2019
RACING
PROPOSAL By James Wilkins
In early 2017, KIA sent waves of anticipation through Australian media with the announcment of their new Stinger model.
In Australian and global markets, Kia has for a long time been seen as the underdog car manufacturer. Never have the words “Kia” and “Performance” been mentioned in the same sentence. This also means that Kia is one of the only manufacturers that is rarely considered as a potential platform for motorsport. However, Kia recently released the Stinger model, it’s first model to ever have the specifications to boast power, acceleration and performance. The release of the GT variant in particular has started a wave of talk on social media about the car and it’s potential. From talk of it being a very strong and welcome competitor in the current field of sedans in Australia, to conversations about its performance potential. This attention has made the Kia Stinger GT a very popular car for a wide variety of audiences, from households simply looking for a new family car, to enthusiasts looking for a reliable, affordable sedan with decent performance.
So why am I telling you this? Well, I have a proposition that will allow anybody involved to harness all of the publicity and attention the Stinger has already received and multiply it with a world-first project.
The Project The proposed project will be the first of its kind in the world and will immediately receive international coverage across all magazines, social media platforms, online journals, television, etc. As you may have guessed, the project will be featuring the new Kia Stinger GT. Taking an already purchased accident damaged vehicle and building into a track ready racecar. The plan is to create the first Stinger GT racecar in Australia. Taking the hype and popularity from the release of the vehicle and magnifying it by creating a Stinger with greater performance, handling and a few exterior modifications. The car will be built to meet CAMS
(Confederation of Australian Motorsport) requirements for the Group 3E category. This will allow the car to compete in the Australia Production Car Series, the highest profile championship for production based vehicles. Within the series the Stinger will either compete in class A1 or B1, depending on it’s performance. In A1 the Stinger will be competing against the BMW M3/M4, Ford Focus RS, Mitsubishi Evolution X and others. In the B1 class it will be against a Volkswagen Golf R, Ford Falcon GT, BMW 335i, etc. The Australian Production Car Series features five events spread around Australia from Phillip Island to Queensland Raceway, ontop of this they hold the Bathurst 6 Hour Event, one of the most notorious events in Australian Production Racing. As the Kia Stinger GT comes standard with a 3.3L V6 Twin Turbo, it is a perfect platform with incredible potential for increased performance. Aswell as a competitive drivetrain, the Stinger comes with large Brembo brakes and staggered wide wheels, giving
the Kia an advantage over many other models currently competing. This project will quickly become very popular among the car community and will forever change the mindset that people have towards Kia as a car manufacturer. The purpose of this proposal is to gain interest and gather companies who may be interested in making it a possibility. From major supporters, performance and mechanic shops, to signage suppliers. Everything is essential to make sure the car is ready for Round 1 of the 2019 Championship. The amount of exposure and popularity that this project will receive cannot be predicted. It can however be guaranteed that the first person to do this will be internationally renowned, along with any and all of their supporters. This project will be a major branch in the evolution of Kia as a brand, aswell as a new step for global production based motorsport. The first step I am taking is reaching out to you and your company. If you are interested in having
your company name exposed to millions of people around the world, car enthusiast or not. To have your name at the front of people’s minds for years to come. This is the first and last time an opportunity like this will ever be possible, and not one that you want to regret not being a part of.
The Plan As soon as interest has been received from one or more major parties, I will begin the next necessary steps in organisation of the project. This will consist mainly of preparing the car for it’s necessary safety modifications to be eligible for competition. Once that has been completed, work can begin on testing the Stinger’s abilities and improving its performance. While most of the work will be completed in-house by our team, it may be necessary to contact a number of mechanical, performance, exterior and electrical workshops.
Following this it will simply be a matter of building the car as soon as possible to ensure that there is plenty of time to diagnose and resolve any issues that may arise during testing.
Project Insight As someone who grew up around cars and motorsport, it has always been a passion of mine to compete and succeed. I am always looking for the next step to progress my career as a racing driver and provide my supporters with the best possible platform for their exposure. As a competitor in a one-make series that is being hosted by the manufacturer, I know how important it is for a company and brand to maintain a high standard for it’s audience. With my experience and study in graphic design and marketing, I am aware of how important a brand’s image can be. Particularly for large companies it can be difficult to reach the masses and convince them that you are a
respectable and quality brand. I decided to purchase a Kia Stinger GT to race in the Australian Production Series, purely because I believe the car is capable of winning it’s class. When I saw how popular the car was already getting, I knew this would be the perfect platform for a project like this. There may never again be an opportunity to take a brand new car, fresh from its release, and receive such an enormous amount of exposure. The Australian Production Series itself immediately provides any competitor exposure to thousands of Australian motorsport enthusiasts with regular posts and updates regarding the competition. Each event is also broadcast live through online mediums, creating immediate interest and allowing fans to follow the team through the entire event. The Series events are run as endurance races, with each team requiring more than one driver to complete the event. For 2019 our team will consist of driver
James Wilkins, current 86 Racing Series competitor and multiple production sports car race winner. The team has also received interest from Aaron Seton, son of very accomplished V8 Supercar driver Glenn Seton and winner of the 2018 Bathurst 6 Hour GT4 class aswell as a wide array of successes in multiple motorsport categories.
This is the first and last time an opportunity like this will ever be possible. The Hi-Tec Oils Bathurst 6 Hour event itself reaches over 250,000 people online and has increased it’s attendance numbers by 55% from 2016 to 2017. The event is becoming very popular among motoring enthusiasts with many people making the trip to Bathurst to watch it in person. Aswell as the live stream of the entire race which was on social media, a one hour highlights video of the race was broadcast on SBS
A Little Bit More James Wilkins is a Graphic Designer, National motorsport competitor and car enthusiast. Before moving to Australia from England 12 years ago, James competed in Cycle Speedway (bicycle racing on short oval dirt tracks), capturing multiple podiums, including third in the British under 10’s Grand Prix. More recently, he has combined study and motorsport. Starting out in karts as a 15-year old in 2012, James eventually won several state-based category titles and club championships, working his way into the prestigious Rotax Pro Tour and was ranked among the top 10 in Australia. James took a step forward in his motorsport career by moving into the Toyota 86 Racing Series for its debut year in 2016. Since then he has developed greatly as a driver, moving from top 20 positions in 2016 to being
and received almost 100,000 viewers. In 2019 the 6 hour will also be shown live on FOX Sports. With such a large existing audience and great potential, this project has the ability to create a new and positive image for Kia while expanding it’s followers and customer base. I’m certain that any company who decides to partner with us in making this a reality will not regret it. The advantages received from your support will greatly justify any expense put into the project. I strongly hope that you see the potential in this project and show an interest. If you have any questions or would like to discuss this further, please feel free to contact me via racing@thatenglishbloke.com
thatenglishbloke.com @thatenglishbloke @thatenglishbloke
the first driver to ever win a Toyota 86 Race and Round at the new The Bend Motorsport Park in Adelaide. He has also been competing locally in the Queensland Production Sports Car Championship, winning several Rounds in the Season, aswell as a 60 minute endurance in 2017 and the 50 minute endurance in 2018, which was won by over 51 seconds. Most recently James was awarded the Kaizen Award by Toyota Australia. This award is presented to the driver who has shown the most improvement and potential throughout the Racing Series and the prize includes a fully funded drive in one round of 2019 New Zealand Toyota 86 Series. He is very confident that given the opportunity to compete in higher profile categories, he would perform extremely well. This drive and passion is what makes him an ideal partner in any project and what will see him succeed in his field.