Endurance-drivers seminar highlights Amelia Island concours

Roger Hart
This Porsche 917 sat before a Hall of Fame list of endurance race-car drivers during a panel discussion at the Amelia Island concours.
If there were a Hall of Fame for endurance drivers, the nine gentlemen assembled on Saturday at the 17th-annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance would certainly be members. Event founder and chairman Bill Warner needed 25 minutes just to read off a portion of their lifetime racing accomplishments as he introduced them individually to a packed ballroom at the Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island, home of the event.
Hurley Haywood, Vic Elford, Sam Posey, Joe Buzzetta, Gerard Larousse, Brian Redman, Jim Hall, David Hobbs and Derek Bell regaled the audience with tales of their amazing careers. A common theme was that all of the men survived driving amazing cars at breathtaking speeds, while many of their colleagues didn't.
“Don't let them fool you,” Elford, this year's honoree at the concours said, “we were all scared to drive these cars.”
Sitting in front of the stage were four Porsches, including two 917s. Bell thanked fellow panelists Redman and Elford for having done a lot of the development work on the car, as he drove the 917 in competition just one year. “The car was fantastic,” he said.
But Bell, a five-time winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, noted that his favorite racer was the venerable Porsche 962.
ROGER HART
Vic Elford, Derek Bell and David Hobbs share their thoughts on Saturday at the seminar.
Redman told a harrowing tale of returning to racing after a brief retirement and crashing on the Targo Floria and being burned badly, 22 miles away from any real medical support. Hall recounted his days of driving and, of course, developing his Chaparral race cars. Posey teased good friend Hobbs about never having won an endurance race.
Several drivers commented on their driving heroes, with Bell, Hobbs and Redman noting Sir Stirling Moss as someone they looked up to, while Haywood--somewhat surprisingly--mentioned A. J. Foyt as a mentor and hero.
Posey said he was honored to be on the panel with Hall, and that we'd know him for his driving prowess if Hall's Chaparral race cars had not been so innovative and dominant.
In the end, more than 90 minutes had passed and the standing-room-only, sold-out crowd gave the nine men a standing ovation. Several attendees came up to Warner after the event saying, “This kind of thing can only happen at Amelia.” Indeed.
The 17th-annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance continues through Sunday.
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Shelby GT500 convertible, Kia Track'ster among Chicago highlights: Autoweek TV

Also in this episode: Debuts of the GMC Acadia, the Hyundai Elantra coupe and the Acura ILX and RDX.

TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to the 2012 Chicago auto show. I'm Greg and this is Autoweek TV for Wednesday. We've got a big show lined up for you today--all of the reveals, all of the new sheetmetal, lots of new engines, lots of new technology.

This is one of the largest consumer auto shows in the nation, so buckle up and we're going to have a walk around the floor.

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Let's start off with the car that is probably the best in show. Autoweek doesn't actually give that award here in Chicago, but if we did, this is probably it. It's the Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 convertible. Power comes on to the tune of a whopping 650 hp with a top speed of more than 200 mph. It gets Brembo brakes, and it's 3.5 seconds faster around Sebring.

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And on the other end of the spectrum is the GMC Acadia. This is a three-row crossover with a lot of space and plenty of room for your Labrador. So what's new? GMC updated the appearance for the first time since 2007. Power still comes from the V6 that makes 288 hp.

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Now Hyundai is growing the Elantra lineup with a coupe and a GT. Both come with four-cylinder engines making 148 hp, and they're going to get about 40 mpg. Now, the coupe is the sportier version and it's going to be a Honda Civic and Nissan Altima fighter. The GT, that's the hatchback.

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While Hyundai went with substance, Kia rolled out style. The Track'ster concept is based on the Kia Soul, and it makes 250 hp and runs with all-wheel drive. Now this is probably just a concept, but it would be a nice addition for enthusiasts to the Soul lineup.

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And Acura finally showed us the production version of the ILX and the RDX. These are two really important vehicles for the brand because they are expected to be strong sellers.

Now the ILX is a Civic-based car, and it's going to be an entry-level luxury product. It also gets Acura's--get this--first hybrid.

Now the RDX gets a V6 instead of the turbo four, and it's a bit lighter than last year's model.

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That's it for Autoweek TV on Wednesday, and that's it from the Chicago auto show. Stay connected 24 hours a day at autoweek.com for all of the latest car and racing news and the latest here from Chicago. For Autoweek magazine, I'm Greg Migliore.

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