A heavily modified Toyota Celica GT4 beat numerous race cars, including recent Formula 1 contenders, to become the fastest car to drive up the over 1.8-kilometer driveway of the Goodwood House at the 2011 Goodwood Festival of Speed.
Built and driven by former British Rally champion, Jonny Milner, the Celica topped its competitors by clocking in at 48.07 seconds.
Rising over 300ft from the start line to the finish, the course is described to be as "very technical and challenging, putting the skills of the world's very best drivers and riders to the ultimate test of concentration and speed."
Based on the sixth-generation Celica, Milner's car is incredibly light, tipping the scales at just 1,050kg. To improve its weight distribution, the driver's position was moved back 12 inches. Its center of gravity was also lowered by raising the wheel arches and upper suspension mounts while the flat floor and rear diffuser added a degree of ground effect.
Powering the Celica to its winning time is an engine from a World Rally Championship-winning Corolla that was fitted with a Rotrex supercharger to bump up its output to 700hp. The addition of a nitrous oxide injection system helped to reduce turbo-lag and pushed the power output to over 800hp. A Mactrack five-speed manual transmission and super soft rallycross specification Michelin slick tires also played important roles in getting all that horsepower to the ground.
