Good news for fans of motorsport action captured on film. The very clever chaps at Stereoscreen are making a feature-length film about this year’s Nürburgring 24 hour race. It will be titled 24hours. One team. One target.
You may remember their short film from last year, 24 hours in 19500 frames. Great work indeed. Again, Stereoscreen has been following the fortunes of the BMW team.
After the break you can see a couple of teasers for 24hours. You can also keep tabs on the project via the film’s dedicated Facebook page.
BMW Motorsport came to the 2011 Nürburgring 24 hour race as defending champions. Again they pinned their hopes on the M3 GT which has been impressive since its introduction. This year, though, it wasn’t to be and they had to make do with an honourable second place.
Despite finishing within 4 minutes 23 seconds of the winning car, Charly Lamm, Team Manager, says second was the best they could achieve. “We fought like lions, but more than second place was just not possible today. We were able to show, how strong the BMW M3 GT is, that we are a true endurance team and how breathtaking motor racing can be,” said Lamm.
Worth noting is the fact this was the last race in which Dr Mario Thiessen held the position of BMW Motorsport Director. He’s been in the role since 1999 and among many other achievements, including a Le Mans win, he has overseen three wins for BMW at the Nürburgring 24 hour (2004, 2005, 2010). Thiessen will be replaced by Jens Marquardt.
Well the stunning Audi R8 LMS didn’t win the Nürburgring 24 hour race outright, but it did finish third and in doing so managed to win its class. The highest place #14 car was also involved in a terrific scrap with the #32 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 in the closing stages, which made for great viewing.
All things considered, it was actually a pretty good recovery effort from the Audi crews, as all four cars suffered some degree of problem during the race. So much so that a podium finish seemed unlikely at various stages.
After the break there’s a huge image gallery with over 65 pics for you to look at, in addition to the team’s press release.
The interwebs brings word that the new F10 BMW M5 has set what is being claimed as a new lap record at the Nürburgring for a production model four-door sedan. The time has been set, apparently, by a BMW test driver. The time being bandied about is 7 minutes 55 seconds.
That’s pretty quick, but it’s actually no quicker than the time claimed by Subaru; former world rally champ Tommi Mäkinen posted a 7:55 lap at the wheel of a WRX STI sedan around this time last year.
Let’s put that aside for a moment, then, and compare the F10 M5 against its older brothers:
F10 M5 7:55 (claimed)
E60 M5 8:13 (Sport Auto time)
E39 M5 8:28 (Sport Auto time)
Steady improvements there for each new generation. Either way, we’re certain the new M5 will be up to Ring-Taxi duties when it returns in 2012.
Here is the official Porsche brag sheet from yesterday’s 24 hour race. It was a great win for Manthey Racing with the lead car heading the field for 208 laps and more than 16 and a half hours. In doing so the winning #18 car covered 156 laps in total covering 3,958.968km—a new distance record.
Five-time race winner (all with Manthey), Timo Bernhard said teamwork was the key to their victory, “We already knew before the start that we could only win if we worked together as a team, from the drivers through to the mechanics. And this worked very well for the entire time.”
It was a largelly trouble-free race for the #18 car. Race-winner Lucas Luhr explains the team’s only glitch, “During a pit stop the petrol pump didn’t work. Fuel simply didn’t come out. So we had to push our car back to another pump and in doing so lost almost a minute.”
Not bad going if you can cover almost 4000kms and suffer only a refuelling issue. Having said that the winning car did have some damage to its front spolier, can’t have been anything major, we assume.
We will continue to update with other team press-releases and then conclude our 2011 N24 coverage with a Porsche photo gallery.
Here’s a full onboard lap of the Nürburgring Nordschleife, filmed during N24 race conditions, from inside the second placed #1 BMW M3 GT. Turn your sound up to 11 and enjoy!
Manthey Racing will claim the headlines from the 2011 Nürburgring 24 hour race, but with over 200 starters there’s clearly going to be many worthy stories from all those who finished.
Congratulations to all and especially those who made the long journey over from Australia and New Zealand. Special mention to car #248 the Team Kiwi Honda Civic Type R which won the N2 category. Unfortunately, it has been a character building experience for many of the other teams who made the trek.
Indeed, there were three cars driven by all-Aussie crews and all three failed to finish. Hard luck to those guys and here’s hoping they have the determination and capacity to return next year to seek redemption.
Our final update for Aussie/Kiwi runners can be seen after the break. If you’re a part of these teams, or know of them, we’d love to hear a few words from you in the comments section below.
UPDATE: Apologies to Rodney Forbes who we missed during the race. Thanks to Andrew for bringing this to our attention. Good news, too, Forbes and his crew brought their Porsche home in the top 20. For more on Forbes check out this article on speedcafe.com.
After qualifying below expectations and being considered by some to be too far behind the newer Audis, BMWs and Mercedes-Benz machines the #18 Manthey Racing Porsche 911 GT3 RSR has won the 2011 Nürburgring 24 hour race.
The driving crew of Romain Dumas, Lucas Luhr, Marc Lieb and Timo Bernhard did it in style, too, leading for most of the day on Sunday. The distance covered of 156 laps is a new record as well. It’s the fifth N24 victory in six years for Manthey Racing. and the tenth win for Porsche overall.
Finishing second was the #1 BMW M3 GT with the #14 Audi R8 LMS claiming the final podium step. Due to the everyone-wins-a-prize categories at the N24 all three cars on the podium are class winners as well.
Official images and text from Porsche and the other leading manufacturers to follow in the next 24-48 hours.
UPDATE: The last few minutes of the race can now be seen below.
There’s just two hours left to run now and the Manthey #18 Porsche 911 GT3 RSR has racked up 142 laps and continues to lead. The #1 BMW M3 GT remains in second. As this post goes to air there is a terrific scrap for third place between the #32 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 and the #14 Audi R8 LMS.
Peter Scharmach (NZ) in the #19 Porsche 911 GT3 R looks like being the first Aussie/Kiwi across the line. While the Aussie/Kiwi driver line up in the #248 Honda Civic Type R are looking good for a class win. More below.
With four hours of racing to go competitors can almost see the end in sight. There’s been no change at the top and Manthey Racing are on the way to another N24 victory with their #18 911 GT3 RSR. After 125 laps completed they now have only the #1 BMW M3 GT on the same lap.
With our latest Aussie/Kiwi update below it pains me to say that the Kiwis are giving the Aussies a flogging, with all but one of the Australians competing suffering problems of varying degrees.
Noted YouTuber mattzel89 has been a busy lad today and here’s a selection of video highlights posted to date. The first clip above is a nasty incident involving a BMW Z4 GT3 and Seat Leon. Thankfully, both drivers were okay. There’s five more clips for you below, including the race start showing the entire first lap. You’ll also see a behind the scenes look at what the trackside atmosphere is like.
There’s been no change at the front with the #18 Manthey Racing Porsche 911 GT3 RSR looking strong. Only defending winner #1 BMW M3 GT and the #32 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 on the lead lap.
Updated placings for the Aussie/Kiwi entrants can be read below. Looks like the #6 Aston Martin V8 Vantage GT4 and #231 BMW M3 have had dramas since our last update.
The #18 Manthey Racing Porsche 911 GT3 RSR continues to lead the field into the morning at the 2011 Nürburgring 24 hour race and has racked up 89 laps to date. The Aussies and Kiwis running from the last update seem to be circulating well. An updated list of their current positions can be read below.
If anyone has any word on why the #43 Mal Rose Racing Holden Commodore and the all Aussie crew in the #136 Seat Leon are no longer running please post below.
The 2011 Nürburgring 24 hour race is well underway now and while it is mid-morning here in Australia it’s just after 2am in the Eifel. At the head of the field is the #18 Manthey Racing Porsche 911 GT3 RSR.
Drama has beset a number of the front runners with the pole sitting Ferrari 458 having suspension issues. It’s currently in 19th around 4 laps behind. The #9 Porsche GT3 R Hybrid also had a brief stint in the lead until transmission problems forced it in for a long pit stop and well out of contention. A number of Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3s have flirted with the lead. Plenty of variety this year.
After the break you’ll see a list of the Aussie and Kiwi competitors which has been compiled as best as can be. If you notice any anomalies or have any extra information please leave a comment below.
Live streaming for the 2011 N24 is now active via the official race website. We recommend turning the sound down and tuning in to Radio Le Mans for English commentary. The race start is a bit over 10 minutes away.
