Panoz Avezzano

Last updated
Panoz Avezzano
Overview
Manufacturer Panoz, LLC
Also called Panoz Esperante
Production2017-
Assembly Hoschton, Georgia, United States
Body and chassis
Class Grand tourer (S)
Body style 2-door coupé
Layout FR layout
Powertrain
Engine
Transmission 6-speed manual
Dimensions
Wheelbase 106 in (2,700 mm) [1]
Length181.1 in (4,600 mm)
Width79.3 in (2,010 mm)
Height52.1 in (1,320 mm)
Curb weight 3,197 lb (1,450 kg)

The Panoz Avezzano is an American front-engine, rear-drive, V8-powered sports car manufactured in Georgia by Panoz, LLC. Intended for sale both as a road car and as a homologated racing vehicle, the racing-configured Avezzano GT4 was first entered in competition in 2017 in the Pirelli World Challenge, while the street version of the automobile was first offered for sale during the summer of 2017.

Contents

History

The Panoz Avezzano is named after the city of Avezzano in Italy, which was destroyed by an earthquake in 1915, the destruction spurring the emigration of Don Panoz's grandfather to America. [2] Developed from the preceding Panoz Esperante, [3] the Avezzano was unveiled at the 2016 Petit Le Mans, and appeared at the first annual Atlanta Concours d'Elegance. [4] Using largely aluminium construction, the Avezzano is configured with a front-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout, with a Chevrolet V8 engine providing power through a manual transmission. [5]

The Avezzano's GT4 racing version was the first model of the car to be introduced, being used by Team Panoz Racing in the Pirelli World Challenge for the 2017 racing season. [6] Ian James scored the first victory for the Avezzano in the World Challenge at Road America in June; [7] James accumulated a total of six wins in the Avezzano over the course of the season, and the team shifted from the GTS class to GT4 for 2018 following homologation as a production vehicle. [8]

The street version of the Avezzano entered production in early 2017, with sales beginning in the summer of that year. [9]

Related Research Articles

Panoz

Panoz is an American manufacturer of sports automobiles founded in 1989 as Panoz Auto Development by Dan Panoz and currently owned by Don Panoz. Panoz products have included the Panoz Roadster and AIV Roadster, the Panoz Esperante, and the Panoz Avezzano.

Ferrari 250

The Ferrari 250 is a series of sports cars and grand tourers built by Ferrari from 1952 to 1964. The company's most successful early line, the 250 series includes many variants designed for road use or sports car racing. 250 series cars are characterized by their use of a 3.0 L (2,953 cc) Colombo V12 engine designed by Gioacchino Colombo. They were replaced by the 275 and 330 series cars. Early Ferrari 250 cars fitted 16" Borrani wheels with either Pirelli Stella Bianca Crossply tyres or 185R16 Cinturato radial tyres. Later road cars fitted 15" Borrani wheels and 185R15 Pirelli Cinturato.

The International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) is a North American various auto racing sanctioning body based in Daytona Beach, Florida under the jurisdiction of the ACCUS arm of the FIA. It was started by John Bishop, a former executive director of SCCA, and his wife Peggy in 1969 with help from Bill France, Sr. of NASCAR. Beginning in 2014, IMSA is the sanctioning body of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, the premier series resulting from the merger of Grand-Am Road Racing and the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón. IMSA is owned by NASCAR, as a division of the company.

GT World Challenge America Racing series

The GT World Challenge America is a North American auto racing series launched in 1990 by the Sports Car Club of America. It is managed by the Stephane Ratel Organisation since 2018, and is sanctioned by the United States Auto Club since 2017.

The Ferrari 330 was a series of V12 powered automobiles produced by Ferrari in 2+2 GT Coupé, two-seat Berlinetta, spyder, and race car versions between 1963 and 1968. The name "330" refers to the approximate displacement of each single cylinder in cubic centimeters.

Panoz Esperante GTR-1 American GT1 sports car built by Panoz

The Panoz Esperante GTR-1 was a race car developed by Panoz Auto Development and Reynard Motorsport for grand tourer endurance racing in 1997. Although named after the Panoz Esperante roadster, the GTR-1 actually bore no mechanical relation to the production Esperante, instead sharing only minor styling points. Only two road-legal GTR-1s were built to meet homologation requirements set forth by the ruling bodies which the racing cars ran under.

Élan Motorsport Technologies

Élan Motorsport Technologies is an American enterprise that serves as an umbrella company containing the race car engineering, development and manufacturing companies owned by American racing and automotive company conglomerate Panoz Motor Sports Group. Élan engineers, designs and builds Panoz-branded race cars and components, since its founding it has also acquired several manufacturers, including famous Formula Ford builders Van Diemen and IndyCar Series constructor G-Force. Élan-built cars have successfully competed in the American Le Mans Series, Le Mans Series, IMSA Prototype Lites and various other championships, racing series and types of professional racing throughout the world. It designs, develops and manufactures full line race cars, i.e. chassis, bodies, components and engines for professional racing competition for a variety of segments and classes.

Dodge Viper Sports car produced by Dodge

The Dodge Viper is a sports car that was manufactured by Dodge, a division of American car manufacturer FCA US LLC from 1991 through 2017, having taken a brief hiatus in 2007 and from 2010 to 2012. Production of the two-seat super car began at New Mack Assembly Plant in 1991 and moved to Conner Avenue Assembly Plant in October 1995.

IMSA GT Championship Auto racing championship in the United States

IMSA GT was a sports car racing series organized by International Motor Sports Association. Races took place primarily in the United States, and occasionally in Canada.

Pratt & Miller American motorsport team

Pratt & Miller Engineering and Fabrication, also known as Corvette Racing is an automotive company formed by Gary Pratt and Jim Miller in 1989.

KTM X-Bow

The KTM X-Bow is an ultra-light sports car for road and race use, produced by Austrian motorcycle manufacturer KTM. It represented the first car in their product range and was launched at the Geneva Motor Show in 2008.

The 2011 Pirelli World Challenge season was the 21st season of the Sports Car Club of America's World Challenge series. It was the first season under the Pirelli sponsorship. Championships were awarded in three classes: GT, GTS, and Touring. The season began at St. Petersburg, Florida, on March 26 ended after 12 rounds at Road Atlanta on September 30. All rounds were covered on television by Versus.

DragonSpeed Racing is an American racing team, currently competing in the European Le Mans Series, FIA World Endurance Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. In 2019, the team entered the NTT IndyCar Series with a five race schedule, including the 103rd Indianapolis 500, with car #81 driven by Ben Hanley.

DeltaWing

The DeltaWing is a racing car designed by American race car designer and engineer Ben Bowlby and debuted at the 2012 24 Hours of Le Mans. The entry was run under the Project 56 name, composed of Ben Bowlby (design), Dan Gurney's All American Racers (constructor), Duncan Dayton's Highcroft Racing and International Motor Sports Association owner Don Panoz. Nissan's NISMO division provided the engine in return for naming rights for part of 2012.

Ryan Eversley American race car driver

Ryan Eversley is an American race car driver. Starting in 2015, Eversley has been a Honda factory driver who primarily races in the Pirelli World Challenge series for the RealTime Racing Acura team in an Acura TLX-GT in the GT class. In 2017 Eversley and his team started racing the new NSX GT3.

Nissan GT-R LM Nismo

The Nissan GT-R LM Nismo was a sports prototype racing car built by the Nissan Motor Company and their motorsports division Nismo. Designed for the Le Mans Prototype 1 Hybrid (LMP1-H) regulations of the FIA World Endurance Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the GT-R LM was unique amongst Le Mans Prototypes at the time for utilizing a front mid-engine layout for its internal combustion engine, as opposed to the rear mid-engine layout used by nearly all other competitors in the category. It was Nissan's first prototype since the R391 competed in 1999, although the company had supplied engines in recent years. The car was branded after the Nissan GT-R road car and shares similar engine and drivetrain configurations, but is not related to the sports car. The GT-R LM Nismo program was announced on 23 May 2014, while the car was publicly shown for the first time in a Nissan commercial during Super Bowl XLIX on 1 February 2015. It was retired from competition at the end of 2015, after having competed in only one race.

Porsche Boxster/Cayman

The Porsche Boxster and Cayman are mid-engine two-seater sports cars manufactured and marketed by German automobile manufacturer Porsche across four generations — as a 2-door, 2-seater roadster (Boxster) and a 3-door, 2-seater fastback coupé (Cayman).

Michael Cooper (racing driver) American-born race car driver

Michael Cooper is an American-born race car driver who currently competes in the Pirelli World Challenge. He resides in Huntington, New York, and also has a business management degree from at NYIT, and a nutrition degree from Long Island University.

Jade Buford is an American professional sports car racing driver. He competes in the International Motor Sports Association's Michelin Pilot Challenge, driving the No. 40 Ford Mustang for PF Racing, and part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 07 and No. 6 Chevrolet Camaros for SS-Green Light Racing and JD Motorsports, respectively. Buford has also raced in the Pirelli World Challenge, British GT Championship, and GT4 America Series.

References

  1. "2017 Panoz Avezzano". carfolio.com. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
  2. Pruett, Marshall (17 November 2017). "Panoz's Race Car Got Its Name Because of an Earthquake that Killed 30,000 People". Road & Track . Retrieved 2017-12-03.
  3. Pruett, Marshall (30 September 2016). "IMSA: Panoz to evaluate new GT model". Racer . Retrieved 2017-12-03.
  4. "Georgia-Based Panoz Looks to Return to GT Racing". Valdosta Today . Valdosta, GA. 15 November 2016. Retrieved 2017-12-03.
  5. "Panoz Avezzano GTS completes first test". Racer. 7 March 2017. Retrieved 2017-12-03.
  6. Alaniz, Anthony (16 June 2017). "What's a Panoz? More than just an electric race car". Autoweek . Retrieved 2017-12-03.
  7. Bradley, Charles (24 June 2017). "Road America PWC: James scores maiden GTS win for Panoz". Motorsport.com. Retrieved 2017-12-03.
  8. "Calvert Joins Panoz in Expanded Two-Car Avezzano GT4 Program". Sportscar365.com. 16 November 2017. Retrieved 2017-12-03.
  9. "Panoz Avezzano Set For World Challenge". Speed Sport . 13 January 2017. Retrieved 2017-12-03.