The Zent Cerumo Lexus RC F SuperGT race car took out the Sugo 300km endurance race held at Japan’s Sugo International raceway at the weekend.
![Zent Cerumo Lexus RC F SuperGT race car](http://www.autorevival.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Zent-Cerumo-Lexus-RC-F-SuperGT-race-car.jpg)
Held under difficult conditions, Saturday qualifying was cancelled due to heavy fog and rain while a clearer Sunday allowed for early qualifying.
Conditions had worsened by the afternoon with the race starting under light rain and a wet track, bringing team strategy and tyre choice into play.
The Zent Cerumo RC F team elected to remain on slick tyres while a number of others dived into the pits for wet tyres. The gamble payed off as the rain cleared to give the Zent team a 20-second lead.
“The car had a good balance in the race, so just by running normally I was able to keep building a lead,” said Zent driver Kohei Hirate.
“We never knew when it was going to start raining again so I pushed and tried to build up as much of a lead as I could, and eventually I was able to turn the car over to (co-driver) Tachikawa-san with about a 20-second lead.”
Lexus RC F vehicles made up a further four of the top 10 positions, with all six finishing the race.
All Lexus GT 500 RC F racers have been designed from the ground up for the 2014 season, with new rules stipulating new engines.
Drivetrains take inspiration from Lexus’ all-new 2.0-litre turbo, due to debut in the new NX compact crossover in 2015, and feature a direct injection turbo in-line four cylinder codenamed RI4AG.
The next round of the SuperGT series is scheduled for Fuji International Speedway next month.
SPECIFICATIONS
Model | Lexus RC F |
Dimensions | (L) 5010 × (W) 1950 × (H) 1150mm |
Weight | over 1020kg |
Wheelbase | 2750mm |
Transmission | 6-speed sequential |
Clutch | Quadruple carbon plate (ZF) |
Suspension | Double wishbone Pushrod (front and rear) |
Brakes | Ventilated Carbon disc 6-pod calliper (AP) (front) |
Ventilated Carbon disc 4-pod calliper (AP) (rear) | |
Tyres | Bridgestone 300/680R18 (front), 330/40R18 (rear) |
Wheels | TWS |
Engine Scpecifications
Engine model | RI4AG | |
Type | Straight-four direct injection single turbo | |
Displacement | 2000cc | |
Max power (kW) | Over 400kW |