As part of our sponsorship of the
Irish Touring car Championship we wanted to take a closer look at some of the cars competing in the series. For our first feature we met up with ex A1GP and Formula 3 racer
Niall Quinn, and asked him to show us around his new
Seat Leon Supercup. The Leon Supercup or Supercopa as it is known throughout Europe is actually the most mass-produced racing car of all time, over 370 have been built. The cars are manufactured by SEAT Sport in Spain from a bare shell and are purpose-built racing cars, not modified road cars. That said, they are based on the SEAT Leon Cupra.
Visually the Leon Supercup is similar to the road car but the wings, bumpers, bonnet and floor are completely different. The modified, composite wings, which are needed to cover the much larger wheels, tyres & brakes give the car an aggressive stance.
The Leon has a very effective aero package which incorporates the front splitter, a completely flat floor, huge rear diffuser and adjustable rear wing. The downforce this generates is responsible in-part for the high levels of mid-corner grip the car is capable of
Compressed air jacks are fitted as standard to allow for fast wheel changes and suspension adjustments
Lightweight 18" SEAT Sport alloys shod with 250/650/R18 Yokohama Medium Compound Slicks provide the grip and allow clearance for the huge SEAT Sport brakes
The vented and grooved discs are 362mm in diameter and are clamped by 6 piston AP Racing calipers, manufactured specifically for the Leon Supercopa
A cold air feed from the front bumper helps keep brake temperatures under control. The front and rear dampers are adjustable for bump and rebound. Spring stiffness camber, toe and ride height can also be adjusted.
Inside the cockpit you'll only find the bare essentials: A multipoint weld-in roll cage, plumbed-in fire extuinguisher, AIM dash and data logger and the bare minimum of switchgear.
The engine is the 2 litre, 4 cylinder TFSi unit found in quite a lot of cars in Volkswagen/Audi/SEAT group (including our own
Project GTi). The modifications are surprisingly not that extensive. It produces a healthy 301bhp and 340nm of torque, primarily through the use of a larger turbo and different mapping and 400+bhp power is available by simply changing maps. The gearbox is the semi-auto DSG unit which utilises paddle shifts and is also tuned to give much faster, more aggressive gear changes.
We caught up with Niall during his first test session in the car at Mondello park, so we'll hand over to Niall and let him walk us round the car:
Full Spec:
Engine
- Type: Turbocharged; 4-cylinder in line
- Intake system: Direct fuel injection
- Displacement (cc): 1984 cc
- Bore x stroke (mm): 82,5 x 92,8
- Maximum power: 301 CV
- Maximum torque (Nm/ rpm): 340 Nm
- Electronic control: BOSCH MED 9.1
- Exhaust: Racing catalysed 98dB
- Fuel tank: Standard with additional fuel flow pump
Transmission
- Traction: Front-wheel-drive
- Gearbox: 6 speed DSG
- Differential: Mechanical limited slip differential with ramps 25/45
- Gearbox: Control Electronic on steering wheel module
Chassis and Suspension
- Front suspension: McPherson, adjustable in height, toe and camber
- Rear suspension: Multi-link axel, adjustable in height, toe and camber
- Spring: Helicoidally spring adjustable in height
- Front brakes: AP 6-piston callipers, 362 mm steel auto ventilated discs
- Rear brakes: 255 mm steel auto ventilated discs
- Brake pedal: Unitary with brake balance regulation
- Steering: Hydraulic power steering rack and pinion
- Wheels: SEAT Sport 9.5”x18”
Tyres:
Body and aerodynamics
- Roll Cage: FIA Homologated, Hans adaptated
- Driver position: Adapted to the car weight balance
- Aerodynamic: Flat floor, Front splitter & wings, Rear diffuser & spoiler
- Front Width (max): 1.858 mm
- Rear Width (max): 1.787 mm
- Length: 4.476 mm
- Wheelbase: 2.596 mm
Car check-control
- ECU: VAS connection available
- Data acquisition: AIM adapted system with 25 CAN + 8 mathematic channels
Who is Niall Quinn?
Born August 22, 1988 in
Dunboyne) Niall is an Irish racing driver, currently living in
County Meath, Ireland.
Achievements:
2010
- Raced Firestone Indy Lights Series
- Firestone Hard Charger winner for advancing from 17th to 9th at Long Beach Grand Prix
2009
- Winner – Phoenix Park Motor Races
- Test/Reserve driver, A1 Team Ireland, World Champions
- Driver for Lamborghini, Goodwood Festival of Speed
2008
- Champion – Formula Palmer Audi UK Autumn Trophy
- Volkswagen Factory Driver, German F3, Oscherlseben rounds
- Podium on British F3 Debut in National Class
- A1 Team Ireland Rookie Driver
- 6th Overall Asian F3 Championship (Competed in only part season)
- 2 Second place finishes and Fastest lap on Formula 3 Debut in Asian F3
2007
- Motorsport Ireland Young Racing driver of the Year
- 7th, Formula BMW ADAC
- Second place Round One Formula BMW ADAC, Oschersleben
- Third place, Round Five Formula BMW ADAC, Norisring
- Named Dunlop Driver of the Month for July
- Short-listed for Young Racing Driver of the Year
2006
- Winner of 5 Rounds Formula BMW UK Rookie Cup
- Awarded runner-up place in Dunlop Motorsport Ireland Young Racing Driver of the Year Award
- Second placed UK Championship driver in Formula BMW World Finals, Valencia, Spain
- Third Overall Formula BMW UK Rookie Cup
2005
- Recipient of Irish Examiner National Junior Sports Star award
- Winner, Irish National Senior Kart Championship (Formula A)
- Winner of Worldwide RedBull Racing Driver Shoot-Out, Estoril, Portugal
- Winner RedBull High Kings of Karting Challenge
Other Career Highlights
- First driver in History to win Irish National Kart Championships at Cadet, Junior (JICA), and Senior (Formula A) level
- Winner All-Ireland Karting Championship (JICA)
- Winner Neil Shanahan Trophy 2003
- Winner Leinster and Western area Championship (JICA)
- Winner Southern and Western area Championship (Cadet)
Images courtesy of
brianwalshphotos.com
