Tom Tang’s 2002 BMW M3 is steadily rolling through tech inspection for the Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hillclimb presented by Gran Turismo. The team is focused, but relaxed. This is the car’s third year here, and the crew knows what the race organizers are looking for. Lurking behind the glossy E46 in line is the Ford “Super” Mustang Mach E, with three-time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Romain Dumas at the wheel. Ultra low, wide, and with more than 1,400 all-electric horsepower, the factory-backed project is gunning for the fastest overall time up the mountain. It’s a juxtaposition that you only see at Pikes Peak. Both of these cars share the same mountain, even compete in the same class.
Colorado Springs looks like a very all-American Western town, yet the parking lot commandeered for tech inspection is a very international affair. Pitted next to a 1968 Plymouth Roadrunner with a crew of old-timers who raced here when the course was still dirt is a brand-new Ligier JS2 GT racer, its crew gabbing away in their native French. There’s a whole team of Italians here with two very European-style hillclimb cars. With no concessions to production car connections, they look like Le Mans prototypes in miniature, low and open. One driver is a champion back home in the European Hillclimb Championship, and another zips by in the pits at what seems like knee-height, the wind blowing in his hair. Pikes Peak is the second-oldest auto race in the country, behind the Indy 500, and together they’re probably the most mythic races in the country. They’re certainly the best-known in Europe. A couple of Belgian guys I was talking to at Rallye Monte Carlo last year, upon hearing I was American, immediately asked me, “Have you been to Pikes Peak?”
Tom’s car is in and out of tech inspection with little drama. A quick change to this year’s radio transponder and the car is good to go. But the work of the team is far from over, even on this preliminary day, almost a full week before Sunday’s race runs. They have a good bit of testing and validation for the car’s setup here at altitude, and they load up for Pikes Peak International Raceway, a banked oval a short drive away. Countless parts of the car’s engine setup will behave completely differently on the mountain. Though the car has already done a lot of testing and tuning on its new engine package, “we live at sea level, in the Bay Area,” Tom explains. “You can’t replicate the difference in air pressure.”
Thinner air doesn’t simply mean less power from the S54 inline-six, naturally-aspirated from the factory, but supercharged by Tom’s team and boosted again with nitrous. How much nitrous is a question they seek to answer with this test session at PPIR.
Working with his longtime race engineer Jei Chang of Trackspec Autosport and his engine builder at Steeldust Machine, this “V3” engine runs lower compression than the last one. Power is almost barely up, 608 against 606 horsepower, 406 against 395 lb-ft of torque, but that old engine pushed its internal components to the very limit. This version should be more stout, bolstered by nitrous. A 75-shot delivers plenty of power at sea level, but it’s up against a lot more here. The team tries out their 100-shot jet, at first restricting the engine’s redline and then letting Tom at it fully uncorked. As they’re getting ready to test out the 125 shot, they realize they are missing that jet size. Do they jump up to the 150 shot they have on hand, restricting the revs at first? They decide to overnight a set of 125 shot nozzles instead and play things on the conservative side. It is a long road to the top of Pikes Peak, and there’s no sense rushing things with three days of practice on the mountain ahead of them.
Everyone packs up and heads back to home base, a coincidentally spacious house Tom rented mostly for its excellent and well-lit garage. After tearing down and going over the car, everyone gets together to cook a team dinner. Tom grills the ribeyes, and the rest of the crew manages to get a bottle of wine open with a screw and a pair of vice grips. In a short speech, Tom thanks everyone for being there. Many of the people on this crew are volunteering their time as part of this collective dream. They have day jobs, but they also have a passion and a desire to help elevate this very humble car in a very prestigious race. It’s a big mountain to climb this week, but between their hard work and enough nitrous, they can get this E46 to the top.
