The real Sauber-Mercedes
C9 race car is not road legal. This replica, however, is.
The thoughtful homage to the Le Mans-winning race car calls
South Africa home. It's the work of Johan Ackermann, who started the project in
2011. When he completed his recreated C9, he drove it for awhile, then found a
buyer, Mark Burger, who appreciates the details and how different it is.
Ackerman had to modify the interior and even drop the chassis so Berger would
fit in the cockpit.
In motorsport circles, the Sauber-Mercedes C9 is a glorious
machine. It served the Sauber Mercedes team in the Group C Prototype Class of
the World Sportscar Champion series, the World
Endurance Championship's predecessor. Sauber was the constructor,
while Mercedes-Benz served
as the engine builder. Although it didn't fare well in its 1987 debut season,
it took second place overall in 1988. In 1989, it won all but a single race on
the calendar, including a mighty victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
While the real race car sported a turbocharged 5.0-liter
V-8, this replica houses a 3.2-liter V-6, which likely came from the middle of
the last decade. That engine was available naturally aspirated or with a
supercharger, but Ackermann has added twin turbos, and now it makes a healthy
370 horsepower and 320 pound-feet of torque. The chassis and architecture,
meanwhile, are all the work of this skilled mechanic. The body features a thin
cardboard skin covered in fiberglass.Ackerman said the toughest part was
getting the roof profile correct.
While the looks are good, they don't quite match the real
thing. Specifically, the headlights and lower part of the fascia are a tad off.
Even though there's no confusing this car for the real C9, we have to tip our
hats to Ackermann. Very few people could pull off building a replica that looks
as good as this, and fewer still could do it by themselves.
by Sean Szymkowski
http://www.boscheuropean.com
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