The title of fastest car overall at this years Goodwood Festival of Speed has been won by a Toyota Celica.
The sprint series Toyota Celica GT4 was built and driven to the title by former British Rally Champion Jonny Milner, and wowed the crowds at the prestigious event. The Celica powered its way up the 1.6 mile hillclimb course in the grounds of Goodwood House in just 48.07 seconds.
But for a small error, Milner would have won the televised shootout on the Sunday afternoon, but his time set earlier in the day proved to be the fastest of any car over the festival weekend. A massive crowd at the event, including stars such as F1 World Champion Lewis Hamilton, watched on as Milner’s Celica fended off the 200-car strong competition, which even included some recent Grands Prix race machines.
Rising of 300ft from start to finish, Goodwood’s 1.6 mile hillclimb course has become legendary for testing the technical and mental skills of some of the worlds greatest drivers and riders.
Milner had come close to winning the title in previous years, but modified his Celica even further to make sure he emerged victorious this time around. The Celica, based on the sixth generation of Toyota’s sports car, came to the 2011 event with an extra 100bhp, thanks to additions such as a Rotrex supercharger, and a nitrous oxide booster system to aid acceleration off the line. The end result is that the engine, taken from a World Rally Championship winning Toyota Corolla, now generates over 800bhp.
This awesome power is contained in an ultra-lightweight bodyshell of just 1,050kg. Getting all that power onto the road isn’t easy, and a flat floor and rear diffuser help to create a degree of ground effect. In addition, the drivers seat has been moved back 12 inches to improve weight distribution, and the rear wheel arches and upper suspension mounts have been raised to lower the Celica’s centre of gravity. It’s 18-inch wheels were shod with rallycross specification super soft Michelin slick racing tyres.
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