What tool do you give the world’s best rally race car driver to attempt a world record time at the 2013 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb? If you are Peugeot, Sebastien Loeb is driving your car, you are teamed up with sponsors such as RedBull, and you are entered into the Unlimited class at this year’s Race To The Clouds – the answer is this Peugeot T16 208 hill climb special.
The great thing about the Unlimited division of the PPIHC is: anything goes as long as you can pass the race car safety inspection. It means you can spend unlimited money on the whatever unlimited vehicle you want. In this case, this Peugeot 208 T16 racer shares only its “208” name with the production 208 car. It’s basically a one-off special race car built for one purpose, which is being the fastest ever to the 14,110 ft summit of Pikes Peak – America’s Mountain. Many previous Unlimited division entries are rumored to have around 1,000 horsepower, so it’s likely that this Peugeot is packing similar muscle.
Pikes Peak route is Colorado’s extreme version of Germany’s famous Nurburgring. It’s a 12.42 mile road course which starts at elevation of 9,390 ft above sea level and takes 156 zig-zagging turns on its way to the 14,110 ft summit. This race takes full commitment, experience, consistency, and also a fair amount of luck. Fortunately, Sebastien Loeb brings decades of racing experience. Sebastien is the reining 9-time World Rally Championship winner, which makes him the most successful rally car driver in history.
Sebastien Loeb is a Pikes Peak rookie and has a task of beating a PPIHC record of 9:46.164 minutes that was set last year by Rhys Millen in his Hyundai Genesis race car. This year Rhys is bringing a mean car of his own – an updated Unlimited Hyundai hill climb special. Of course, before you can beat a competitive racer, you need to beat Pikes Peak: the weather and the elevation. The PPIHC is very unpredictable and no one team or driver have an advantage. The Mountain is the equalizer. What a great race this will be!
TFLcar team will be on hand and will bring you coverage of the 2013 PPIHC, scheduled for June 30th.
Please check out the action from the 2010 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb:
Andre Smirnov is a life-long automotive enthusiast, software engineer, writer, and reporter. He has been writing and reporting at TFLcar since 2011. When not working or spending time with the family – you can find him tinkering in the garage or scouring the internet and other media for various automotive, mechanical, and computer related information.
