New York, New York – Reported by Elite Traveler, the Private Jet Lifestyle Magazine
Just weeks after the all-new Volvo S60 was introduced to the public, and a few days after the new sedans appearance at the New York Auto Show, the latest Volvo model is also being unveiled in a racing version. Volvo Cars Belgium will enter the new car in the 2010 season of the Belgian Touring Car Series. Volvo fans will not need to wait long to see the latest model in action since the premiere takes place on April 11.
“We are very happy about this development,” says Bart Crols, Managing Director at Volvo Cars Belgium. “The all-new Volvo S60 sports sedan is Volvo’s most exciting driving experience so far and there is no better way to show this than by bringing it to the race track. Volvo and the all-new S60 have a special place in the people’s hearts here as several Volvo models, including the new S60, are built in Belgium at the Volvo Cars Ghent plant.”
The new Volvo S60 race car has been developed in record time locally by Volvo’s Belgian S60 Racing Team. It has been developed in accordance with the BTCS Silhouette S1 regulations which put a major emphasis on standardized features. All cars must use a tubular chassis, the same type of front and rear suspension and aerodynamics. A uniform type of engine specification is also available but manufacturers are allowed to use own engines.
The Volvo S60 Racing Team will also operate the car at all BTCS races and the drivers are Vincent Radermecker and Eric Van De Poele.
The BTCS is an endurance racing championship with six competitions on tracks such as Spa-Francorchamps, Zolder and Dijon. Each race consists of two 90-minute heats and there is also one 12-hour race in Spa. The all-new Volvo S60 will face intense competition from the likes of BMW, Audi, Jaguar and VW. BTCS has grown rapidly in terms of both competing brands and numbers thanks to its low-cost, high-performance combination and, not least, the fact that the cars have considerable visual appeal. The race series is televised in several countries and is gaining in popularity.
“We will support and follow our development in this series very closely as several other national championships are considering similar standardised regulations in the future,” says Derek Crabb, Motorsport Director at the Volvo Car Corporation. “This BTCS campaign will give us a good understanding of what these types of regulations can mean for Volvo.”
2010 Racing Calendar for the all-new Volvo S60 in the BTCS series
April 9-11 Zolder
April 30-May 2 Dijon-Prenois
June 4-6 Spa-Francorchamps
July 9-10 Spa-Francorchamps
September 17-19 Spa-Francorchamps
October 8-10 Zolder
www.btcseries.be
www.volvo.com