For this week's Wing Wednesday, we take a closer look at a pair of well winged, V6-engined racers. The newest of the two is the Venturi 400 Trophy, which was raced in a single make series between 1992 and 1994. The car and race series were the brainchild of Stephane Ratel, who would later be one of the founders of the BPR series, which in turn formed the basis for the current FIA GT championships. The Venturi Trophy proved a great success as the small French sports car manufacturer produced no fewer than 73 examples of the V6-engined machines. As can be seen in our 54-shot gallery, several examples of the 400 Trophy have returned to action in recent years with the Endurance Racing Legends series.
Little known Italian manufacturer Alba was the first to produce a sports car with a carbon-fibre composite monocoque chassis. While the earliest Albas were Group C cars, the AR8 featured today was constructed for use in the IMSA GTP series. Accordingly, it is powered by a mighty twin-turbo Buick V6 engine. While hugely powerful, the stock-block based unit was also notoriously unreliable. As a result, the AR8 was not particularly successful during its brief competition career. Having spent most its life in North America, it has recently been repatriated to Italy.

Enjoy the links:

1986 - 1988 Alba AR8 Buick

1992 - 1994 Venturi 400 Trophy