Big Impact

Those with a good memory will recall the build feature we ran on the rear-mounted VQ35-powered March back in NZPC 241. But you may not be aware that on its debut the car took a brutal hit into the wall at Hampton Downs. Builder and driver Glenn Hodges was at the helm that day, and said that the crash was down to a number of factors.

A few setbacks along the way had put pressure on the desired deadline — to be at the NZ Superlap Series round on December 3 — but, by 2am that morning, he was ready for a handful of shakedown laps. The car was showing huge potential, and it rattled off a 1.20s lap time, though he was only giving it the odd squirt on the straights, but, unfortunately, early in what would have been the last session of the day, things went very wrong. The result was an impact with the tyre wall at the Hamptons pit entrance. Going in backwards, the car compressed the entire tyre bundle, smashing the concrete wall behind and firing the car upwards — as high as the catch fence before it landed on the front left corner, upside down. Yep, it wasn’t pretty.

Following his recovery, Glenn contemplated calling it a day … However, the good sorts at Race Cars in Sheds organized for a replacement shell to be delivered from the deep south, and, although the original car may look like toast, a few key components can be saved to bring the new one to life. Glenn says that the biggest difference between the two cars is that the new vehicle won’t be tested until everything is 100 per cent. The plan is to tear the munted car down and salvage whatever can be used, safely. The new car’s suspension will feature adjustable everything, revised body flares, a lower drive height for balance, and aero — essentially, all the badass stuff that never made it onto the car the first time around.

We’ll catch up with Glenn once the car is fully complete and ready to cut some laps properly.