News/Racing

Fontana, CA, June 20-22: We finally got the chance to race our 1957 Alfa Spider #21 again after a 2 year delay, although the weather was hot, air 104F - track 141F. We did test the car in Las Vegas last year for "brake-in" and found only minor problems. Richard said that the rear would "hop" a little, shock and tire pressure adjustments took care of that.

The race was smooth and uneventful. The car behaved as predicted. On Saturday morning practice all went well, but we decided to go down a "notch" on the main jet because of the higher air temp. It was the wrong move. In the 2nd practice/qualifying, the engine ran hotter and the car was slower. We re-adjust 2 "notches" up for the trophy race, a short practice before proofed to be correct. We didn't win (19th out of 48, 11 cars didn't make to the grid) but had a great time and were 4 seconds faster over qualifying. The only problem occurred at the end of the race when the generator/regulator failed finishing on battery "juice". Overall we had a great weekend, despite the heat.

Las Vegas July 14th: A tired Arie, recovering from a bad cold the week before finished in 5th place. The Saturday evening was a grueling 110F at 6:00 O'clock and still 97F just before midnight. I have to admire those kids, racing is and can get very tough. Arie just hung in there and didn't give up. Good job.

Las Vegas June 9th: Arie did it again, finishing 3rd in a hard race against other Go-karters with newer engines. He was aiming for second but couldn't quite pull it off, may be next race.

Las Vegas May 19th : Arie Zimmermann, 8yrs old, (grand son of Fred) takes his first podium position of the year! Arie Zimmermann took his first podium of the year last night in race #6 of the Las Vegas Kart Club by finishing in 3^rd spot. Arie qualified 5^th for the pre-main and moved up to 4^th position at the start never to relinquish that spot. Arie started 4^th for the main and made another good start to run side by side with Chris Trickle into turn one. On lap three Arie made his move for third, which he kept for the remainder of the race. Arie did not crack under pressure as Trickle was all over his rear bumper and at time bumping Arie. “After the checkered flag I started to cry because I was happy.” Said an elated young racer as his Dad pushed his kart onto the scales for post-tech. Arie drove his best race ever, not just because of his 3^rd place, but because he made a great pass and did not crack from the pressure. And most of all Arie had a BLAST!

Calif. Speed Way (Fontana) 9/16/06-Saturday: All pumped up, we took the ALFA GTV #35 to the HSR-WEST event. Omar, the owner, practiced with coaching from Richard on Saturday. He improved by 3 seconds, 2:06. Richard drove the car thereafter and managed a 2:02. Qualifying placed Omar in 5th position (best 2:06.638). Interestingly enough, another GTV #21 owned by Jake Grubb, placed 3rd (best 1:59.818). Later in the Pre Race, positions did not change with Omar in 5th (best 2:07.079) and Jake in 3rd (best 2:01.182)

9/17-Sunday: The Challenge Race was the most exiting race: Porsche vs. Alfa. The Alfa GTV #21 owned by Jake Grubb was actually driven by Richard Z. Richard was running in 3rd slowly catching the 2 Porsches. Making a perfect move racing into the infield of the track, passing both Porsches in one sweep and clinching first place. But, (it never seems to fail) after the pass trying to shift up ----no gear, transmission went south. He managed to hang on in 3rd place, using only top gears. However in the process he posted a second best time overall of 1:58.854 and still got first in class. The Enduro Race, Jakes Car #21 is out do to gearbox problems, but Omar's car #35 took 16th place (best 2:02.083) driven by Omar and Richard. The Trophy Race placed Omar in 4th (best 2:07.767) with Jake #21 "dns".

Palm Springs (Indio) revival 11/20/05: The weekend at the races was not a good one. Dust, dust and more dust and sand spoiled the event. Many cars left on practice day and more on qualifying day. For some of the entrants, like us, the walk to the starting grid was too long, over half a mile, and the nose of the beautiful Alfa GTV #35 was sand blasted. WE WILL NOT GO BACK NEXT YEAR.

However, we ended up with second place in class and 7th overall and were 5th fastest car (out of 37 cars) that's not so bad. Good job Richard.

California Speed way 9/18/05: We went racing this weekend. After practice and some minor adjustments, Omar (Owner/Driver) in his GTV #35, qualified 2nd for today's race. After a good start Omar stayed clean and in second place until the last lap when an Alfa Spider #121 passed him and put him in 3rd place. All I can say the car handles well and is fast. Now we need a Driver with no fear!

Up-date (4/3/05): Car, Alfa GTV #35, was tested this weekend in Las Vegas on the Club track. All expectations were fulfilled. The car is very fast, corners on rails, is stable and dangerously comfortable to drive. We made some minor adjustments and each time the car was faster. No, I will not give you any specs. or times, that's for us to know. However, I can tell you it's faster then a race prepared BMW Z3. I will include a short video soon.

Up-date (2/25/05): Car #35 is done! After a many hours of work and time the car is ready for testing. We will test the car in Las Vegas in early April. My son Richard will do the "shake down". So far, doing some sprints around the Shop Complex, the car is awesome. We made a lot of changes (improvements) to make it even faster. Pictures can be seen on the front page.

Up-date (10/18/04): Car #35 is getting close to be finished. Motor complete and running, Gages installed, all wiring is complete. The initial Driver will be Richard Zimmermann to "dial" it in ,most likely at the Las Vegas Club track. I will include a pictures soon.

Zimmermann Autosport: We are in the process to bring back car #35, the GTV that was rolled and rendered out of service in 2002, with numerous changes for the better. Race built from the ground up (not a street conversion) with a new identical body.

Vista, CA: We had a bad year, my computer down, web site down, race car down (engine rebuilt), eye operation, back out, etc, etc, etc. Hope 2004 will be better.

PS: #35, Piloted by Omar Chiuzzi of Argentina, will be back in 2004. See picture below

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Las Vegas Speedway, November: We were invited to the NASA race group. But unfortunately our car did not meet there spec's. This is the first time in nearly 20 years we have been turned down. We have run SCCA, VERA, ACE, HRA, and other groups. Anyway, we did use that day for testing. Sadly to say the #2 cylinder rings broke, the car started smoking out of the oil catch tank in to the cockpit. Richard (my son) said it was terrible to drive that way. So we decided to call it a day and went home. A rebuilt is underway for the next season. See you in a few month with a even more powerful car.

California Speedway (Fontana) July 20-22:We were invited to run with the Touring Car Club in Fontana. Little did we know who we would run against. If you go on their website you will see. Unexpected Richard ran away with the ZAS prepared Alfa Spider. It was a total surprise for us, but very sweet.

San Felipe, Mex. September 21-22:We won again only to be sorry about the damage to the car that was caused by one most irresponsible driver. I will get into it some later time.

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San Felipe, Mexico - November 25, 2001. With somewhat mixed emotions from our last Tecate experience, we went to the last race of the season. Besides some quite different Pit changes, the week end went well with little problems. The one worry we had, was tires, although only one race on the rubber, the tires were wearing fast. The track surface was extremely rough. The "new" tires (Kuhmo Victoracer) stuck well, but also wearing fast.

Richard, in practice, ripped off the 2 wear pads underneath the Alfa that protect the drain plug. I only had one replacement. So we went on the track to look for the other and, yup, found one over the fence in the sand.

On Sundays race was another concern. We only brought 10 Gal of fuel (normally 15). It turned out that we used a lot of fuel in practice and qualifying. According to that we had just barely enough for the race. Richard was concerned and would "take it easy" as long as his adrenalin would allow. Meaning, going for the lead and then back off a little. Not so he drove full out the hole race. One reason was that our communication radio went dead. When he crossed the finish line he was 2 full laps ahead of second place. I still don't know his secret and I'm his Father. Back in the pits we discovered he had plenty of fuel left, good for another 30 minutes. Someone figured wrong! Me.

Richard Zimmermann Wins in Tough Race

Tecate, Mexico - September 30, 2001. After a long break, the 2001 season continued in Tecate, Mexico with Richard Zimmermann’s winning streak extending, but this time it was a much tougher race. Zimmermann qualified second for Sunday’s race, thinking that the time gap was to great to overcome and challenge for the win. Little did he know that this race would become one of the toughest of his career.

Starting Second, Richard quickly grabbed the lead from the standing start. Once in front he was constantly pressured by a late model Toyota that set the Pole Position by over one and half seconds. A few laps into the race Zimmermann was hit HARD in the rear almost sending the Alfa Romeo in to the wall. “We were running a very competitive race with the Toyota all over me. Then going into turn 3 he apparently lost his brakes and slammed me hard,” Zimmermann said. After regaining control the two cars set off, once again with Richard in front. Several laps later, however, the hard charging Toyota again hit Zimmermann’s Alfa, this time damaging the right side of the car severely. “I saw him in my mirror that he moved slightly to the right to try a pass. I took my normal line and once again I guess his brakes failed and he hit the entire right side of the car. Once I was able to start the car again the handling was awful because he damaged the right front suspension,” commented Zimmermann after the race. The Toyota dropped out and Zimmermann was able to limp home the Alfa to a very tough and deserving win.

With this win Zimmermann maintains the points lead for the second year running. The 2001 season has been cut short because of the events from September. With one race remaining it is very possible that Zimmermann may repeat as Champion.

Because of dominating last years series (B1), we were asked to run in the 2.0 liter class (B2) this year to give someone else a chance to go for the "Gold" in B1. We agreed. But it seems that our car is ready for the bigger class as well. Only the next races will tell. Strongest competitor: The orange VW Golf (he is fast)

Our winning streak keeps going and going and ... in the GP of San Felipe on November 26, 2000

Richard Zimmermann: The track was very challenging. Getting the proper set-up was definitely the "key" to this track, but it was difficult to get the car handling properly on such a short track, plus passing was very limited on such a tight course. The beautiful location, right next to the "Sea of Cortez" made up for the tracks short-comings!

RZ: Not really, my only concern was that I knew there would probably be a lot more cars, which there were. PIT Promotions did an excellent job promoting this event. I would like to thank PIT Promotions for a great weekend and also to LTH Batteries for there support & providing free batteries to all of the class winners!

RZ: Thank you, I am ecstatic! I really didn’t expect to win this during my first full season with the ACE Club. The competition has been fierce all season long. Fellow class racer, Pepe Olaya, was a constant threat all season, he is a great driver and I want to thank him for being such a gentleman on and off the track. I also want to thank Zimmermann AUTOSPORT and my dad, Fred, for preparing such a fast and reliable racecar, and to Earl’s Performance Products for their support. Thank you dad, for your continued belief in me!

RZ: I am looking forward to running the Alfa again next year in the ACE Club in Mexico, and defend my championship. I am also continuing my search for sponsorship to run in the Toyota Atlantic, US Formula 2000 or any other Series here in the United States or abroad. Other than that, I am looking forward to spending the holidays with family and friends and spend time at the go-kart track to keep my skills fresh.

TECATE, Mexico, October 14/15, 2000 (1st place) Our reliable Alfa Romeo Spider #21, piloted by my son Richard, finished first in class and won the title of Champion with yet one race to go. After jumping out of the #21 car, Richard was elated, "I am so happy right now, I don't have the words, after yesterday's mishap, I could not have raced today without the support of my friend Omar Chiuzzi, and especially without the help and support of my dad. I am so proud to give Zimmermann Autosport it's first championship!"

Well, what happened on Saturday you ask? Omar had been asking Richard to test out his #35 Alfa Romeo GTV for some time now. Omar wanted Richard's opinion on what he thought about the car and it's set-up. Richard finally had the chance in Saturday's 2nd Qualifying session. Omar had already qualified #35 to a comfortable 2nd starting position for Sunday's race. Richard took to the track. "The car was very powerful and fast, but had an extreme over steer (loose condition). I was feathering the throttle thru the "esses" and felt that next time around I could go thru the section flat out. WRONG! At the exit of the "esses" there is a "crest" in the sweeping right hander, the car became unsettled and the rear-end broke loose, at that point I shot across the track while trying to re-gain control of the car by steering and keeping the power on, with no avail. I started to brake as I skid along the "curb" of the Tecate Street Course thinking that I would eventually come to a stop. Little did I know there was a section of "curb" missing and that missing section caught the right front tire and just flipped the car. Sky, dirt, sky, dirt, broken glass, more dirt was all that I saw, finally coming to rest on my lid. I remember saying to myself, 'come on turn over one more time, land on your feet'. The car came to rest and I immediately unbuckled, falling to the "roof", I crawled out of the car so angry with myself and the fact that this was my teammates car." Richard's only injuries were the sick feeling that he had ruined Omar's car and a slightly bruised ego.

Omar went on to win 1st place in his B2 class and the championship in the borrowed #48 VW GTI thanks to Don Sprayberry. All in all Team Zimmermann Autosport had a great weekend thanks to the support of our fellow ACE Club member's, this is truly what club racing is all about.

ENSENADA, Mexico, September 2/3,2000 (1st place) Our hopes to win again were medium, simply because one never knows what can go wrong. Although we prepared the car meticulously checking every part and bolt, rechecking the cams, timing e.t.c.

In practice Richard clocked a 1:08 and a 1:09 which he could never repeat again. We called Richard in and asked if something is going wrong, he said no all is fine. We send him back out and he tried again, now he turned consistent mid times at 1:11 lap after lap. Well it turned out that his wife misread the stop watch. At qualifying he drove a bit harder and managed a low 1:11 good for the pole position.

The race its self started off with a superb start. Richard pulled away from the field to a comfortable lead of 18 seconds and stayed there. Although a slight transmission problem developed (shifting 2nd to 3rd) did not diminish his position. We kept informing him via pit board about the remaining time. At the 25 minute mark he was still well in front and won the race. Congratulations Richard for 1st and Omar for 2nd place.

TECATE, Mexico, May 27/28,2000 (1st place) With the longest "OFF" season we have ever had, we finally had our chance to hit the track. The 2000 season was initially to start in Las Vegas at the end of May, but was postponed to December. So Tecate was the first Race of the year. Our first lap of the track was on Friday afternoon on a bicycle. We were warned of a tricky "S" section where several cars, including a BMW M3 had gone off last year. But overall the track looked fun and challenging. TECATE beer was the major sponsor of the event, hence the Tecate banners and giant balloons.

We need to tell you it was HOT. At 9:00A.M. it was 90F degrees, at 1:00P.M. it was 105F degrees. We were anxious to get on the track because of some modifications we made during the winter months.

During Saturday practice we experienced a misfire at mid range RPM. Which, to make along story short, we were unable to solve that weekend. We concluded that by re-jetting the carburetors (we had to find a jeweler in down town Tecate to drill open 4 accel-jets) and retiming the ignition would get our speed, all this before the first qualifying run in the morning. Remember Tecate is at 1650 Feet above sea level plus the heat, it takes a little bit of calculating. Otherwise all went as usual, learning the track, figuring out brake points, apexes and so on. The track was very sandy from work being done earlier in the week but cleared up after all the cars had their go at it. Some additional tire pressure changes were needed to reduce some over steer. Omar Chiuzzi (the other Alfa Romeo, a '74 GTV) and Richard (in the '57 Giulietta Spider) had a great time chasing each other in practice. Actually quite a pleasing site seeing the two ZAS-Alfas at speed only 2 to 3 feet apart. Omar said that the back straight speed was about 110 MPH in 4th gear (5th gear was never used). In qualifying Richard managed 2nd which he was very upset about, I don't know why, it was an excellent position. It was interesting on that evening at the drivers meeting when the qualifying times were announced, the Juan Arguello / Honda CRX team was thrilled to have beaten us to the pole, what a complement for our 43 year old Alfa Romeo. I told Richard let's wait till tomorrow.

Richards own words; The miss, which temporarily disappeared during warm up, came back just in time during the pace lap and at the standing start, well I was left standing. Through the uphill "S" section I was faster then anyone else, actually this section of track was the most fun because it was also the most challenging. I made a run and was able to take 2nd back under braking by turn three. I followed the pole sitting Honda CRX for several laps, as he blocked me every time I tried to pass. I finally got a HUGE run through the "S" section and out braked him, again, at turn three. I was able to pull out a 17 second lead before I began short shifting to cool the motor, as the oil temp was above normal and the water temp was at 210F. Towards the end I hooked up with Omar Chiuzzi the Alfa Romeo GTV that ZAS does all the prep and engine work on. I crossed the line in first place and second overall and Omar place 2nd and 3rd overall. Thanks to Zimmermann AUTOSPORT the first race of the year was very successful.

It was a great weekend and the Mexican fans were fantastic. All the grandstands were full and every section around the track were lined with enthusiastic race fans. In fact I received a huge applause as I took my victory lap. One guy comes to mind as he cheered me on the entire race with a Mexican flag that he would twirl as to say GO! GO! GO! I was lucky enough to receive a beautiful trophy of an Aztec Warrior along with a congratulations hand shakes from the mayor of Tecate and the CEO from Tecate beer. Oh! Cant forget the kisses from the two TECATE girls.

VISTA, California, February,2000 We are getting ready for the new season. We made some clutch changes in an effort for it not to fail again, want to know what we did? Well that is TOP SECRET. Only some additional refinements on the engine will be made and we are ready for battle. The rules have changed some what but more or less on the subject of safety. I think I will show you a picture of our jewel, a 1957 Alfa with 1.6 l motor and 5 speed. What do you think? Is it fast? -- you better believe it. Above photo shows Richard at speed in Ensenada, Mexico.

ENSENADA, Mexico, September 10/11/12,1999 (2nd place) The last race of the season. This was our first race in Mexico. We had no idea how it would turn out. We were not only the new kid on the block and "gringos", we also had the oldest car (1957 Alfa Giulietta with a 1.6 L engine and 5 speed gearbox) running against newer 80th and 90th cars. We were told that we may not have a good chance! So, a well prepared car and an outstanding driver, this combination could not fail. It did not! Qualifying 3rd was an excellent start. The night before my son and I discussed strategy and what I could do to get an extra two seconds out of the car (we were 2.2 seconds behind the leader) I looked in my "trick box" and found it, small but effective timing adjustment. On Sunday, the Race, when the green flag fell, my son was held up by a car next to him which almost hit him, he fell back 3 places only to regain his spot after 2 laps. Now in 3rd he attacked the VW Sirocco in second place and passed him. Now he was closing in on the front runner. Caught him after 3 laps and was on his bumper, literally, ready to pass. As he moved over for the pass a small bang and some vibration (the clutch failed, he could no longer shift the gears). Now driving without a clutch he managed to stay in second place to the finish. Both front cars were now almost one full lap ahead of the remaining field. My magic trick worked.

Recent Media Coverage of Zimmermann Auto Sport

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Recent Media Coverage of Zimmermann Auto Sport

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