Introducing the new Catfish Speedster sports car by Bauer Limited Production. This exciting kit car uses either the 1st (NA) or 2nd (NB) generation Mazda Miata/ MX-5/ Roadster as a donor for the front and rear subframes, the complete drivetrain including electronics, engine, transmission, Power Plant Frame (PPF), rear differential and axles along with the complete rear suspension assembly, fuel tank, instrument panel and seats. These original Mazda components are tied together by a rigid and lightweight steel tube spaceframe chassis designed by Ron Hemphill, who has fabricated many Paris-Dakar and Baja off-road rally winning vehicles.
The original Catfish Speedster styling sketch was penned by Greg Tada, graduate of the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. Greg previously worked as a
Motorcycle Designer at American Suzuki Motor Corporation and now he is working as an Industrial Designer at Polaris Industries, maker of many popular motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles and snowmobiles. The deisgn was further refined with the help of
Zukun Plan, designers of the
RCR-Superlite Nemesis.
The sleek body is made of composite construction using a woven high-strength fiberglass known as S-glass with carbon fiber reinforcements in areas where needed. This allows the Catfish Speedster to have the necessary strength and lightness while keeping costs down. A complete carbon fiber body is planned as an optional upgrade in the future. This is a true Speedster design. There is no weather protection. There aren't even any doors! For maximum chassis rigidity, there are no door apertures, so the driver must remove the steering wheel and hop in just like a real race car.
In its current state, the Catfish Speedster weighs just 1,567lbs (712kg) fully wet! Further enhancing performance is the use of modern aerodynamic principles. The car utilizes a fully flat bottom enclosed with aluminum sheet. A diffuser removes air from under the car creating a ground effect to increase downforce while limiting aerodynamic drag. A splitter helps create negative pressure at the front.
With such lightweight construction the car should offer blistering performance. And although most drivers will opt for the original Mazda 1.6L B6P or 1.8L BP engine, the firewall cross tube has been designed to ensure that even a GM LS2 V8 engine will fit!
Assisting with this project are two giants in the Miata community: Tony Woodford of
AWR and Dave Green of
DG Motorsports. With their help, this car made it's public debut at the 2012
SEMA Show, the largest gathering of specialty automotive equipment and aftermarket performance industry professionals in the USA. It is similar to the Tokyo Auto Salon.
Also, the CB01-R, the racing version of the Catfish Speedster, will make its competition debut at the 8th annual running of the NASA 25 Hours of Thunderhill endurance race in Willows, California on December 8-9, 2012. The car will be piloted by Oscar Jackson, Jr. and others at Team CRE. His father and crew chief is Oscar Jackson, Sr., owner of
Jackson Racing. If that name sounds familiar, it is because for many years he sold the original Eaton supercharger kits for the Mazda Miata originally developed by Sebring Superchargers. Today, Jackson Racing is marketing Rotrex supercharger kits. Last year both Oscar Jr. and Sr. were part of the NASA 25 Hours of Thunderhill - E2 Champion winning
949Racing team so they've got the experience that should help them do well in this year's event.
Posted at 2012/11/10 02:22:09 | |
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