Social media posts yesterday by the ByKolles/ Vanwall Racing team have shown the first prototype of the organisations’ ‘Vanwall Vandervell 1000’ road car, suggested to be undertaking its first road test.
The car, built around the first test chassis of the team’s as-yet unraced Hypercar, is an essential part of the package to persuade the FIA and ACO to allow the race car to be entered in the FIA WEC, currently the only Championship available to the team (as IMSA have a 2,500 road car proviso on their parallel GTP class).
Colin Kolles told the DSC Editor recently that the road car is fitted with a different engine to the race car (which has tested with a 4.5 litre Gibson GL 458 normally aspirated engine). but declined to reveal which engine the road car would be powered by.
The road car prototype is very clearly a re-bodied ‘mule’ of the race car (above), still featuring the FIA sensor package on the roof and racing centre lock wheels. It is unclear whether the car is yet a road-legal and road-capable machine, though it has been fitted with German license plates.
Notable changes to the car are the rear ‘clip’ which has a deck featuring no rear wing and revised rear lights.
Vanwall/ ByKolles must show evidence of being a road car manufacturer (not necessarily with a version of their race car) as part of the submission to the FIA Endurance Commission to be approved as a HyperCar entrant together with proof of the company’s rights to use their selected ‘brand’.
It is not yet clear whether the team will attempt to enter in 2023 under the Vanwall or Vandervell name.
Also noteworthy is the branding on the team’s entry into the Le Mans Virtual race series, the ORECA 07s entered by ‘Vanwall Burst’ featuring less prominent Vanwall branding, the previous large Vanwall vinyls on the test Hypercar’s flanks now replaced by ‘Vandervell’, but with Vanwall branding still featuring elsewhere on the car.
