Author: Chris Andrews

Chris, known as Cess on the forums, is a long time RMS member. He is a fervent motorsports enthusiast and lover of all things automotive. He can be found on the ditches of most Irish rallies, at Mondello watching drifting or in front of the TV watching motorbike racing.

Just months after running one of the most successful events in the rally’s history, promoter Bobby Willis has announced that the Circuit of Ireland will not return in 2017.  The rally, which was backed extensively by the Northern Ireland Government, local councils and Tourism Northern Ireland cannot raise adequate resources to host the European Rally Championship or continue as a round of the British Rally Championship. Willis said “To date we have had fantastic support from Councils across Northern Ireland, Tourism NI and Tourism Ireland, private sponsorship and the NI Executive. But regrettably at this point in time the financial resources required…

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On Saturday, Michael Dunlop made history in the RST Superbike TT Race, when he lapped the Mountain Circuit in the first ever sub-17 minute lap. Dunlop scorched round the sun-drenched circuit at an average speed of 133.393 mph on his Hawk Racing BMW S 1000 RR. Now you can jump on board with the multiple champion and experience every moment of the astounding 16 minute 58 seconds from a bike mounted camera. Dunlop’s first two laps were both under 17 minutes, the quickest being 133.393mph to win by 19s from Ian Hutchinson, who was also inside the outright lap record, with John…

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In 1990, legendary rally Tony Pond became the first man to lap the Isle of Man TT course at over 100 mph in a car. The vehicle of choice for this 22 minute lap was a Rover 827 Vitesse. That record stood until Subaru USA teamed up with another Manx-based rally champion, Mark Higgins. In 2011, the record tumbled and the first sub-20 minute lap was registered. In 2014, Higgins smashed his own record in little more than a road going Impreza WRX STI. The only modifications were a roll cage, competition spec seats and uprated springs and dampers. And…

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Gran Turismo needs no introduction. The original iteration set the standards for racing games on any platform. Indeed, it gave many a dreamer the chance to thrash their favourite performance cars around the best tracks in the world. In recent times though, rivals like Forza, Project CARS and Assetto Corsa have arguably stolen that crown. However, a comeback is on the cards. Even though the PS4 has been around for over two years now, it has lacked a flagship Gran Turismo title. This is set to be rectified with the launch of Gran Turismo Sport. What Gran Turismo Sport isn’t,…

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The new Top Gear landed on Sunday night. As the programme progressed, social media went into melt down and the show was widely slated. A number of reviews have also been incredibly brutal, dissecting each tiny piece of the show with incredible disdain. Previously, Chris Evans had said publicly that pulling less than 5 million viewers would be disappointing. Yesterday, official BBC figures showed 4.4 million people tuned in. So by Evans’ very own benchmark, the show is a failure. So just how bad is the rebooted Top Gear? Actually, the show isn’t that bad. Probably the biggest surprise was…

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In between making city cars for Nicole and incognito shopping trolleys for Papa, Renault have the odd off the wall moment. The outcome is always ridiculous, but the execution makes it all come together in one awesome package. I mean, who else would have though it perfectly sensible to shoehorn a V6 engine into a Clio. Twice. In a similar vein, Renault have chosen the eve of the Monaco Grand Prix to pull the covers off their latest super fast Clio concept – the RS 16. The idea conjured up by the engineers was simple. Transplant the thumping engine from…

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As soon as Nissan took the wraps off a the new GT-R, a NISMO version was bound to follow and here it is. The changes have focused mainly in improving the dynamics of the car rather than aiming for raw power. Indeed, the the already legendary 3.8 twin turbo VR38DETT is the same power plant found in previous versions. So the same V6 pumping out 592bhp and 481 ft lb of torque. That propels the car to 62 mph (100 km/h) in an eye watering 2.9 seconds. The front end gets a new face courtesy of a revised bumper and grille.…

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The international road racing season begins in earnest tomorrow, with the opening three races of this year’s North West 200. In recent times, the event has been beset with poor weather; however the sunshine has been unyielding along the scenic Causeway Coast, resulting in perfect conditions for racing. First held in 1929, the NW200 is a pure street circuit using the roads which link the seaside towns of Portrush and Portstewart with Coleraine. The track has a distinctive triangle shape consisting of two long, very high speed straights, connected by the sweeping road which hugs the spectacular Atlantic shoreline. So…

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Take two reinvigorated domestic championships from the UK and Ireland, combine with the best drivers Europe has to offer, spice it up by adding a young driver determined to hang on to the trophy he won last year, and you’ve got the ingredients for rallying success. If that’s not enough, throw in a picturesque back drop made famous by the world’s biggest television show and you have a recipe for a very special Circuit of Ireland. A capacity entry list and a record breaking collection of R5 machinery had rally fans whetting their lips with anticipation. Craig Breen had found the…

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Sprinting is the world’s oldest motorsport discipline. The origins of sprinting can be traced back to humble beginnings in France, just over 100 years ago. Despite the passage of time, the central tenets of sprinting have stayed the same. The fastest car over a timed lap wins. Cars run one at time, accelerating from a standing start, around the designated course, before passing through a flying finish. Whilst there are road going classes, the world of sprinting attracts an incredible range of cars. From hot hatches to high out put single seaters – a sprint paddock contains them all. Each…

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Motorsport is notorious for being costly. It starts off as a bit of fun, but then the competitive spirit kicks it. Being competitive usually means chucking more money at competition car than is eminently sensible.  There has to be some sort of low cost motorsport that’s big on thrills, but easy on the wallet? There is. Let me introduce you to the wheel-spinning world of autotesting. The rules of autotesting are simple but a bit mad at the same time. I mean, it’s a motorsport where competitors race against the clock, yet barely use anything more than second gear. Even…

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Day one of the Geneva Motor Show 2016 has been and gone. With world exclusive launches from  Lamborghini, Ferrari, Bugatti and a new Aston Martin at last, you could be forgiven for thinking it is supercar central. However, there’s been plenty of new car unveils from the mainstream manufacturers. Audi pulled the covers off the latest in its SUV series – the Q2. As the name would suggest, it sits immediately below the Q3 in the Audi range. Engines range from the 1.4 TSI, 2.0 TFSI and a 1.6 and 2.0 TDI. A quattro variant will also be available. …

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