A lot of the time, the Gumball 3000 is everything that is wrong with modern car culture. But this year there's a Batman Tumbler competing. Now, there's a purpose built prototype race car running too. Does this mean that Gumball can now be considered cool?
The car is the brainchild of Jon Olsson, who saw an Ultima GTR at a track day and then said "I need me some of that ish." He got one, but he always wanted a bit more out of it. Last year, he met Leif Tufvesson, the former lead engineer of Koenigsegg, and they got to work on Olsson's ideal Gumball car.
As a track day weapon, Olsson's car, dubbed the Rebellion R2k, looks insane. It actually looks like a mini Audi R18. A street legal Audi R18.
The car is based on the Ultima GTR, but shares basically no parts with a normal one. Power hasn't been disclosed, but the R2k can handle up to 1,000 horsepower.
Between this and the Tumbler, I'm actually looking forward to hearing about the Gumball this year. And not the shit show parts, but the awesome car parts.
(Hat Tip to Eulogio!)