Allard J2X-C
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The Allard J2X-C, or the Allard J2X as it is sometimes referred to, was a
Group C Group C was a category of sports car racing introduced by the FIA in 1982 and continuing until 1993, with ''Group A'' for Touring car racing, touring cars and ''Group B'' for Grand tourer, GTs. It was designed to replace both Group 5 (motorspor ...
sports racing car built by Allard in 1992 for use in international
sports car racing Sports car racing is a form of motorsport road racing that uses sports cars with two seats and enclosed wheels. They may be either purpose-built Sports prototype, sports prototypes, which are the highest level in sports car racing; or grand to ...
events. It featured a 3.5-litre
Cosworth DFR The DFV is an internal combustion engine that was originally produced by Cosworth for Formula One motor racing. The name is an abbreviation of ''Double Four Valve'', the engine being a V8 development of the earlier four-cylinder FVA, which had f ...
V8 engine A V8 engine is an eight- cylinder piston engine in which two banks of four cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration. Origins The first known V8 was the Antoinette, designed by Léon Levavasseur, a ...
, capable of producing around . The J2X-C had bodywork that is more reminiscent of modern
Le Mans Prototype A Le Mans Prototype (LMP) is a type of sports prototype race car used in various races and championships, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans, FIA World Endurance Championship, IMSA SportsCar Championship, European Le Mans Series, and Asian Le M ...
s than a conventional Group C car, but the engine proved too weak for the level of downforce, and this, coupled with the fact that Allard Holdings were liquidated during the car's development, severely restricted the J2X and prevented it ever reaching its potential. One car was built.


Development

In the 1980s, Chris Humberstone, licensed the rights to the Allard name from Alan Allard, the son of the company's founder, Sidney. After a few years of wrangling, the company hired Hayden Burvill from Brun Technics to begin developing the J2X-C. He was joined in 1991 by John Iley, who was hired as the aerodynamicist, and the car was designed to have as little frontal area as possible, giving it a unique look. Although it was originally planned to use a Chevrolet small block-derived
V8 engine A V8 engine is an eight- cylinder piston engine in which two banks of four cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration. Origins The first known V8 was the Antoinette, designed by Léon Levavasseur, a ...
, the car was instead fitted with a 3.5-litre
Cosworth DFR The DFV is an internal combustion engine that was originally produced by Cosworth for Formula One motor racing. The name is an abbreviation of ''Double Four Valve'', the engine being a V8 development of the earlier four-cylinder FVA, which had f ...
V8 engine, derived from a Formula One engine, which produced about of power and of
torque In physics and mechanics, torque is the rotational analogue of linear force. It is also referred to as the moment of force (also abbreviated to moment). The symbol for torque is typically \boldsymbol\tau, the lowercase Greek letter ''tau''. Wh ...
. The gearbox was also from an F1 car: a
Leyton House Leyton House Racing was a Formula One constructor that raced in the 1990 and 1991 seasons. It was, in essence, a rebranding of the March team which had returned to F1 in . Leyton House, a Japanese real estate company, had been the team's marq ...
-
March Engineering March Engineering was a Formula One constructor and manufacturer of customer racing cars from the United Kingdom. Although only moderately successful in Grand Prix competition, March racing cars enjoyed much better success in other categories ...
6-speed
sequential manual transmission A sequential manual transmission, also known as a sequential gearbox or sequential transmission, is a type of Non-synchronous transmission, non-synchronous manual transmission used mostly in motorcycles and Auto racing, racing cars. It produces ...
modified for endurance racing. This transmission would prove to be problematic throughout the car's lifetime. The J2X-C used
double wishbone suspension A double wishbone suspension is an independent suspension design for automobiles using two (occasionally parallel) wishbone-shaped arms to locate the wheel. Each wishbone or arm has two mounting points to the chassis and one joint at the knuckl ...
, with
push-rod An overhead valve engine, abbreviated (OHV) and sometimes called a pushrod engine, is a piston engine whose valves are located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with flathead (or "sidevalve") engines, where the v ...
actuated coil springs over dampers at both ends of the car; the front suspension was mounted on the
carbon-fibre Carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (American English), carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers (Commonwealth English), carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics, carbon-fiber reinforced-thermoplastic (CFRP, CRP, CFRTP), also known as carbon fiber, carbon compo ...
monocoque Monocoque ( ), also called structural skin, is a structural system in which loads are supported by an object's external skin, in a manner similar to an egg shell. The word ''monocoque'' is a French term for "single shell". First used for boats, ...
, whilst the rear suspension was mounted to a carbon-fibre sub-structure that had been designed to allow quick transmission replacement. The car's radical bodywork generated a high amount of downforce; it was calculated to give approximately of downforce at , and at . However, some of the more conventional cars were able to match this level of downforce; the works Toyota TS-010s had a claimed maximum downforce of over , for example. It was, however, higher than the works
Nissan R91CP The Nissan R90C was a platform used for Group C racing cars built in 1990 by Nissan Motors for competition in World Sportscar Championship (WSC) based in Europe and the All Japan Sports Prototype Championship (JSPC). The cars based on the basic R90C ...
, which had a claimed maximum of at , whilst the 1993
Joest Joest is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Reinhold Joest (born 1937), former race car driver and current team owner **Joest Racing Joest Racing is a German sports car racing team that was established in 1978 by former Por ...
- Porsche 962C had a claimed maximum of at .


Racing history

Terai Engineering attempted to enter the J2X-C at the 500 km of Suzuka in April 1992, but the car was far from ready, and did not attend. The J2X-C was first tested on 9 July 1992, with Costas Los selected to drive it at
Pembrey Circuit Pembrey Circuit is a motor racing circuit near Pembrey village, Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is the home of Welsh motorsport, providing racing for cars, motorcycles, karts and trucks. The circuit's facilities have also been used for a single-venue ...
. He said of the car; "''the J2X felt very different to a regular Group C car... Contrary to most Group C cars I had driven, it was a lot more tuneable than I was accustomed to.''" However, he did state that the car's lack of power-assisted steering was a problem. The team struggled to find a buyer for the car, as the Group C era was drawing to a close by 1992 and 1993; the IMSA GTP Championship was on its last legs, and the
World Sportscar Championship The World Sportscar Championship was the world Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance racing series run for sports car racing, sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), from 1953 World Sportscar Championship, 1953 t ...
was beginning to shift away from the category. With the J2X-C far from being completely developed, Allard Holdings were liquidated in the first quarter of 1993, and the car was sold to Robs Lamplough for £76,000. The car's lack of straightline speed, due to a combination of undeveloped aerodynamics, the high level of downforce, and the low power of the engine, would restrict the car's racing career even further. After Lamplough had bought the car, he ran the car in the test session for the
1993 24 Hours of Le Mans The 1993 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 61st Grand Prix of Endurance, taking place at the Circuit de la Sarthe on the 19 and 20 June 1993. The race was won by Peugeot Sport, Peugeot Talbot Sport, with drivers Geoff Brabham, and Le Mans rookies Éri ...
; however, he was only able to finish 19th overall, and last in the car's category, even lapping slower than four of the GT cars. The car was clocked at just down the
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, and this led to Lamplough opting to not run in the
24 Hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans () is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the city of Le Mans, France. It is widely considered to be one of the world's most prestigious races, and is one of the races—along with ...
race. Instead, Lamplough debuted the car, with assistance from Bob Pond Racing, at the ninth round of the IMSA GTP Championship, held at
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; ninth place overall, and last in the GTP category, was the best Lamplough could do with the car. The car never raced again.


Later history and legacy

Lamplough held onto the J2X-C for a while, but eventually sold the car, which then passed through the hands of several owners before ending up in Canada. Although even conventional rivals such as the Toyota TS-010 were able to develop more downforce, the J2X-C was far from the end of its development, and various other companies had considered developing a similar style of car. Most manufacturers considered the radical bodywork just too great a risk, as
Spice Engineering Spice Engineering was a British racing team founded by driver Gordon Spice with Raymond Bellm in the early 1980s, later becoming a successful sports car constructor in 1986. They competed in the World Sportscar Championship in Europe as well as ...
's lead designer, Graham Humphries, stated; "''With limited resources, it was decided instead to follow the more conventional route of further developing what we knew.''" However,
Le Mans Prototypes A Le Mans Prototype (LMP) is a type of sports prototype race car used in various races and championships, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans, FIA World Endurance Championship, IMSA SportsCar Championship, European Le Mans Series, and Asian ...
of the early 2000s and beyond, such as the
Audi R8 The Audi R8 is a mid-engine, 2-seater sports car, which uses Audi's trademark quattro permanent all-wheel drive system. It was introduced by the German car manufacturer Audi AG in 2006. Production ended in the first quarter of 2024. The car is ...
, the Lola B01/60 and the Lola B05/40 have all been said to use some of the lessons learned in the J2X-C. The J2X-C was, as of 2008, in running order having been fully restored, and ran in the 2007
Goodwood Festival of Speed The Goodwood Festival of Speed is an annual motorsports festival featuring modern and historic motor racing vehicles taking part in a hillclimbing, hillclimb and other events, held in Goodwood House, West Sussex, in late June or early July. Th ...
, as part of the Group C 25th Anniversary celebration.


References

{{Good article Group C cars J2X-C IMSA GTP cars