This 1970 Ferrari 512 M Changed the Racing World Forever

When the Sunoco Ferrari 512 M first appeared at Daytona in 1971 it was a revelation. Manned by a dream team that included owner Roger Penske, chief mechanic John “Woody” Woodard, and drivers Mark Donohue and David Hobbs, the car combined Ferrari’s pedigree with Penske’s legendary attention to detail in everything from his crew’s uniforms to the polished wheels. Slated to run at Daytona, Sebring, Le Mans, and Watkins Glen, this 512 M was the odds-on favorite every time the Penske team rolled it onto the starting grid. In a historic run of bum luck, however, the car never won a single race. Debuting at the 24 Hours of Daytona, Donohue put the 512 M on the pole. Just before midnight, however, Vic Elford blew a tire on his Porsche 917 and in the ensuing slowdown, Charles Perry and his 911S ran into Donohue and the 512 M. The Penske crew taped and patched up the car as best they could and watched Donohue and Hobbs fight their way back to a third place finish. Next up was the 12 Hours of Sebring, where the 512 M was once again on the pole. In the fourth hour of the race, away from photographers’ cameras, Pedro Rodriguez, driving a Porsche 917, rammed Donohue multiple times, sending the Ferrari into the pits for repairs. Once again, the pit crew managed to get the car back on the track, where it finished sixth. Shipped to France for the Le Mans 24 Hours, the Ferrari 512 M was considered an underdog against the long-tailed Porsche 917s, which had a speed advantage over the Ferrari. Alas, the Sunoco team barely got a chance to prove itself: the 512 M retired with engine failure on Saturday evening. Finally, it was back to the United States for the Watkins Glen 6 hours. Donohue was leading in the 54th lap when a broken steering knuckle sent him into the pits and out of the race. The Penske team came back the next day to run the car in the Watkins Glen Can Am race but the car’s original racing days were over. Despite its misfortunes on the track, the Sunoco Ferrari 512 M and the team that ran it remain among the most important racing stories of the 1970s. At a time when racing teams paid little attention to “spit and polish,” Roger Penske demanded that his cars and his teams be precise, disciplined, and spotless. Remove bad luck from the equation and this insistence on excellence would’ve paid off. As it is, it still changed the world of motorsports, as other teams quickly realized that they would have to change their own operations if they hoped to compete successfully in the long term. Drive Tastefully® http://Petrolicious.com

Homologation Specials: 1990 Mercedes-Benz 190 E 2.5-16 Evolution II

In the 1980s and ’90s, Mercedes-Benz produced nearly two million units of the 190 compact sedan, but these were not created equally. The variants of the entry-level Merc ranged from  beige Moroccan taxi cabs with workhorse diesels under the hood and fewer amenities than a room at the YMCA, to the homologation specials with Cosworth-and-AMG-developed engines wearing aero kits shaped by wind tunnels and phDs. The ultimate road-going iteration, the 190 E 2.5-16 Evolution II featured in today’s film driven by none other than Alain de Cadenet, was born to support Mercedes’s battle with BMW and Audi in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft (DTM), homologating the competition version that went on to win the manufacturers’ championship in 1991 and 1992, besting its rivals during one of the headiest periods of touring car motorsport. But even without the achievements of its racing relative, the street legal version was fated for infamy. The almost egregiously tall rear wing and the rest of the bodywork augmentations are emblematic of the era it was born into, and although its styling has been polarizing car enthusiasts for three decades and counting, there is no denying that this car has presence. It’s a lot to look at, but what’s it like to drive? Is there a better way to answer that question than to put one in the talented hands of Alain de Cadenet on a winding mountain road in Spain? Not likely. More films, articles, and photos: https://www.petrolicious.com

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Volvo P1800 Cyan Racing review | Amazing restomod tested | Autocar

There's not much original P1800 left. Cyan takes a few bits of the structure and rebuilds an entire car around it, including a 2.0-lire 414bhp turbocharged engine, double-wishbone suspension all around and plenty of carbon fibre. The result is a car that costs nearly £400,000 and weighs just 990kg. Cyan doesn't quote 0-60mph numbers of a top speed, but given the P1800 Cyan has no driver aids and a manual gearbox, we reckon it'll hit 60mph in under 5.0seconds and go on to 170mph.