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Who has the history on john deloreans grand prix of America go karts?
John DeLorean founded Grand Prix of America (GPA) as chairman with his younger brother, Jack, as president about the time he resigned from General Motors in 1972-1973. The con…cept was seven-tenths single seat formula cars driven against the clock on a paved road racing layout track with both left and right turns. The cars started from a standstill and once one lap was completed, came to a stop, and the driver handed a ticket to the attendant between laps. The business plan was to sell franchises for tracks around the world. The company was originally located in Troy Michigan along with its first track. The company was primarily financed by wealthy individuals including at least one well-known entertainment personalities. Unlike go kart tracks open to the general public, the GPA cars had fiberglass formula car style bodies, and featured independent front suspension and 10" dia. wheels, and were powered by Wankel rotary gasoline motors originally designed for snowmobiles. The cars used a centrifugal clutch with a continuously variable ratio speed-sensitive belt drive mechanism, also used in snowmobiles at the time. The cars would hit a top speed of about 35 miles per hour on the tight course, and a lap, electronically timed, would be under a minute. A one lap ticket cost $1.00. The custom designed timing system used photoelectric beams to automatically record lap times, and although the cars were not engaged in wheel-to-wheel racing, the timing system would support multiple cars on the track at the same time, pacing the starting times to spread out the cars. The original twenty or so vehicles were designed and built by Antares Engineering, an engineering services firm founded by Don Gates and Mike Pocobello, both formerly with Chevrolet Engineering. After the initial vehicles were delivered, Herb Adams joined GPA from Pontiac Motor Division as head of automotive programs. A run of about 300 additional vehicles was outsourced to Outboard Marine Corporation who manufactured them at a riding lawnmower production facility in Oshkosh, WI. The company relocated its headquarters to Newport Beach, CA and built a track there. The company also may have built additional tracks in Dallas, TX and Phoenix, AZ. GPA's plan to sell franchises was unsuccessful, and the company shut down in about 1974. Malibu Grand Prix bought vehicles from the bankrupt company, hired several former employees of GPA including the timing systems designer, and is operating tracks today (2011) using the basic GPA vehicle design, although they no longer use Wankel rotary engines. (MORE)
