[Tim C]

Found a bit of a write-up on it....

You know how when you need a hand with your project car, a quick call to your mates generally gets you a few extra pairs of hands? Help with getting that engine shoehorned in? Need a mate with a trailer and a 4×4? You know there’ll be someone there to help.

Well when Simon Bainbridge, the owner of this 650Bhp RS6 twin turbo powered car came up with the idea, you’d think his mates would run and hide. But no, between them, they created this carbon fibre and space framed Audi TT silhouette hill climb and sprint car from scratch and on a fraction of the budget of a professional race team. So how was it done?


First off, they looked at the overall package and decided that mid engine layout was the way to go. Simon’s previous cars had all been Audi powered, so he stuck with it and obtained an RS6 engine. The actual chassis was sketched out on a bare workshop floor using a simple ball of string, chalk and a tape measure before building a jig for the chassis dimensions. Transmission from Quaife was not without it’s problems, going through several failures before finding a system strong enough to transmit 650 Bhp straight into the tarmac through very sticky hillclimb slicks. Engine builder Mark Hardy at Automark reckons the motor is good for 1,000 bhp, but the transmission probably wouldn’t like that very much…

Future developments include a weigh loss programme, as even though there’s acres of carbon, the car was over-engineered and can afford to lose quite a few kilos yet. The other big development area is the aero package. The basics work very well, but Simon had to get used to aerodynamic grip, which was a new thing for him. Now that he’s comfortable with not lifting off in those high speed corners, the aero package will be developed still further.

If you’re out at a hillclimb or sprint event in the UK this summer, look out for the TT, in that colour, you definitely can’t miss it..