In this age when EVs and (more or less) autonomous cars are a reality, it’s reassuring to know that the good old internal combustion link between the driver and the road still matters. And you could hardly build a better case for this analog value than the legendary 1998 Toyota Tacoma Pikes Peak winner (on two occasions!) returning to the event for 2022 with the racing titan that used to hoon it back in the day, Rod Millen, at the wheel.
Part of a New Zealand family of prolific racing drivers (yep, Rhys is his son), Rodney Millen took the overall Pikes Peak trophy home five times. So you can understand why the 71-year-old is returning to the mountain for the 100th-anniversary race taking place this year.
Back in the 1990s, the first three of Millen’s victories were scored behind the wheel of a tube chassis Toyota Celica animated by an IMSA-borrowed 2.1L turbo-four 503E engine that made up to 1,000 hp at sea level—for the record, the Pikes Peak course starts at 9,390 feet and climbs to a grueling 14,110 ft after taking drivers through 156 turns over 12.42 miles.
Then, in 1998, the Celica passed the torch to this Tacoma, which not only grabbed the title that year but also the following one and with the same motor.
Not your average truck
Of course, as aptly pointed out by Mike Burroughs of Stance Works in the Youtube video below, this is more of a Formula racer with a carbon-Kevlar body resembling a Tacoma than anything else.
For one, the driver has to climb in through a roof hatch, with the tube structure creating a tight cockpit. At full speed, this Toyota is capable of delivering 2,400 lbs of downforce. And if the front airflow manipulation doesn’t impress you, the Venturi tunnels running from the driver’s seat all the way to the super-sized diffuser at the back will.
Of course, the suspension, with its all-round double-A-arms and heave springs, was built to deal with all the pressure.
Mike, whose Honda K24 turbo-swapped Ferrari 308 is almost ready to come out and play, recently stepped out of the garage to witness Rod Millen getting reacquainted with his Tacoma at Willow Springs.
The legendary driver stretched the legs of the race truck on the 1-mile, 11-turn course known as the Thief Mile, whose elevation changes at least provide a taste of what Pikes Peak has to offer.
“I’m never going to run at the speeds I used to,” Millen, who will forever remain the fastest man on the dirt mountain (the course was paved last decade), explains in the clip.
Besides, this honorary run still sees the Tacoma running the dirt setup, albeit on asphalt-sticking slicks.
However, other drivers competing in the 2022 Pikes Peak—like Ken Block in his Hoonipigasus 911—still have plenty of reasons to fear Millen. That’s because the man is also tackling the course in a 1,000 HP 991-generation Porsche 911 “GT3R” built by Emotion Engineering. Race day is on June 26, but hey: no pressure, just boost.
