After two and a half years of development Donkervoort Automobielen in Lelystad – in close collaboration with Audi Quattro GmbH – recently presented the next generation of open sports cars: the Donkervoort GTO.

With a capacity of 253 to 298kW and torque of 450Nm from about 1600rom. And all this with a total weight of around 700kg. Without a doubt one of the fastest sports cars on the European market andn, with the first private preview for Donkervoort Ambassadors from all over Europe, received so enthusiastically that within a few hours approximately half of the first 25 specially designed GTOs were sold.

The GTO is clearly a size larger than its predecessors, the closed GT and the open D8 270RS. About 35 centimetres longer and 15 centimetres wider, to be exact. Necessary to accommodate the massive, longitudinally placed, five-cylinder 253kW 2.5 TFSI Audi motor and at the same time realise an astonishing balance in the design. The GTO is therefore a brand-new designed car. Only sharing 5% of the parts with the D8 270RS and about 30% with the much more recent GT. A milestone in the 34-year history of Donkervoort.

The first 25 specially designed GTOs are also equipped with a 2.5 TFSI motor, which is 30kg lighter than the standard Audi variant. The dashboard in this design of the GTO is equipped with a special race module switch, which can increase the capacity from 253 to 298kW at once. Connected to this is another Donkervoort novelty: the first car from Lelystad that has ‘traction control’ on board. Only for when it is raining of course!

Pproduction of the new car starts in 2012, whereby it is expected that the first specially designed GTOs will be delivered in the summer. The first ‘regular’ versions are expected on the European roads starting in 2013. The price of the new GTO is between € 100,000 and € 150,000 excluding taxes.

This version of the iconic ’60s Batmobile comes pre-painted, is easy to assemble and is loaded with Bat-features such as a fully detailed interior and bat-wheel spinners. Just for good measure, the kit also comes with pre-painted Batman and Robin figurines. Thanks to the good guys at Toymod – distributors of Polar Lights models – simply answer the following question to be into win this terrific model:

In what country were the final VW Beetles assembled?

To enter this competition, click here.
Competition closes on January 28, 2012.

Our featured models from SPR this month are from Spark’s new range of 1:43 pit accessories – a set of six generic Le Mans pit crew in white overalls (item #43AC004), and six Team Peugeot crew from Le Mans 2009 (item #43AC008). These sets of figurines include tyre changers, jack man, fuel crew, mechanics, and pit board men. When displayed with one of Spark’s 1.43 race cars they would create a great diorama. And like all Spark models the quality of the pit crew is impressive, with detailed resin bodies, extremely fine metal accessories, and superb paint and decals.

Go into the draw to win the Spark brand 1:43 Team Peugeot pit crew by answering the following question.
The Team Peugeot pit figurines featured here crewed on the #9 Le Mans Peugeot 908 HDi FAP. In what position did this car finish in the 24 hour race?

To enter this competition, click here.
Competition closes on January 28, 2012.
More info: www.spr.co.nz

The January edition of NZ Classic Car is now on sale – featuring a beautifully restored Ford Zodiac MkIII on it’s cover; our first 2012 issue also features a unique Allard P1 and a fully restored and very rare K-Code Hi-Po 289 Ford Mustang. In this month’s Motorsport Flashback column, Michael Clark remembers the late Bryan Faloon, while our resident Motor Man, Donn Anderson, writes about his experiences with Mini Cooper police cars in Australia.

On the motorsport front, we report back from the first two rounds of the Tasman Revival Series and also take a look at the recent MG Classic at Manfeild.

For those who prefer to use their classic cars for more leisurely pursuits, Trevor Stanley recounts his adventures from another of his extensive South Island Tours.

As an additional bonus, the January issue also includes an exclusive pull-out Don Packwood print showing Chris Amon on his way to winning the 1973 Nurburgring Six Hour Race in the legendary BMW 3.0CSL – the very ‘Batmobile’ that we featured on the front cover of our December 2011 edition.

Happy summer reading from all at NZ Classic Car.

The biggest motorcyle road race show this summer kicks off at Hampton Downs this Saturday, December 10^th. Round two of the 2011 Suzuki International Tri-Series gets underway at Manfield a week later, followed by the 59th running of the famous Cemetery Circuit in Wanganui, on Boxing Day.

Heading the F1 Superbike class is defending three-time Suzuki Tri-Series champion Andrew Stroud and his Suzuki GSX-R1000. Anyone with hopes of winning this year’s Suzuki Tri-Series has to get past the nine times NZ Superbike champion, and that will be no easy task.

Yet three men were fast enough to beat Stroud last year, two from Australia, so the Hamiltonian didn’t have it all his own way. Sloan Frost fired the first shot by winning the opening race at Hampton Downs on his BMW 1000RR, and went on to claim second in the title chase. Australian top-runner Robbie Bugden won race two for Suzuki, however Stroud retaliated with a pair of wins at Manfield. But the father of eight got more competition than he expected during Wanganui’s final round on Boxing Day. Stroud held off strong challenges by Nick Cole (Kawasaki) and Craig Shirriffs in race one, then Australian Dan Stauffer (Yamaha) surprised everyone by taking victory in the final race during his first visit to the Cemetery Circuit. After a long duel with Stroud, Stauffer went on to win an exhilarating Robert Holden Memorial feature race.

F1 Sidecars is always a crowd favourite and the Adam Unsworth/Stu Dawe partnership will be a tough act to beat for the rest of the large field. All the support classes will return including F3 Sportbikes, Post Classics (which promises to be a thriller this year), BEARS, Ultra Lites at the dedicated race tracks, and Classic Sidecars at Wanganui.

The first of the series starts on Saturday 10th December at Hampton Downs. For more information head to www.cemeterycircuit.co.nz”.

To enter the draw to win a free double pass to this weekend’s Suzuki International Tri-Series at Hampton Downs, simply send an email to editor@classiccar.co.nz with ‘Suzuki’ as the header and we’ll email you a ticket which you can print out and present at the gate.

Subaru – best known for their four-wheel drive rice-rockets – are making a bid for the world sports car market with their new BRZ, which was recently unveiled at the Tokyo Motor Show. Eschewing their more usual four-paw drive system, Subaru have opted to go with a classic rear-wheel drive configuration for the BRZ – although they’ll be sticking with their tried-and-true horizontally-opposed Boxer engine. The BRZ was developed as a joint-project between Subaru and Toyota Motor Corporation. Weighing in at 1220kg, the naturally aspirated boxer engine will be unique to the BRZ and, coupled to a six-speed manual gearbox, is said to produce 147kW and 205Nm of torque – although Subaru are keeping quiet about the BRZ’s potential performance. A six-speed auto will also be offered on the BRZ.

No decision has been made yet whether the car will be launched in New Zealand, where all Subarus have been All Wheel Drive since 1996.

The Barrett-Jackson Auction Company will offer nine one-of-a-kind vehicles in their salon-offering category on January 15-22, 2012 at WestWorld of Scottsdale, US.These rare vehicles include a 1947 Bentley Franay Mark VI Cabriolet, universally recognized as the most successful and expensive post war Bentley/Rolls-Royce automobile of all time with the Concours and auction record to prove it. In August of 1991 at the Rolls-Royce national meet, the Bentley Franay was judged by its peers as ‘Best of Show’ among all competing Rolls-Royce and Bentley automobiles from around the world. In 1999 it won the most coveted award that the RROC (Rolls-Royce Owners Club) could bestow, the Royce Memorial Trophy and top senior award ‘Best of Prior Best of Show.’Joining the Bentley Franay will be a 1948 Tucker Torpedo, an advanced automobile conceived by Preston Tucker and briefly produced in Chicago in 1948 with only 51 examples ever made. Also on the docket is a 1957 De Soto Adventurer Convertible powered by the famous 345hp, 345cid Hemi V8 with dual quads and an automatic transmission – a car once owned by King Mohammed V of Morocco.

Other vehicles being offered at the sale will be –

1954 Mercedes-Benz 300SL ‘Gullwing’ Coupe. With only 4,149 Original Miles, this exceptional example is one of only 146 that were built in 1954 and is one of the lowest mileage Gullwings in existence.

1933 Pierce Arrow Silver Arrow. The Silver Arrow caused a sensation when it was unveiled at the New York Auto show in January 1933. Only five were ever built.

1930 Duesenberg Model J Murphy Town Car – One of only four built. In the 1980s, Florida car collector Bill Lassiter had a complete restoration performed on the car.

1930 Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8A Roadster Cabriolet by Castagna. With 13,350 original miles, this beautiful Isotta Fraschini is a Tipo 8A with wonderful coachwork by Castagna of Milan, Italy.

1928 Daimler P150 Royal Limousine – the largest British car ever built. 7.163-litre V12, steel-sleeve valve engine producing 150hp at 248rpm, a 163-inch wheelbase, 21-foot overall length and weighs 8100 lbs. This vehicle’s ownership history includes the Harrah’s Automobile Collection.

For more information about Barrett-Jackson and to purchase tickets to the event, visit www.barrett-jackson.com