A Honda Odyssey is not the kind of vehicle that would usually make us sit up and take notice. Sure, the new model has a built-in vacuum cleaner, and that's clever, but it's still a minivan, and minivans are boring. Except this one. What you're looking at here is a turbocharged 500+horsepower Honda Odyssey hillclimb racer that's being prepped for Pikes Peak. Honda's team in Alabama is building the high-performance minivan with a 3.5-liter turbo V6, six-speed transmission and limited-slip differential.

Along with its 532 horsepower and 460 lb-ft of torque, the racing Odyssey has been upgraded with 19" BBS alloys wearing Michelin PS2 rubber, packing competition-spec brakes and fitted to a dropped suspension. The interior has been stripped out and fitted with a full roll cage, which isn't something you'd usually find in a minivan. Arguably best of all, it will be driven by Simon Pagenaud, the reigning IndyCar Series rookie of the year who just won the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix under Honda power. His will be one of a phalanx of cars Honda is fielding at Pikes Peak this year spanning nine different racing classes.