The dynamic people at the AIM Racing
Project are gearing up for a full year of varied motorsport
for the 2003 season. The first of six rounds to be held at the
Bira Circuit outside Pattaya, will be on May 3/4 and will
feature the Sport Grand Champion cars and the Sport Challenge
single seaters, the Group N Touring cars and a Mini challenge,
with the original Mini’s from the Thailand Mini Clubs out to
show that they have not been left behind in the race scene.
Sport
Grand Champion
During the race weekend, there will also be
a Gymkhana championship run on the Bira Kart Track, which is
involving the BF Goodrich tyre people.
AIM are running a Pick-Up series too,
starting from the 2nd round. These will all be locally
manufactured 3 litre diesels. Also from the second round there
will be drives around the circuit in a race car for some lucky
members of the viewing public. Your chance to be taken for the
ride of your life with one of the race drivers.
Other dates for the AIM series events are
June 14/15, July 26/27, September 6/7, October 25/26 and
December 6/7.
Road traffic
accidents and Songkran
While the Thai government metaphorically
scratches its nether regions looking for the answer to the
horrendous Songkran road toll - almost 600 this year - which
is more than the combined death toll from both sides of the
Iraqi conflict - the answer to my simple mind is fairly
obvious.
Certainly it may be Thai New Year, but
surely the country could celebrate this on one day, not over
one week? The Western New Year occurs on December 31, not
December 26th through to January 4th! With Chiang Mai
celebrating over four days and Pattaya managing to throw water
for over one week, this is more than faintly silly. Make
Songkran a one day celebration, on the same day, all over the
country. Make it one helluva holiday that lasts 24 hours. End
of story!
Sure, you can then look at the alcohol and
driving problem and the fact that 90% of motorcycle riders who
were killed did not have crash helmets, but by limiting the
length of the celebration (madness) you have immediately
limited the potential exposure to lethal situations.
As a small, but significant spin-off, you
will also have produced a celebration that tourists and expats
will want to experience, not one that has become a “must get
away from” week.
Mazda. A
company on the move?
I have always had a soft spot for Mazda,
and a couple of my personal favourite vehicles have come from
the Mazda stable - namely the RX7 and the MX5. Before I made
the big plunge for the rotary RX7 I stopped every RX7 owner
and asked them for their thoughts on their car. Every driver
was just totally positive about them, so I made the plunge and
was completely converted as well. I did have experience with
the rotary engines which we put in various race cars, but a
road car, the total package, is different from a pure race
engine. The MX5 was my last drive car before leaving Oz, and
was another dream of a car, on which nothing, repeat nothing,
went wrong. It does not surprise me that it has become the
best selling sports car in the world.
Mazda
RX8 at the motor show
In Thailand, Mazda marketing has definitely
become more aggressive and it has stopped being considered as
the poor cousin of its stablemate Ford at the AAT plant on the
Eastern Seaboard. The new “Zoom-Zoom” brand concept is of
course capitalizing on the RX series, the MX5 and the fact
that Mazda did indeed win the Le Mans 24 hour race in 1991. It
may be 12 years ago, but what-the-hell, let’s milk the cow
till it’s dry!
The RX8 is a new direction, being a true 4
place sports car and incorporating those tricky rear
“doors” that are being used in the Mazda “Freestyle”
cab (and the Ford variant). These rear entry panels cannot be
opened when the front doors are closed, so in many ways are
the ideal children’s safety doors. RX8 also features a twin
rotor, naturally aspirated engine delivering 240 bhp at 5,500
rpm. Believe me that should be enough grunt to keep everyone
happy. It is certainly a vehicle with ‘presence’ and one
that I would be happy to stick in my driveway. Price? Dunno
yet! It’s a fully imported jigger, so probably too expensive
by far! Interestingly, it has a more than passing resemblance
to the new Chevrolet SSX which was shown at the North American
Motor Show a couple of months back. It too, features the same
rear door treatment, which they call “closet” doors.
Chev
SSX
“Affordable” (just) is the latest
version of the MX5. At a smidgin under 2 million, it is a lot
of money for a two person sporty car, even with a 6 speed
manual gearbox, but it certainly lives up to the Zoom-Zoom
label. To really get the most out of one of these, give the
engine a free-flow inlet and exhaust system, go one inch
larger and wider in the wheels and return to the same rolling
diameter with some wide low-profile rubber, and you have a
rocketship!
Unfortunately, the Mazda6 is not going to
be marketed here, according to David Grakul, the managing
director of Mazda Sales (Thailand). This vehicle has received
good press all over the world (our Australian correspondent,
John Weinthal rates it as one of the best new cars in all
respects). Grakul feels that Thailand is not the marketplace
for a larger sedan, but rather expects the MPV segment to
increase at the expense of the passenger car side.
