What would be your circuit of choice in this insane Nissan? 👇 Discover the car for sale: rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/lm23/le-mans/lots/r0005-1990-nissan-r90ck/1332788
Can’t pick a favourite (sadly we mere mortals don’t get to drive machinery at this level) but def the best era and insane cars! Thanks for featuring these very special racing cars.
I remember building this car in the Lola factory at 19 years of age, we built about 9 of them if I recall, mostly for the Nissan Factory Group C team, some for Nismo Japan, and a few for NPT Automotive in the USA. To this day I have a blocked tear duct in my left eye from spending about 6 hours laying upside down with my head in the footwell, grinding carbon fibre away to fit the steering rack! I looked like a coal miner by the time I finished! 😂 I used to sit in the car sometimes in the workshop, as a Formula Ford 1600 racer, wondering if I'd ever get to drive it. Sadly not, but this is one of the best features I've ever seen of the car, well done you lucky git! 😂
Such a pleasure to watch you Ben. Could watch you talk about cars all day. You could of been a presenter on top gear i reckon. Keep up the great content mate.
The wastegates "jammed shut". Such an unanticipated malfunction. So fortunate it only happened during qualifying. No idea how that happened. So mysterious.
Ben, you got the best job in the world! I've been driving the R92CP in Gran Turismo 7 on my PS VR2 in my simpit and it's the closest I'll ever get to these Group C monsters! I thoroughly enjoyed this video. Thank you! 🙏🏾
I always try not to look at Group C through rose tinted glasses too much. The C1 cars were all amazing looking and sounding machines. Most of the C2’s weren’t always the best looking things in the world. Most looked like kit car projects to me. It’s not a criticism, it was just the huge budget gap between C1 and C2. They all sound great though. 😊
that isn't even top speed, that's ONLY on the first section of the mulsanne before the first chicane, it could definitely go faster with how slippery those group c cars were
@@mauricemotors8207 How do you want to get there with hybrids, if they're slower than good old LMP1, and they trimmed down LMP2 just to show any competitiveness during latest LM24. Not to mention they want to scrap the LMP2 just as they did LMP1, next year. Oh my...
McLaren's current V8 dates back to the V8 used in the R90. Every modern McLaren, from the 2011 MP4-12C to the P1 to the 720S is powered by a single family of twin turbo V8s. This engine didn’t come out of nowhere; it started life in a largely-forgotten supercar from Nissan. This is the Nissan VRH35L. It’s a twin-turbo 3.5 liter aluminum V8 used for endurance racing at Le Mans, the final line of development of Nissan’s VRH35 architecture that debuted in ‘89. Nissan and Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR) put the VRH35L together for their entry into the madcap GT1 category back in 1997 in the R390 GT1. Early on in the development of the old MP4-12C, McLaren picked out the VRH35 for the basis of its engine program and bought the rights to it from TWR, as Car and Driver reported at the time. McLaren and their engine builder Ricardo did a great deal of work to the design and basically made the thing their own, renaming it the M838T. Edited for more context. Source: Jalopnik
That flutter sound is actually compressor surge. Most of the earlier race cars didnt use blow-off valves to keep the boost pressure in between shifts. Im sure they went through many turbos throughout their race season.
@@danielssonsgarage this. The chatter noise is fine when shutting off the accelerator. My Mini Cooper S does this. It’s when you can hear it on boost with the throttle pushed down you have a problem.
Sir Ben Collins FTW! While they are at it the rest of the OG TG trio deserves it also! The four of them made UK automotive journalism known the world over.
@@BenCollinsDrives when you look at who did get knighted (rotten politicians, J. Savile), it's more of an honour not to wear such a badge of dishonour!
3:01 that's not the "pop-off valve" it's reversion through the turbo compressor .. 3:07 and that's not what a wastegate does .. that's the pop-off valve 😄
Ben the amount of Top Quality videos you have been putting lately is nothing short of Impressive , But this video and especially that insane car tops them all ( personal opinion ) . Keep up the great work Ben .
Great to see someone with the years of experience and multitude of cars driven, still getting the buzz from driving these cars and taking us along for the ride. Brilliant
Hey Ben, wasn't Julian Bailey (test driver at the time) the one who did the Stig's F1 lap around the Top Gear track? I've heard people claim it was Nico Hulkenberg but my understanding was always JB? Awesome video and review!
its a real shame these videos just have constant cut edits. Can't we get just 1 lap, onboard, camera facing forwards inside, so we can watch a great driver drive a great car properly. Even just the unedited cambox footage would do.
Didn't have time on the day for that unfortunately. Would have loved to have filmed it! Wait - actually we do have the helmet cam footage.... might look into that.
Very cool car. Classic jouro turbo faux pas. The noise is most likely compressor stall from the throttle being closed. Wastegates, if open on throttle/load to control boost will usually close with a closing throttle as the control signal to the wastegate reduces with the manifold pressure, which has been reduced by the closed throttle. “Pop off valve” / blow off valve / dump valve can’t be heard in video. If efficient enough you will lose the compressor stall noise and may hear a venting noise on closing throttle depending on how it’s plumbed. Apologies, got caught in a moment of Sunday boredom 😂
I heard someone once say that "..they couldn't let the Stig speak because of they had, he'd have run away with the show.." I'm sure it was the commentors personal jokey opinion, but I couldn't agree more. Each video from this channel is a treat and Ben is obviously a natural.
YESSS! This Nissan R89/R90/R91 is - in my view - the pinnacle of Group C racecars and probably one of the most beautiful and brutal cars ever made! The shape is just perfect, not an unsightly line or curve in sight, evoking exactly the emotions that a super-fast Group C car should. In terms of sheer looks and sound this stands head and shoulders above all modern (year 2000 onwards) Le Mans Prototypes. I hope it fetches the good high price it deserves at the auction, and most importantly to a new owner who will give it the right love and care and will keep sharing it with the world, at Goodwood Festival Of Speed for example. Mega-car! Was looking forward to this video Ben, thank you so much for sharing with us!
Bit of a faulty metric conversion here. The ACO speed trap recorded it at 366 km/h which is 227mph. Bit of a stretch to claim 1,100 hp too. We simply don't know. This car had a turbo on each bank and a separate plenum chamber for each bank so it likely only affected one side. Really enjoyed hearing your impressions though. I've always liked this car.
@@BenCollinsDrives I sure did. Thanks. I was really interested in the balance side of it. My impression was that the car usually understeered in the Le Mans setup. It doesn’t show up much in the Blundell lap but I guess he’s doing a lot of steering with his feet. Did you find that?
“Every input was pure relfex - things were coming at me everywhere I looked. For about 50 percent of the lap I felt like I was on the verge of a massive accident.” -Mark Blundell
Dude I just wanted to point out that you do an excellent job presenting despite not liking being on that side of the camera. You are a natural. I was a fan of your in the white helmet, much much more of a fan without it.
After years of watching you drive and having no idea who you were (TG) the way in which you drive is very nostalgic to me. Pure control, I almost feel as if they missed a trick not having you commentate while driving. Utter joy to watch Ben. From someone who may never get the chance to drive on track, thank you.
Such a gorgeous machine! And seeing it going round the track in this video was awe inspiring, not sure what it is but it has such a presence on the tarmac. Unfortunately I was slightly too young to have witnessed this Era, The golden age of Le Mans (In my opinion) but I'm so glad that you are able to show off these works of art before they go up for Auction.
I was so not expecting a reply from someone whose career I've followed since Dad showed me Top Gear, and a weapon of a driver that I absolutely admire! Thank you for the response mate! Made my night! Hoping to catch you in the Land Down Under for something in the future!
THIS is peak Nissan for me in my youth! It's these race cars in this era that made me fall in love with the brand. We didn't get the GT-R in the states, but it's cars like the R90CK that made me want a 300ZX and 240SX in the early 90s.
These machines were absolute beasts, and I can't imagine the heroes driving these. Having Mr. Collins drive this seems like a perfect match to review it. Talking about how he would set it up is such a wonderful dialogue that suits the setting of the car, track and driver in combination with the vintage footage and music.
Dear Mr. Collins, I have to say „Thank you“ for making the last two episodes of „Ben Collins Drives“, cause they literally melted my petrolhead heart 😍😍😍 This Nissan R90CK was my all time favorite of that era, and I hade quite a few posters of it in my room, and always was dreaming about one day having a go in it… For sure, this day will never come, but I‘m okay with that cause my most favorite racing driver or „test driver“ of my most favorite TV show named „Top Gear“ (maybe you‘ve heard about that show 🤪) had a blast in it and so you made me smile from one ear to another 😁 Back in the days of Stig, I had to download every episode of Top Gear because the show sadly never aired in Germany at that time, so every time the show was broadcasted in the UK I waited till the first download was available and then I sat in front of my TV with my mouth wide open and always thought „Man, this Stig is really good“… 🥴😉 Fun fact, I worked at that time for a German TV show called „Abenteuer Auto“, we always tried to do stuff like you did on TG, but we didn’t have the budget and most importantly no Stig, but anyhow we had over 12 years a lot of fun. And at that time I worked with a guy who filmed the episodes where you competed against another German TV Show, driving against Sabine Schmitz in double-decker cars, if I remember correctly. I am a true petrolhead, and I always admired the enormous talent you had driving cars very fast and always on the edge, but watching you driving always made me smile, till now! 🙏 So again, a big THANK YOU for all the things you did to enjoy people like me, and I wish you all the best! 👍 Best regards from Germany 🇩🇪, Philipp 👋
Ive seen some onboard videos of this car and its sucessors the R91 and R92 and those cars were insanely fast. They go like stink. Absolute missiles. A real handle to drive too.
The old footage out the windscreen when he's hooning down the straight ... holy moly ... I don't think I've seen something that scary before. Balls of streel to drive that thing in anger. Great that you are getting to drive these big beasts ! Good things happen to good people, right !
Love your commentary Ben; you tell a lot more than pretty much any other driver. And what a beast that Nissan is- still after all these years! Many thanks for the vid!
Blundell was a madman for getting that thing around Lemans at full power, though the full power he got has been debated for years but 1200hp is the estimate.
i know it's not the same but I can sort of relate...I own a 2018 Porsche GT2 RS which is rated at 700 BHP (I believe the rating dyno runs are made at 72 degrees Fahrenheit) and one winter morning in Cocoa Beach Fl. a few years back it got down to the mid 30's and the air was crisp with none of our typical humidity...knowing it was turbo weather I took the big 911 for a cruise and Damn!!! with the tires being cold and the engine feeling like it was about 800 BHP due to the air denseness, it was quit the ride. the GT2 was absolutely ferocious!
The wastegates wouldn't open, huh. I bet whoever planned that boost setup said, "Well, if the wastegate is meant to work at this pressure to pass regulations, we could just put in this softer spring, and if the vacuum hose comes off, the boost will climb, but the wastegate will begin to leak about "here" and then run for a few seconds before getting on the brakes."
Nissan VRH35Z, McLaren bought the right of this engine from Tom Walkinshaw Racing, to be the power plant seed of McLaren nowadays supercar line-up (MP4-12C, 570, 650, 720, 765)
I really appreciate these kinds of videos. I watch the modern IMSA prototypes but I'll choose Group C over them every time. I'd love to know more about the differences between driving vintage cars like 80s to early 2000s F1, Group C, Group 5 and GT cars to the modern ones. Which are more fun to drive? Which ones are the most difficult? Manual gearbox vs paddle shifting, mechanical grip vs aero etc.
F1 DRIVER SAID; F1 is a razor blade , life or death.....lemans is a timewarp....i was racing in lemans, i was going 247mph , i thought this was the fastest ive ever been....i was trembling, scared, sweat dripping off my forehead..i look to my left....and im getting passed".....
Amazing content, but a little feedback for whoever is editing your videos - the high end of the frequency range is super prominent and makes it unbearable to my ears. Almost constant clipping during the driving sections, everything sounds really harsh and tinny. I'm listening on studio monitors and work as a DJ so i've got some hearing loss in the upper end already, for what it's worth.
Hi Ben, you may remember me from the HKS Mitsubishi F3 days. I worked on the Nissan at the time and, though it makes for a good story, the issue around wastegates seems to have been embellished over time. They weren't stuck shut, as has become the narrative, but just slightly over-boost target. Seeing about 2 bar whereas the target was nearer 1.8 bar. Not that great a difference and in reality actually probably cost a bit of power due to additional retard at higher boost, rather than just keeping on making lots of uncontrolled power. In short, the performance was entirely as expected, although in fact slightly reduced. The real issue was, were the safety systems robust enough to allow that extra boost over the target without destroying the engine, which it turned out they were. Nissan representatives were obviously very concerned about that and the issues behind the scenes were us being allowed to complete the lap, with the danger that the engine may not survive it, an argument we managed to win at the time, thankfully! Regarding the 3:30 from the first session, that was done on 7 cylinders as a coil failed on the out-lap, so that lap was in some ways even more impressive, given the loss of power. I don't want to make light of the lap itself, which was unreal and it shouldn't be underestimated the incredible lap that Mark did. The realities of the engine were somewhat less remarkable. We fully knew what sort of power it had, and it wasn't a mistake by any stretch of the imagination. Just to put the record straight after 34 years.
@BenCollinsDrives I must be losing my mind, I see you all over the place talking about your days as the Stig, and Stig this and Stig that, but I clearly have a shirt that says (I am the STIG) would you care to explain yourself sir?
