Driving an 1100hp Le Mans BEAST! | 238mph Nissan R90CK | Ben Collins | RM Sotheby's Le Mans Auction
Автокөліктер мен көлік құралдары
Welcome back to Le Mans! In this 5-part series with RM Sotheby's, I'm going to be driving 5 of the greatest cars to ever compete at the incredible 24 hour event, all of which are going to be up for auction in the upcoming RM Sotheby's Le Mans Centenary auction on 9th June, 2023.
Today in epsiode 4, I'm driving one of the most infamous cars to tackle the circuit. In the 80's, the Le Mans circuit layout was altered, in an attempt to slow down the cars - but then Nissan came along, and decided to hit 238mph on the Mulsanne straight, with 2 chicanes in the way.
Discover the car for sale:
rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/lm...
Explore the full RM Sotheby's Le Mans auction:
rmsothebys.com/en/home/lots/lm23
Follow me:
/ bencollinsstig
Video production by OneZero7even:
/ onezero7even
onezero7even.co.uk/
#nissan #bencollins #nissanr90ck
Пікірлер: 680
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
@DrCrunkMusic
Жыл бұрын
Spa
@scottpsychodub6385
Жыл бұрын
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.
@2JZDestroyer
Жыл бұрын
Virginia International Raceway, because I have a deathwish :D
@ShannonSouthAfrica
Жыл бұрын
I'd buy one but the colours are iffy....
@JG-dx5wi
Жыл бұрын
Monza
The wastegates "jammed shut". Such an unanticipated malfunction. So fortunate it only happened during qualifying. No idea how that happened. So mysterious.
@DarnelTrump1776
Жыл бұрын
It happened in 1990, let it go
@gabethomas8123
Жыл бұрын
My thoughts exactly, fortunate accident
@cosmicsurfer5911
Жыл бұрын
That failure would never have happened in a normally open setup. 🤔 Convenient much.
@cosmicsurfer5911
Жыл бұрын
@@DarnelTrump1776 Cause cheating is cheating.
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
Who knows.... 👀
Group C. The most beautiful racing machines ever. Thanks for the ride Ben!
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
Nothing like Group C!
@MiguelGarcia-vj7oo
Жыл бұрын
The 917 family of race cars and the Ferrari 330sp would like a word with you.......
@andrewharper4296
Жыл бұрын
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. 😊
@ghomerhust
Жыл бұрын
B rallye and C are the pinnacle of motorsport, pushing to the absolute limits, no holds barred.
@poutykeiki2574
Жыл бұрын
@@MiguelGarcia-vj7oo who? *leaves them 45 seconds behind*
The engine from the R90CK is the basis for all modern McLaren engines. They purchased the blueprints from Nissan.
@EbonixD
Жыл бұрын
That's a bad luck considering that mclarens have unreliable engines 😅
@BlatentlyFakeName
Жыл бұрын
The engines are reliable I think, but some of the other stuff isn't so much
@thomashayhurst6547
Жыл бұрын
@@EbonixD the engine is largely bulletproof. Its the rest of it that's not so good for reliability
@EbonixD
Жыл бұрын
@@thomashayhurst6547 ye I know there electrics are v.dodgy and there transmissions are not great either
@JDMEXforme
Жыл бұрын
Thanks for the info!
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
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
Fascinating fact!
@yeeehaar
Жыл бұрын
Came here to write this, left happy. Monster of a motor!
@craiglizt8074
Жыл бұрын
Wow. Never knew that!
@patrickr4762
Жыл бұрын
Was just about to comment on this. I noticed the 3.8L V8 and right away knew this was on the Mclaren. Fantastic comment. 👍
@patrickr4762
Жыл бұрын
@@BenCollinsDrivesIsn’t that fantastic that you have driven the OG Mclaren Auto engine unknowingly. Great job.
That's not a blow off valve Ben. That's compressor surge. Also it sounds incredible.
Even by today's standards, that top speed of the Nissan is still crazy 😲😲
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
It is NUTS 🤯
@houseking9211
Жыл бұрын
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
11 ай бұрын
@@BenCollinsDrives definitely a era we may never get back maybe with hybrids but with increasing emissions it’s gonna be difficult.
@madyogi6164
10 ай бұрын
@@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...
@mikestevens5512
Ай бұрын
I'm not sure it wouldn't be faster than today's lemans cars!
Protect Ben Collins at all costs, this man is beyond a national treasure. Definitely more worthy of knightship than 90% of the "Sirs"
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
Haha I wish!
@ragman3383
Жыл бұрын
Like lewis hamilton’s “sir” bullshit
@anydaynow01
Жыл бұрын
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.
@richardharrold9736
Жыл бұрын
@@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!
@Tom-lf8hx
Жыл бұрын
1million% agree with you, driving skills with comentry its just pure gold! I wish he did some aussie cars 🤔 maybe one day
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.
@Senninha1960
Жыл бұрын
@@daniel.s8126 same lol and for someone stating that Ben doesn't understand what a waste gate actually does
@Senninha1960
Жыл бұрын
@@daniel.s8126 true, just surprises me as most motoring enthusiasts know about all these details.. love Riccardo, shame the luck he had
@danielssonsgarage
Жыл бұрын
Compressor surge off throttle isnt so bad for ball bearing turbos, surge under load though is bad.
@danshaw7663
Жыл бұрын
@@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.
@azynkron
7 ай бұрын
@@danshaw7663 That's how they limit the power on the turbos.
"bloody hell" sums up perfectly i guess
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 😄
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
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
Glad you're enjoying the videos! I'm really enjoying making it all and putting it out there.
I want to go back in time and tell myself from the mid 2000s that one day, the Stig will be hosting his own show, just to see my own reaction.
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
😎
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!
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
Glad you enjoyed it! As you might be able to tell, I had fun driving this one.
Hearing Ben cackle at the beginning knowing he was the stig for a while is just awesome. Cool vid as always thanks for it Ben and company
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! 🙏🏾
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
If you like Gran Tursismo then you'll LOVE what's coming next .....
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.
@BenCollinsDrives
4 ай бұрын
I appreciate that!
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 .
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
Glad you're enjoying it all! 1 more to go!
@jackdimond7810
Жыл бұрын
R390 Next?
I've seen this car in pictures and grainy video but to see it like this it looks amazing and more modern than i could imagine.
Just one word, Wow !
Nice but still waiting for Mazda 787B 😅🤣
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
'97 Viper next week!
Been searching of a video like this of the R90CK for years… Thank you !
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
You're welcome!
What a beast along with the sauber c9 my favourite car ever
Awesome as always.Thanks for sharing and taking us along
Ahhhh! That looks so fun!
Love the video Ben! Thanks for sharing!!!
Another great video! I love the sound of that Nissan. Thanks Ben!
Just incredible! 😮😮😮 Could've watched that for an hour 🤘😀
Amazing video! Love it, keep them coming!
These are awesome Ben, keep the videos coming man!
Beautiful car, such a great review love your passion and excitement!!
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.
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!
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 👋
I really enjoy your commentation and the way you talk about the car - very insightful ;) not to mention the car being driven like it should be - great stuff!
The car is an absolute monster and incredibly impressive, the turbo also sounds amazing, it must've been fun to drive such a masterpiece
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
Monster, that's the perfect word.
They were mental!!!
Thank you Sir, Time machine content.
Another great video Ben!! Loving these old Le Mans car videos 👌🏻
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
Glad you're enjoying them! I'm loving making these.
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.
gorgeous video and production, top gear quality presentation. seeing you bang through the gears is such a pleasure!! cheers!!
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
Glad you enjoyed it! Had a lot of fun with this one.
Auction listing.. Uhh not in my price range. Such a great drive for you. The Stig would be proud.
Loving the recent uploads, hope theres many more to come 👍🏻
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
1 more on the way next week! 1997 Viper.
That “bloody hell” when the turbo spools up is so genuine 😂
Fantastic video Ben, great driving as ever. Thank you for sharing
@BenCollinsDrives
9 ай бұрын
Glad you enjoyed it.
So glad I found your channel!
Another brilliant video, with yet another beast. Love it!
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
Glad to hear you liked it! 1 more beast next week 😈
How a great oppotunity to watch video such this car! I'm surprised and happy to see she is ready to race. Lola cars did great job^^
Agreed its a savage car. What an epic video
Just playin with it, awesome machine
Awesome car. Fantastic driving. Great stuff!
You've all become world class at not showing surges of acceleration .
It’s a good looking beast.
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
It's a handsome thing, right?
Epic! One of the best car videos, Ben, amazing car, amazing commentary and driving.
@BenCollinsDrives
29 күн бұрын
Glad you enjoyed it!
Thanks Mr. Collins for this video ❤
Beast
Crazy machine, and that glorious sound!
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
Yep, and YEP!
Great video - really conveys the raw intensity of this machine. Worth looking at Ben's Porsche 962 video by comparison.
savage indeed but a challenge of driving skill another great vid ben keep em coming
That would be a wild ride. What a beast! Lovely sound
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
It was!
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 😂
Glad to see u more active on the channel
An amazing car and more so since 1990 was my first trip to Le Mans! I therefore saw this in action along with the Silk Cut Jags. Happy days!!
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!
The 90s was the best era for Nissan imo
Such an incredible car! I’d love to see a full lap from the head camera.
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
Working on it!
@michaelesprella1540
Жыл бұрын
@@BenCollinsDrives thank you stig! i was hoping to see the whole lap as well
@sirflaps7619
Жыл бұрын
@@BenCollinsDrives Awesome!
Very underrated channel! A true Motorsports fan dream.
Oh wow RM perfect appointment great PR … most excellent 🎉
The audio balancing on this was fantastic. Engine and commentary beautifully combined, and cool music only between scene/mode switching.❤❤
@milanmoczar9393
Жыл бұрын
Its too short , but what is the name of the music?
great mamories maqnific🔥😍😍🔥
Damn that thing is FAST 😮
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.
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
You're so right. This car has so much presence on the track. What a monster 🙌🏻
@stagger87
Жыл бұрын
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!
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
You're welcome! Love to have you along on the channel.
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 !
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.
when the stig says bloody hell, it must be lethal
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
Just a bit 😂
And the later sister car, R92CP starts a myth of going 240 MPH on the Fuji straights *Nissan back then is just built DIFFERENT*
Love it that you are just speaking naturally…not this pumped up hyperbole that everyone seems to want to rabbit on with nowadays
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.
This is my favorite LeMans car all times. I have the actual miniatures of both cars. there beautiful I love these., By Nissan.
1:36 TO 1:42 JESUSSS 😍😍🔥
some say he has the best channel on yt
The fact that Ben can wrestle this car under control and not get overwhelmed by it shows his racing experience.
that Turbo goes stustustu
Holy mother of god. I cannot believe top gear didn’t let this man speak. Amazing footage and presentation. Just awesome.
This is giving me Gran Turismo 4 vibes. Back in the day the Nissan R89C and Nissan R92CP use to give my Mazda 787B a hard time.
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
GT4! What a top game.
A great car I worked for Nissan motor sports Europe at milton Keynes In the late eighties till 90 mark blundell and gianfranco brancoteli both lovely guys
A grand turismo classic 😎
Everything was better in the 90s What a car Thanks for the vid
Hot damn he has his own channel! Instant subscriber, thanks for the content
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
Welcome along!
One of my favourite Group c monsters. Have done 1000s of km in its sibling the r92cp on gt7. Lovely machine and great video keep it up
@joshstanton267
9 күн бұрын
I loved the 92cp on Bathurst. So damn fast!
Where has the Nissan Company that did this gone? What a machine! Amazing video mr Stig! Abraço de Lisboa!
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.
What a machine! Lovely car also ;)
The R90CK was designed to do two things. First, to be the predominant endurance racer of its era. Second, to make so few concessions to the physical comfort and psychological wellbeing of the driver that getting as far as the end of your driveway risks multiple organ failure, an irrecoverable nervous breakdown, and absolutely no regrets whatsoever.
Always admired this machine!
@BenCollinsDrives
Жыл бұрын
So have I! Honored to drive it.
Wonderful video. I love the Group C Nissan. I have all the 1:18 die-cast Exoto replicas (R89C, R90V, R91CV, R91CK) and I remember Mark Blundell's crazy qualifying pole position. I wish I had the opportunity to drive that kind of beast. Or rather... I wish I had the skills to drive that kind of beast. No, I mean... I wish I had the skills to drive that kind of beast.
1985 & 86 my dad took me to The Grand Prix of Miami. Unbelievable, the prototypes and drivers of the day! Available on KZread.
That is class
The Stig finally broke the chains around him