"Team Multimatic Motorsports 2006"
Aquí está el nuevo equipo 2006 del team Multimatic Panoz Esperante GTLM que competirá en las ALMS y representará Panoz Motorsports en las 24 Horas Le Mans 2006. Panoz ha subido su esfuerzo considerablemente este año. Por primera vez, Panoz está trabajando directamente con Ford Motorsports con un enorme presupuesto. Eran los más rápidos de la clase GT2 en las pruebas de invierno en Sebring del mes pasado, rompiendo el record de pista por 2.3 segundos! Tienen un excelente rendimiento en pista, y han logrado su primera victoria en las 12 Horas de Sebring 2006.
After building sports prototypes for years, Panoz starting developing race versions of their Esperante, a two seat roadster built on an aluminum chassis and powered by Ford's SVT V8. With help from Elan Motorsports, Panoz raced the Esperante with success in the Trans-Am championship and it only made sense to contest it in Don Panoz's own ALMS series.
Panoz partnered with Multimatic from Ontario Canada, to release GTLM road-going supercar which provided a basis for the 2004 contender. To cope with the air intake restrictions imposed by the governing bodies, Panoz had Elan Racing bore out the 4.6 liter MOD V8 to 5.0 liters and remove the supercharger.
In 2004, the GTLM was tested out on a number of tracks, and the Panoz gave the green light to contest the entire ALMS 2005 season. A highlight victory was achieved at the Road Atlanta where the GTLM of Bill Auberlen and Robin Liddell achieved a first in class over the factory-backed Porsche teams. Due to reliability, the GTLM factory racing team couldn't keep up their Atlanta pace, and fell wayside to Porsche for the rest of the season including their first visit to Lemans.
Currently, the upcoming 2006 season couldn't look any more promising for the Panoz team. With strong financial backing from Ford, they have managed to the class record at Sebring during winter testing.
Engine: Elan Power-Modified, Ford MOD V8
Position: Front Longitudinal
Aspiration: Natural
Valvetrain: DOHC, 4 Valves per Cyl
Displacement: 4995 cc / 304.8 cu in
Power: + 500 bhp @ Not Available rpm
Hp per litre: 100.1 bhp per litre
Drive wheels: RWD
Body / frame: Aluminum Frame w/Front & Rear Steel Subframes
Weight: 1200 kg / 2645 lbs
Transmission: Hewland 6-Speed Sequential
Impreza007
