Reiter-run Lamborghini shows performance gains at Monza

In yesterday?s opening round of the FIA GT Championship at Monza, Italy, the Reiter Engineering Lamborghini Murci?lago R-GT showed that revisions to its technical specification have brought performance gains.
Driven by Peter Kox and Norman Simon, the R-GT qualified within 1.2 seconds of the pole-position Maserati MC12, and gained 16 positions in the race before being knocked off the circuit by a rival. Team boss Hans Reiter, encouraged by this performance, forecasts that the car will show more strongly in future races when it incorporates further technical modifications.

Reiter said: ?This was our first chance to run the car against competition with an updated engine, giving more power and more torque, and with revised aerodynamics, giving more downforce. We never expected this to be our best track, so we were reasonably pleased to be just over one second away from pole position, in front of the Saleens, the Ferrari 575 Maranellos, and the Le Mans class-winning Corvette which the Lamborghini competed against in last year?s American Le Mans Series.

?It?s also worth noting that the Lamborghini was third-fastest of all the traditional-style GT cars. We?ve moved forwards, at a time when many other teams and cars have stagnated because the FIA GT Championship is more competitive this year and the pace is hotter than ever.?

Kox, who raced the 2004-specification Lamborghini in last year?s American Le Mans Series, commented: ?It was brave of Hans [Reiter] to bring the car to Monza, which is all about low-drag and high power, but this was the best way of assessing how the Lamborghini compares now with its competition. It?s definitely improved, and at high-downforce circuits it should be even stronger.?

The Lamborghini qualified 7th out of the 16 GT1 cars, Kox recording a best lap of 1min 46.905sec (195.07kmh/121.21mph) on the 5.8km (3.4-mile) track. The fastest car in qualifying, the JMB Racing Maserati MC12 of Philipp Peter/Chris Buncombe/Roman Rusinov, set a best lap time of 1min 45.699sec.

In the 500-kilometre race, the Lamborghini was forced to start from the back of the grid because the EFI engine management system switched to emergency code at the start of the warm-up lap, forcing Kox to fully reset the system and then restart. Kox progressed quickly through the field, running on tyres durable enough to last three stints, moving up from 28th place to 12th in less than an hour. The Dutchman was just two laps away from handing-over the car to team-mate Simon when the GPC Sport Ferrari 575 Maranello of Andrea Piccini collided with the Lamborghini at Parabolica corner, nudging the Lamborghini off the circuit, into a gravel trap, and out of the race.

Reiter Engineering will next race the Lamborghini Murci?lago R-GT, incorporating further technical modifications, in round two of the FIA GT Championship at Magny-Cours, France, on 1 May.

Reiter Engineering develops, builds and sells the R-GT from its base in Kirchansch?ring, Germany, and provides ongoing customer support, technical advice and parts supply to buyers of the cars.