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Volkswagen Motorsport

The new Volkswagen Scirocco that will be competing in the Nürburgring 24 hour race

With a racing heritage spanning more than 40 years, Volkswagen has enjoyed success in both circuit racing and on the international rallying stage, and is as synonymous with motorsport as Castrol is.

Having begun its motorsport journey in 1966 with the Formula V series, the German car manufacturer quickly set a high bar for it’s four decades of racing. The combination of a robust tube-frame chassis and a solid 58bhp engine derived from the Beetle road car proved to be an ideal platform for talented young drivers to start their career.

Formula 1 World Champions Jochen Rindt, Keke Rosberg, Nelson Piquet and Niki Lauda all passed through Formula V on their way to the top echelon, as did Indy 500 winner Arie Luyendyk, and successful sportscar drivers John Nielsen, Jochen Mass, Frank Jelinski and Walter Lechner.

Away from Formula V, between 1979 and 1994 Volkswagen also won 55 international titles as an engine manufacturer, including seven in Germany – with top-class drivers, the likes of Michael Schumacher, Tom Kristensen, Bernd Schneider, Kris Nissen and Joachim Winkelhock.

During this period, Volkswagen also notched up 92 race wins at German national level alone, and since September 2007 they have been supplying engines to the Formula 3 Euro Series, competing with Mercedes in a series that is now regarded as one of the key steps for young drivers aiming for Formula 1.
Volkswagen has been supplying engines to the F3 Euroseries since 2007
"Volkswagen can look back on a successful 2008 season in motorsport and can already look forward to a varied year of 2009,” says Volkswagen Motorsport Director Kris Nissen.

"From junior projects for rookies in formula or touring car racing, professional commitments like the Formula 3 engine programme, all the way to top-calibre sport in cross-country and off-road rally racing as well as at the 24 Hours of the Nürburgring Volkswagen will again prove its motorsport expertise in 2009. There is hardly another manufacturer who has such a wide and varied offering for junior drivers, customer teams and professional racers as Volkswagen had in 2008.”

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