Yahoo Autos 2024 Goodwood Festival of Speed: 8 Things You Might Have Missed
The Goodwood Festival of Speed is like Disneyland for speed freaks. The multiday event that's held every summer in southern England is a sensory overload for folks who love interacting with racing machines as well as the people who work on and drive them. From motorcycles to new and old exotics to rally cars to race cars from the early 1900s to today's Formula 1 cars, the Festival of Speed covers it all.
This year, Car and Driver was invited by Subaru to partake in the festivities and see first-hand how its U.S. motorsports' team performed in the popular hill-climb event. So we spent several days admiring the rolling sculptures, talking with pro drivers Scott Speed and Travis Pastrana, and taking in the omnipresent smell of exhaust fumes as well as the sound of motors revving and tires squealing. For those of you who couldn't travel to our favorite U.K. festival or didn't catch the action on TV, below are eight things you missed.
Ford Supervan vs. Subaru Project Midnight
Everyone has heard about Ford vs. Ferrari, but what about Ford vs. Subaru? This year's Goodwood hill-climb shootout featured an epic showdown between the two brands, with former F1 driver and rallycross champion Scott Speed piloting the Subie and hill-climber extraordinaire Romain Dumas helming the Ford.
Speed's steed was Subaru's 670-hp Project Midnight, which began life as a current-gen WRX that Vermont SportsCar transformed into a monster track car. Along with a claimed curb weight of under 2500 pounds, the appropriately blacked-out Project Midnight boasts a big ol' rear wing and a carbon-fiber wide body, among many other modifications. It's a successor to the 862-hp Subaru Airslayer, except Project Midnight was specifically setup for racing on pavement. Meanwhile, Dumas was driving the Ford Performance Supervan 4.2, which features four electric motors reportedly making nearly 2000 horsepower.
This year was Speed's first time racing at Goodwood, and when we talked to him on Saturday afternoon, he said the narrow hill-climb course was unlike anything he had driven on before. "Maybe Monaco in an F1 car is close as far as how fast things are coming," he said. "I was very surprised what it was like to drive on such a narrow road."
Not only was the course's poor visibility an obstacle for Speed, but he had to adapt to Project Midnight's all-wheel-drive behavior. However, he said the car's tenacious acceleration was also a big advantage on the hill.
Speed and Co. ultimately hit their target time by cracking 45 seconds, with Project Midnight qualifying second on Saturday with a time of 45.1 ticks. That was one-tenth behind Dumas and the Supervan, which set the stage for Sunday's shootout showdown. In the end, Speed and the gas-fed Subie got slower while Dumas and the Ford EV got quicker, finishing first and second overall with times of 43.9 and 46.1 seconds, respectively. Still, it was an extremely exciting matchup.
Travis Pastrana and His Subaru 'Huckster' Go Full Send
"I'm gonna err on the side of going a little too hard," Travis Pastrana told us during a lunch interview on Saturday. "The Huckster doesn't lose a lot of time when it's sideways... that's my happy place, and it looks good."
The "Family Huckster"—star of Gymkhana 2022—might be based on the humble Subaru GL wagon, but it's actually a sophisticated race car that features a carbon-fiber tub and a tubeframe chassis. Oh, and along with a colorful paint job and theatrical flaps that deploy to provide active aero, it boasts an 862-hp turbocharged flat-four.
This year marked Pastrana's third go at the Goodwood hill climb. Unfortunately, his final timed run ended with him plowing into a hay bale and making the Huckster the Stuckster, but as expected, the wheelman/showman went full send in his chase for getting into the 45-second range. He also finished fourth during qualifying (47.5 seconds), but it looks like the super Subie will need to undergo some surgery if it's going to compete again next year.
During our lunch the day before, Pastrana foreshadowed his philosophy on Sunday's performance, "For me, 90 percent of the people aren't going to remember who won, but if we're sideways coming up through this corner, they're all gonna take that home." He wasn't wrong.
Goodwood Festival of Speed Timed Shootout Results
The timed shootout is one of Goodwood's biggest spectacles, with competitors racing up the hill in pursuit of the fastest time. This year was different than in the past because the timed cars ran at the end of their classes, and the winner of each got crowned on Saturday. Of course, Sunday was still the day when the drivers competed for the overall fastest time. Among the top nine performances, four were within eight-tenths of each other. The Czinger 21C hypercar was one of them, and it became the fastest street-legal production car to ever climb the hill.
Below are the timed shootout's nine fastest runs:
Ford Performance Supervan 4.2: 43.9 seconds
Subaru WRX 'Project Midnight': 46.1 seconds
Porsche 911 GT3 Cup: 48.1 seconds
Alpine A110 Pikes Peak: 48.6 seconds
Czinger 21C: 48.8 seconds
Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R: 48.9 seconds
Ferrari 296 Challenge: 50.0 seconds
Lotus 77: 50.1 seconds
BMW M4 GT3: 50.2 seconds
Red Bull RB17 Revealed with 1200 HP
Red Bull is on a roll. Not only has it won three straight Formula 1 championships, but now it's also getting into the business of building track-only hypercars with the 1200-hp RB17 that was revealed at Goodwood. The wildly styled machine looks like an F1 car, albeit with a roof, fenders, and a more chillaxed rear wing. The RB17's familial resemblance to a Formula 1 car isn't surprising considering it was designed by Adrian Newey, who has penned F1 racers as well as the Aston Martin Valkyrie. Unlike the V-12-powered Valkyrie, the RB17 pairs a hybrid system and a 4.5-liter V-10 with an otherworldly 15,000-rpm redline. Only 50 examples will be built. The car pictured here was on display at the secluded Red Bull booth on the Goodwood grounds. Christian Horner, principal of the Red Bull racing team, just happened to make a surprise appearance while we were admiring the RB17. It didn't take long for a huge crowd to engulf the scene, after which we quickly exited stage left.
Formula 1 Paddock Features Niki Lauda Race Cars
Niki Lauda is one of the greatest drivers to ever get behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car. Full stop. Fifty years ago, he won his first race at the 1974 Spanish Grand Prix. It has also been 40 years since the 1984 F1 season when Lauda beat Alain Prost (his McLaren teammate at the time) by a mere half-point, which led him to win his third drivers' title. To celebrate the late Austrian racer's illustrious career, Goodwood's F1 paddock featured a collection of Lauda's most famous Ferrari and McLaren race cars, including the Ferrari 312T seen here. While the flat-12-powered machine was display-only, it's notable for being one of Lauda's most prolific race-car chassis, helping him win six of the eight races it was entered in and carrying him to his first title in 1975.
Iconic Supercars at the Cartier 'Style et Luxe'
The miniature concourse d'elegance takes place on a grassy section nearby the historic Goodwood House. There the lawn is littered with everything from a minty Mk1 Volkswagen Polo to pristine tractors to iconic supercars built by Lamborghini and Pagani. With both exotic brands having ties to Italian designer Marcello Gandini, who passed away in March, Goodwood dedicated two classes to his work, such as this 1975 Lamborghini Countach LP400 'Periscopo'. This car is said to be one of just 10 right-hand-drive cars made. It features a 4.0-liter V-12 and has a claimed top speed of 175 mph. According to the placard in front of it, this Periscopo model was priced at £18,295, which at that time apparently cost the equivalent of 10 MGBs.
The Beast of Turin! The Fire-Spittin' Fan Favorite
The Beast of Turin has to be seen and heard in person to be fully appreciated. With faded red paint covering a cylindrical body that's capped by a towering gold grille and riding on narrow wagon-like wheels, it's hard to believe this Fiat S76 once went 132 mph. Then again, as soon as you see it speeding past with flames spitting out of its side-exit headers as it 28.4-liter four-cylinder engine snaps, crackles, and pops like a gigantic firecracker, it's not hard to understand why it's a Goodwood staple and fan favorite. This year it also ran on sustainable fuel. Who said you can't teach an old Beast new tricks?
Goodwood Sculpture Celebrates MG's 100th Birthday
This year Goodwood paid homage to MG, with the towering sculpture in the middle of the winner's circle celebrating the British automaker's centenary. Designed by Gerry Judah, the art piece features a classic Mk1 MGB on the west end and the new electric MG Cyberster roadster on the east end. Fans could also catch a glimpse of the brand's new drop-top EV and the Cyber GTS concept on display. Plus, there were two classic MG competition models that raced up the hill—an ex-works Magnette K3 and a 1929 C-type. The former car was originally driven by Tazio Nuvolari, who won the 1933 Tourist Trophy at Northern Ireland's Ards Circui. The C-type was owned and raced by Freddie March, who is credited with bringing motorsports to Goodwood. Fun fact: The current Duke of Richmond is Freddie's grandson.
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