from the 2015 Corvette Z06, including:
New, aluminum frame As before, the race car and the Z06 will share the same, production-based aluminum frame. However, for the first time, the frames for the race car and production Z06 will be built in-house at the Corvette’s Bowling Green, Ky., assembly plant.
By leveraging advanced manufacturing materials – such as laser welding, Flowdrill-machined fasteners and a GM-patented aluminum spot-welding process – the production structure is significantly stronger than its predecessor. For Corvette Racing, this equates to a race chassis for the C7.R that is 40 percent stronger than the outgoing C6.R.
“In the first lap in the C7.R, the drivers felt the increase in chassis stiffness,” said Mark Kent, director of Racing for Chevrolet. “The drivers instantly noticed that the C7.R handling was better over changing surface features and rough track segments. This is important as our drivers don’t always stay on the smooth pavement, and are constantly driving over curbing at corner apexes.”
Direct-injected engine The addition of direct fuel injection to the Corvette Z06 will enable the technology to return to a Corvette race car for the first time since the end of the GT1 era in 2009. It promises greater efficiency, which can make a significant difference in long-distance endurance racing such as Daytona and Le Mans through fewer time-consuming pit stops.
“Direct injection offers two advantages for the race team,” said Kent. “First, it offers drivers more precise throttle control, so that even the smallest changes in the driver’s throttle position delivers a proportional response from the engine. Second, direct injection typically improves fuel economy about 3 percent. That could be enough to bypass one fuel stop during a 24-hour race. Given that races are often won and lost in the pits, a 3 percent gain in fuel economy could translate to a significant advantage in track position.”
Aerodynamics The aerodynamic strategies of the Corvette Stingray came directly from the Corvette C6.R – including the forward-tilted radiator, functional hood and front-quarter panel vents, and rear transmission and differential cooling intakes.
The Z06 and C7.R take that aerodynamic foundation to the next level, sharing aggressive strategies for increased cooling and aerodynamic downforce, including similar front splitters, rocker panels, and front- and rear-brake cooling ducts.
“We worked concurrently with the race team developing the aerodynamic packages for the Z06 and the C7.R,” said Juechter. “We even used the same modeling software to test both cars, enabling us to share data and wind-tunnel test results. As a result, the aerodynamics of the production Z06 produce the most downforce of any production car GM has ever tested, and we are closing in on the aero performance of a dedicated race car.”
There are, of course, differences between the race car and production Corvette Z06. For example, the C7.R carries over the powertrain for the C6.R, as the GT rules limit the maximum displacement to 5.5L, and prohibit forced induction. By comparison, the new Z06 boasts a supercharged 6.2L engine estimated at 625 horsepower. Both engines, however, are based on the historic small block architecture.
The suspension on the C7.R is modified to accommodate wider racing tires and larger brakes, again part of the GT regulations.
On the aerodynamic side, one major difference is the shift away from U.S. National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, or NACA, ducts on the C7.R. The C6.R used two NACA ducts, on top of the rear bodywork and near the position of the rear wheels, for cooling. For the new C7.R, there are now openings on each of the rear quarter panels, above the brake ducts, which will draw air to help cool the race car’s transaxle and differential.
Additionally, one of the primary results of the C7.R’s aero detail is making the rear wing a more-significant part of the car’s aero package. A larger radiator inlet has the added benefit of generating smoother airflow over the rear wing and making its use more efficient to the handling and stability of the race car at high speed.
More than 30 competition Jaguar and Jaguar-powered racers set to compete at Goodwod Revival (13-15 September)
The popular St Mary’s Trophy race dedicated to the memory of Jaguar racer, dealer and team manager John Coombs
New film by renowned British model David Gandy driving iconic Jaguar sports cars and new F-TYPE convertible available for public viewing at Jaguar stand in ‘Earls Court Motor Show’ exhibition at Goodwood Revival
Current Jaguar models to join recognised classic models in Earl’s Court Motor Show’ exhibition
Jaguar will have a huge presence at the 2013 Goodwood Revival, which opens its gates tomorrow to a sell-out crowd of keen and enthusiastic historic motor racing fans.
Over 30 historic Jaguar and Jaguar-powered race cars will be competing wheel-to-wheel at the unspoiled Goodwood Motor Circuit over the Revival weekend, with racing C-types, D-types, E-types and Mark II saloons out in force, often leading the grid, including a number of very famous, priceless and notable examples of the marque.
Expect to see Jaguar C-types leading the charge in Friday evening’s 90-minute Freddie March Memorial Trophy race into the dark, marking the 60th anniversary of the Goodwood Nine Hour races that occasionally ran in the mid-1950s. Jaguar Heritage Racing driver Alex Buncombe won this race in 2012 behind the wheel of a stunning C-type once owned by Formula 1 legend Juan Manuel Fangio.
Jaguar XK140s promise exciting racing in the Fordwater Trophy for production-based sports cars of a type that raced between 1955 and 1960, and a number of D-types will be vying for victory in the Sussex Trophy, competing against contemporary sports cars from Ferrari, Maserati and Aston Martin. Over a dozen E-types and E-type lightweights will compete in the hard-fought two-driver Royal Automobile Club TT Celebration race for closed-cockpit GT cars.
The popular St Mary’s Trophy for 1960s saloon cars will have a special poignancy this year as the race is dedicated to the memory of the great driver, racing team manager and renowned Guildford Jaguar dealer John Coombs. Coombs achieved fame with his racing Jaguar Mark II saloons, with the distinctive registration plates BUY 1 and BUY 2, as often driven by such motor racing greats as Graham Hill. Appropriately ex-Coombs Jaguar Mark IIs will be completing in the St Mary’s Trophy over the Revival weekend.
Away from the excitement of the on-track racing, numerous historic Jaguar models will be present at Goodwood, with team support cars dotted around the scenic paddocks, and examples of almost every classic Jaguar model parked-up in the huge Revival Car Show car park for pre-1966 vehicles, based just over the road opposite the main Goodwood circuit entrance.
The new Jaguar F-TYPE will be on display on the exhibition stand inside the nostalgic Earls Court Motor Show, where the brand’s lineage can be clearly seen, contrasting the stunning F-TYPE with two classic E-type sports cars.
The famous British model David Gandy will premiere his new short film, Escapism, on the Jaguar stand in Earls Court. This film features David driving some of the most famous sports cars ever produced, and celebrates the latest addition to Jaguar’s iconic sporting bloodline, the new F-TYPE convertible.
In the film Gandy gives us insight into his life as he invites us on a road trip that starts at dusk as he escapes ‘the craziness of London’. It features the style icon driving his favourite British heritage cars from the C-Type, E-Type and XKSS, through to the very latest F-TYPE.
Gandy discusses his passion for driving; “that feeling of freedom, just you and the car” and how driving is his ‘meditation’. Throughout, he wears the same Persol sunglasses as one of his icons, Steve McQueen, who famously owned a Jaguar XKSS that he affectionately called the "Green Rat".
