The Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup was a single-make racing series sanctioned by the Sports Car Club of America. The series was started in 2008 and was a sports car series that ran only in North America, the series quietly folded in 2011.
Rules & prizes The series was open to only drivers between the ages of 16 and 26 who were citizens of the United States, Canada, and/or Mexico. The entry fee for drivers is $45,000. In addition to more than $50,000 in prize money at stake during the season, the series champion received Volkswagen factory career advancement support with a value up to $100,000.
Vehicles The cars were 2009 Volkswagen Jettas that were modified by the factory for the series. Once completed, the cars were still about 70% stock with the other 30% made up of parts from the VW parts bin, one-off brackets and mounts, and race prepping from outside parties. The cars feature VW's DSG twin shaft, dual clutch automatic transmission and have height adjustable Sachs race suspension. Brakes were controlled by an ATE Racing ABS system and utilize Brembo 4 piston fixed calipers in front and Lucas 1 piston floating caliper disc brakes in the rear. The tires are racing slicks provided by Pirelli. The minimum race weight for the car with driver and equipment is . The safety equipment on each car included but was not limited to airbags, seat belts, roll cage, fire extinguishers, and an FIA rated racing seat.
Engine Configuration inline 4-cylinder TDI Head 4 valves per cylinder, DOHC, compression ratio 18:1 Fuel system Common-Rail Injection with 8 nozzle output, piezo elements, pressure up to 1850 bar Aspiration turbocharged, intercooled, water-cooled exhaust gas recirculation Engine management Bosch exhaust VW Catalyst and particulate filter Output @ 4200 rpm, 368 ft-lbs @ 1900 to 2500 rpm Data Acquisition memotec Messtechnik
Points system The point system used was similar to other race series in that the most points are awarded to the first place finisher and points are reduced for subsequent finishing places. The Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup is unique in that the points are halved for the first two races compared to the points for the rest of the season. Races 1 & 2 Races 3 through 7 1st place 30 points 60 points 2nd place 24 points 48 points 3rd place 20 points 40 points 4th place 17 points 34 points 5th place 16 points 32 points 6th place 15 points 30 points 7th place 14 points 28 points 8th place 13 points 26 points 9th place 12 points 24 points 10th place 11 points 22 points 11th place 10 points 20 points 12th place 9 points 18 points 13th place 8 points 16 points 14th place 7 points 14 points 15th place 6 points 12 points 16th place 5 points 10 points 17th place 4 points 8 points 18th place 3 points 6 points 19th place 2 points 4 points 20th place 1 point 2 points
Champions SeasonChampion 2008 Josh Hurley 2009 Timmy Megenbier 2010 JD Mobley
2008 season results Rd. Date Track Pole Position Winning driver 1 April 25–27, 2008 Virginia International Raceway Josh Hurley Mark Pombo 2 May 16–18, 2008 Mosport International Raceway Josh Hurley David Jurca 3 July 25–27, 2008 Portland International Raceway Mark Pombo Josh Hurley 4 August 14–17, 2008 Lime Rock Park Michael Denino Chris Castagna 5 September 19–20, 2008 Iowa Speedway Jimmy Underhill Jimmy Underhill 6 September 27–28, 2008 New Jersey Motorsports ParkDoubleheader race Race #1 Shane Williams†Race #2 Timmy Megenbier Race #1 Shane WilliamsRace #1 points David Jurca‡Race #2 Liam Kenney†† 7 October 1–3, 2008 Road Atlanta Mark Pombo Liam Kenney † Shane Williams was a guest driver from the ADAC Polo Cup race series in Germany. ‡ David Jurca was awarded the points for a first place finish since Shane Williams did not accrue points in USA race. For points purposes 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place finishers were awarded the points for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd respectively. †† Liam Kenney was penalized 20 points for passing the leader, Josh Hurley under double yellow.
References
External links Official Website (redirects to main VW website)