Mopar and Dodge Support Sports Car Racers in the Trans Am Series

February 27, 2015 , Auburn Hills, Mich. -  Mopar, the service, parts and customer care brand of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, and the Dodge brand will provide joint support for Dodge Viper ACR-X vehicles competing in the Trans Am 3 International Group (TA3i) class of the SCCA sanctioned 2015 Trans Am Series season with a contingency program to reward drivers for their dedication and commitment to excellence.
 
“This initiative is part of our ongoing efforts to recognize the sports car drivers and teams that work hard and have shown loyalty and support for our performance cars and quality parts,” said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO - Mopar Brand Service, Parts and Customer Care. “Mopar and Dodge have a long tradition of commitment to both professional and amateur racers across many different motorsports platforms and will continue to share the passion for performance with these sports car racers and road racing fans.”
 
At each of the 12 races, a Dodge Viper driver that earns a win, a second or third place finish will be awarded $1,500, $1,000 and $500 respectively by Mopar for their loyalty and podium performance. At season end, should a Dodge Viper driver win the class championship, finish second or third overall, an award of $5,000, $2,500 and $1,250 will be given to honor their success in representing the brand.
 
"We're pleased to have Mopar and Dodge supporting racers competing in the Trans Am series," said John Clagett, President of the Trans Am Race Company. "Our partners tell us the continued momentum and growth of the series provides them with a great platform for their products. That's further reflected in the record 70-plus car field we'll have at Sebring this weekend."
 
The Mopar and Dodge brands will also lend their support to the two Dodge Challenger entries fielded by back-to-back champion Miller Racing competing in the Trans Am 2 (TA2) category.
 
Owner Mike Miller, who founded his TA2 team in 2012, made a mid-season switch in 2014 to Dodge Challenger vehicles. His team went on to win the 2014 TA2 Championship with 22-year-old driver Cameron Lawrence for a second consecutive season.
 
In addition to his back-to-back titles, Lawrence earned a prestigious GT Daytona Class win in a Dodge Viper at this year’s Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona. The defending TA2 champion returns behind the wheel of the No.1 Dodge Challenger and will be joined this season by 27-year-old rookie driver Joe Stevens in the No. 11 sister car.
 
The TA2 category features purpose-built race cars with engines that are limited to just under 500 horsepower and are designed, built and tuned with performance in mind. The Miller Racing Dodge Challengers will be the only two vehicles representing Mopar and Dodge brands to compete against a field of Camaros and Mustangs.
 
The two-car team will be given access to wind tunnel testing at FCA headquarters in Auburn Hills, while at-track season-long technical support also will be available for all Dodge entries in both classes.
 
The Trans Am Series begins its 12-race season at Sebring International Raceway this weekend in Sebring, Florida. The road racing series will also visit some of the country’s best known circuits, including Road Atlanta, Mid-Ohio Sportscar Course, Road America, Circuit of the Americas and Daytona International Speedway.

Mopar Brand
Mopar (a simple contraction of the words Motor and PARts) was trademarked in 1937 with the launch of an antifreeze product but truly made its mark in the 1960s during the muscle-car era. From Mopar Performance Parts to enhance speed and handling for both road and racing use, the brand soon expanded to include technical service and customer support.
 
Today, Mopar is FCA’s service, parts and customer-care brand and distributes more than 500,000 parts and accessories in more than 130 markets, integrating service, parts and customer-care operations in order to enhance dealer and customer support worldwide. Mopar is the source for genuine parts and accessories for FCA brands.

Mopar parts are unique in that they are engineered with the same teams that create factory-authorized vehicle specifications for FCA vehicles – a direct connection that no other aftermarket parts company can provide. A complete list of Mopar accessories and performance parts is available at www.mopar.com.

Mopar-first Features
Mopar has introduced numerous industry-first features including:

• Vehicle-information apps: first to introduce smartphone vehicle-information applications, a new channel of communication with customers
• Electronic owner manuals: first to introduce traditional owner manuals in a DVD and brief user-guide format. First to offer complete vehicle-information kits in Spanish
• Wi-Fi: first to offer customers the ability to make their vehicle a wireless hot spot
• Wireless charging: first to introduce in-vehicle wireless charging for portable devices
• Electronic Vehicle Tracking System (EVTS): first to market with interactive vehicle tracking device that sends owner a text when vehicle is driven too fast or too far based on pre-set parameters
• wiAdvisor: first to provide factory-connected tablet technology in the service lane for instant vehicle diagnosis
• wiTech: first to support vehicle diagnosis and software updates leveraging off-the-shelf personal computers and a dedicated wireless tool network
• 2011 Mopar Challenger Drag Pak: first to introduce a 500-plus cubic-inch V-10 drag-race package car

About the Trans Am Series
The Trans Am Series, America’s Road Racing Series, began igniting the passion of motorsports fans across the world in 1966 and has been home to some of the greatest names in road racing.  Today, Trans Am continues to honor its legacy, while challenging the status quo in racing, through meaningful racing platforms and a driver-oriented focus.   The Trans Am Series is operated by The Trans Am Race Company, LLC (TARC), through a five-year agreement in which TARC oversees the management and marketing of the Trans Am Series.  SCCA Pro Racing sanctions Trans Am events and provides operations services to the Series.
 Defending Champions include:  Doug Peterson (TA), Cameron Lawrence (TA2), Ernie Francis, Jr., (TA3 American Muscle) and Jason Berkeley (TA3 International).  
For more on the Trans Am Series visit www.gotransam.com, “like” Trans Am on Facebook at www.facebook.com/gotransam, or follow Trans Am on Twitter at @gotransam.