Torino Cherokee
Torino Cherokee of Mauricio Lambiris in 2015 | |
| Category | ACTC stock car |
|---|---|
| Constructor | Industrias Kaiser Argentina |
| Successor | Torino TC 2024 |
| Technical specifications | |
| Suspension (front) | Double wishbones, pushrod actuated coil springs over shock absorbers, anti-roll bar (Deformable parallelogram) |
| Suspension (rear) | Double wishbones, pushrod actuated coil springs love shock absorbers, anti-roll bar (formerly rigid axle) |
| Axle track | 1,445–1,614 mm (56.9–63.5 in) (front) 2,010 mm (79.1 in) (rear) |
| Wheelbase | 2,723–2,810 mm (107.2–110.6 in) |
| Engine | AMC XJ 3.0–4.0 L (183.1–244.1 cu in) OHV I6 naturally-aspirated FR |
| Transmission | 5-speed manual |
| Power | 340–500 hp (254–373 kW) |
| Weight | 1,330 kg (2,932 lb) |
| Competition history | |
The Torino Cherokee is a racing car manufactured and developed in Argentina for its participation in the Turismo Carretera. It is a sports development carried out under the regulations of the Asociación Corredores de Turismo Carretera, using the IKA Torino production model, manufactured in Argentina between the 1960s and 1980s, as its basis.
This prototype was developed and presented in the mid-1990s, under production standards imposed by ACTC, in order to grant users of the IKA brand (vulgar and directly identified by the name of the Torino model), a new tool to compete under equal conditions in the category, taking into account the sporting situation they lived after, after their debut at the end of the 1960s (in which they would exercise a very notorious dominance between 1966 and 1971), various technical restrictions were imposed that would lead to a drop in performance and their almost subsequent disappearance from the considerations of the riders in the category.
The development of this prototype consisted in the replacement of the original IKA Torino powertrain, being implemented in its place an impeller developed by the American Motors Corporation and produced first by it and later by Chrysler, to equip its Jeep Cherokee product (hence, the name is borrowed to baptize the prototype), which in turn receives a modification in its original nominal measurements to comply with the regulatory fee imposed by the ACTC, all this, added to continuous aerodynamic reforms developed by the entity rector of the category, according to the technical regulations presented in the different seasons.
Thanks to this driver, the prototype would not only be able to return the IKA Torino model to the top of the category, but would also obtain approval from ACTC for participation in its lower divisions, where it would also reap great results while exhibiting great performance.
The presentation of this prototype came in conjunction with the previous development of the impeller for use in the Dodge GTX model, on which the performance of the AMC XJ impeller was tested for subsequent homologation. However, contrary to expectations, the engine was first released and homologated in the Torino model, the driver Luis Rubén Di Palma being the first to release it in 1995.