An experimental Honda Insight rally car has been banned by Formula 1000 organizers for being too fast on the tarmac. The last-gen Honda Insight fielded by the UK's OakTec Racing was kicked out of competition after it amassed a 19-point lead after just three events.
Organizers of the Formula 1000 tarmac series were concerned that the gasoline-electric Honda wielded an unfair advantage, having landed two first-place finishes and one second-place. The team's been mum on the car's powertrain — involving a 1.3-liter gas engine, electric motor and lithium-ion battery — co-developed with Lotus Engineering and Honda UK. The car's CVT transmission was developed by Bosch, a major sponsor of the program (you can tell by those giant stickers on the car). The team's detail-free website implies the use of supercapacitors for "energy harvesting."
We can just imagine the grumbling among private rally teams trying to squeeze 11 pennies out of a dime when this well-funded machine started running away with all the points. The team now must find a higher tier in which to enter its too-speedy Insight. Maybe they'll add two trashcan-lid turbos and create a new "green" Group B.