WTCC (World Touring Car Championship)
GM Daewoo has been participating in the World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) with the Lacetti sedan under the Chevrolet brand since 2005. The car competes in this series with other global carmakers including Alfa Romeo, BMW, Honda and Ford.
The WTCC is recognized as one of the top three motor sports championships, along with Formula One and the World Rally Championship. The WTCC is held in nine countries on three continents.
The Lacetti race car builds on the excellent chassis and shares the sporty look of the GM Daewoo production version. A deep front bumper with pronounced air inlets blends harmoniously into the wide front fenders. Sculpted side sills link up with the extended rear wings. Dark tinted windows, a rear spoiler and a Venturi-effect rear bumper round out the looks.
The racing version is powered by a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that generates up to 270 ps at 8,500 rpm and 197 lb-ft of torque at 5,800 rpm. A mechanically linked six-speed sequential shift transmission completes the powertrain setup.
"We have had no particular technical hurdles to overcome with the GM Daewoo Lacetti since the production car provided a very good basis from which to start," said Ray Mallock, chief executive of RML, the British team chosen to develop, build and run GM Daewoo cars in the WTCC. "The engine, chassis and suspension layout of the Lacetti all fit well with WTCC regulations."
The racing team that drives the heart-pumping Lacettis consists of three drivers with a wealth of racing experience: multiple touring car champion Alain Menu of Switzerland, former Ferrari Formula One driver and touring car specialist Nicola Larini of Italy and Robert Huff of the United Kingdom.
The 2005 season would be all about climbing the learning curve in what is probably the most competitive of FIA World Championships. In 2006, Chevrolet was to make its presence felt, and again the RML-run team did exactly that. Alain Menu scored a first podium finish at the season's opener in Monza and followed that up with a magnificent historic first win at a rain-soaked Brands Hatch. From then on, Chevrolet was no longer the new kid on the block, but a team to be reckoned with as was amply proved by Robert Huff's maiden win in Brno and by Nicola Larini's podium finishes in Brno and Valencia.
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