This is where i spend yesterday. Short description: It's one of the oldest race tracks in this country, in todays standards it's considered slow and 'Motorsports museum', what makes it perfect for Sunday racers without fully built GT-glass cars.
YouTube link for in car video from no-so-slow vehicle.
The track it self has heavy elevation changes lots of corners is considered as hard to really hard, also very limited or none safe-zones, so going out means going into a wall. One who is interested can find lot of videos and stuff online.
It's the first time current setup of the white car sees racetracks.. and it worked like a dream!
I drove something around 20-25 laps (3km circuit) in 5~ lap sessions. I ran the whole lap utilizing 3rd gear, that track is fun to drive, even if you are not pushing it to the limits. I spent my day getting my self more familiar with this car, since it's completely and totally different than when it was stock, and has nothing in common with the black car, except body dimensions.
Also this being a public event, sometimes the track had heavy traffic, and the cars were pretty wide mixture from 600hp purpose built racers to stock family sedans.. Keeping one eye forward and another on rear view mirror that means.
I didn't have friend to take pictures, but i'll add pics someone else took when i see them. Here is one:
Big picture
Oh, and I am completely and totally happy what comes to the brakes\Suspension, they worked really great. Faster track could change that tho, in here I top out the main straight in bit under 160km/h (100mph).
Everything felt really balanced, the car only had very minor over\under steer that could be corrected with gas pedal, really controllable. It did not plow at all!
Also the thin torque of Quad allows flooring the throttle at mid corner and get no wheelspin at all.
There was not a single time when i felt that i wasn't in control of the car, it went just where i wanted it to go and could take a really hard braking too.
I only felt the tiniest bit of body roll when braking into a corner at 150km/h, just enough to notice it, and that's it.
Tires is where the limit was. Being manufactured in 2002, soon 10 years old, they are way too hard for track driving, i could have picked up the corners wayy faster with softer tires, these just kept screaming for help in every single corner, and i wasn't even trying seriously.
After the tires, next limit seemed to be the driver.. Driving that track Fast needs experienced driver with big cojones. So far haven't found the limits of the car.
To remind, here is what i am using on the now track-proven suspension:
Front suspension w/steering:
- Custom valved Bilstein B6 Sport shocks, upside-down installation and less than 4" of suspension travel. Built in the stock Beretta strut housings.
- Springs are cut down Eibach with only the stiff material, 228 lb/in. Also 'pre-torque' is twice~ the stock because of shorter strut.
- NOS GM strut mounts
- Stock control arms with Energy Suspension poly bushings.
- Stock GM Tie rod outer ends
- Stock FE 7 Bar, end links. Energy Suspension poly bushings.
- Delrin tie rod inner bushings.
- Bypassed power steering pump, Stock GM steering rack (2.5~ turns)
- Camber -1°24 and -1°36, Caster 1°36 and 1°48, toe 0.
- Wider track because of the brake setup.
Rear suspension:
- Stock rear axle
- Bilstein shocks
- Custom order springs
- Cackparts plastic bushings
- Stock FE7 swaybar
- ADDCO 1" swaybar
- Stock camber\caster\toe.
- Wider track because of the brake setup
Also my hands & shoulders still hurt.. I need to build up my body to drive this thing
What puzzles me, is that even if this car has much stiffer suspension than the black car, it makes like 0 suspension noise and acts really civilized when comparing to black car. That one bumps and clunks and clanks all the time and it's making me nuts.. Going to try the new rear axle bushings on it too, I think the newer 92+ strut mount design is also more prone to making noises...
I have toyed with the idea of relocating all the relays & etc inside the fenders to get rid of the all the wire mess except sensors. It's not on the todo-list anytime soon, would also require re-painting the engine bay to make it nice.
