Time Attack: 450 hp strong Mini fights against the clock

BILSTEIN is the main sponsor for the Italian Time Attack series. One of the coolest competitors is surely the Mini R53 from the GPGARAGE tuner, where 450 hp from 1.6 litre engine are tamed with BILSTEIN two-way MDS racing suspension. With the vehicle weighing only 890 kg, the word “mass inertia” seems to come from the big book of fairy tales rather than from real-world physics. But what is Time Attack? Just another circuit race?

Yes and no: Because Time Attack is more like an ultra-gripping qualifying, which has become the main attraction – and rightly so! This type of event was created in the 1980s on the tuning scene of Japan. During timed circuits, it primarily tested the effectiveness of completed conversions and the performance of own vehicles – also as a selling point, if done by a professional tuner. Gradually, the scene grew more and more professional, so that nowadays it is mostly professional motor sports components and pure racing cars competing.

The Time Attack series are now available not only in Japan but also in the US, Germany, Finland and even Italy. Here, BILSTEIN has entered in an important partnership with the dealer N.T.P., which also specially adapts suspension for racing and driving. This company also converted the Mini to a BILSTEIN MDS (Modular Shock Absorber System) for GPGARAGE. In this case, a two-way system is used, where the bump and rebound stages for the shock absorbers can be adjusted separately. Two castors with ten tactile clicks make the setup extremely easy and ensure perfect reproducibility of the settings.

Incidentally, Time Attack has nothing to do with illegal street racing from Hollywood films and the underground scene: it is racing on tight racetracks, and here the Italian league has a lot to offer with its famous courses, such as Imola, Monza or Mugello. In total, there will be six events in 2017. The Mini from GPGARAGE is well equipped in any case. Alongside with tons of horsepower and a bespoke suspension, it also boasts a sequential transmission, central locking rims and carbon bodywork.