Jackson-Dawson and Scion to Race in Grand-Am's Koni Challenge and NASA's Performance Touring for 2008

After a tremendously successful 2007 season in the world's first national road race Scion tC, Jackson-Dawson (JD) and Scion are taking their road racing program to the next level. The team will be competing in select Grand-Am Koni Challenge races. The car will be prepped to run in the highly competitive Street Tuner (ST) class which routinely sees fields in excess of 30 cars per race. In addition to running in Grand-Am, the team will continue the grassroots Scion tradition by campaigning the car once again in NASA's (National Auto Sport Association) Performance Touring series.

The Scion tC road race car is currently undergoing further development to make it competitive in Koni Challenge against the likes of Honda, Acura, Subaru, Mazda, Chevrolet, and many others.

Driver and team manager Dan Gardner will be bringing NASA and World Challenge driver Patrick Lindsey on board to share driving duties in Grand-Am. Lindsey is the 2006 NASA PTA National Champion.

The well-known and respected BGB Motorsports team will be helping the team field the entry. Their race strategy and know-how is second to none in Grand-Am. The team recently finished an impressive third in the season points standing in the Grand Sport (GS) class of Koni Challenge.

"We're extremely pleased to have Scion on board with us," said Gardner. "The brand is young, edgy, and hip, but they're serious about performance too. Last year was a great season, and it only made sense to take things to the next level. We want to prove even further how solid the tC is by placing it up against some of the world's best factory-backed efforts."

The team is using the best brains in the business to help make the car turn, accelerate, and brake exceptionally. The tC's fully independent suspension and large 2.4-liter 4-cylinder should spell good things to come.

"The JD team really put together a fantastic effort last season," said Steve Hatanaka, Scion auto shows and special events manager. "Grand-Am is an extremely visible series, and we can't wait to show the tC's capabilities."

Toyota's own in-house performance division, Toyota Racing Development (TRD), will be helping to support the effort as well. TRD has long been associated with both professional and grassroots racing. Its ever-expanding lineup of performance products specifically developed for Scion vehicles help any owner get more out of their tC, xB, xD, or xA.

"The tC is a great platform that gets even better with the addition of TRD performance parts and accessories," said Gary Boler, TRD business operations manager. "We're pleased to help support Scion's racing effort, and can't wait to make the car even hotter than it already is."

Partnership arrangements are already in place with some of the top companies in the industry, such as:

--  Nitto
--  Enkei
--  Recaro
--  Moton
--  Progress Technology
--  Dezod Motorsports
--  Kaminari
--  Centerforce
--  NST
--  AIT
--  Wild Pony Motorsports
--  Goodridge
--  Carbotech
--  G-Force
--  AEM
--  Energy Suspension
--  HoseTechniques
--  Motul
--  America's Tire Co.
--  Church Automotive Testing
--  M-Workz
--  Royalty Auto Body
--  turn3
--  Vogtland

Other sponsor companies are joining the fold regularly as well.

"Jackson-Dawson was a Scion partner when the tC first launched," said Jill Lindsay, executive vice president, west coast operations, Jackson-Dawson Communications. "It's a great fit for us, and a huge leap forward as we venture into the realm of professional road racing."

More details will be released soon on build specifics and the team's plans and schedule for the 2008 season.

Jackson-Dawson Communications (JD) is a 25-year-old privately-held company that provides creative and strategic services to a range of national clients. Core competencies include retail training, event marketing, marketing services, business theater, video and media production services, meeting planning, print graphic and design services, staging service and vehicle management.

With corporate offices in Detroit, MI, Jackson-Dawson also maintains offices in Torrance and Irvine, Calif., Manhattan, N.Y., and Spring Hill, Tenn. Jackson-Dawson owns and operates several divisions: Peloton Creative Group, BenMar Communications, Drivers Talk Radio and Drivers Talk Testing.

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CONTACT: Dan Gardner 310-489-3094 Email Contact