My personal experience playing Sony's Gran Turismo 7 has involved about a hour a day earning wins and vehicles or the credit to purchase in-game vehicles. With over 500 vehicles available in the auto racing simulation, it's been a pleasure to have the virtual sense of driving a whole array of cars. High performance monsters such as the LaFerrari and the Pagani Zonda-R, purpose-built racers such as the McLaren MP4/4 Formula 1 car and the Sauber Mercedes C9 or wild concept cars such as the Renault Espace F1 or the Chevrolet Corvette CX have been a few cars brought under my control through a Sony Playstation controller.
Besides exploring the thrill of speed in the virtual world, I've found Gran Turismo 7 to provide an engaging opportunity to test my somewhat middling artistic skills. The customization program within the game isn't perfect but it provided the right amount of challenge and reward when working on a creation. After some time learning the tools and limitations of the video game feature, I decided to allow my interest in automotive and motorsport history guide me. What truly inspired me was the moments where I saw some of the classic race cars of Canadian racing greats at auto shows and other events. It's been a desire ever since seeing Greg Moore's #99 Player's Racing CART car and the 2000 24 Hours of Le Mans LMP675 winning Multimatic Motorsports Lola-Nissan at the 2010 Canadian International AutoShow to admire and do a part in sharing the history of the cars and the people behind the machines.
In respect to to this cause, I decided to recreate a number of classic race car looks based on Canada's quiet yet proud and rich auto racing history. Instead of immediately going for familiar icons such as Gilles Villeneuve's Ferrari, the Player's Racing CART/IndyCar machines or Jacques Villeneuve's Williams Formula 1 car, I wanted to focus my efforts in honouring some lesser-seen on-track symbols for Canadian racing glory. To do this, I took several creative directions ranging from replication of the original paint scheme with the original car to applying historic colours to modern vehicles.
Scott Fraser 2001 Fans of Fraser ASA Paint Scheme (2016 Chevrolet Camaro SS)
Through the 1990s and early 2000s, a rising star in Canadian stock car racing hailed from province of Nova Scotia. Scott Fraser established himself with multiple MASCAR champions as well as winning the prestigious Riverside 250 five consecutive times at Riverside International Speedway from 1994 to 1998. His untimely passing in 2004 was mourned greatly by his family as well as his extended racing family across the Maritimes.
Following his regional success, Fraser had all the encouragement he needed to explore new horizons in the sport. Joining forces with fellow Nova Scotian and 2004 Canadian Motorsport Hall of Famer Rollie MacDonald, Fraser became competing in the United States as part of the American Speed Association (ASA) stock car national series in 2000 and 2001 on a limited schedule. Scott Fraser's best finish in the series was a third at the Milwaukee Mile.
During the second season for Fraser and Macdonald's King Racing team, a major accident at the ASA race held at now-defunct Chicago Motor Speedway resulted in the loss of their race car. As King Racing set sights to build a new car to finish the season, a massive level of support came from the local community to aid their return. Through fundraising, over $40,000 came from the "Fans of Fraser" allowing the driver and team to participate in two remaining races. For those events, the team change the primary colour for their #00 Chevrolet Monte Carlo from white to blue running the car in acknowledgement for the people who helped bring them back to the track.
I used a 2016 Chevrolet Camaro SS as the canvas in recreating the memorable appearance of the #00 ASA race car. It was difficult not only to a front view of the "Fans of Fraser" race car (had to use the 2001 race broadcast at Indianapolis Raceway Park to just catch a glimpse of it) but matching the shade of blue. The lines below the "Fans of Fraser" wording represent the names of contributors who provided $100 to sponsor a lap.
Bruno Spengler's #7 BMW Bank 2012 DTM Champion Paint Scheme (2011 BMW M3 GT)
Born in France but raised for much of his life in Quebec and campaigning with the maple leaf,
racer Bruno Spengler has been cited by some of "The Secret Canadian" as he competed extensively in Europe. Out of view of many Canadian race fans, Spengler demonstrated impressive skills driving in the German-based DTM (Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters). First running in the sport coupe series for 2005, he won four events in the following year and finished runner-up in the championship. Spengler left Mercedes-AMG after seven seasons in 2012 joining rival BMW. That move to the BMW Bank M3 proved to be what the Canadian needed to capture his first and only DTM championship. Bruno Spengler would race with BMW in DTM, IMSA and other leagues until the end of 2024.
Reimagining Bruno Spengler's championship-winning BMW Bank DTM car was supported by almost all of the decals found on the 2012 vehicle being uploaded to the image library for Gran Turismo 7. I chose the 2011 BMW M3 GT as the basis but I recognize the car lacks the widebody appearance found with vehicles in the German competition.
John Petrie's Super Car Clinic Drag Race Paint Scheme (1970 Dodge Challenger)
Initially aligned with Ford of Canada, Petrie was courted to join the Mopar camp. In addition to supporting his on-track efforts, his partnership with Chrysler of Canada resulted in Petrie becoming the figure for the company's Super Car Clinic that travelled to dealerships across the country sharing the performance secrets of the muscle cars of the time.
To honour the drag racer, I decided to reproduce a Super Car Clinic Dodge Challenger I remembered seeing at the 2015
Motorama Custom Car and Motorsport Expo in Toronto. With the 1970 Dodge Challenger being in the Gran Turismo 7, there was generally little difficulty applying the John Petrie's Super Car Clinic graphic scheme. A few minor adjustments were made since it was being applied to a stock version of a '70 Challenger and not drag-prepped model. The actual car had sideview mirrors removed and the R/T badging on the front quarter panels were not present. The trickiest detail to replicate was the Challenger wording. The exact fond style was uploaded to Gran Turismo 7's image library but it appeared in a different colour. In adjusting the colour, I needed to re-establish the outline around the lettering.
Diana Carter's 1965 Shell 4000 Trans Canada Rally (2013 Volvo V40 R-Design)
During the 1960s,
Diana Carter excelled in Canadian motorsports both as a competitor as well as other related roles including public relations and journalism. He most notable success behind the wheel came in the Coupe Des Dames class of the Shell 4000 Trans Canada Rally where she on three consecutive occasions from 1963 to 1965. The first victory came behind the wheel of a Studebaker Lark but the following two triumphs came driving a Volvo Canadian (a version of the Amazon produced at the company's plant that was located in Halifax).
While pictures of the 1965 Volvo Carter drove are available, it took some effort to find the colouring of the rally car. Eventually, I found a Shell Canada-produced film of the 1965 rally that had moments that featured the female Canadian racer's trek through the event. After attempting to decipher whether the car was blue or silver from the video footage, I believe the primary colour was close to the result I arrived at.
Comstock Racing 1966 Twelve Hours of Sebring Paint Scheme (1966 Ford GT Mk1)
Canadian-based Comstock Racing was a top flite motorsport outfit known for competing in sports car racing and rally competition. Often associated with Ford products, Comstock Racing's white with green striping livery were worn by Mustang, AC Cobra and
GT40 race cars. In the case of the latter, the Ford GT40 outings included participation at the 1966 Twelve Hours of Sebring with a two-car effort of Canadian drivers. Craig Fisher and Eppie Wietzes shared the #17 Ford GT-40 while Bob McLean and Jean Ouellet teamed up to run the #18 machine.
The effort in the 1966 endurance race would result with tragedy for the race team. Bob McLean was a rising road racing star who sharpened his skills at the now-defunct Westwood Motorsport park that was located in Coquitlam, British Columbia. Driving the #18 Ford GT-40, McLean suffered a sudden mechanical failure causing the car to become uncontrollable and crash violently becoming engulfed with flames. The 32-year-old McLean lost his life and Comstock Racing voluntarily withdrew to #17 car in respect for the driver. Comstock Racing continued to operate until 1968.
Recreating the paint scheme was not a difficult effort due to the Ford GT-40 Mk1 being in Gran Turismo 7 and the Comstock Racing colours being uncomplicated to reproduce. The #17 and #18 race cars also had red markers placed in different places to help them be identified.
Multimatic Motorsports 2000 24 Hours of Le Mans LMP675 Winning Paint Scheme (2013 Radical SR3 SL)
At the conclusion of the 2000 24 Hours of Le Mans, one class victor celebrated following a quiet, distinctively Canadian performance. While much of the attention for the classic sports car race centered on the top LMP900 prototype category where the iconic Audi R8s would win for the first time overall, a group of more modest open-air race cars competed in the LMP675 class.
A group comprised of lighter cars paired with smaller turbocharged four-cylinder and naturally-aspirated V6 engines, the LMP675 included an entry fielded by Newmarket, Ontario based Multimatic Motorsports. Not just a Canadian entry, the organization competed with an all-Canadian driving team involving John Graham, Scott Maxwell and Greg Wilkins. Fielding a Lola B2K/40 powered by a Nissan VQ V6 engine configured by AER, the
Multimatic Motorsports LMP675 entry completed 274 laps to finish 25th in the overall race results for the 2000 24 Hours of Le Mans but took honours on the top-placed LMP675 car.
One of the first custom paint schemes I completed in Gran Turismo 7, I was compelled to reproduce the race-winning graphic appearance on a 2013 Radical SR3 SL. Exact and accurate sponsor logos on the 2000 LMP675 car were not available in the game's library for all of the companies but decided to improvise when needed. One most notable example was the Mastercard sponsorship on the front.
Eppie Wietzes's 1974 Team Canada F1 Racing #50 Brabham BT42 Race Car (SF19 Super Formula/Toyota)
Egbert "Eppie" Wietzes enjoyed an exceptional auto racing career that spanned from the early 1960s through to the late 1980s. Wheeling both sports cars and open wheel machines, Wietzes' proved himself against the best racers in Canada as well as internationally-based challengers. His most high profile performances took place in regular competition in Formula 5000 in 1974 and 1975 as well as in 1981 when he won twice in the SCCA Trans Am Series. Eppie Wietzes also cemented himself in history as the first Formula 1 safety car driver when he was tasked to drive a Porsche 914 at the 1973 Canadian Grand Prix.
Eppie Wietzes took part in two Formula 1 races with both appearances occurring in Canada. His first entry was in 1967 for the first Formula 1-sanctioned Canadian Grand Prix at Mosport (now
Canadian Tire Motorsport Park). Driving a Comstock Racing-backed Lotus, he was disqualified for receiving outside assistance at lap 69. His second run was in 1974 in a one-off effort called Team Canada F1 Racing. Funded by a former Comstock Racing supporter, the team acquired a Brabham BT42 race car that was painted in a truly Canadian red and white. The car was named 50 in reference to the 1974 Canadian Grand Prix's sponsor Labatt's 50 ale. Wietzes' Team Canada F1 Racing car ran 33 laps before a mechanical problem forced him an end to that outing.
Away from racing, Eppie was involved with his family-run car dealership that would start selling Toyotas in 1969. Wietzes Toyota operated until 2020 when it was purchased by the WEINS Auto Group and renamed
Thornhill Toyota.
When I first saw pictures of the 1974 Team Canada F1 Racing Brabham BT42 car I wanted to explore the story of this Canadian Grand Prix effort but have been hampered by getting images to use with an article. While that proved difficult, I saw the next best thing was to recreate the Team Canada F1 Racing car scheme in Gran Turismo 7. Since there were no 1970s-era open wheel cars in the game, I chose to apply the red and white pattern to a 2019 Super Formula car powered by a Toyota engine in respect to Eppie Wietzes' family business.
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