The 24 Hours of LeMons has returned to Sonoma Raceway aka Sears Point once again, and this time we’re going to squeeze in the maximum number of entries this track will hold: 180 cars! Plenty of old friends, plenty of wild new cars, and plenty of really terrible ideas were on display during the pre-race car inspections. Let’s check out the highlights.
Engine swaps! They’re a hallowed 24 Hours of LeMons tradition, and what we like best are genuinely ill-advised swaps. We’ve seen Porsche 914 LeMons cars with engines from Golfs, Subaru Legacies, and Mazda RX-7s in the past (and all of them have been extremely bad), and now we’ve got this 914 with a Saturn SL2 engine swap.
How? Why? We can’t say. We’re assuming that this car will prove to be a highly efficient mechanism for distributing finely ground Saturn engine components around the track, and so the LeMons Supreme Court placed it in Class C.
Speaking of Class C, where all the coolest LeMons cars compete, this rookie team rolled up and did everything right their first time out. Bone-stock box Caprice with 300,000-mile 305 engine, excellent Point Break theme, everything you need.
Also doing everything right, Team Pit Crew Revenge brought a car we’ve been hoping to see since the earliest days of LeMons racing: an AMC Eagle. We’ve seen many AMCs in the series since 2006, but for some reason no team had seen fit to bring an example of the vehicle that paved the way for Subaru’s American success.
Naturally, this Eagle came from Colorado.
If we ever do a Scary Clown Award, this RX-7 team has it nailed down.
Team Westafari brought one of the fastest racing vans we’d ever seen in the series (and we’ve seen a few) a couple years back, but they yearned to compete in Class C. So, they tore out their perfectly good VR6 engine and swapped the original Wasserboxer back in.
We’re not sure if these are costumes or just the way the members of Team Westafari dress every day.
The Dirty Little Freaks swapped the running gear from their big diesel Mercedes-Benz sedan into a slightly less big coupe, then Dalek-ized the result.
The Bavarian Ranchero now has a camper shell, for more of a Honky Chateau look.
Judge Steve created a “Peace, Love and Bribes” BRIBED stencil for the race, and it was a big hit with the racers who gave generously to the justices of the LeMons Supreme Court.
We see a lot of teams that cover their cars entirely in duct tape, but these guys did the nicest job we’ve ever seen. The entire livery of this Porsche is done in carefully trimmed duct tape!
Now this is duct tape artistry.
Here is Team Bosozoku Texino Egg-Laying Machino. Yes, they’ve combined Bozo Texino, Bosozoku, and chicken-head camera stabilizer themes. Next time your team is considering doing yet another General Lee theme, think of these guys.
This team stuffed their Volvo P1800 into the wall last year, destroying it. Naturally, they transplanted the running gear into a Volvo Amazon shell, and now they’re ready to race once more.
Incomprehensible rituals abounded in the paddock.
Bay Area Alfa Romeo legend Conrad Stevenson decided that his much-smashed LeMons Spider needed a makeover, so he beat out this beautiful custom body out of steel. While he was at it, he dropped in an Alfa Romeo 164 V6.
Every team needs more ponies!
Of course, if you promise to replace the cheated-up JDM twin-turbo engine in your Supra with a Detroit pushrod truck straight-six and then show up with just a valve cover… well, the LeMons Supreme Court will be disappointed.
However, the sight of this handmade, Mazda Miata-based Coyote cheered us back up. Lots of plywood, lots of spray foam, and lots of hand-laid fiberglass went into this fine racing machine. Yes, it probably weighs an extra 500 pounds, but it’s so so worth it!
At this point, the 180 teams at Race Sonoma are grinding, welding, barbecuing, and generally preparing for Saturday’s race session. Check back in later to see what transpires.
from Car and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/1FhUFKV
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