Sime Darby Auto Performance (SDAP), official importer for Porsche vehicles in Malaysia, announced their participation in the upcoming Porsche Carrera Cup Asia (PCCA) Rounds 7 and 8, scheduled to take place from 30th August to 2nd September 2012. PCCA will be the support races for the Malaysia Merdeka Endurance Race (MMER) 2012 which will also be held at Sepang International Circuit.
Besides just announcing intent, SDAP also displayed their Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car. This race car is based on the 997 GT3 RS, albeit with more power, has larger hips, and is (naturally) quicker. Aerodynamic tweaks include a lowered front spoiler lip (15mm) and a larger rear wing (from 1.46m to 1.70m) which significantly increases down force. The rear body is 44mm broader than standard, allowing for wider wheels – 9.5J x 18 (front) and 12J x 18 (rear). The Cup car will be powered by the same 3.8-litre mill, as found in the 911 GT3 RS road car except with a final output of 450bhp @ 8,500rpm. Power is transmitted to the rear axle via a sequential six-speed dog-box sourced from ZF Friedrichshafen AG.
Representing Team SDAP for the PCCA race will be Tan Sri Azman Yahya; a Porsche enthusiast, proud owner, and no stranger to the motorsport scene here in Malaysia. Tan Sri Azman Yahya has seen track action on Sepang before, winning the 2004 MMER in Open Class category and 2004 Malaysian Super Series (MSS) in the Supercars category. Tan Sri enthused his excitement to being part of the overall experience of an international championship racing series, and is ready to endure the challenges ahead. With all 911 GT3 Cup cars identical, the race will rely solely on driver’s competencies, and will surely be interesting to watch.
“Porsche stands for motorsports. With many victories and above all, the whole fascination of automobile sports. If you look at Porsche’s history, the very first Porsche has a motorsport history: Just a month after its completion, the Porsche 356 No. 1, won its class in a street race in Innsbruck, Austria. This marked the beginning of the motorsports passion. Today Porsche lists more than 30,000 race victories in almost every motorsports series worldwide,” said Mr. Arnt Bayer, Chief Executive Officer of SDAP.
“In Malaysia SDAP has supported the motorsport ambitions of its customers by organizing cir-cuit training and track days at Sepang International Circuit. In these events, seasoned Carrera Cup drivers train our customers on how to drive Porsche road cars fast but also safely on the racetrack. The participation in the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia is the next logical step up in customer motorsports and we are proud to support one of our very loyal customers in this. Tan Sri Azman Yahya will represent the SDAP team in our debut race. As a sports car company, we are always in support of customers in sports driving,” he continued.
Team Sime Darby Auto Performance is proudly supported by its partners, Sime Darby Motors, Symphony, Mobil 1, Michelin, Stand 21, Kurnia Insurance, Research In Motion (RIM) and Motorsport Playground.
