Watch Sebastien Loeb’s Record-Breaking Pike’s Peak Hillclimb Car Ride Again
Driver Sebastien Loeb bought the Peugeot 208 T16 Pikes Peak Special from the museum where the car was on display.
Sebastien Loeb is a racing legend. Not only has he won more World Rally Championships than any other driver (nine of them), he also holds the overall record time up Pike's Peak.
In 2013, Loeb set his record time of 8.13:878 in a Peugeot 208 T16 Pikes Peak Special, a screaming all-wheel-drive monster with a 3.2-liter twin-turbo engine producing an amazing 875 horsepower. This car had been on display in Peugeot Sport's museum, but recently the museum sold it into private hands—those of Sebastien Loeb himself.
Loeb promptly brought this car, as well as two of his World Rally Championship cars, to his local Course de Côte de Turckheim, France. Loeb drove each car in several demonstration runs and was not an official competitor. But this was the first time the Pike's Peak car had run at an event in France, giving fans of Loeb and Peugeot the chance to see it on home turf.
Please, Seb. Please bring this car to Mount Washington, N.H. in 2020. As huge a fan as I am of Subaru Rally Team USA's Travis Pastrana and David Higgins, I would love to see you give these guys a run for their money in your Pike's Peak car.
There will be other familiar faces from Pike's Peak there as well. Sure, there's still a dirt section on the Mount Washington Auto Road, but given your WRC record, of course you can handle it. You've already tackled one of the most famous hillclimbs in America. Please come tackle one more.
Meanwhile, let's enjoy these shots from France of Loeb driving these cars as they were designed to be driven.