Volkswagen kicked off its Jetta TDI Cup race series a couple of weeks ago at VIRginia International Raceway with a close fought and exciting battle to the finish. This weekend they are heading north to another of the toughest tracks in North America at Mosport Park, north-east of Toronto. The Jettas will be racing as part of a program that includes the Mazda MX-5 Cup and the Canadian Touring Car Championship, among other races. This race will be something of a homecoming for the four drivers in the thirty driver lineup who hail from Canada. If you're in the area and interested in checking out some great racing head out to Mosport, you won't be sorry.

[Source: Volkswagen]

Several hours after yesterday's inaugural Jetta TDI Cup race, VW informed us that although Speed TV did record the entire race, it won't actually be on TV for a while. The cable network that seems to be almost all NASCAR all the time, will record all the races this year along with background on the program and drivers. At the end of the series they will broadcast a documentary covering the whole series.

To avoid keeping you waiting until this fall, we've got the full standings of the race after the jump. Mark Pombo managed to keep his car out of any significant contact to move up from fourth on the grid to take victory at the end of the thirty-minute race. The equally prepared cars made for some fantastic racing on the picturesque VIRginia International Raceway. Groups of three, four and five cars at time went at it door handle to door handle. A few cars made off track excursions but only four of the 29 starters failed to finish. If you are in the vicinity of any of the remaining six races this year, it's definitely work checking out the TDI cup action.


Photos Copyright ©2008 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.
Our travel and lodging for this media event was provided by the manufacturer.

Since the first Jetta TDI cup race is going to be broadcast on Speed TV next Saturday don't follow the jump if you don't want to know who the winner was...


Photos Copyright ©2008 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.
Our travel and lodging for this media event was provided by the manufacturer.

The activity going here at VIRginia International Raceway this weekend definitely does not qualify as hyper-miling. In fact it is anything but. The thirty young racers competing in the Volkswagen Jetta TDI cup are hustling their cars around this beautiful 3.27 mile long circuit as fast as they can. But they are still doing it in a relatively thrifty manner. The racing Jettas are putting out 170hp which is enough to average over 87mph here. While most race cars get mileage in the single digits and the national fleet average is 20.2mpg the racers are averaging 25mpg running on regular pump ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel. That's good enough to go the entire race weekend without filling up. Starting with the next race at Mosport on May 17-18 the cars will start using B5 biodiesel which is what the production Volkswagen's are certified for. The cars are also running with the same exhaust after-treatment system as the production fifty state legal models. That means every car has a lean NOx trap and diesel particulate filter installed.


Photos Copyright ©2008 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.
Our travel and lodging for this media event was provided by the manufacturer.

Click the Jetta's for a high-res gallery

We're on site here at VIRginia International Speedway for the very first race of the inaugural Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup and qualifying has just concluded. VIR is a gorgeous natural terrain road course in the hills along the border between Virginia and North Carolina and it offers plenty of great vantage points. During the thirty minute session 29 of the 30 drivers posted valid qualifying times with a 4 second spread from first to last. Twenty-three year old Josh Hurley of Cooper City FL came out on the top of the timing sheet with a best lap 2:14.301 (Yes I know that's not Hurley's Oakley sponsored car in the photo, but I didn't manage to catch one of Hurley. These cars are seriously fun to watch on the track and anyone who remembers watching the early 80s GTIs cornering on three wheels will feel right at home with the Jettas as they hike up the inside rear on tight turns. Like their big brothers the Audi R10s the Jettas are remarkably quiet as they circulate the track. The race cars have the same exhaust system that will be on the production Jetta TDI that launches this summer including the NOx trap and particulate filter. You can check out a video clip after the jump.


Our travel and lodging for this media event was provided by the manufacturer.

Click for a high-res gallery

The opening round of Volkswagen's new Jetta TDI cup race series is happening this weekend at VIRginia International Raceway and AutoblogGreen is on the scene. We arrived here in Virginia late yesterday evening and missed the first on-track session of the new Cup racers. We'll be on hand all weekend to provide feedback on what should be the first racing series featuring all clean diesel cars. The thirty cars are based on the upcoming 2009 Jetta BlueTDI that launches later this summer. Stay tuned for more updates this weekend from VIR.


[Source: Volkswagen]

Diesel racers have had a lot of success in the recent past. But what happens when you have diesel racing diesel? We'll find out soon. For 2008, Volkswagen is replacing the current GTI cup with the Jetta TDI Cup. As the name implies, the new series will use the new Jetta TDI diesel sedan. For racing purposes, the 2.0L diesel will be rated at 170 hp and 300 lb-ft of torque pumping through the standard six-speed DSG gearbox. The suspension and brakes will be beefed up for track use and all the usual racing safety equipment will be included. Take a look at the schedule here and the complete list of contenders here. We'll be on-hand at one of these upcoming races, so expect to hear plenty more on this particular topic on our pages.

Ready for more? Here's Number 3.

This past weekend, Volkswagen held their driver selection event for the inaugural Jetta TDI cup series out at Firebird raceway in Phoenix, AZ. Volkswagen evaluated 54 potential participants based on their driving skills, but other factors were taken into account as well. Since the drivers are also expected to help promote Volkswagen and their diesel technology, they had to demonstrate their communication skills and ability to work with the media. In the end thirty drivers aged 16-26 were chosen to run over the six racing weekends starting later this month at Virginia International Raceway. They will have to pay up $35,000 for the season and they can have up to two sponsors for their car. The cars will all be prepared by Volkswagen with 170hp 2.0L TDI engines and six speed DSG transmissions as well as all the necessary safety equipment. The driver that wins the series championship after the Petite Le Mans race weekend in October at Road Atlanta walks away with $100,000. If the champ hooks up a professional drive for 2009 within six months of the end of the season, VW will kick in an extra $150,000.

[Source: Volkswagen]