An eclectic mix of past and present wowed the crowds at Autosport International 2024. Here’s our full report covering all the modified car action.
While its predominantly race cars from all manner of series on show at Autosport International, we managed to dig out all of the coolest modified cars from the event. Particularly impressive was GT-R Driver’s Club line-up of each generation Skyline GT-R, with clean examples of all, plus the few wild builds complete with Liberty Walk-style bodykits.
On the newer side of things, Jay Cannon’s ridiculous McLaren 720S was on show, as well as Matt Armstrong’s twin-turbo Lamborghini Gallardo, built in partnership with Need for Speed. Matt also had his current rebuild on show, a McLaren 720S, which might be missing a few more panels…
It was my first opportunity to get up close and personal with the bonkers McLaren Solus GT. Built for the racetrack, it’s a futuristic design that captures the imagination.
Elsewhere, we spoke with Tony Lamb and his immaculate Datsun 240Z complete with a gearlever lifted straight from a fighter jet. And no, we’re not joking. Keep your eyes peeled on the YouTube channel for the video feature of that.
Now, what’s better than an R35 GT-R? How about one that’s been completely stripped down and rebuilt up as a Time Attack monster. Yep, we’re talking about Jack’s monster-spec GT-R that obliterates competition on track. With a built, strokered 4.1-liter engine from the specialists over at Litchfield, and a spec sheet longer than your arm, it’s a 1000bhp+ R35 that sticks to the track like no-ones business. Again, be sure to keep your eyes peeled on the YouTube channel for the full feature in the future.
The guys over at Monster Energy delivered on the goods once again, with star drifter Baggsy showing off his fresh GT86 build. Have a peek at the size of the turbo plumbed into the 2JZ. The result? 1000bhp…
And if you’re after class and performance in one scrumptious bundle, well, Petrolheadenism’s Lamborghini Murcielago has you covered. Elsewhere on the stand, a beautifully finished, widebody NSX sat next to a familiar Datsun 280Z and a big power Skyline GT-R R34.
Motorsport
Of course, we couldn’t ignore the race cars here at the NEC either. After all, as much as we love a good modified street build, this show is more about pro and amateur motorsport. Fortunately, the racing scene isn’t exactly short of cool cars to show you.
FIA World Endurance Championship
Two of the headline acts on are this pair of Le Mans Hypercars (likely show models rather than the real deal). The Ferrari 499P LMH and Jota Sport’s Porsche 963 LMDh will go toe to toe in the FIA World Endurance Championship once again this year. The #51 Ferrari won the centenary Le Mans 24 Hours last year, and retains the same ace driver crew of Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado, and Antonio Giovinazzi. As for Jota Sport, they’ve got a driver called ‘Jenson Button’ amongst their ranks. You might have heard of him before…
Beside them, a non-descript white prototype racer hides in plain view. However, despite its anonymous appearance, the relevance of the Mission H24 car cannot be understated. Powered by hydrogen, it’s the development mule for what could potentially be the future powertrains of elite endurance racecars.
M Sport Ford Puma Rally1
M Sport are back again for another assault on the FIA World Rally Championship, and this is the team’s fresh new livery for the season ahead. Lurking behind the rear wing is Adrien Fourmaux, the young Frenchman who’ll be tasked with leading the team’s charge against the factory-backed might of Toyota Gazoo Racing and Hyundai N. If you look further back, you’ll spot Carl Boardley’s Cupra Leon Competicion – the car which Boardley won the 2023 TCR UK Championship with.
GT3 race cars
GT3 is one of the most popular forms of professional motorsport for drivers to compete in, with hundreds of cars in action all around the world. Two of them have made it to Birmingham for Autosport International.
Abt Sportsline has brought their Red Bull-liveried Audi R8 LMS, which they’ll campaign in the 2024 DTM season with Kelvin van der Linde and Ricardo Feller. Meanwhile, ROWE Racing has brought along one of its BMW M4 GT3s. You might recognize the wide-arch kit from TJ Hunt’s recent headline build project.
Drift cars
In addition to the usual AE86, Chaser, and IS200 drift builds, we also spotted a certain rotary-powered Corvette on the Sunoco stand. You’ve got to stop following us around, Axel!
British Rally Championship
The British Rally Championship is still alive and kicking, providing a platform for professional and amateur drivers to compete in rallying at a national level across a multitude of classes. To give you an idea of the sort of cars which take part, the series has brought along a Hyundai i20N Rally2 and a Peugeot 208 Rally4, as well as an ex-WRC Subaru Impreza (but don’t expect to see that competing on stages in this day and age).
BTCC
The British Touring Car Championship is one of the strongest national-level racing series in the world, and as ever it had a presence at Autosport International. In this picture alone, Power Maxed Racing’s Mikey Doble shows a guest around his team-mate Andrew Watson’s Vauxhall Astra, while fellow drivers Josh Cook and Jade Edwards chat in the background.
2022 BTCC champion Tom Ingram had his own merchandise stand at the show this year, with his Exceler8 Motorsport Hyundai i30 Fastback N taking center stage.
TCR UK Championship
The BTCC’s little brother, the TCR UK Championship, is a UK-based touring car series pitched at younger drivers and semi-pros/amateurs. Like last year, the championship has a strong presence at Autosport International. Bert Taylor has taken the opportunity to launch a new team this year, which will run this Honda Civic FK7 for ex-BTCC racer Will Powell.
12 months ago, Area Motorsport debuted this Hyundai Elantra N TCR at this very show, but whether or not Luke Sargeant will remain behind the wheel for another year is up in the air.
RC drifting
To end the report, we could’ve spoken about the Formula E and Extreme E demo cars that are here on display, but frankly, these *slightly smaller* electric cars are a bit more entertaining. After all, who doesn’t enjoy a spot of RC drifting? Perhaps we’re easily pleased…
