zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Racing
/
The Panoz LMP1 Roadster-S Bucked Tradition And Looked Good Doing It
The Panoz LMP1 Roadster-S Bucked Tradition And Looked Good Doing It-October 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:11:09

Image for article titled The Panoz LMP1 Roadster-S Bucked Tradition And Looked Good Doing It

I’m sorry, this is America. We don’t do mid-engine race cars. Shove a big V8 up front and point that long nose where you want it to go, then jam on the loud pedal and you’re bound to win. Straight out of the heart of Georgia, up jump the Panoz LMP1 Roadster-S. She may not be the winningest motor car this side of the Mississip’, but she’ll make you tear up with happiness at the sound of her.

With 6-liter Ford power up front routing power through an X-Trac sequential, the powertrain was relatively mundane, but it roared like a demon and went like stink. Because the Panoz Esperante-ish GT1 race car of 1998 was effectively excluded from competition at the end of the GT1 era, Panoz needed a car to compete. While retaining many of the Esperante GTR-1's styling cues, the new LMP was a fresh chassis developed by Reynard to compete with the Audi and BMW prototypes in the (freshly minted at the time by Panoz boss Dr. Don Panoz) American Le Mans Series.

The motorsport community lost a true pioneer today. Don Panoz, IMSA Vice President, racing…

The Panoz won a couple of races, and the ALMS championship by 2 points over BMW in 1999. The car continued to middling success in following years as Audi continued developing the R8 with a larger budget and a larger R&D team. The car continued racing with moderate updates through the 2002 season, before it was retired altogether in 2003.

While it didn’t have the might or money to take down the big German LMP1s, the fact that it won even a handful of races was proof of concept for the big front engine beast. I personally enjoy when someone thinks outside of the box, especially when it works. I still lament that Nissan didn’t stick with the GT-R LM NISMO concept, because I think with another year of development it could have been seriously competitive. A damn shame, that.

Anyway, enjoy the Panoz.

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Racing
Listen To In-Car Audio From Race Cars While You Work
Listen To In-Car Audio From Race Cars While You Work
If you follow racing in the U.S., you probably already know about the . Most of the episodes are too much of a distraction to put on as background noise while you work, but a couple of recent entries in his series have been working incredibly well for me....
Oct 23, 2024
Get Ready To Spend All Your Money On Retro Formula 1 Merch
Get Ready To Spend All Your Money On Retro Formula 1 Merch
Fellow nerds, get ready to open your wallets, because I’ve found what may be the greatest store of all time. With designs from Formula 1 teams like , you’re sure to find something that fits your particular nostalgic niche. I’d like to introduce you to Racing Retro. I first...
Oct 23, 2024
After Delivering 8 Seasons At The Back Of The Grid, Haas F1 Team Dumps Guenther Steiner
After Delivering 8 Seasons At The Back Of The Grid, Haas F1 Team Dumps Guenther Steiner
The partially North Carolina-based squad has determined that after , it needs to mix things up a little. The team’s firebrand has been following an abysmal 2023 season which saw the team score just four points-paying finishes. The team’s , where scored a fourth-place finish, but that season too...
Oct 23, 2024
Local Businesses Want Compensation After Allegedly Losing Money During Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix
Local Businesses Want Compensation After Allegedly Losing Money During Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix
If you listen to Formula 1 or local officials from Las Vegas and Clark County, you’d probably think November’s inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix was a success. Some sources estimated that the city of Las Vegas made over $1 billion in revenue from the event — but there were...
Oct 23, 2024
Race Team Would Rather Create A Fake AI Woman Rather Than Hire A Real One
Race Team Would Rather Create A Fake AI Woman Rather Than Hire A Real One
In another unsurprising example of motorsport’s inhospitable mindset toward hiring competent women, the Racing team has announced a new partnership with Ava Rose, a literal , who will... engage with fans? Share knowledge about technology? “Navigate the cutting edge of innovation to create positive change” (whatever that means)? I...
Oct 23, 2024
You've Probably Never Heard Of The Coolest Canadian Car Ever Built
You've Probably Never Heard Of The Coolest Canadian Car Ever Built
Name a car from the early 1960s built by a famed racing driver with curvy, lightweight aluminum bodywork, a big American engine, and a reputation for being unruly and fast as all hell. Your first thought was probably the famed Shelby Cobra, did you know there was a who...
Oct 23, 2024
Copyright 2023-2024 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved