Recently, the automotive world was shocked as Ken Block- the rally racer, X Games champion, co-founder of DC Shoes and Hoonigan Industries, and star of the Gymkhana video series was announced dead from a snowmobile accident.
Tribute to an Automotive Icon
A social media superstar and entrepreneur, Block rose to prominence first with his racing career. He started in Rally America in 2005 as he entered the national rally racing scene as a member of the Vermont SportsCar team. He nabbed the title of Rookie of the Year. The following year, Block entered the first X Games rally driving event, and in 2007 he began competing in the World Rally Championship. In 2010, Block founded the Monster World Rally Team, becoming the first American driver to compete in WRC rally racing. In 2012, he changed the name of the team to Hoonigan Racing Division, competing in the Global Rallycross Championship, and later, FIA World Rallycross.
Even GTA 5 players pay tribute to departed rally driver Ken Block with sick stunts, recognizing Block’s stylishly-edited routines requiring precise timing and borderline-supernatural talent.
Posted by Redditor ‘xz_VyRus,’ the video is simply titled “a tribute to Ken Block made by my car meet group.” Using vehicle with similar designs and liveries to Block’s signature ‘Hoonigans’ cars, the group recreates some of the choice stunts from Gymkhana Seven, like 360-degree spins along the concrete Los Angeles riverbed and driving underneath the front end of car which is bouncing up and down on hydraulics.
“I think if he was here he’d be proud of you all,” said one Redditor, while another complimented the “Quality production, camera work, driving and some of Ken’s iconic moves.”
Car Builds
Car builds can be a hit or miss. But Ken Block always knew how to make an entrance.
“Whether it was basically inventing skate shoes, skipping through rally special stages or skidding wildly around a Segway-riding gorilla, there was always an extra layer of scale and showmanship to Ken Block’s entry that made his name – arguably every bit as much as his talents and ambition. And this penchant for pageantry was never more pronounced than in the machines that took him – and millions of spellbound viewers – to the limits of physics and sanity.”, TopGear said.
So we gathered tributes to Block’s top and wildest car builds:
1. 2014 Ford Fiesta R2
Although this Fiesta isn’t as extravagant as the others on the list, the Ford Fiesta R2 was M-Sport’s first global rally car, according to Motor 1. The car is one of the most reliable and competitive R2s on the markets since debuting in 2010.
You won’t find a monster under the bonnet, as this R2 has a 1-liter three-cylinder engine that can pump out only 180 horsepower. Although Block doesn’t race with this car anymore, he picked it out as a wedding anniversary gift for his wife, who enjoys racing stage rally.
Quoted from: www.hotcars.com
2. 2006 Subaru Impreza WRX STI
Classic to say the least. Subaru WRX blends commercial purposes to rally performance capabilities. Block used this in his first Gymkhana video. Vermont SportsCar built the 2006 Subaru Impreza WRX STI to have a flat-four engine that is capable of pumping out 565 horsepower.
The car weighs 2,775 pounds and became a household name on the rally stage and Gumball 3000, but the car gained the most prominence in Gymkhana.
Source: www.hotcars.com
3. Hoonitruck
For whatever reason (perhaps latent number-worship, brought on by a childhood packed full of Top Trumps), V6s are just harder to get excited about than V8s. So for the Hoonitruck to sport just such a configuration immediately puts it on the back foot.
Yeah, right. That V6 is the Blue Oval’s 3.5-litre twin-turbo, as per the Le Mans-winning Ford GT, making more than 900bhp and 700lb ft. And we mean the actual engine – it’s direct from Ford Racing’s GT Le Mans programme.
Installed in your average 1977 F-150, this would usually result in a wonderful – if short-lived – game of Which Bit Will Break First. But the Hoonitruck neatly sidesteps that whole issue (and a whole range of others) by running a custom four-wheel-drive setup complete with a Sadev six-speed gearbox.
As for the F-150 itself? Well, it’s a Seventies pick-up in much the same way that a Daytona 500-winning Mustang is something you can walk into a dealership and buy. And we don’t care a jot.
Quoted from: https://www.topgear.com
4. Hoonicorn
The pomp and circlework of Block’s Gymkhana videos tend to belie how potent, professional and performance-oriented the machines they feature actually are. And names like ‘Hoonicorn’ do little to illustrate that point – or the supreme engineering that underpins every foot travelled and frame captured.
Space frame chassis, pushrod suspension, custom all-wheel-drive system, individual throttle bodies, carbon-fibre bodywork… these aren’t just checkboxes on a spec sheet; they’re chosen and designed to work in concert to deliver immediate, predictable and repeatable performance. And also ludicrous, of course – it is a Gymkhana video, after all.
A small insider note about the Hoonicorn: Ken actually asked for the suspension setup to be softened considerably from the original iteration – so he could load and unload the tyres as per his Fiesta RS WRC rally car.
Quoted from: https://www.topgear.com
5. 1991 Porsche 911 Turbo
Ain’t she a stunner?
In the report of Hot Cars: “With a growing number of Rauh-Welt 911s around the world, it’s difficult to really stand out. However, we decided to keep the red leather interior, and would match the wheels to it, rather than following the trend for stripped interiors and dark SSR wheels like most RWB cars,” Brian Scotto stated, who was the brainchild behind the designing of this unique car.#
