Probably to get the ball rolling for this series. Harsk you gotta understand that the organizer (aka Bayne) would like to have the series start as soon as possible. We can't wait for god knows how long for someone to finish a livery.
C'mon bro, the series organizer conversation was supposed to be a safe place for us to reveal our deepest darkest secrets. Next you're going to tell everyone @nascarfan1400's name or something worthy of the death penalty like that
I was waiting for the Frankfurt International Motor Show and unveil it at the same as the Bugatti VGT, because that's what the cool kids PD do, right?
Ah, I'm just jesting, I was waiting for someone else to post, and you came right on cue (rather unexpectedly, to be honest, haha);
Project Sunrise Kagekidan Racing unveils their #76 livery, the sunrise finally rises with the help of Sega;
"After many months of silence and guessing from several parties, the GT300 team Project Sunrise Kagekidan Racing by Calsonic has finally uncovered their #76 car, to be used for the inagural season of the TIRE Super GT championship. At first an entry which would involve the use of a Nissan Fairlady Z/350Z, the team eventually found themselves signing a deal with Calsonic Kansei and Impul, and purchased a brand new GT-R GT3 chassis to be used this season. The car was then sent to the team's homebase in Tsukuba, to be painted in Calsonic's eternal blue.
However, this was a new Calsonic blue variation; Portuguese driver Nico Costa had managed to sign a one-season deal with Japanese gaming company Sega, former sponsor of fellow Portuguese driver Edgar Fernandes, and had different plans for the car's livery. Henceforth, a mysterious red-headed girl found their way into the side of the GT-R, and a certain logo found its way into the hood and rear sections of the car. This mysterious samurai red-head is in fact videogame character Gemini Sunrise, hailing from Sega's famed JRPG series; Sakura Wars. Specifically, the fifth (and so far last) entry of the series; Sakura Wars V, also known under the name of Sakura Wars V: So Long, My Love in its North American release. Gemini also had a game to her own credit, under the form of PS2 game Sakura Wars V: Episode 0, and is often seen as the game's main female protagonist. Most of the livery painting effort was coordinated by fellow GT300 racer and leader of the Kyojin team, Meiko Taniguichi, an effort which was strongly praised by Costa.
The set of sponsors are rounded up by a refreshed Calsonic logo, as the company changed its name to Calsonic Kansei several years ago as part of a reestructuring process, tuning company Impul, wheel manufacturer RAYS and toy company Tomica, as well as tire company and supplier of the #76 Yokohama, who will provide the team with top-of-the-line Advan tires for the entire season. Nico feels confident regarding the car's perfomance, despite this being the first time the Portuguese driver will drive the legendary Japanese "Godzilla". In an interview with magazine "On the Back Straight", Nico spoke about the "strong car/tire package we are running", and that "I am confident in my own skills as a GT driver, as well as my teammate's". Costa's teammate will be former Formula Nippon driver Ichiro Taiga, who has a 3rd place finish in 2014 as his career's best result. Taiga, also speaking to the OTBS magazine, refered to Costa as an "eager but consistent driver", and praises his latest results in the RACE Sharpie championship, claiming that "he is a team leader who constantly vyes for the best perfomance possible from himself and everyone around him".
For the Project Sunrise Kagekidan Racing team, the sun is only rising in their very first attempt at Super GT. But with one of the newest cars in the field, and two very eager drivers, one can only wonder how strong will this sun be..."
Now, have more pictures!
@YayoiGT2 (for a boatload of useful lessons which I've learned about car painting and image editing, and for the general livery idea) @BayneHamlin1121 (for the renders and assist with the black car parts painting)
It does, but so far (if we count Toyota and Lexus as the same) every manufacturer represented in GT500 except Honda and Aston Martin have had a throwback livery (or well, I'm not sure if the Pennzoil was ever finished..). But we'll see.
It does, but so far (if we count Toyota and Lexus as the same) every manufacturer represented in GT500 except Honda and Aston Martin have had a throwback livery (or well, I'm not sure if the Pennzoil was ever finished..). But we'll see.
The best (and truly only) Aston throwback livery is a Gulf livery, and I won't take anything else as an answer for that question. For Honda, their drivers are spoiled for choice; Mugen, Mobil 1, Raybrig, Loctite, Welder... All we need now is someone who steps up to the plate and actually creates a pseudo-classic Honda livery on a new car.
21/8/15 - TOKYO, JPN - Today, Okuma Motorsports will take the wraps off of its newly finished GT500 and GT300 race cars for the up-and-coming [TIRE] Super GT Series. As the team name suggests, the cars will both be sponsored by Okuma Corporation, which is a machine tool builder, based out of Oguchi-cho, Aichi Prefecture, Japan.
In the GT500 class, the team will be fielding the #22 Lexus LFA GT500 car. The two GT500 drivers will be the team owner himself, Jacob Descoteau, and Giulanio Ansaldi. The American, Descoteau, hails from a background in oval racing, but he is a fairly balanced driver who can also run great on road courses. Ansaldi, who is from Italy, is a very skilled driver who just a came out of his first season in the Ferrari Challenge. Descoteau had this to say about the team and the nearing season: "Even though both of us in the Lexus LFA GT500 are entering our Super GT rookie season, we are both very seasoned drivers and I believe we will have a good shot at the title."
Meanwhile, in GT300, the team will be entering the lone Callaway Corvette C6.R GT1 race car in the field, sporting #17. With only a few cars being sent over from Pratt & Miller in he course of the year, they'll have to be careful with the car. But that won't be too much of a problem for the two drivers in the car: the Japanese Harumi Suziyama and the Frenchmen, Lucien Lachapelle. They both come from road course racing, but have a very different skill set from each other. Suziyama previously raced in Japan's Super Formula series, while Lachapelle raced in the Blancpain GT series in Europe. While both are rookies in Super GT, they have previous experience in difficult series, so this season should provide some very great results.
Onboard the cars this year in terms of sponsors will be Okuma Corporation, Bilstein, Hitachi Automotive Systems, MOTUL, Brembo, BBS Wheels, and SiruisXM Satellite Radio. In addition to those, the parts suppliers for each car will be seen on the livery. TRD will be the supplier for the Lexus, and GM Performance Parts as well as Pratt & Miller will supply the team's Corvette and it's parts. Michelin tires will be wrapped around the BBS wheels on both cars.
Now, on to the liveries for each car. The team's design coordinator, @YayoiGT2, used alternating colors on each car to make them stand out on track.
Upon unveiling the cars, team owner Jacob Descoteau said this, "I am really happy with these cars, they look stunning. I'd like to thank @YayoiGT2 for making this happen, these cars will look great on track, and in victory lane. I'd also like to thank all of our sponsors for coming aboard this season, and we will definitely prove to them that plastering their logos on our cars was totally worth it. I'll see you all in victory lane."
And with that, we conclude this press release, and we will keep you updated on the private testing that the team will be doing in the near future.