The annual Pikes Peak International Hill Climb at the end of June had a little something for everyone this year, with a 24 Hours of Le Mans winner racing right alongside an Acura NSX and a plug-in Honda Fit EV.
The EV didn’t beat the racecars, but it did negotiate the 14,115-foot climb in record time to win the Electric Production Class title. Mitsubishi MiEV models finished second and third in the electric division.
The Honda Fit EV completed the 12.42 mile uphill sprint in 12:55.591.
That’s just under five minutes slower than the all-around winner, a Honda Norma RD Limited, driven by Romain Dumas, whose race-winning time was 9:05.801.
Roy Richards, who drove the Honda Fit EV to a new record time, built on last year’s performance by trimming weight from the chassis and engine and refining the suspension settings.
The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb is the second oldest auto race in the U.S. The ; 12.42 mile course has 156 turns, including several tight hairpin turns, ending at the 14,110 foot summit of Pikes. The Hill Climb includes motorcycle, quad, car and truck divisions.
This year, there was another racer death. Bobby Goodin, 54, of Flower Mound, Texas, died of injuries following a crash in the motorcycle division.
Read the full race results on AOL Autoblog and on Gas2.org.
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