Abarth confirmed for 2014 Bathurst 12 Hour

Two factory-backed Abarth 695 Assetto Corse race cars will take on dozens of high performance production cars at the 2014 Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12-Hour in February.

The event has already attracted more than 40 teams from nine countries across all categories, with the 151kW Abarth's to line up in production car category 'F'. At time of writing, the Fiat Chrysler Group entry was the only one on this class.

Having already set competitive times during recent testing at Phillip Island, the race-spec Abarths will benefit from the experience of ex-Mitsubishi (TMR) race and rally guru, Alan Heaphy and his team at Performance Parts & Engineering (PPE).

Drivers confirmed for the February event are Luke Youlden and Paul Stokell. Co-drivers will be made up of motoring writers Josh Dowling, Toby Hagon, Paul Gover and Mike Sinclair.

Fiat Chrysler Group has backed the campaign to make sure the cars add another successful chapter to Abarth's long competition history at the Bathurst circuit. Specially designed Fiat Abarth Motorsport livery will be unveiled before Christmas.

Abarth 695 Assetto Corse - Key Technical Specifications:
Engine: Straight 4 cylinder, 4 valves per cylinder
Power: 151kW @ 6500 rpm
Torque: 300Nm @ 4000 rpm
Transmission: 6-speed sequential gearbox by Sadev with optimised gear ratios
Wheels: Painted and forged aluminium wheels - 17-inch OZ Racing
Weight: 940kg

Next year's Bathurst 12 Hour will be the 12th instalment of the event, which first ran in 1991 and was resurrected in 2007. The 2014 race has attracted live, free-to-air television coverage for the first time in years, with SBS screening the final three hours of the 12-hour contest on Sunday, February 9, 2014.