Names like Rod Millen and son Rhys are names that we remember like they were on the back of our hands but sadly, another member of the Millen clan that races, Steve, doesn’t quite receive as much of a shout out as the other two.
Steve deserves to be in the spotlight every bit as his racing brother and nephew as he has a history in motorsports that can rival the both of them. Starting back in 1969, Steve has left his mark in hill climbing before moving on to stadium truck racing where he had considerable success with national championships in 1986, 1988 and 1989. In between he dabbled in Indy Lights racing, winning two races in 1986.
In the 90’s, he got into LeMans, winning the Rookie of the Year title in 1990 and then won the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1993. The following year, he bagged the 24 Hours of Daytona, added another Sebring crown and won the 24 Hours of LeMans in his class.
Things took a downturn in 1995 though as, after another Sebring victory, a crash at Road Atlanta cut short his racing career.
Nonetheless, such was his passion behind the wheel and to eke out every once of performance from a car, Steve founded his own aftermarket performance parts shop that we’re sure you’ve heard of if you were a Need For Speed regular. Stillen manufactures performance parts for an endless list of cars, while still allowing Steve to dabble in his passion.
Recently, Steve took the Stillen Nissan GT-R demo car and headed back to his motherland, New Zealand, for the Targa New Zealand. The Targa New Zealand is one of the most demanding and challenging road rally’s in the world, running over five days and over hundreds of kilometers along the winding and twisty roads that are intertwined with gorgeous scenery.
Steve managed to bag third place in the targa behind the wheel of his Stillen GT-R. The car itself is one of the quickest GT-R’s with plenty of focus on handling as well as performance. It’s a pity too that the car isn’t given much ink in the press as it really is a brutal machine off the lines, as you’ll see in the video.
If you’re interested in following Steve and his Stillen GT-R, there’s more info at the Stillen blog.
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Source: Stillen blog
