Flat-six engine
A flat-six or horizontally opposed-six is a flat engine with six cylinders arranged horizontally in two banks of three cylinders on each side of a central crankcase. This should not be confused with the Opposed-piston engine; the pistons are mounted to the crankshaft such that opposing pistons move back and forth in opposite directions at the same time, somewhat like a boxing competitor punching their gloves together before a fight, which has led to it being referred to as a boxer engine. The configuration results in inherently good balance of the reciprocating parts, a low center of gravity, a short engine length; the layout lends itself to effective air cooling. The shape of the engine suits it better for rear engine and mid-engine designs, where the low center of gravity is an advantage. However, it is an intrinsically expensive design to manufacture, somewhat too wide for compact automobile engine compartments, which makes it more suitable for luxury sports cars, cruising motorcycles, aircraft.
Only a few auto makers, including Porsche and Subaru use horizontally opposed engines. Porsche continues to be the most prominent manufacturer of flat-6 engine luxury sports cars, while Subaru uses it in its all-wheel drive cars, where the difficulties of fitting the engine between the front wheels are offset by the efficiency of adding four-wheel drive to the layout. In the past a number of other manufacturers have used them, notably Preston Tucker in the 1948 Tucker Sedan and Chevrolet in the 1960s Corvair with the flat-6 air-cooled Chevrolet Turbo-Air 6 engine; the Citroën DS was intended to be fitted with an air-cooled flat-6, but this never materialised. The movement of the pistons in a horizontal engine is all in the same plane, so it creates less vibration than in a V-configuration engine. Unlike the V6 but like the inline-6, the flat-6 is a balanced configuration, in perfect primary and secondary balance; the three cylinders on each side of the crankcase tend to have an end-to-end rocking motion, like a pair of inline-triple engines, but in the usual boxer engine configuration, the imbalances on each side cancel each other, resulting in a smooth engine.
The flat-6 is smoother than the flat-4 or inline-4 because the power strokes of the cylinders overlap in a four-stroke cycle engine. In these four-cylinder configurations, pistons are 180 degrees apart in crankshaft rotation and start their power strokes every 180 degrees, so each piston must come to a complete stop before the next one commences its power stroke. In the flat-6, each power stroke begins 120 degrees after the previous one starts, resulting in 60 degrees of overlap between power strokes and a much smoother delivery of power to the flywheel. Lycoming is a major US manufacturer of civilian aircraft engines that power over one half of general aviation aircraft, they have developed and produce a series of flat-4 and flat-6 aircraft engines, one flat-8 engine. The configuration is expressed in the engine's model numbers as the letter "O", standing for "opposed" in reference to the cylinder arrangement. Franklin produced horizontally opposed flat aircraft engines beginning in the 1930s.
The Franklin O-335 was used in the Bell 47 light helicopter. Continental Motors continues to manufacture flat-4 and flat-6 air-cooled aircraft engines — their initial model, the Continental A-40, appeared in 1931. Flat engines replaced the more popular radial engines in small aircraft after World War II because they were less expensive to manufacture. Radial engines have inherently good cooling, it is not difficult to design flat-6 and flat-8 engines from flat-4 designs by adding more cylinder pairs with a new crankshaft. In an air-cooled opposed-cylinder layout engine there can be cooling problems on flat-six designs, with the middle cylinder pairs; the flat-6 is smoother running than a flat-four design. Porsche adapted their 911 6 cylinder horizontally opposed air-cooled engines to become the Porsche PFM 3200 aero engine in late 1985 but, after low sales and a US$75 million investment, production ceased in 1991 - "homebrew" conversions of the Corvair flat-six air-cooled automobile engine have been used for powering examples of the Pietenpol Air Camper homebuilt monoplane aircraft.
The earliest flat-six engined car was the Wilson-Pilcher car in 1900. The engine was conventionally placed with the crankshaft in-line with the chassis and the cylinders between the chassis rails. Reports on this car quote it as being "remarkably silent and smooth running" and "almost total absence of vibration"; the car was produced by Wilson-Pilcher in London until 1904 by Armstrong Whitworth & Co in Newcastle until c1907. The engine had equal bore and stroke of 95mm, the cylinders were offset so that each cylinder had its own crank-pin, with intermediate crankshaft bearings between each pair of cylinders; the engine was directly mounted to a 4-speed epicyclic gearbox employing helical gears in an oil bath, another reason for its quiet running. Flat-six engines are wide, could restrict steering lock if placed in the conventional position for front-engine drivetrain layout in a modern car; as a result, most flat-six automobile designs have been rear-engine or rear mid-engine designs, have been subject to the limitations and drawbacks of these designs.
The longest surviving flat-six-engined model, the Porsche 911, is a rear-engined sports car with acceptably compromised interior room and a long history of suspension development to utilize the characteri
Redline Racing
Redline Racing is a British racing team, competing in the Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain and are defending team and drivers champions. They have competed in the Porsche Supercup between 2007 and 2008. Redline Racing, established in 1995, made its first entry in the arena of motorsport racing in April 1997 by competing in the Michelin Porsche Cup. Having a 4-year racing experience Redline Racing entered the British National Porsche Carrera Cup in 2001, racing Porsche GT3s, they finished in second place in the championship that year and they repeated that success in 2003 and 2005. Redline Racing joined the newly formed Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain in its 2003 début season and has been one of the most successful teams in the championship, winning six teams' titles and six drivers' titles, their first championship success came in 2004 when after a long and difficult racing season, they conquered first place and won the team championship for the first time along with driver Richard Westbrook who won the driver's championship.
Their form continued, with the team narrowly missing out on championship spoils in 2005 and 2006 when Redline's driver lineup consisted of Nigel Rice, Jason Young and Faithless lead singer Maxi Jazz along with regular star Richard Westbrook racing in the Team Irwin sponsored car. However, due to Westbrook's Supercup commitments the car was handed over to Danny Watts who substituted for Redline in the races Westbrook could not attend. Watts finished third in the championship with ten wins out of 16 starts, the most wins of the season; the 2007 season was another big year for the team after securing the drive of 1992 British Touring Car champion Tim Harvey from rivals Motorbase Performance and Formula Renault UK race-winner James Sutton to join Pro-Am vice champion Nigel Rice and Maxi Jazz, the team managed to secure the double by winning the Teams' championship and Sutton winning the drivers' crown. The Pro-Am championship was dominated by Nigel Rice, who won 14 Pro-Am race wins and 17 podiums out of a possible 20.
The feet was repeated in 2008 with Harvey taking the drivers championship after five wins over the season. A lull in 2009 where Sutton missed out on championship glory by four points after missing the opening round of the championship, spurred the team on to dominate 2010, 2011 and 2012 championships, winning both drivers' and teams' title each time. For the 2013 campaign, Redline brought in 2010 FIA Formula Two Championship champion Dean Stoneman to lead the team. Stoneman, making his racing return after being diagnosed with testicular cancer in 2011, is third in the championship at the half way point of the season with three wins to his name. During 2007, Redline Racing moved into the Porsche Supercup under the title banner of Team IRWIN SAS. David Saelens and Marc Hynes were the team's driver, finishing in sixth and eleventh place in the overall standings; the team continued into this time under the Team IRWIN banner. Hynes was replaced with Patrick Huisman who outperformed Saelens to finish fourth in the championship.
The team didn't return to contest the 2009 season and since has only made an annual appearance in 2011 and 2012 at the British leg of the championship, with little success. Redline Racing Official Site Redline Racing on Facebook Redline Racing on Twitter
Richard Westbrook
Richard Westbrook is a British professional racing driver noted for his success in racing Porsche and International sports cars. As a junior, he attended Ipswich, he has won both the Porsche Supercup international championship and the Porsche Carrera Cup in his native Britain. At the end of the 2007 season, Richard signed a factory contract deal with the German marque Porsche, the British ace proceeded to take on the world's best on the other side of the Atlantic; the next year, Westbrook won the coveted FIA GT2 Championship, taking four victories in the process, establishing himself on the World motor sport stage and in the upper echelons of elite sports car drivers. In 2011 Westbrook signed with Corvette as a factory driver, competing in both the Rolex Sports Car Series and American Le Mans Series. Notably, in 2013 Richard won the 12 Hours of Sebring. For the 2016 United SportsCar Championship, he will join the Chip Ganassi Racing to drive the new Ford GT. Outside of racing, Westbrook has taken part in three London Marathons.
He has a daughter. Born in Chelmsford, Westbrook began karting in 1986 and over the next five years began to amass wins and titles. In 1990 he won the British Karting Championship and captained the British team in the World Championship at Le Mans. Following a successful Formula Vauxhall Winter Series campaign in 1993, he headed to Europe to compete in the Formula Opel Lotus Euroseries. After a promising showing in his debut year, he returned in 1995 and took three victories, narrowly missing out on third place in the series. In 1996 Westbrook moved up to Formula 3 and headed for the competitive German Formula 3 Series and the Austrian Formula 3 Cup. In German F3, he was up against a number of European drivers, including future F1 stars like Nick Heidfeld and Jarno Trulli and he took one win in a short campaign. In Austria, having missed the opening pair of races due to cutting a late deal, Westbrook saw off the challenge of German racer Tim Bergmeister and a host of local drivers to take two victories in 1996 before missing the final two rounds due to budgetary issues.
Having been unable to secure the budget required to compete and advance his career, Westbrook was forced to take a lengthy six-year break from racing, before convincing a friend to loan him the money to buy a Porsche GT3 Cup Car for the 2002 season. The Porsche Carrera Cup GB commenced in 2003 and Westbrook was a front-runner. Between 2003 and 2005, he was dominant. Indeed, his 2005 totals for victories and pole positions are both series records and he went on to take 16 podiums across the season. Having done a few Supercup races in 2002 with Kadach Racing Team and in 2003 with Porsche Cars Great Britain, he returned in 2005 in a Lechner Racing School Team prepared Porsche in rounds which did not clash with his UK commitments, he came 9th overall, adding a fastest lap to his tally too. In 2006 with RT Morellato PZ Essen, he finished every Supercup race on the podium, wrapping up the title with two races to go, against drivers such as Uwe Alzen, Alessandro Zampedri and Patrick Huisman, he has competed in several Carrera races in Germany and back in the UK where he alternated with Danny Watts.
In 2007 with HISAQ Competition, he won his second Porsche Supercup title in a row, with wins in Spain and Hungary, along with five other podium finishes and fastest laps. He again competed in finishing second in the championship for ARAXA Racing. In the same year, he made his debut in the Le Mans Series in a GT2 Porsche for James Watt Automotive and in the Rolex Sports Car Series at Daytona and Watkins Glen with Synergy Racing in a Porsche GT3 Cup Car. 2008 – see next chapter'Porsche Factory Driver'. In 2009 Westbrook drove for VICI Racing in the American Le Mans Series and for Prospeed Competition in the FIA GT Championship. In his first ALMS race of the year he finished fourth alongside Johannes Stuck. However, it was in the FIA GT Championship where he would achieve his biggest success, winning the GT2 class overall after victories at Silverstone, Adria and Zolder backed up by second places in Algarve and Paul Ricard, in a Porsche 911 GT3 RSR. In the same year he made appearances in International GT Open, ADAC GT Masters, Rolex Sports Car Series, Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland, Porsche Supercup, Belgian GT.
In 2010 he made his debut in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the GT2 class, driving a Porsche 997 GT3-RSR for BMS Scuderia Italia alongside Marco Holzer and Timo Scheider. He competed in three further'twice round the clock' events, the 24 Hours of Spa, the 24 Hours of Nurburgring, the 24 Hours of Daytona where he finished third overall in the Crown Royal/NPN Racing BMW Riley alongside Ryan Hunter Reay, Lucas Luhr, Scott Tucker. There were outings for Westbrook in the Le Mans Series for Prospeed Com
Nick Tandy
Nick Tandy is a professional British racing driver racing for Porsche Motorsport as a factory driver in the FIA World Endurance Championship LMP1 class. He won the 2015 24 Hours of Le Mans with co-drivers Earl Nico Hülkenberg. Born in Bedford, Tandy followed brother Joe's route on the motor racing ladder, by starting out as an eleven-year-old in short oval Ministox machinery, in 1996. Immediate success came to him. 1997 saw a shift to the East Anglian Ministox region. 1998 saw Tandy finish as runner-up in the world championship, behind brother Joe and finished third in the national championship. He would go two places better in 1999. Tandy won four different championships in 2000. Winning the ORC Championship at RAF Bovingdon, he continued the success at Arlington, at Wimbledon Stadium, before retaining the Spedeworth points title. Continuing the Mini theme, Tandy moved into Mini Se7ens in time for the 2001 Winter Series, he ended up third in the championship, won by Kelly Rogers. Tandy moved into the main series for 2002, but struggled to find form and languished down in tenth in the overall championship standings.
A second Winter Series campaign followed, improved his 2001 position by one by finishing runner-up. He competed in two more seasons in the main championship, amassing four wins in 2003. After a year in the BRDC Single Seater Championship, which he dominated in 2005 and earning a Scholarship from Silverstone, Tandy moved into the British Formula Ford Championship in 2006. Tandy had an impressive first season in the championship, finishing as runner-up in the standings, with 365 points. Although, he was over 150 points behind dominating champion Nathan Freke. Tandy had started out at the Raysport team but with his car lacking upgrades, decided to jump ship with four races to go and become the first driver for his brother's newly setup team. A win and a second place at both Thruxton and Castle Combe allowed Tandy to overhaul Peter Dempsey, Christian Ebbesvik and James Nash to achieve that runner-up position behind Freke, he proceeded to win the 2006 Formula Ford Festival on the road, before a 10-second penalty was added post-race for a safety car misdemeanour, dropping him to fifth.
He continued in the championship in 2007, but finished one place lower in the standings, finishing third overall. Tandy and James Nash were involved in a titanic battle for the runner-up spot, settled by just twelve points. Tandy won six races throughout the season, finished on the podium on ten other occasions. After his close call the previous year, Tandy won the Formula Ford Festival at the end of the season, but only after MacLeod was given a two-second penalty post-race. After his Formula Ford Festival win, Tandy signed a late deal to compete in the Formula Palmer Audi Autumn Trophy, in particular the Formula Palmer Audi Shootout; the Shootout guarantees a place on the shortlist for the McLaren Autosport BRDC Award for the driver who scores the most points over the course of the three-race weekend at Snetterton. Thanks to two wins, a fourth, Tandy won the Shootout and was part of the shortlist. However, he would lose out to Stefan Wilson. After two years in Formula Ford, Tandy moved into the competitive British Formula 3 Championship for the 2008 season.
Driving for his brother's team and piloting the unfavourable Mygale chassis, Tandy started with three retirements. He improved throughout the season, recorded his first podium during the overseas round at Spa-Francorchamps, in support of the Spa 24 Hours. Two more podiums came towards the end of the season at Silverstone and Donington Park, as he ended up ninth overall, overtaking Max Chilton at the Donington finale, he competed in the guest car in the Porsche Carrera Cup at Silverstone, winning the first race. Tandy continued in the series in 2009, continued to use the Mygale chassis and Mercedes engines. With Ultimate Motorsport pulling out of the series, JTR became the de facto lead team for Mygale, with Tandy being touted as a championship contender. After a double podium at the Oulton Park opener, Tandy suffered a somewhat disappointing weekend at Silverstone with low points finishes. After his brother's death, the team vowed to carry on in Formula Ford. Eighteen days after his brother's death, Tandy scored his and the team's first win with a dominating performance at Rockingham.
Having negotiated the first lap incident which took out rivals Daniel Ricciardo and Renger van der Zande, Tandy drove away from the field to win by 8.608 seconds from Henry Arundel and Adriano Buzaid. Tandy is noted for his pace over a single lap, having recorded four fastest laps from the first eight races of the championship, at one point, lay third in the standings. After Carlo van Dam left Kolles & Heinz Union, Tandy was signed up to drive at the Norisring in the Formula Three Euroseries; the following weekend, Tandy signed a deal to compete in the rest of the Euroseries campaign, but a clause in the contract meant that he did not compete again in the rest of the British championship. Tandy left the team before the Dijon-Prenois rounds. Tandy was offered the opportunity to compete in the Porsche Carrera Cup Germany at the Dijon-Prenois rounds with Konrad Motorsport where on his debut with no testing, he finished 2nd. Following this performance Tandy was given a drive with Konrad in Porsche Supercup at the Abu Dhabi round supporting Formula 1.
He was again on the podium with a 2n
Porsche 911
The Porsche 911 is a two-door, 2+2 high performance rear-engined sports car made since 1963 by Porsche AG of Stuttgart, Germany. It has all round independent suspension, it has undergone continuous development. The engines were air-cooled until the introduction of the Type 996 in 1998, with the 993, produced from 1994–1998 model years, being the last of the air-cooled Porsche sports cars; the 911 has been modified by private teams and by the factory itself for racing and other forms of automotive competition. It is among the most successful competition cars. In the mid-1970s aspirated the 911 Carrera RSR won major world championship sports car races, such as Targa Florio and 24 Hours of Daytona against prototypes; the 911-derived 935 turbo won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1979 and Porsche won World Championship for Makes titles in 1976, 1977, 1978 and 1979 with 911-derived models. In the 1999 international poll to determine the Car of the Century, the 911 came fifth, it is one of two in the top five that had remained continuously in production, was until 1998 a successful surviving application of the air- cooled opposed rear-engine layout pioneered by its ancestor, the Porsche 356.
It is one of the oldest sports coupé nameplates still in production with one million manufactured as of May 2017. Although Porsche changes the internal codes for its models, all 911 models were and are sold as a "911"; the headings below use Porsche's internal classifications. Porsche 911 Porsche 930 Turbo a turbocharged version of the original 911 Porsche 964 Porsche 993 the last air-cooled 911 Porsche 996 all-new body and water-cooled engines Porsche 997 Porsche 991 Porsche 992 The series letter is used by Porsche to indicate the revision for production cars, it changes annually to reflect changes for the new model year. Not all of the Porsche 911 models produced are mentioned here; the listed models are notable for their role in the advancements in technology and their influence on other vehicles from Porsche. 911 Carrera line-up. Models offered: Carrera, Carrera S, Carrera 4, Carrera 4S, Carrera GTS, Carrera 4 GTS, Carrera T. All models have cabriolet options except the 911 Carrera T. 911 Targa line-up.
Models offered: Targa 4, Targa 4S, Targa 4 GTS. 911 Turbo line-up. Models offered: Turbo, Turbo S. All models have cabriolet options. GT3/GT3 RS: Track focused version of the 911 Carrera with a aspirated engine and rear wheel drive layout. No cabriolet variant available. A grand touring variant featuring comfort oriented options called the GT3 Touring was available for the 991 generation models only. GT2/GT2 RS: The highest performance derivative, a track focused of the 911 Turbo with rear wheel drive layout. No cabriolet version available. Now available as an RS model only; the 911 traces its roots to sketches drawn by Ferdinand "Butzi" Porsche in 1959. The Porsche 911 was developed as a more powerful, larger and a more comfortable replacement for the 356, the company's first model; the new car made its public debut at the 1963 Frankfurt Motor Show. The car was developed with the proof-of-concept twin-fan Type 745 flat-six engine, but the car presented at the auto show had a non-operational mockup of the single-fan 901 engine, receiving a working unit in February 1964.
It was designated as the "Porsche 901". A total of 82 cars were built as. However, French automobile manufacturer Peugeot protested on the grounds that in France it had exclusive rights to car names formed by three numbers with a zero in the middle. Instead of selling the new model with a different name in France, Porsche changed the name to 911. Internally, the cars' part numbers carried on the prefix 901 for years. Production began in September 1964, with the first 911s exported to the US in February 1965; the first models of the 911 had a rear-mounted 130 PS Type 901/01 flat-6 engine, in the "boxer" configuration like the 356, the engine is air-cooled and displaces 1,991 cc as compared to the 356's four-cylinder, 1,582 cc unit. The car had four seats although the rear seats were small, thus it is called a 2+2 rather than a four-seater. A four or five-speed "Type 901" manual transmission was available; the styling was penned by Ferdinand "Butzi" Porsche, son of Ferdinand "Ferry" Porsche. Erwin Komenda, the leader of the Porsche car body construction department who objected, but was involved in the design.
Production of the 356 ended in 1965, but there was still a market for a 4-cylinder car in the US. The 912, introduced in the same year, served as a direct replacement, offering the de-tuned version of 356 SC's 4-cylinder, 1,582 cc, 90 hp boxer four Type 616/36 engine inside the 911 bodywork with Type 901 four-speed manual transmission. In 1966, Porsche introduced the more powerful 911S with Type 901/02 engine having a power output of 160 PS. Forged aluminum alloy wheels from Fuchs, with a 5-spoke design, were offered for the first time. In motorsport at the same time, the engine was developed into the Type 901/20 and was installed in the mid-engine 904 and 906 with an increased power output of 210 PS, as well as fuel injected Type 901/21 installed in variants of the 906 and 910 with a power output of 220 PS. In August 1967, th
Tio Ellinas
Eftihios “Tio” Ellinas is a Cypriot race car driver. Ellinas began racing go-karts at the age of seven, from 2003 - 2009 won 10 kart racing championships in Cyprus, in 2005 winning the ROK Cup International Final, he was the winner of Grand Prix Shootout in the UK in 2009 competing against 50 other top young drivers from all over the world. In 2010, he competed in the MSA Dunlop Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain racing with the JTR Team, he won three races and finished fourth in the championship, the highest placing for a novice driver since Jenson Button in 1998, earning him "Rookie Of The Year" honors. In 2011, Ellinas raced in the UK Formula Renault 2.0 championship for the Atech Reid GP Team, finishing third overall. He joined Marussia Manor Racing for the 2012 GP3 Series season. In the 2013, he tested for the Marussia F1 Team. Ellinas' first taste of motorsport came, he competed in 131 races. His championship positions are as follows: Third in Cyprus Karting Championship – KZ2 2009.
Second in ROK Cup Cyprus – Super Class 2009. Cyprus Karting Championship – KF2 champion 2009. Bridgestone Cup Cyprus champion in the KZ2 class 2009. Second in Cyprus Karting Championship – KZ2 2008. Third in ROK Cup Cyprus – Senior 2007. Cyprus Rotax Max Challenge champion in the Junior class 2006. Cyprus champion in the ICA Junior class 2006. ROK Cup International Final champion in the Junior ROK class 2005. ROK Cup Cyprus – Junior champion 2005. Cyprus champion in the ICA Junior class 2005. Cyprus Rotax Max Challenge champion in the Junior class 2004. Cyprus champion in the ICA Junior class 2004. Cyprus Rotax Max Challenge champion in the Junior class 2003. Ellinas took part in the inaugural Grand Prix Shootout competition in the United Kingdom in 2009, he was assessed by the world-famous driving coach Rob Wilson in September 2009 as part of the competition. He completed a number of sessions in a Double R Racing Formula BMW car at the Pembrey Circuit in Wales. In January 2010, Ellinas was announced as the first Grand Prix Shootout winner at the Autosport International exhibition.
He had taken on fifty other karters and drivers with over 100 major racing titles between them, in the end was the runaway winner. Ellinas competed in the MSA Dunlop Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain with the JTR team, he was only the second driver since the legendary Ayrton Senna to start on the front row of a British Formula Ford race in his car racing debut, was the fastest driver at every wet test during that first year. Ellinas's fourth position overall in the 2010 MSA British Formula Ford championship earned him Rookie Of The Year honors, is the best result for a rookie driver since the current McLaren Formula One driver and 2009 World Drivers' Champion, Jenson Button, in 1998. Ellinas competed in the Formula Renault UK championship with the Atech Reid GP team and finished third overall. Ellinas contested the 2012 GP3 Series season debut with Marussia Manor Racing, he finished the season eighth overall, recording one win and one podium finish in the season finale at Monza. On 17 June 2013, it was announced that Ellinas would carry out a scheduled straightline aerodynamic evaluation test session with the Marussia Formula One team at Kemble airfield in Gloucestershire, England.
In doing so, he became the first Cypriot to drive a Formula One car. As a reward for being the highest-placed Marussia Manor driver at the end of the 2012 GP3 Series season, Ellinas took part in the 2013 Young Driver Tests with Marussia F1. Ellinas continues to live in Cyprus. Formula Ford team list Official website Tio Ellinas career summary at DriverDB.com
Tim Harvey
Tim Harvey is a British racing driver, best known for being the 1992 British Touring Car Champion, the 2008 and 2010 Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain champion. A household name in the 1990s, Harvey won sixteen races in the British Touring Car Championship between 1987 and 1995, but competed in the series until 2002, he was the winner of the invitational Guia Race of Macau touring car event, in 1989. After leaving touring car racing, Harvey moved into the one-make Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain series. In seven full seasons in the championship, Harvey finished in the top four of the final championship standings in each season, left the series after a class victory in the Porsche Carrera World Cup meeting at the Nürburgring, with a series record of 35 overall victories. Along with media commitments for television broadcaster ITV4, their coverage of the British Touring Car Championship, Harvey competes in the British GT Championship. Born in Farnborough, Harvey first raced in the BTCC in 1987, taking three Class A wins in a Rover Vitesse In 1988 and 1989 he dovetailed sports car racing with BTCC outings, before finishing third in Class A in 1989 and 1990.
He was 8th overall in 1991. His 1992 title was achieved while run by Vic Lee Motorsport, he won five of the last seven races, having only won once. A dramatic final race saw him beat John Cleland and reigning champion Will Hoy to the title, after Hoy suffered an engine failure and Cleland clashed with Harvey's team-mate Steve Soper, he had a difficult 1993 season developing the Renault 19 for the new Renault entry but still managed to win the European Grand Prix support race in lurid conditions, while he was outpaced by team-mate Alain Menu in 1994 in the new Laguna. He raced for Volvo in 1995, using his wealth of experience to develop the all new Volvo 850 saloon, finishing 5th overall and taking 2 wins but unable to match team-mate Rickard Rydell, his experience was used to develop the new Peugeot 406, signing with the French marque in 1996 but was unable to deliver the win that eluded Peugeot during the heyday of the supertouring years. He drove for Peugeot in the 1996, 1997 and 1998 seasons, his best year being 1997 where he finished 9th in the championship, which included two 2nd-place finishes, strong drives in the wet at Thruxton.
After a couple of years away, his last BTCC years were 2001 and 10th in 2002 (reuniting with Vic Lee to drive one of his Peugeots, before quitting the series to pursue a media career. The Alfa Romeo 147 that Tim Harvey raced is now owned by Allitalia – an Independent Italian Auto Specialist based in North Wales, he has raced in the Porsche Carrera Cup for several years, finishing second to Richard Westbrook in 2004 and Damien Faulkner in 2006. In 2007, Harvey drove for Redline Racing in the new 997 Porsche GT3 in the British edition of the Carrera Cup. With stars such as Faulkner, Danny Watts and Richard Williams no longer competing, Tim now in the top team of 2006, he started as title favourite, but finished up second again, by just four points behind James Sutton. In 2008 he continued to battle for the title. Tim won the Porsche Carrera Cup Drivers Championship, on 21 September at Brands Hatch, he holds series records for fastest laps. He finished third in 2009, taking his first win of the year in race 6 at Thruxton and a double win at Snetterton.
He opened 2010 with nine wins in the first ten races. He wrapped up the 2010 title with one race to spare at Brands Hatch on 9 October with a second-place finish behind Stephen Jelley to ensure that he could not be caught by championship runner up Michael Caine. Following a puncture in race 20 which saw Harvey fail to score points for the first time in the season, Harvey claimed the 2010 Porsche Carrera Cup GB Championship by 10 points, with 11 race wins. Harvey's two wins at Croft on 20 June saw him become the most successful driver in the history of the championship, with 33 race wins at the time, he would end the season 4 clear, with 35 wins, over 150 podiums. At the end of May 2011, Harvey announced he was quitting the championship with immediate effect, citing difficulty in adapting to regulation changes as his motivation and allowing up and coming Kieran Vernon the opportunity to benefit from his seat in the Motorbase Performance car, he explained during the ITV4 coverage of the Oulton Park BTCC round on 5 June 2011 that he wasn't retiring from racing and would be reappearing somewhere before long whilst continuing to commentate for ITV.
In what may have been his last Porsche race, Harvey won the Porsche Carrera Cup GB race held at a wet Nürburgring in Germany as part of the Porsche Carrera World Cup. Harvey finished 13th overall, ahead of a number of the faster Supercup models. Harvey has been a prolific winner in sports cars. A distinguished career in international motorsport has given him a deep seated knowledge of the business and substantial reserves of experience. A factory driver for Spice in the halcyon days of the World Sportscar Championship saw Tim battling the Jaguars and Mercedes Benz during the 1989 and 1990 seasons, he twice won the BRDC C2 Championship in 1988 and 1989. He has contested the 24 Hours of Le Mans four times, winning his class in 1987, he won the British Sports Car Championship in 1999. He is a double winner of the Oulton Park Gold Cup in 2000 and 2001, joining previous winne
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