TrackDriver Magazine 17 by TrackDriver Magazine

where every track driver turns

issue 17

£4.75

SPEED

Bentley’s unlikely new trackday star

n Exige S – Lotus on cracking form

n Race-prepping an Audi TT

n ARDS – the test that ‘could do better’

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The trouble with insurance

f you are reading this magazine, you will surely be the driver of a car and that means you will be familiar with the terms of your insurance. If not, then you should read them sharpish. But just to recap: comprehensive cover in most cases says you will be covered for any damage even if you understeered into a ditch all on your own. It also covers damage to your car if it was you who pulled out without looking; clearly your fault in other words. The catch is that in neither case will your no-claims bonus automatically be protected. It no longer matters who was at fault, just that there was a claim. You might point a finger at those people who make a routine claim for loss every time they go on holiday, and the odd tsunami. Insurance companies will say that their risk has to be spread across all their liabilities and if you want them to recover the amount they paid out because someone else damaged your car, then they will have to sue the offender’s insurance company. It wasn’t always like that, but times are modern. I mention all this because of a recent incident on track, a place where you might imagine the rules of the road don’t apply. This is not the place to debate the rights and wrongs of the incident, and we don’t have all the facts, but it appears a car had spun and was collected by another. One party had insurance and was duly paid, the other didn’t and accepted his own situation. The insurance company then went to court to recover the money from the uninsured party. I have had my own problems of late with this sort of thing, almost entirely because what was agreed was not written down, but also because most judges have no understanding of things which don’t fit the norm – which clearly includes trackdays. Apparently it’s our job to educate them via a suitably expensive lawyer, but the real point is that a court is no place to resolve such matters – especially when individuals have apparently taken responsibility for what they are about to do. The implications for track users though, are very serious indeed. The small print on the forms you sign before taking to the track are usually to protect the track and the trackday operator. There will be third party insurance in place, but categorically not included is any cover for the cars. Most people won’t be expecting that anyway and it is possible to arrange your own – noting that the cost has gone up nearly 1000% in the last couple of years, and that the excess is likely to be around £2000 – but that only protects you, not those around you. As I have also discovered, anyone can sue anyone, provided they have

Portrait: Oliver Brown. Background image: Jakob Ebrey

the money. There’s no Crown Prosecution Service to decide whether the evidence stacks up. There is no defence against any of this. One of the main reasons to attend a trackday is because there isn’t anything coming the other way, and you can take your car to the limit knowing that there are protocols on things such as overtaking to protect you. Even that wouldn’t have helped in this case. Someone had simply found the limit and what happened was a consequence of sharing the track, added to which the driver who had spent the money on insurance didn’t bring the action. The only precaution available to us then, is increased vigilance and greater caution, although that, too, doesn’t always help. I have been in a car when some clown drove into the side entering a corner, later offering that I should have seen that he was so much quicker (what a racer he clearly was…) and I hadn’t moved over. I pointed out that it was a trackday, and I had backed off because the car in front had just left the track and there was no telling where he was likely to rejoin. The really disappointing postscript to the tale above was that the trackday organiser took no action whatsoever, which I’m happy to say that is not the case with most of them. At Silverstone earlier this week, it was made absolutely clear that any breach of the overtaking rules would result in exclusion. No discussion, no defence. As track users, we must continue to play our part as well. Silverstone was extremely wet and several times I obliged my student to back off down Hangar Straight because we had no idea how many Caterhams were hiding in the ball of spray ahead, and whether they were all facing the same way. On a brighter note, but possibly relevant to all the above because of its price tag, is this issue’s cover story; the Bentley GT Speed. Six-figure prices are now commonplace at some trackdays, but on the face of it a modern Bentley is an unlikely wearer. Bentley says different and there will be an official GT race version out very soon – the car is already testing intensively – and if the road version you see here is to a rather different specification, it was nothing like you might have expected on track. There’s more manufacturer involvement in our sport elsewhere in this issue courtesy of serial motorsport supporter Renault and its latest Clio Cup mini-Touring car, which didn’t perform as expected either. You can read why on page 62. The season is now winding down as the weather winds up, but if we don’t meet at a track in the next couple of months, we’ll see you at the NEC in January • Mark Hales: Editor

where every track driver turns

issue 17

£4.75

SPEED

Bentley’s unlikely new trackday star

REGULARS

n Exige S – Lotus on cracking form n Race-prepping an Audi TT

n ARDS – the test that ‘could do better’

Cover photograph Jonathan Fleetwood EDITORIAL T: 01507 357140

E: editor@trackdriver.com

03 first words

I nsurance sometimes isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, bemoans Mark

Mayfield Cottage 96 Chesterfield Road Matlock Derbyshire DE4 3FS

06 NOTICEBOARD

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19 STACY says

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are registered Trademarks. All rights in the licensed material belong to TrackDriver and may not be reproduced, whether in whole or in part, without their prior written consent. The Editors of this magazine give no warranties, guarantees or assurances and make no representations regarding any goods or services advertised herein.

aterham plans global domination, C and the Mexicans are coming…

Why should you endure other drivers’ stupidity – ban ’em, rants Stacy

21 RAMBLINGS

The MSA’s Ben Taylor on the breadth of the term ‘motorsport’

68 walker’s wisdom

A new rolling road and a new way of measuring power – Mr W’s happy

76 Team Cars

Prepping, racing, sprinting, new cars – heck, we’ve got it all going on…

Editor Mark Hales Editorial design Ryan Baptiste Sub editor Brett Fraser Technical contributors Ray Collier, Dave Walker, Simon McBeath Track test contributor Jim Cameron Contributing Racer John Mawdsley Digital editors/app design Martin and Oliver Dickens Business Development manager Carl Owen Advertising sales manager Sandra Owen Marketing manager Tony Murray Contributing writers Ben Taylor

Regular contributing photographers Owen Brown, Jakob Ebrey, Jeff Bloxham, John Colley, David Stallard www.davidstallardphotography.com, Andy Morgan, Paul Harmer, Ralph Lunt, Jenny South, Keith Lowes, John Laycock, Andy Glenister, www.frozenspeed.com

Contributing photography Jonathan Fleetwood, Stuart Collins, Brett Fraser, Carl Owen, Tony Murray, Dave Walker, Ray Collier… and thanks to Ben Slater

90 TrackDay & TestDay Diaries

In the gloom of winter there’s still track time to be found – and it’s all here

CONTENtS

issue no 17 2013

FEATURES 22 AERO INSIGHT

It’s all a matter of balance when it comes to setting up your aero

30 LOTUS Exige S

Forget Lotus politics, the company still makes some blindingly good cars

38 ards: TAKING THE TEST TrackDriver newcomer, Carl Owen, sits his ARDS but is critical of its failings

46 Bentley GT speed

A Bentley for the track? Yes, we were cynical too – then we drove it

56 porsche 991 Gt3

The world expects – Porsche delivers. Again. New 991 Turbo driven, too

62 clio cup

Like a mini-GT but more fun and much cheaper – Hales is seduced

70 M3 AT DONINGTON

Dented bodywork didn’t dent our pride – running out of fuel, though…

ALL GUNS BLAZING

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A concept with proper aerodynamics and traction control; Seven minnows and monsters; a collaboration with Renault-Alpine; a Caterham crossover – good grief… Boosted by substantial investment from new(ish) owner, Malaysian business tycoon Tony Fernandez, Caterham is embarking on grand plans to increase sales and improve its credibility and presence on the global stage. The company’s name-check on the side of F1 cars helps, of course, but new models are more tangible signs that Caterham is upping its game, and they include a daring, semi-enclosed machine called the AeroSeven Concept. However, two of the ‘new’ models are, in fact, the same old same old, but with fresh engines. That said, a 660cc three-cylinder turbocharged Suzuki-sourced engine for the latest entry-level Seven – called the 160 on the UK market but the 165 elsewhere in Europe – shows some novel thinking. Despite some development by Caterham’s engineering consultancy, Caterham Technology and Innovation (CTI), the Suzuki motor still only gives 80bhp, but its great advantage is that it meets the latest European and Japanese emissions regulations. And Caterham promises that the new base model car will provide all the ‘grin factor’ that the Seven is famous for – prices from £17,000 will also help with the smiles, and

first deliveries are expected by the end of this year. At the opposite end of the model line-up is the most extreme road-going Seven to date, the 310bhp supercharged 620R, claimed to be good for 155mph (yikes!) and 0-60mph in 2.8sec. The demon performance should help offset the 620R’s £50K price tag. Power comes from a blown version of Ford’s 2.0-litre Duratec four-cylinder engine, and its hefty output has necessitated a race-developed cooling system, as well as an aerodynamically enhanced nose cone, high performance dampers, lightweight 13in wheels, and Avon ZZR road legal trackday tyres. Inside you’ll find updated instrumentation, carbonfibre race seats and a quick-release steering wheel. While these two bookends of the existing Seven range are available immediately, we’ll have to wait until autumn 2014 for the production version of the AeroSeven Concept. Because it is currently ‘a concept’, the carbonfibre-bodied speedster is based on the Seven CSR chassis and uses the (Ford) Duratec 2.0-litre motor from the Seven 485; that means 237bhp in a 600kg car, so about 394bhp per tonne. Apparently Caterham’s

engineers are examining other possible powerplants for the AeroSeven, but as the Ford unit is said to be the highest-revving normally aspirated engine to meet super-tough EU6 emissions regulations, don’t be surprised if it makes it into the production model. Because the Seven CSR chassis on which the AeroSeven is underpinned is comparatively sophisticated – fully independent at the rear, and with F1-style inboard (pushrod) front suspension, and now with revised springs, dampers and antiroll bars – Caterham has gone a stage further and for the first time has introduced electronic chassis control systems, including fully variable launch and traction control functions. Caterham is also working with Bosch to assess whether an antilock brake system is feasible. And in addition to all that, there are driver selectable – via buttons on a race-style steering wheel – engine management programs. In a bid to gain more column inches in magazines and websites (congratulations Caterham, it’s worked), the default setting is ‘Race’ mode, leaving the driver to punch in ‘Road’ for a more manageable trip home, and ‘Pit Lane Speed Limiter’ to keep in with the marshals.

AT CATERHAM Caterham states that the AeroSeven is the first model created and engineered with input from all of the company’s divisions, including the F1 boys. Just how big an input the F1 division has made we’ll find out at a later date, but the AeroSeven will benefit from Computational Fluid Dynamics expertise from within the F1 aerodynamics group, to complement wind tunnel testing and track miles. Take a long, hard look at the styling, as Caterham reckons that it gives a big hint as to the aesthetic direction of its future models, including an all-new sports car that it’s developing in conjunction with Renault-Alpine and which promises to become a threat to certain Lotus models. At the launch of the AeroSeven Concept prior to the start of the Singapore Grand Prix, boss Tony Ferandez was bullish about the prospects for what was once a very niche British sports car company. “Caterham will show itself to be a progressive, open and entrepreneurially powered car brand that will deliver and surprise in equal measure,” he boasted. “It has been a British institution for the last 40 years, and an automotive secret in many ways, but in the very near future, the Caterham name will sit proudly on crossovers, city cars as well as a range of sports cars for everyone.” So it’s Caterham, but perhaps not as we know it…

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AeroSeven Concept in the main pictures retains a strong sense of its visual ancestry, but with a thoroughly modern and more aerodynamic slant. Car with bonnet off is the new entry-level Seven, powered by a three-cylinder turbo Suzuki van engine: look how tiny it is! Red car with yellow stripe (and the blue car) is most extreme Seven road car to date, the 620R, complete with supercharger and 310bhp. Claimed to do 150mph…

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HOT STUFF FROM MEXICO

In the company of such notables as Sir Stirling Moss, TrackDriver recently attended the launch of the new Mexican-designed and built VÜHL (pronounced ‘vool’) 05 trackday special, at the sumptuous RAC Club in Pall Mall. Mexican car manufacturing may be a mystery to you (it is to us), but apparently the South American country is now the eighth largest automotive vehicle manufacturing country in the world, producing over three million cars a year from plants owned by leading brands such as Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen-Audi, Ford and Toyota. And if you’re curious about the origins of the name VÜHL, it stands for Vehicles of Ultra Highperformance and Lightweight, an ethos uncannily similar to that of one Colin Chapman. The company is part-funded by private enterprises and partly by the Mexican government, and is the brainchild of brothers Iker and Guillermo Echeverria. Motorsport is in the brothers’ blood: their father, Guillermo Echeverria senior, enjoyed a 30-year career producing and campaigning various GT and formula racing cars. The VÜHL 05 is described as a road-legal lightweight supercar, in the same mould as the KTM X-Bow, Radical and Ariel Atom: as with these rivals, the road-legal part of its description is more about getting to and from the circuit than extended back road blasts. We can’t tell you how the VÜHL 05 behaves on the circuit, as a test car isn’t yet available, but as soon as it is… However, if you were at the Goodwood Festival of Speed you may have seen the VÜHL’s runs up the hill in the capable hands of versatile British racer, Duncan Tappy, and Mexican F1 rookie, Esteban Gutierrez. Further reason to believe that the VÜHL 05 could be quite handy on the track

is that the final setup of the car is being carried out by chassis dynamics experts in the UK. What we can tell you right now is that the VÜHL is beautifully made as well as being a fine looking trackday machine. And while chassis construction and final assembly takes place at an advanced facility owned by the Adman Leku company in Mexico City, the VÜHL’s body is fabricated by a specialist in Canada. Its monocoque is a three-section bonded aluminium tub that harnesses aerospace technology to create high levels of torsional rigidity together with low weight – just 78kg. Bolted directly onto the rear of the monocoque is a chrome-moly steel subframe housing the Ford EcoBoost turbocharged engine, which is fast becoming the motor of choice for low volume specialist sports car makers. In this application the EcoBoost develops 285bhp and 420Nm of torque, giving a power to weight ratio of 400bhp per tonne. The rest of the VÜHL’s on-paper specification also makes encouraging reading – six-speed gearbox; high ratio rack and pinion steering; four-pot alloy callipers clutching 310mm front and 280mm rear discs; OZ alloy wheels shod with specially developed Michelin radials that are 205/45 x 17 on the front and 234/45 x 18 on the back. Interesting options include carbon seats, a quickrelease steering wheel, data acquisition dash and even an integral HD camera. Production of the VÜHL 05 is expected to start this November with the promise of first deliveries in spring 2014. And as with so many of these low volume trackday specials, you’ll need to dig reasonably deep if you’d like one – prices start from £55,000, to which you need to add local taxes and shipping costs.

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Mexican stand-off As with the buses of legend, you spend years waiting around for a Mexican trackday special and then… At almost the same time that deliveries of the VÜHL 05 begin, another Mexican track star will be making its debut. The Mastretta MXT-R is the circuit derivative of a neat looking sports car, the MXT, that was first shown at the 2008 London Motor Show, and which subsequently went into production for the Latin America and North American markets in 2012. Coincidentally, it’s powered by the same Ford EcoBoost engine found in the VÜHL. The trackday focused MXT-R was shown at this year’s Autosport International Show ahead of a planned engineering programme to take the car through the process of gaining European Community Small Series Type Approval. This car is expected to be ready for the European market in late spring 2014.

LISTER RETURNS Recreating famous old racing cars is a fad that shows no signs of dying away: the latest revival is Lister, most notable for its Jaguarbased sports racers from the 1950s and 1960s, but also synonymous with a slightly curious looking 7.0-litre V12 supercar called the Storm, which enjoyed a modestly successful career on track in the FIA GT series of the late-1990s and early- to mid-Noughties. The revamped company reunites various threads from the Lister outfit that stopped producing complete cars 25 years ago – George Lister Engineering of Cambridge, Brian Lister Light Engineering, and Lister Storm. The new Lister Motor Company will now recreate the Lister ‘Knobbly’ Jaguar from 1958, as famously

raced by Sir Stirling Moss. Production will take place in a high-tech workshop in Cambridge, but employing many contemporary techniques, not to mention some contemporary employees, including Brian Lister. Crossthwaite and Gardiner will be supplying Lister with Jaguar D Type race-spec engines and gearboxes, while race prep will be carried out by CKL Developments. Cars will be competition-ready ‘out of the box’ and come with BHL-C (C for continuation) chassis designations and up to FIA/HTP Appendix K specification. The project has been made possible by significant investment from Warrantywise, an online aftermarket used car warranty provider.

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THE SPECIALE ONE…

Boasting 597bhp from its 4.5-litre motor, Ferrari claims that the engine in the new 458 Italia Speciale is the company’s most powerful naturally aspirated V8 to date; it revs to 9000rpm and propels the stripped-out competition wannabe from standstill to 62mph in 3.0sec, but more significantly tucks away the sprint from rest to 124mph in a scorching 9.1sec. The Speciale also features an enhanced aero package complete with ‘active’ adjustable appendages front and rear, and a reshaped undertray. Also developed specially for the Speciale and likely to be found in other Ferraris in the future, is Side Slip angle Control system (SSC), which operates via a combination of the traction control system and the electronic rear diff, and allows you a selectable amount of free play at the back end before coming to the rescue – its aim is to make the transition to oversteer more progressive and also to let you hold the slide with greater confidence. Michelin’s Pilot Sport Cup2 seems to be the tyre of choice for many a track-focussed supercar these days, and the Speciale follows the trend: the grippy rubber helps the Speciale achieve lateral acceleration of 1.33g, the highest to date for a Ferrari road car. There’s also a revised strategy for the F1 Dual Clutch transmission system, lightweight forged 20in alloys that drop the unsprung weight by more than 12kg, uprated discs and callipers, and a recalibration for the electro-magnetically controlled dampers. And for the hardcore trackday goer there’s the option of an advanced on-board telemetry system to record your progress around the circuit and then feed it back to your iPad or whatever. And in a slightly creepy development, a Virtual Track Engineer program will analyse your performance and suggest areas for improvement. 12

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• 20Hz GPS engine • 8hr battery life • Bluetooth enabled • Compatible with Harry’s Lap Timer • Waterproof • Internal GPS antenna • USB charging VBOX Sport can be used to instantly analyse your driving performance, giving you immediate access to the data you need to go faster. It connects directly to your iPhone™ and can be used to log parameters such as circuit position, lap times, speed and acceleration. The VBOX Sport is a cost effective and versatile GPS data logger which can be securely stored in almost any vehicle. Lap-by-lap comparisons can be made using our free to download driver analysis software - Circuit Tools.

CIRCUIT TOOLS analysis software

www.videovbox.co.uk

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AMG PREPARES OFF-THESHELF SALOON RACER

Following on from the success of its customer team prepared SLS AMG GT3 car, Mercedes-AMG has announced another off-the-shelf racer, the four-door, four-cylinder turbocharged CLA 45 AMG Racing Series. Based on the CLA 45 AMG road car, the racer has bespoke, adjustable suspension, carbonfibre panels for the front and rear bumpers, flared wings and sills, and an extensive aero package. Inside it’s fully race prepped with cage, extinguisher system, etc: the dashboard in the picture of the ‘concept car’ seems curiously standard. For the moment Mercedes has no plans to run its own one-make championship for the CLA AMG Race Series, but will work with customer teams to develop the car for series in which it is eligible.

TITBITS • TITBITS • TITBITS • TITBITS • TITBITS TITBITS •

PORSCHE BLITZES ’RING RECORD

As part of its campaign to convince the world that hybrid supercars are the next big thing, Porsche has snared the Nürburgring lap record for a car with global road homologation with its new 918 Spyder, posting a time of 6:57.00 (and beating the previous record by 14 seconds). That equates to an average speed around the challenging track of 111mph. The record was bagged by Porsche factory race driver Marc Lieb, who made the plug-in hybrid supercar go a little bit quicker than either Walter Röhrl or factory test driver Timo Kluck could manage on the day – all three drivers, however, put in comfortably sub-7min laps, in cars set up with what Porsche calls the ‘Weissach Package’. For the past four years the production car lap record was 7:11.57, held by a Gumpert Apollo Sport driven by Florian Gruber. Even quicker than the 918 Spyder, however, are two Radicals, an SR8 and an SR8LM, that respectively put in a 6:55.00 and a 6:48.00 – hence Porsche referring to its record as for cars with global road homologation.

Competitors in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB will get the chance to race at Le Mans next year, teaming up with the Carrera Cup France drivers in a support race to the big 24-hour spectacular. For 2014 the Carrera Cup uses the new 991-series 911 GT3; meanwhile for the main endurance event at Le Mans, the Porsche factory team returns with a flourish to the LMP1 class. If you like the idea of a Renault Clio Renaultsport 200 Cup as your trackday special, What Car? magazine is right behind you – the consumer bible has just declared the Renault its Best Fun Car in its annual Used Car of the Year Awards. One of Audi’s top race engineers, Leena Gade, a 37-year old Londoner, has just been appointed the new ambassador of the FIA Commission for Women in Motorsport. Her role will focus on encouraging more female engineers into our sport. Already the subject of countless rave reviews, Rush, the movie based on the exploits of Lauda and Hunt during the 1976 F1 season, has Birmingham tyre specialist BMTR to thank for making it to the silver screen. BMTR supplied not only all the period F1 tyres for the movie, but also an on-site tyre fitting service. The company has been supplying race tyres to the FIA Historic Formula One Championship for a number of years now. You’re off to a trackday or race meeting far, far away and you need advice about where to eat and stay: here to help is the latest edition of the famous Michelin Guide Great Britain and Ireland. And don’t worry, it features good pubs and B&Bs as well as Michelin-starred restaurants and hotels. It costs £15.99, or there’s an Apple app (isn’t there always?) for £5.99.

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750MC’s FOUR HOURS OF FUN In response to some Historic racers’ concerns about mixing it with more modern machinery, the 750 Motor Club has organised a four-hour endurance event – the Historic Birkett Relay – for pre-1974 race cars, including a separate category for Vintage racing machinery. The Historic Birkett Relay is being held on November 2, on the Snetterton 300 circuit and the classifications break down as follows: Group A – Vintage racers; Group B – up to 1500cc; Group C – up to 2000cc; and Group D – over 2000cc. TrackDriver’s esteemed editor, Mark Hales, has been invited to participate – if he’s able to accept the kind offer, we’ll bring you a full report in the next issue. Meanwhile, for further details visit www.750mc.co.uk.

VBOX Sport Data Logger A genius little gadget from Racelogic, primarily for trackdays but would also work in race cars. While you might have a dedicated camera system in your main track car, if you don’t want the expense and can compromise on functionality, there’s a lot of data hidden away in the VBOX Sport – which will fit in the palm of your hand. Secure the box in your car, drive for a few laps, and then you get to interrogate your performance with the supplied Circuit Tools application on your PC. They also supply an iPhone/iPad app in the Apple store for main data, or if you already have the Harry’s timer app it’s fully compatible with that, too. Go faster, for less. For more info check out www.vboxmotorsport.co.uk.

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STACY SAYS

Remember, it’s just a bit of fun…

f you haven’t done so already, take a few minutes out and head to YouTube and type in ‘MX5 Enduro Crash – Croft’. You may need to watch it a couple of times to accept that, yes, this really did happen in a club race. We can be thankful that the main victim was able to walk away, because I can say with confidence that people have not done so from lesser impacts. It is a vivid, if chilling, testament to the strength of the car. But we can also be sure it was a full test of the cage, harness, seat and seat mounts – and had there been any weakness found, the story we are telling here might have been very different indeed. We can also be thankful that the officials on the day also took matters seriously enough to issue points and a fine to the culprit who we then hear verbally abused the victim. That this incident occurred on lap three of a onehour endurance race makes it surprising enough, but the mystery only deepens when you conduct some investigation of the offending driver. Here is someone who – how can I put this politely – would be well served to read timesheets from the bottom up. So what is going through the mind of an amateur driver who routinely circulates several seconds off the pace of a budget club racing series, to put a fellow driver’s life in danger? I say that because that is precisely what he did. Did he presume that by removing the opposition altogether he had a good chance to secure that coveted plastic trophy for the mantelpiece? Did he think that after watching a BTCC race or three, that this is how it should be done? Amateur drivers enter club races for many reasons: the absorbing nature of the sport, the fulfilment that comes from

Portrait: Oliver Brown. Background image: Jakob Ebrey

participating in an inherently exciting pastime or childhood ambition. For the sane amongst us though, it doesn’t define you as a person, unless you really do have a professional career beckoning, and if you did, you are unlikely to be starting out in a club race at Croft. What you don’t do if you have your full complement of marbles, is take it so seriously that you’re prepared to hospitalise someone. We all accept that there is an inherent risk when we get behind the wheel on a track. But what we could and should do is help ourselves to mitigate that risk by making it very clear that we don’t feel it is acceptable to share the track with those who drive with such disregard for our personal safety. That clear message needs to be heard by both the organising clubs so they are motivated to do something about it, and also by the offending drivers where we hope that they realise the error of their ways. Over the years I have come across drivers where the lights are on but nobody is home, but thankfully they are few and far between. When they can’t be reasoned with they need to be removed from the game – for all our sakes. Meanwhile our victim is faced with a wreck of a race car and we wish him well in his rebuild. He may well be interested to learn that in recent months a trackday driver was successfully sued for negligence when he span and collected another car, another legal example of someone driving through the plate glass window of generally accepted liability on track. Perhaps this could be the first time in a while that someone prosecuting their grievance through the courts is able to firmly hold the moral high ground • STACY VICKERS

• Track Days • Tuition • Testing • Sprints • Club Weekends

For TRACKDAY dates see CALENDAR page at www.blytonpark.co.uk Contact Email: richard@blytonpark.co.uk Tel: 01427 628 922 Mobile: 07967 442 352

RAMBLINGS

So, what is motorsport?

t started off as a potentially tricky lunch with the editor of TrackDriver at about this time last year. Happily most areas of contention had been covered off before the main course arrived. By the time the coffees were cleared, we had discovered a good deal of reassuringly common ground about motorsport and how to support it A subsequent interview in this magazine outlined the role of the MSA, the challenges facing the governing body, and the recognition that although the organisation has evolved, there is more that we can and should be doing to help motorsport in this country. That in turn was the springboard to a series of discussions with trackday operators and venues, which also led to my first participation in a trackday. I learned a great deal: firstly that my skills lie behind the keyboard not the wheel, and secondly that traditional motorsport is failing to connect with the customers of today. Fundamental to many of these discussions, though, has been a philosophical debate about what constitutes motorsport. Is it simply a car-based leisure activity, or something much more specific? Some believe that motorsport begins and ends with the Blue Book and the requirement to hold an MSA competition licence; if that is correct, then what are we to make of those people in the indoor karting centres, on trackdays, or even driving experience days? I went to that taster trackday to understand a bit more about the people attending and their motivation. One thing was instantly clear: these people love cars, their looks and their performance. They read car magazines, visit car websites and watch YouTube to see great cars doing cool stuff. Experiencing the thrill of driving on the limit is the logical next step in this pathway – hence the trackday. But probing further, I discovered these people have virtually no interest in what would traditionally be called ‘motorsport’. Some admitted to “watching F1 if it’s on,” but none considered themselves to be a motorsport fan, nor had ambitions to get involved as a participant. This is an issue. At a time when interest in performance cars is strong, motorsport is failing to tick the box. It has been the outlet of choice for the car lovers of previous generations, but what has motorsport become if it’s no longer capable of connecting with today’s petrolheads? It seems that much of the problem again lies in the perception of the term ‘motorsport’. These track drivers cited the issues of cost and commitment as potential barriers to entry – relevant perhaps if you want to be a single-seater champion, but the reality is that for the vast majority who just want to have fun on four wheels, neither

Background image: Jakob Ebrey

cost nor commitment should be prohibitive. Indeed, when I described an AutoSolo (spending a day at an airfield driving against the clock around a course of cones in your own road car with handbrake turns and tyre squeal) they were all interested. When I suggested that there are hundreds of these run by local motor clubs around the country, and that it would only cost about £30 for the day – they were astonished. But that opportunity is not what they associate with motorsport. To get another perspective, it’s helpful to look outside of our own, somewhat insular, environment. Take football: whether it’s a kick-about in the park or playing for a Premier League team, it still comes down to ‘playing football’. Similarly, you can hit 100 balls at the driving range or play in the Open championship – it is still ‘playing golf’. In contrast, motorsport has become so fragmented that no-one really knows what the term means any longer. Perhaps we should be looking at motorsport as some kind of continuum that incorporates all types of motorised leisure, from ‘stag do’ karting through to the highest levels of international competition. Where this becomes more than just semantics, is in the marketing and development of the sport. If MSA motorsport (with its licence and rule book) is not the first rung on the ladder, then who is the audience for a ‘Get Involved in MSA Motorsport’ message? How can we ensure that the pathway is open from further down the ladder in order that people can bring themselves along if and when they are ready to do so? Meanwhile we should be getting as many people as possible onto that first rung, as they will become the more serious participants of the future. Sport, at its heart, is about enjoyment. It’s a leisure pastime. So too is motorsport – we don’t do it because we’re going to be world champion; we do it because it’s fun. It might be fair to say that the MSA has been a little dismissive of ‘fun’ in the past, preferring to stick with the serious competition of the Blue Book and leaving other commercial entities to create new products for the changing tastes of a developing market. But if motorsport is to grow and enjoy the influence and potential it deserves, then all the constituent parts of the motorsport market need to work together to make sure that there’s something for everyone, whatever their level of budget, commitment or ambition. That way we can make sure that everyone has access to fun on four wheels • Ben Taylor: Director of Development and Communications, at the Motor Sport Association

aero insight

G N I C N A L A B

ACT Life, work and aerodynamics all need to be kept in balance for harmonious and enjoyable track driving. We’ll focus in this issue on the aerodynamics bit Words and illustrations: Simon McBeath. Photos: David Stallard

t’s not always appreciated that to benefit from aerodynamic aids, there needs to be a balance, front to rear. Fitting a rear wing but making no changes to the front of the car would be akin to replacing road tyres with slicks at the rear only. Vice versa, fitting an airdam and splitter at the front but no wing or spoiler at the rear would be analogous to putting slicks on the front only. The level of grip would not be balanced, and handling would be seriously compromised. The difference with ‘aerodynamic grip’ is that it is speed related, so that at low speeds (typically below 40 or 50mph) the inherent handling balance (whatever it may be) is essentially unaffected. But aerodynamic forces increase with the square of the speed, so if speed doubles then the aerodynamic forces quadruple. Thus, if the aerodynamics are not balanced front to rear, the effect on the car’s overall handling will be to get further out of balance as speed rises. This is not a good place to be… So let’s work though some of the generalities of aerodynamic balance and look at some ways in which aero balance can be improved and adjusted. Let’s first assume our car has a mechanical handling balance with which we are happy. Indeed it is generally preferable to attain a good mechanical balance before working with the aerodynamics, as this makes it easier to feel any changes that the aerodynamics bring about, and to diagnose any imbalances as being aerodynamic rather than mechanical. Life is rarely this simple, of course. For one thing, what exactly defines a good mechanical balance? The weight transfer dynamics from braking for a corner, turning in, driving through, and powering out are variable throughout the sequence and depend on the speed and radius of the corner, the car, the driver and so on. But for our purposes here let’s fantasise that our car is mechanically neutral through all those phases! In which case, the balance of downforce that we want to try to achieve will be in approximately equal proportions to the front to rear static weight distribution, subject to various caveats and complications. This way the relative

aero insight

CAD model of our generic saloon model, initially with rear wing and small splitter

Downforce from the wing and splitter counteract the lift from the body to give a Centre of Pressure somewhere along the wheelbase. Balance can be calculated from knowing the numbers involved

tyre loadings, front to rear, remain unchanged as speed increases, so the handling balance will also remain unchanged through the speed range, all other things being equal. As a refinement to this precept, most drivers, your scribe included, prefer the inherent stability of a touch of understeer at high speed to the intrinsically unstable condition of oversteer at high speed. So with that in mind, the aero balance would be better with a slight rearward bias relative to the static weight distribution. Hence if our car has a static weight split that sees 40% of the car’s weight on the front wheels, we might aim for middle to high 30s in terms of front downforce percentage. We’ll come to how this might be achieved shortly, but there are some of the other potential complication factors…

Complications…

Mechanically neutral handling balance under all conditions isn’t going to be achievable in reality. One of the most obvious deviations from neutrality for a rear-wheel drive car, for example, is power-on oversteer, something that is more likely in slower corners taken in lower gears, but which can also happen at higher speeds in higher gears too, depending on the car and how much power and torque it has. In such a case, the choice might be to bias the aerodynamic balance more to the rear to help eradicate that particular issue and enable improved corner exit traction. This will inevitably mean living with more understeer in other phases of the faster corners, but if it means faster laps, so be it. The opposite situation may also apply, and

Figure 3: Raised pressure (yellow and red) and reduced pressure (green and blue) give an idea of where drag, downforce and lift come from

some front-wheel drive BTCC cars have their (admittedly modest) aero packages biased to generate most of their downforce at the front to assist with traction. The downside is a car that will be ‘loose’ in the corner entry phase, but with the level of downforce on these cars being quite modest, and with the drivers being top drawer, the issue can be lived with. There are other potentially complicating factors. Downforce-induced ride height changes can, if the aero package and suspension are not set up very thoughtfully, see the aero balance shift either forwards or backwards with changing speed. So dynamic ride height changes need maintain a constant rake as far as is possible. Clearly other dynamic chassis changes, such as front dive under braking, can also affect chassis rake and, especially, front ground clearance, which can certainly affect how a splitter performs, thus creating further dynamic balance changes. High downforce cars that can be significantly affected in such ways therefore require good ‘platform control’ to minimise these balance shifts. The yaw angle achieved during cornering can also affect aero balance. When a car is in steady state in cornering and exploiting maximum grip, the tyres are running at or near their peak slip angle, which sees the car running at a yaw angle approximately equal to the average slip angle of its tyres. The air is thus not passing over it from straight ahead, and this can alter the lift that the body creates, and also the downforce that other devices create, which can affect the aero balance.

Figure 4: Ditto

aero insight

And one other obvious situation that can see aero balance shift is when closely following (or indeed leading…) another car. Being behind another car not only affects drag, hence ‘slipstreaming’ or ‘draughting’, it also adversely affects the ability of downforce-inducing devices to do their job, and balance as well as overall grip can suffer. The same is actually true of a car close in front too, in that the following car affects the airflow over it.

Balancing the aerodynamics

So how do you obtain a balanced aerodynamic package? Well naturally it depends on the car, and in regulated motorsport categories it depends fundamentally on the relevant technical regulations. The rule makers are pretty savvy at keeping these things in check in most series. But if your track lapping is done just for fun rather than in a regulated series, then the aero world is your oyster. So we’ll revisit the CAD model of the generic saloon that regular readers will have seen in recent issues of TrackDriver to study rear wings, spoilers and, most recently, front airdams and splitters, using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software courtesy of ANSYS UK. In those articles we looked only at the effect on total lift and drag of various configurations at one end of the car. Now we’re going to combine front and rear end appendages and look specifically at aerodynamic balance. The CAD model – figure 1 – was based on the centreline profile of a Mitsubishi Evo VII found on the web, but don’t think for one moment that the data here represents that car; the model is very simplistic and serves only to look at the effects qualitatively and, being realistic, semi-quantitatively.

Baseline model

In the previous issue it was stated that combining the splitter configuration illustrated there with a rear wing, as investigated in

issue 12, ought to produce a model that generated overall downforce, as the aero appendages should be capable of reversing the inherent positive lift generated by the body. So would our first model here (see figure 1) bear out that assertion? And what would the front to rear aerodynamic balance be? Table 1 demonstrates, and figure 2 helps to illustrate, how the data from the CFD software is used to calculate the overall centre of pressure (net pitch moment divided by total downforce), and how that is then converted into a % front figure to tell us the aerodynamic balance. (Note: for the more mathematically inclined, and I feel sure that’s all of you, the CFD calculates forces and moments relative to the CAD origin. With this set at ground level,

Figure 5: A longer splitter generates more downforce and also exerts a greater torque or moment to give more downforce at the front tyres

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aero insight

Figure 6: Splitter end fences ‘trap’ more high pressure on the splitter’s upper surface – compare with figure 5

the pitch moment is entirely due to the vertical forces, and hence the aerodynamic centre of pressure arising from overall downforce can simply be calculated by dividing the pitch moment by the downforce to get a distance from the origin (datum). It’s then easy to work out the front percentage in relation to the car’s wheelbase.) Table 1 – the forces and coefficients on the baseline model at 100mph Drag, N (CD) Lift, N (CL) Pitch (Nm) Baseline 1165 (0.418) -792 (-0.284) -1788 -L/D = 0.680 CofP at 2.257m %front = (WB – CofP)/WB = (2.69 – 2.257)/2.69 = 16.1%

Figure 7: The end fences also have some downstream influence on airflow and pressure distributions

Splitter end fences

Having tried these at various heights on a number of cars with varying success, some modest 45mm high fences were ‘attached’ to the end of the splitter and joined to the bumper/fender so there was no gap at the rear of the fences. The results are shown in Table 3 along with the previous results. Table 3 – the changes from increasing splitter length and adding splitter end fences Drag, N (CD) Lift, N (CL) -L/D %front Baseline 1165 (0.418) -792 (-0.284) 0.680 16.1% 150mm splitter 1153 (0.413) -815 (-0.292) 0.706 23.0% 200mm splitter 1101 (0.395) -832 (-0.298) 0.756 31.4% Splitter end fences 1230 (0.441) -895 (-0.321) 0.728 35.5%

So we can see that the car did indeed create net downforce overall by combining a wing and a splitter, but the aerodynamic balance is heavily rear-biased with just 16% on the front. If we assume that such a car will likely have somewhere around a 50/50 weight distribution, this aero balance would almost certainly lead to steady state understeer that worsens as speed increases. Figures 3 and 4 show the pressure distributions on upper and lower surfaces. Note in figure 4 that this splitter extends under the engine bay, as discussed in detail in issue 16.

So two small plates – 170mm x 45mm – produced quite marked results. Drag went up by 11.7%, total downforce increased by 7.6% and accordingly efficiency declined by 3.7%. But there was a useful forwards shift in aero balance, so these fences are not to be sniffed at, and there will likely be tunes to be played with their size, shape and exact location, too. [Figures 5, 6 and 7.]

Improving balance

Dive planes

Table 2 – the changes from increasing splitter length Drag, N (CD) Lift, N (CL) Baseline 1165 (0.418) -792 (-0.284) 150mm splitter 1153 (0.413) -815 (-0.292) 200mm splitter 1101 (0.395) -832 (-0.298)

Table 4 – the changes from removing splitter end fences and adding dive planes Drag, N (CD) Lift, N (CL) -L/D %front Baseline 1165 (0.418) -792 (-0.284) 0.680 16.1% 150mm splitter 1153 (0.413) -815 (-0.292) 0.706 23.0% 200mm splitter 1101 (0.395) -832 (-0.298) 0.756 31.4% Splitter end fences 1230 (0.441) -895 (-0.321) 0.728 35.5% Dive planes 1132 (0.406) -853 (-0.306) 0.753 34.0%

Clearly the car needed more front downforce. How best to achieve that? Almost always the best idea on a closed-wheel car is to increase the splitter’s length. So the splitter length was increased from 75mm in the baseline model to first 150mm, and then to 200mm. The results are set out in Table 2 with the baseline values shown for easy comparison. -L/D 0.680 0.706 0.756

%front 16.1% 23.0% 31.4%

So adding splitter length was very effective. Whether the decreases in drag with each increment of extra splitter length would be matched in reality is moot. But the effects on downforce, efficiency and -L/D follow the expected patterns and, given the gains in efficiency as well as the transformation in balance, this makes longer splitters, where permitted, a very attractive option. Still, though, we only had around 31% downforce on the front. Rather than reduce the angle of the rear wing or move it forwards or downwards to a less effective location, let’s persevere with ideas to get more front downforce. It looks as though adding yet more splitter length would be effective, but very long splitters are not always practical and can become aerodynamically more sensitive to dynamic changes in ride height or rake. So we’ll examine a couple of other options.

Given the popularity of these appendages, a quick glance at one possible design should be instructive, although clearly there is an infinite variety of possible geometries. The results are shown in Table 4.

aero insight

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aero insight

Figure 8: The dive planes tested here were quite modest

Figure 9: Steeper dive planes can send their wake high enough to affect the rear wing; these clearly did not

So relative to the splitter with no end fences configuration, these dive planes produced a useful balance shift but with less extra downforce (and less extra drag) compared with the effect of the splitter end fences. [Figures 8, 9 and 10.]

And finally…

The type of car we’re looking at here would require 45-48% of its downforce on the front, and more development would best be spent on the front end to head towards this. But to demonstrate a better balance is attainable, the rear wing was moved to its original location tested in Issue 12, 300mm further forwards (wholly above the boot lid) and 180mm lower (halfway up the rear screen). The results are shown in Table 5. Table 5 – the changes from moving the wing forwards and downwards Drag, N (CD) Lift, N (CL) -L/D %front Baseline 1165 (0.418) -792 (-0.284) 0.680 16.1% 150mm splitter 1153 (0.413) -815 (-0.292) 0.706 23.0% 200mm splitter 1101 (0.395) -832 (-0.298) 0.756 31.4% Splitter end fences 1230 (0.441) -895 (-0.321) 0.728 35.5% Dive planes 1132 (0.406) -853 (-0.306) 0.753 34.0% Move rear wing 1125 (0.403) -686 (-0.246) 0.610 47.9%

Figure 10: A more aggressive angle across the front of the car might add more downforce…

This move significantly decreased total downforce, whereas further front end developments may have yielded a better balance with more downforce. However, the balance was now in the required ballpark.

Last word

Which brings us to the final word on this: given that unbalanced downforce cannot be fully exploited anyway, balance is by far the most important criterion in aerodynamic setup. Many thanks to ANSYS UK for the CFD software.

Figure 11: The wing in its more forward, lower location

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track test

While their mother ship lurches from crisis to crisis, Lotus engineers still manage to keep knocking out cracking sports cars. And after a hard session at Blyton Park, Mark Hales reckons that their latest effort, the supercharged V6-engined Exige S, could be their best yet Photographs by Owen Brown

LOTUS

track test

DOES IT AGAIN

track test

Above: all vents and sharp creases, the Exige S’s frontal view distances it from thoughts of the Elise. So too does the extra 70mm in its wheelbase (bottom right)

he Lotus Exige S has been on sale for about two years, but despite some enthusiastic reviews, it hasn’t been a roaring sales success. And until recently we hadn’t driven one, although it was hard to imagine why. It’s the honkiest road-going Lotus for some time – maybe ever – so high time to put it to rights and head for the friendly test venue that is Blyton Park. Based on the now familiar extruded and glued aluminium chassis tub that first appeared beneath the Elise back in 1996, the latest Exige S has gained some extra width at the back – which looks a great deal more than the stated 40mm – plus there are some big 18in rear wheels with wider wings to cover them, which only adds to the impression. Some of it was doubtless necessary to accommodate the Toyota-based V6 with its Harrop supercharger (straight out of the Evora) and the six-speed Toyota gearbox that Lotus has also specified with a set of close ratios. But methinks there was a concurrent desire to make it a bit more friendly on the limit, so there’s a 70mm stretch of the wheelbase as well. The V6 confers a substantial power hike (now standing at 345hp no less) and like all the Elise family, it’s a lump of weight that sits a long way back in the chassis. The S is the newly avowed hard-core version of the Exige, which is already the hard-core version of the Elise, so there’s the obligatory diffuser under the back end and

a droopy rear wing on the top of it, complemented by a splitter under the front and some substantial air intakes either side of the grille. It’s evolution of the kind Lotus has specialised in over the years, but if this Exige’s front still looks familiar from 20 paces, the rear definitely looks different; at a casual glance it might not even be an Exige. The new 18-inchers at the rear are complemented by 17s at the front, and there’s a substantial difference in tyre width; 205/45 front against 265/35 for the rear. The brakes are much bigger, too, with AP Racing callipers and cross-drilled vented discs as standard fit. The interior is stripped down with hammock-style bucket seats and plenty of bare aluminium presented as styling, but once you have endured the comedy moment which is negotiating the wide sill and slid down under the steering wheel, it is extremely comfortable, in a hard-core kind of way. That’s to say the seat isn’t big on padding but holds you nicely in place, and the wheel, pedals and gearlever all fall to the hands and feet without apparent effort. And no, that comedy moment is not an age thing. The youngsters at evo magazine had exactly the same problem. Having said it’s meant to be extreme, it is, but not in every department. The ride is firm but not toothloosening, which is one of the advantages available in a relatively low (1176kg) overall weight. The other is a

“ The interior is stripped down with hammock-style bucket seats and plenty of bare aluminium presented as styling, but once you have endured the comedy moment which is negotiating the wide sill and slid down under the steering wheel, it extremely comfortable, in a hard-core sort of way”

track test

Compared with the original Elise, Exige cabin is the height of luxury, yet it remains fairly hard-core

track test

VIEWPOINT: Jim Cameron

An old hand when it comes to Lotuses on track, Jim Cameron gets out of the driving seat just as impressed as Hales

’ve some history with these things: I’ve raced Elises, instructed in the RSR Exige fleet at the Nürburgring, and am very familiar with the 3.5-litre V6 engine in the Evora, so I wasn’t expecting to be wholly surprised by the new Exige S. It was announced way back in 2012, but I’d not yet seen one in the flesh. I was properly taken aback when it rolled into the paddock at Blyton, however. It’s stunning, a really good-looking car. In the past it has been hard to tell the Exige apart from its ubiquitous cousin, the Elise. Not so the new Exige S; its lines flow and spear rearwards giving the Lotus an aggressive, elongated look more akin to that of the mental Hennessey Venom, a sort of stretched Exige the Texans have turned into a Veyron-chaser. The bodywork of the Exige S is 30cm longer than that of its four-cylinder cousins and has lost the truncated, bluff rear end, so outwardly, at least, it appears to be more of a distinct new model rather than an evolution of a theme. It is an impression reinforced by the first few corners of the Blyton track. The back of the car is incredibly well-planted, any hint of nervousness in the tail stamped out by the grip afforded by the 265-section rear tyres. I actually got out after the first few laps to stare at the car from side on, attempting to reconcile the size, layout and weight distribution with the very un-Exige like experience that I’d just had. Sounds nuts, but it feels longer than it actually is. The wheelbase has been extended by just 70mm but that stretch is entirely between the driver’s seat back, and the back wheels. That elongation removes almost entirely the traditional Exige sensation of imminent rotation about the driver, as the point about which the car rotates has changed.

“ While the deliberate lack of locking diff means that wild hooligan slides aren’t on the cards, application of the right foot does not corrupt the messages transmitted through the wheel” A more rigid structure has allowed Lotus to double the rear roll stiffness of the S by fitting an anti-roll bar. There’s no mechanical locking differential, and so the initial turn-in is extraordinary: if I was going to be tongue in cheek I’d suggest ‘Caterham-like’… But that won’t make me popular in parts of Norfolk that never sold off the ability to develop sublime steering response. The wider track of the front end aids the direct feeling of the steering; while the deliberate lack of locking diff means that wild hooligan slides aren’t on the cards, application of the right foot does not corrupt the messages transmitted through the wheel. The Exige S is hugely fast, and feels it. The power piles on through the mid-range, the supercharger and the relatively light weight of the Lotus conspiring to really throw the Exige down the road. Power to weight is similar to what the Exige 260 Cup used to make, but the torque spread of the supercharged V6 is in a different world. The brakes are as effective and feelsome as you’d expect, but what I don’t manage to reconcile is the gearshift. I’m normally pretty good at jumping in a strange car and adapting quickly enough to wring its neck in a few laps, but I feel distinctly average in the Exige, fluffing downshifts and mistiming heel and toe bringing revs up to meet the drivetrain. Of course, and as is always the way, Mark Hales is sitting next to me as I expose my inadequacies. But after some proper belly laughs on the subject of fluffed gearchanges, he admits that he’s not found the Lotus that approachable, either. I get more time in the car which starts to smooth things out, and while I can get the S moving around and squealing, it’s when I’m being neat and precise that the drive is most rewarding. Yes, it goes like a spanked cat in a straight line, but it is the way that the Exige changes direction that is really special. Blyton has both slow and fast chicanes, both of which are dismissed with a flick of the wrist. There’s no sense of having to modify line or application of throttle to keep an errant tail in check; the rear just squats and fires the Exige out of corners. Although the exterior is a revelation, the interior is altogether more familiar. Simple and functional, everything is perfectly to hand and the small wheel has all the directness you’d expect of Hethel’s quickest road car yet. There are electronics here, too, and not a half-hearted effort. The Exige will help you into corners, open the exhaust valves, nip the brakes on an unweighted wheel and generally conspire to make the driver look heroic. Controlled by a switch next to the wheel, the driver selects ‘Tour’, ‘Sport’, ‘Race’ or more simply, ‘Off’. Such is the competence of the intervention I could detect little or no point in selecting the latter. The Danny Bahar nonsense in Hethel hasn’t reduced Lotus’ ability to turn out a great car, thank heavens. The new Exige S has immense presence, but because there remains no truly dignified way to get in or out of it, it’s unlikely to be embraced by the King’s Road poseurs. It remains an aficionado’s car, harder, sharper and more precise, and all the better for it.

lesser need for power-assisted steering, which is just as well because there isn’t any. There isn’t a great deal of self-centring effect either – which is probably deliberate to reduce the effort required – but once you get past the unaccustomed need to position the hands ready to work the wheel, you realise the response is quite sharp, yet slightly separated from the cornering process. It’s an initial, curiously numb feeling not unlike that found in some Porsches, and it’s something you do get used to. Meanwhile, the engine is raucous and the gearshift clunky to the touch with a narrow gate and long throw, although the ratios are nicely close. Almost everything you drive now is quiet and servo-assisted so the S’s muscular controls, sparse cabin and vocal engine make it feel involving and intimate in a style that’s rare these

track test

“ The response is quite sharp, yet slightly separated from the cornering process. It’s an initial, curiously numb feeling not unlike that found in some Porsches. Meanwhile, the engine is quite raucous and the gearshift clunky to the touch” days. Nicely vintage in a modern sort of way and yet it’s not remotely difficult or intimidating to drive, even if you might need earplugs for long journeys. It is also ballistically quick, as only a boosted engine in a light chassis can be. The supercharged engine responds instantly and has a well of torque from way down low; the claim is nine seconds from rest to 100mph but you can whip past queues of traffic without any need to pump the gearlever. It’s a level of performance that can only be properly investigated on the track, and first impressions at Blyton confirm that the car feels very

quick indeed but ironically, less sharp than it does on the road. The amount of grip is substantial but the bias is definitely towards the rear and the harder I pushed, the more the front’s slight numbness began to assert itself. The extent of difference in tyre width front to rear was something Lotus employed on the mk2 Elise in response to criticism that its predecessor could be tricky, as was a reduction in front track width, so the engineers were probably taking no chances. It’s surprising the effect an increase in track or wheelbase has on a car’s handling; the TVR Tuscan

Hard to believe that this basic design has been around since 1996. However, the Exige S has the dynamic range and confidence of a proper GT when sent out onto a race track and is both quick and enjoyable

track test

Digital dashboards and paddle-shift gearboxes are all very well, but clear dials and a gear lever are still hugely appealing to the ‘traditional’ driver, don’t you think? Exige S powered by supercharged 3.5-litre V6 (left), good for 345bhp

“ I concentrated on loading up the front end on corner entry using the tireless brakes and nicely weighted pedal. It soon turned into a real, proper GT sprinting experience, and all the better because the car responds when you try to do it better, but doesn’t try to bite you when you don’t” I drove in the mid-’90s was certainly a handful, but the Cerbera, which shared an almost identical chassis but for an extra four inches in the middle, was benign by comparison. The 70mm added to the Elise’s platform to create the new Exige is about that and the difference is similarly dramatic. Different car certainly, and more significantly, different layout, but essentially the effect is similar. Back to the present, where I freely admit to confusion regarding the multi-position electronic stability program or DPM in Lotus-speak (for Dynamic Performance Management). I already knew the ride was slightly firmer in ‘Sports’ mode, and there was more noise from the exhaust, but since we were at the track, I tried the ‘Race’ mode, and promptly found myself running wide on the exit of the chicane. It felt as if the already ample grip at the rear had better harnessed the 345 horsepower and simply shoved the car’s nose wide, so maybe the safety side of things had stopped that happening before. There’s no limited-slip in the differential; instead the electronics are designed to pulsate the brake inside a spinning rear wheel and do it that way while the rest of the system is supposed to ‘learn’ your driving style and marry it to the available grip. I confess to switching it back to Sports, where it stayed for the remaining laps. I probably need to try it again. Having decided to leave the electronics to their own circuitry, I concentrated on loading up the front end on corner entry using the tireless brakes and nicely

weighted pedal. It soon turned into a real, proper GT sprinting experience, and all the better because the car responds when you do it better, but doesn’t try to bite you when you don’t – unlike the Elise, although that is certainly better than it was. Slightly less helpful though, was the gearchange. The V6’s throttle response is sharp but the revs also fall very quickly which means you need to make the shifts between close ratios fairly swift to avoid the revs dropping too much and bringing on a learner’s lurch. The gate is narrow while the throw is quite long, and the lever turns out to be close to the seats which puts the arm at a steeper angle. It is all too easy to miss one, either because the mechanism hits the gate rather than going in the slot, or more likely it feels like it’s gone in but the driver hasn’t followed through with the whole throw and the synchro hasn’t locked. Probably more of the latter, but to spare my blushes, I was relieved to find most people had a similar problem. No doubt about it, the Exige S is still a real GT car and having tried it properly at a track, the £52,900 purchase price ironically sounds like much better value. On the road, the relative lack of creature comforts and the raw, uncompromising nature of the performance are occasionally a bit stark, but on the track you almost want them starker. Which is not to damn with faint praise; to put it another way, it goes nearly as well as a Ferrari but it’s a lot lighter and the performance is more intimate. And perhaps more to the point, it’s a third of the price.

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ards test

ARDS Are

You Really Ready to Race?

Novice racer and new TrackDriver team member, Carl Owen, has his heart set on club racing. In part 1 of his journey to getting onto the grid, he explains why passing the ARDS test is scant preparation for battling it out on track against other racers

ARDS TEST

oney, I want to be a racing driver. You can imagine the response… I’ve always loved driving quickly and subconsciously fancied myself as a race car driver. Thing is, you really can’t drive quickly on British B-roads any more. It’s not only dangerous, but the road surfaces are too bumpy. And it’s illegal. So when I was presented with the opportunity either to buy a fast road car (Porsche 911 or similar) or something for trackdays, it got me thinking: why not go the whole hog and become a racing driver and build my own full-blown GT race car (see Team Cars on page 80)? Researching club racing it was soon apparent there was lots of choice. Openwheeled, single-seater, tin tops, Historic, single-make and many more. As far as I was concerned, it boiled down to two major categories; single-make tin tops or Historics. Whilst the idea of a single-make event is appealing, as everyone drives almost identical cars, this type of racing is a lot closer and therefore more prone to comings together. That put me off a little from a budget perspective. On the other hand, Historic racing has a diverse range of cars and longer races, reducing the pressure on that first corner… Eventually I decided to race in the Classic Sports Car Club ‘Modern Classics’ which features production GT and sports cars of the ’90s including Porsches, BMWs, Alfa Romeos, and hopefully my Audi TT quattro turbo. There are different classes for different types of car loosely based on engine size and depending whether the engine is normally aspirated or has forced induction. Many of the eligible cars are also very powerful with engines over 3.0-litre – I reckoned that would make for some exciting racing. This format is based around a 30-minute qualifying session followed by a 40-minute race with a compulsory pit stop and optional driver change. The CSCC prides itself on very clean racing and keeps a watchful eye on unnecessary contact: a major plus point from my perspective as re-building my car isn’t a viable option. The cars must retain their original silhouette and are only allowed spoilers that were originally fitted to that model, which goes a long way to reduce the budget and level the playing field. Brakes and suspension are free but the engine, gearbox and induction type must be original, although they can be modestly tuned. Finally, you are only permitted to use MSA List 1a or 1b tyres, which are generally track-biased road tyres that should last several races.

Getting started

Deciding on a race series was all very well, but there was now the small matter of obtaining a licence. Step one is to join the Motor Sports Association (MSA – www. msauk.org) and purchase a Go Racing starter

ards test

pack for around £64. If you are 18 or over you’ll need a medical certificate from your doctor: leave plenty of time to get it. It took me a while to find a doctor to do this because these medicals aren’t a priority. Mine cost around £110, but if you’re over 45 you may also need a stress ECG that costs a lot more. After that it’s the half-day MSA course for novice drivers run by the Association of Racing Drivers Schools (ARDS), otherwise known as the ARDS test. Once you have successfully completed your ARDS, you have to apply for your actual race licence, which costs around £58 for a ‘Race National B’ licence. With your novice licence you can go racing at most Club racing events in the UK. It sounds so simple, and to be honest it is, but it’s no walk in the park. Also, for the first six races you have to put a black cross on a yellow background on the back of your car to alert other drivers to your novice status. This can be removed once you have successfully collected six signatures from races where you have driven to a satisfactory standard; you can also obtain one signature by marshalling at one event. Once you have six signatures you’re considered no longer a novice and can apply for your ‘Race National A’ licence.

Carl’s experience: not all good…

This overview of the process is a considerable simplification of how things went for me. I had no track time whatsoever before taking my ARDS test, so as part of my preparation I

turned to sim racing, using iRacing’s online simulator in an attempt to develop some skills. One of my concerns was ‘heel and toeing’, as all my road cars are automatics. This takes a lot of practice to get just right and using the iRacing simulator with three pedals and a manual six-speed gearbox really helped. I was also able to practice racing lines on the simulator and appreciate the benefits of aiming for slightly later apexes to avoid running off the track at the exit. I booked my ARDS course at Silverstone and opted for the full-day course to get as much track time as possible. Disappointingly, this turned out to be exactly the same as the half-day course in terms of track time; just 45 minutes, which

of people did fail the written test and had to re-sit it. Prior to the test, one of the other students said to remember that it’s not the Union Jack that can be used to start a race, but the National Flag – thanks, whoever you were, as it came up. Compared with the relative simplicity of the written test the track driving part was a whole new kettle of fish. Firstly, the instructors weren’t any old driver/trainers: they were full-on racing drivers, many of whom are well known. Mine were Rob Barff (endurance star and co-host on the GT Academy TV programme) and Andrew Bentley (Formula Ford, Star Mazda, and Lotus). I did my practical test with Bentley who started by driving a slow sighting lap

“ I booked my ARDS course at Silverstone and opted for the full-day course to get as much track time as possible. Disappointingly, this turned out to be exactly the same as the half-day course in terms of track time; just 45 minutes, way too short” was way too short in my opinion. The rest of the time comprised other driving activities; on a skidpan in a tail-happy Caterham 7 and a front-wheel drive skid car, both of which were fun, but had absolutely nothing to do with the ARDS test. The ARDS written exam is quite straightforward and mainly focuses on safety – in particular, ALL the flags have to be identified 100% correctly. The information is on the DVD that comes with your Go Racing pack, so if you’re a diligent student you should have no problem. However, a couple

of the Silverstone International Circuit in a track-prepared 250bhp Renault Mégane Cup. Then bam, a proper fast lap. OMG! Am I expected to drive like this? This was driving at a totally different level, and if I wasn’t intimidated before, I was now. And to make things worse, I was so busy hanging on to my seat that I totally forgot that I should be remembering the circuit. The main thing that surprised me was the g-force when Bentley was driving; it can’t be simulated. Under braking the belts physically dig into your flesh.

Messing about in the skid-school car was fun, but of little relevance to learning how to race. Learner Carl would have preferred much more time on track

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ards test

As with the skid car, a session in a Caterham was fun in its way (above), but Carl was left thinking that there’s so much more to learn about the practicalities of motor racing than simply knowing your way around the circuit

Bentley pulled into the pits and we swapped seats: could I really replicate one of his laps? There were a couple of issues here. One – it was the first time I’d ever driven this car, and it was a manual. Two – I had no clue where the circuit went because my mind was blank after the fast lap. Fortunately the Mégane was a kind companion courtesy of its front-wheel drive, and my heel and toe technique from the

to remember the corners. What was strange was that normally I have a photographic memory and would have this locked in instantly, but because I was so overwhelmed and full of adrenaline my brain was in meltdown. This is where more track time would definitely have helped. In what seemed like no time I was summoned back into the driving seat. No more sighting laps and back out at full speed.

“ From that point on I was a different driver. I stopped sawing at the wheel, braked a little earlier, the understeer calmed down. I started hitting apexes and then just as I was feeling a little more confident, it was back to the pits” simulator served me well. The main problem was that I was totally clueless where the track went and what speed I could enter the corners. Bentley was tugging at the wheel like I was a learner, trying to get me on the racing line. Ten minutes later we were back in the pits and that was it for my first session. Bentley explained I had one more 15-minute training session with him and then it was the practical test where I would be expected to do three full laps without incident at race speed, each lap following the same line to prove I had total control of the car.

The learning curve

Fortunately there was a short break while others went out, but the general mood at base camp was sombre. Nobody was feeling confident and most of us realised we really had no clue about how to drive a race car on the limit. I spent my break intensely studying the track map on the wall, trying

Next came what I call the overdriving phase; I felt a little more confident in the car and where the track went so I could be a little more aggressive – wrong. Late braking + too much speed = massive understeer. The car was all over the place and I was sawing at the wheel like a rally driver. Then I outbraked myself and went off the track entering Vale; Bentley had to rein me in. What he said next was the turning point: “You have no problem with speed, you are certainly fast enough for the test, what you need to do is slow down a little, relax, and just make sure you pass.” He was so right; I was driving like an idiot in a car chase. All I needed to focus on was passing the test; I could work on my speed another day. From that point on I was a different driver. I stopped sawing at the wheel, braked a little earlier, the understeer calmed down. I started hitting apexes and then just as I was feeling a little more confident, it was back to the pits. Bentley concluded that if I could do

three laps like that last one then I would be okay. After another short break it was back out for my actual test. My last three laps were crisis-free and pulling back into the pits Bentley indicated I’d done okay – phew, what an ordeal! About 20% of my class failed, and apparently this can often be a much higher percentage. For me it was a close call: if it hadn’t been for Bentley calming me down, I’m sure I would have failed, too. In hindsight I had prepared well for the written exam, but should have put some groundwork into learning the track. My recommendation to anyone wanting to pass their ARDS test would be to do a trackday on the same circuit beforehand, or at least watch some YouTube videos so you have a clue where the track goes. Maybe different tracks offer different percentages of track time; it’s worth enquiring before you book.

I have a race licence but am I really ready to race?

I think not! To be honest I was a bit disappointed in my ARDS test. I mistakenly thought that we would have some more instruction on the practicalities of becoming a racing driver off the track, a bit like Top Gun for car drivers. I booked the whole day test hoping there would be more time to learn both on and off the track, but this wasn’t the case. Don’t get me wrong, the on-track tuition was really good. But I feel that a lot more could have been done to make the whole experience better. There really wasn’t much instruction on racing lines, braking technique, power delivery,

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ards test

understeer, oversteer, early or late apexes, etc. Fortunately I could already heel and toe, thanks to the simulator, but many on the day couldn’t and there was no instruction on this vital technique. Then there are the rest of the rules and regulations. The MSA DVD covers the flags in detail, but there was not a lot else to prepare us for real racing – the stock answer is that it’s all in the MSA Blue Book but a little guidance would go a long way here. What about safety cars, for instance? How do they work and when do you restart the race? And how about rolling starts versus grid starts; pit lane speed limits; general pit lane safety and etiquette, etc? A red flag means ‘cease racing’ but what do you do – return to the pits or assemble on the grid? Then there’s the car and race equipment; yes, we know from the DVD that you need a fireproof race suit, gloves, shoes and helmet, etc, and these must all meet FIA standards, but what about scrutineering? Things like roll cages: what do you need for each level of racing? And seatbelt dates, rain lights, tow hook specifications, permitted tyres etc. There really is a lot to learn before you even get near the start line.

Could do better

Perhaps if we want to encourage more grassroots motorsport in the UK then there should be a mandatory introductory course on all the basic rules and regulations, plus basic driving techniques required for driving at speed in amongst other race traffic. In Austria and Germany, if you want to play

golf you have to do a weeklong course on golf techniques and etiquette before you are allowed on a proper golf course. If you want to work in a kitchen in the UK then you have to attend a full day’s food hygiene course to learn the dos and don’ts in a kitchen environment: mishandled food can kill. And yet in motor racing we have to pass a very simple multiple choice test and drive three

Keeping it real: or actually, not…

Several months after my ARDS test, and still having never raced head to head on track, I did a ‘test day’ – essentially a trackday for licenced racing drivers – at Mallory Park in my newly prepared mk1 Audi TT. I was surprised to feel totally confident and very comfortable on track and around the other cars, all driving flat-out without incident.

“ Don’t get me wrong, the on-track tuition was really good. But I feel that a lot more could have been done to make the whole experience better. There wasn’t really much instruction on racing lines, braking technique, power delivery, understeer, oversteer, early or late apexes, etc. There really is a lot to learn before you even get near the start line” laps of a circuit and then you are let loose in a potentially lethal race car – go figure… You could say well it works so don’t fix it: I disagree. For example, I was at a club race this weekend somewhere in the UK that will remain nameless. I saw a car go off the track during waved yellows and hit another car. There were marshals on track only moments before, and more than one driver was black flagged for overtaking during yellow flag conditions, not to mention pit lane speed infringements. Then there was a fire attendant from one of the teams without gloves or helmet whilst refuelling and what was even worse is that there was a fuel spillage and the car caught fire. Flames rose 20 feet and the nearest guy was the one with the extinguisher, the one without the proper protective gear. Do these people not know the rules surrounding motorsport or do they just choose to ignore them? But all the drivers have passed their ARDS test.

What had changed after the relative gloom at Silverstone? I can only put it down to the simulator and plenty of iRacing. I had by then competed in over 200 real online races against other racing drivers around the world and had learnt some racecraft. My car control improved as I picked up a better understanding of a car’s balance; so now I feel ready to race, cleanly and safely, against other drivers. The great anomaly here, I suppose, is that I’ve arrived at this state through ‘virtual’ means rather than practical ones – such is the modern world.

PART 2 A closer look at how racing on a simulator can prepare you for racing for real

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bentley gt SPEED

GIVING IT

To promote the link between its new GT3 racer and its road machines, Bentley has launched the Continental GT Speed. Test it like you would any other car, they challenged, so despite the Contiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s substantial proportions, Mark Hales did just that Photographs by Jonathan Fleetwood

LARGE…

bentley gt SPEED

Conti (top) looks smaller than it really is. Push-button starter (above) a nice touch. Kick-plates proclaim new model’s name. W12 badge refrences the engine layout

t’s easy to think of Bentley as the comfort option, the badge a guarantee of luxury, exclusivity and opulence, not to mention a big, cheese-grater grille, soft suspension, huge fuel consumption, white leather and walnut interior, strange chrome-plated switchgear and ornate clocks… You see how once I’d started, the stereotypes came rolling from the keyboard. But, as our own Ray Collier has outlined elsewhere, it wasn’t always like that, and it’s now clear that the current owner of the company – the Volkswagen Group – doesn’t want it like that either. Or not completely, anyway. Bentley was famously victorious five times at the Le Mans 24 hours in the 1920s with the tall, big-engined, long bonnet models which most people see as a ‘vintage Bentley’, and 70-odd years later there was a badgeengineering option using Audi technology that netted another victory – which is no mean feat whatever the logo. It didn’t look like a Bentley though, even if it was green. Mind you, the Audis, Peugeots and Toyotas of today do not remotely resemble their company’s volume models either, but Bentley is planning a return to motorsport using production-based machinery and will compete in GTs with a version of the latest Continental,

engineered for the job by rally specialist M-Sport. The racer will use Bentley’s 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 driving the rear wheels through a six- speed X-trac gearbox, whereas the sportiest road model is equipped with a 6.0-litre turbocharged ‘W12’ engine and an eightspeed ZF gearbox with drive to all four wheels, badged as a GT Speed. The racer, we gather, is a touch behind schedule, although Bentley remains confident it will appear, but the conversations with management were nothing if not proof of the company’s latest direction. The GT Speed could be used on a track they insisted, it would stand the stress because Bentley’s test drivers do the same on a regular basis. And please would we do whatever we would with any other test car. The clue, of course, being in our magazine’s title. The first proper track test of a Bentley Continental GT Speed therefore, is in the pages of TrackDriver. A Bentley GT Speed was duly delivered to my house in Lincolnshire, allowing for some road driving ahead of the circuit work. First impressions were slightly mixed. There was no doubt about the car’s presence, which is almost embarrassing. It’s been a while since people emerged from the pub and asked to sit in my car,

bentley gt SPEED

which was just fine in rural Lincolnshire, possibly less so in downtown Glasgow… You could see why though. The 21-inch wheels make the car look smaller than it really is, at the same time giving the impression of Pixar Cars levels of animated energy, pent up and ready to shag the tarmac. A GT Speed is very purposeful indeed, yet also very stylish and elegant and even those who disapproved of the levels of excess – in whatever units – had to agree it looked good. That though, is not the ingredient which interests us so much, and on the roads to and from the pub, I had found the steering’s feel slightly confusing. It felt lower geared than I was expecting and I seemed to be moving the wheel a long way in search of response despite obvious levels of assistance, almost as if there was a lag behind my input. Added to that, there was a curious sense that the front was tracking wider than the rear. Not understeer as such – I wasn’t going anything like fast enough for that – just that the nose didn’t end up where I thought I’d aimed it. Added to that, the seats, which look quite sporting, didn’t offer any lateral support and I felt perched on an oversized chair with an over-inflated

“ The GT Speed could be used on a track, they insisted: Bentley test drivers do it on a regular basis. And please would we do whatever we would with any other test car” squab. Maybe they were designed for heavier people. None of it was helped by Lincolnshire’s narrow roads where the Bentley definitely feels the size it is, and where it has a tendency to follow ridges and cambers in the road. I was ever fearful of trying to avoid a sideswipe by a grain lorry and clanging a 21-incher on a sharp kerb. As I’d made my normal walk round to check for such things, the delivery driver had mentioned how the celebs to whom these things are regularly loaned inevitably account for the ones on the nearside, so I would have been in exclusive company. It’s also the modern styling fashion to build a big body which slopes out and away from a small cabin and that makes it very difficult to judge the extremities of the car and the position of the wheels. An insider had meanwhile suggested that the odd sensation at the front might be tyre pressures. A look at the dashboard screen said the difference between touring and high speed was huge, between 35 and 55psi and that I was probably driving it

Speed’s gear-lever (far left) attached to an eight-speed auto which can also be controlled by paddles. Button (above, centre) disables traction control, but not 4wd…

bentley gt SPEED

faster than Touring. I didn’t think so for all the reasons already mentioned, but we’d see. There was no such ambivalence towards the rest of the mechanicals. The engine – which isn’t a ‘W’ in the sense of a traditional broad arrow – like a Napier Lion which has three distinctly separate rows of cylinders – but is more like a pair of very narrow vee-sixes close together in a slightly larger 15 degree vee, with just the two heads and two pairs of camshafts. It’s an extraordinary piece of engineering at which you can’t help but marvel, not least how they get the exhaust out of the inner banks without overheating everything else. Combine that with turbocharging, the eight-speed transmission and the differential for the drive to the front wheels, and it’s a wonder how they found room for it all. Look under the bonnet and one reason for the double-vee engine becomes obvious; only half of it is visible in front of the screen, the rest buried between the glass and firewall. All of it is covered by plastic fairings in the modern fashion so you can’t marvel at the packaging, and the only way to carry out any work – ahem, in the unlikely event that any is needed, of course – must be to drop the whole lot out the bottom and crane it onto the bench. Rather like you do with an aircraft. Once you drive, the eight speeds in the ZF gearbox, that seemed like an extravagance on paper, begin to make sense. There are four separate sets of planetary gears controlled by clutches and the makers say it was for economy as much as performance: the ’box can miss out ratios in between when the going is easy, but when it’s not, the same is true changing down when skipping gears becomes a performance aid. Even with modern management, the turbos take a moment to spin up, but the engine then meets a gear that perfectly matches

“ Wide open space had dispelled inhibitions about size, while at the same time the steering had grown sharper. The control of 2.45 tons of body and mechanicals was astonishing, too, so goodness knows what they spent on the dampers” peak torque and is absolutely right for maximum acceleration. Which is meteoric. Plus there are myriad ways to control the gears; paddles behind the wheel, the gear selector as a stick-shifter, Sport mode, Economy mode, Auto mode, all of which can be overridden by the paddles. The shift is very fast and going up is accompanied by a seductive plop from the exhausts, going down by an accurate blip of the throttle. Which brings me to confession time. I try not to look at what anybody else has written before the event, including the manufacturers, and at that point I hadn’t noted that the Continental is a car which drives via all four wheels… There’s no clue from the car’s dynamics – although once you know, it’s obvious that putting that amount of torque through even 275-width rubber would elicit some kind of reaction, of which, more in a moment. Then there’s the engine, which is hardly unobtrusive. Six hundred horsepower (625PS) and 590lb ft of torque is a lot, and although it is perfectly managed, as you’d expect, you wouldn’t expect it to be so vocal, or slightly tingly in the chassis. Maybe that’s deliberate, better to enhance the sporting aspirations. Time to visit the Bedford Autodrome. Normally, a nice car and an unfettered location is

bentley gt SPEED

the best reason to rise of a morning, but perhaps it’s a measure of the status Bentley has acquired over the years that I couldn’t help feeling that what we were about to do was just wrong… I didn’t feel that way in 1987 – as you can see from the Fast Lane cover shot pictured here – but back then the Bentley seemed faintly ridiculous, a meagre attempt to boost the engine but without a great deal else, a description you could never apply today. I decided to set off round a lap of the Autodrome’s GT circuit without adding another 20psi or whatever to the tyres, and just see what we had. And ignorance being bliss, early attempts to replicate the Fast Lane cover were met with much protest from the front left, which looked slightly stressed after three laps. Meanwhile the freedom of a wide open space had dispelled any inhibitions about size, while at the same time the steering had grown sharper. The control of 2.45 tons of body and mechanicals was astonishing too, so goodness knows what they spent on the dampers, but just as it had been in 1987, the front end was the limiting factor and any attempts to take more speed in, even using the simply huge ceramic brakes to pin down the nose, met with stubborn refusal. I tried the ‘high speed’ damper setting but the extra stiffness made the

problem worse through the slower stuff, and I couldn’t really detect any difference in the faster ones. The fact that I’m even discussing such niceties about a near 2.5ton car though is astonishing, because make no mistake, the Bentley is quick round the lap. You just have to pull back from that last 10% of effort and give the nose a chance to lead into the turn. I was also slightly concerned about the brakes which were hugely powerful, but I wasn’t sure how much I could push them. The pedal had gone slightly soft even after a couple of laps and I didn’t want to damage them and spoil the rest of the day. Reassuringly, though, the firmness returned after a short breather, so I reckon they would probably stand a day of sensible usage. A bit more snappery and it was already time to visit the fuel station because I was pleased to see the readout on the dash had relayed an average of 5.1mpg for the last few miles. It would also be an opportunity to pump up the tyres to 50psi plus, numbers I hadn’t seen since the Firestone production saloon days. That’s what the screen said we should do, so we did. I also made a call to the same insider, who relayed the complicated secret sequence required to turn off all the electronic safety stuff. The handbook offers a setting with ‘more liberal parameters’,

Inset: Hales’ last Bentley/track encounter for Fast Lane. New Speed is far more thoroughly engineered for track use, but won’t let you slide the tail

bentley gt SPEED

Nothing race carlike in Speed’s cabin (right), just lots and lots of luxury. Engine sits a long way back in the chassis and is a masterpiece of (invisible) packaging

but what use is that? We wanted EXCESS to go with the 5.1mpg, and hopefully poke it smokily sideways. Which I completely failed to do. The full, unregulated supergrunt shoved the front even wider in the tight corners and when I tried backing it into the turn, the engine hung on to the gear and kept driving for just long enough to frustrate my efforts to nose it over. Similarly, if I tried to drive it completely manually and use the drag of the transmission to unload the back tyres, there was the usual auto/track problem of calling for the gear as

you brake down into the turn, and the ’box sensing that you are asking when you are still going too fast. It refuses and you end up mid-turn and a gear too high, or in this case two gears. This is followed by a mighty kickdown as you exit. It kind of makes sense, but it’s just not what you called for. In the faster stuff, keeping your foot planted just stresses the front left so it’s better to have a lift which does rotate the car and is very satisfying. It’s curious, but even 275-section tyres just didn’t seem enough once

bentley gt SPEED

you got to the track, even at 50psi+. The limiting factor always seemed to be the amount of grip available, rather than the basic chassis balance. You couldn’t realistically make the tyres any bigger though. So, investigation of excess done, it was time to try to string a nice tidy lap together. Or in other words, drive the car properly… You do need to find out where the limits are, but then a bit of restraint is usually the best way to go faster, and so it proved. Accept that the weight will always create a problem when you want to change direction, and play to the car’s strengths: which are traction, transmission and power. Go deeper into the tight corners, be patient in the middle, get the steering straight and use the aforementioned combination of abilities to launch out. In the fast corners, have a deliberate lift and wait for it all to swerve and settle before planting the pedal. And don’t try to make the transmission do things that even eight speeds can’t accommodate. The Continental happily reeled off five laps at a proper pace without protest, and I had the sense it would do that all day, punctuated only by visits to the nearest fuel shop. Let’s get a couple of things straight. The GT Speed is an astonishing piece of engineering, and the fact you can take it to a track and do what I did, is equally so. It is almost impossible to provoke the car, which makes it very safe as well. However, if I put my track test driver’s hat on, it’s difficult to stop asking why. The engineers have done a simply superb job with what they had at their disposal; the trouble was, why would you start from there? A lot of that engineering effort – not to mention expense of lightweight materials for the body and mechanicals – has gone into coping with the weight and the power needed to make it perform.

A bit like the icon that is a Supermarine Spitfire; the fastest one was the first prototype, mainly because it was lighter and cleaner. As it became weighed down with munitions, it needed more power to carry the extra weight, which needed more fuel to feed, which added more weight and so on. So the best way to make the Bentley faster on track would be to make it lighter, which they can’t without losing some of the essential Bentleyness – not to mention the all-drive transmission which probably plays a large part in keeping it friendly. But is the first thing they are doing for the race version.

“ The Bentley people were right: you can use the car on the track, and if you are fortunate enough to own one, you should. Imperious is the word. I reckon Bentley should send GT Speed buyers to the track. It’ll make them feel more confident about their purchase” All that said, a GT Speed is a great deal more capable than many more likely track suspects. Almost any large road car is unwilling to change direction as you’d like on circuit, and if it did, it would be too lively for public consumption. The Bentley people were right: you can use the car on track, and if you are fortunate enough to own one, you should. Imperious is the word. On the drive home from the Autodrome, I liked the GT Speed a lot more than I had on the way there. I felt completely at home, and any inhibitions about its size and steering feel had gone. I reckon Bentley should send GT Speed buyers to the track. It’ll make them feel more confident about their purchase. One more thing. I managed just under 200 miles on a tankful of fuel, which is the same as the Mazda MX-5 I use for similar tasks. Same role – it’s the size of the tank that’s different…

bentley gt SPEED

BORN FOR THE TRACK

These days more often thought of as a luxury marque, Bentley has long had a strong relationship with the track, as Ray Collier reports

e all know the old adage that motorsport improves the breed. And there is plenty of well-documented evidence of racing technology filtering down to road cars. Not that the transference always makes for better everyday wheels – as the motoring press has so often pointed out, the quest for flawless performance on the track can sometimes translate into a road car that lacks a sense of soul and passion (sorry McLaren…). But you only need look towards the outstanding new Porsche 911 GT3 to realise that a closely intertwined race and road car engineering programme can reap considerable rewards in both areas. The road car/race car relationship can work in the opposite direction, too. Consider the Subaru Impreza Turbo. Cracking road car later embraced by the engineers at Prodrive and evolved into one of the world’s most spectacular and successful World Rally cars. Now there was a partnership hugely beneficial to both parties at the time: both Subaru and Prodrive remain top-flight companies, yet neither enjoys the same global profile as they did when winning rallies together. The acknowledged master of exploiting its motorsport heritage to the full is, of course, Ferrari. Its F1 missiles have precious little in common with its road cars, and yet the general public perception is that, say, the 458 Italia is infused with liberal quantities of what Ferrari brings out to play on a Sunday afternoon for Alonso and Massa. Marketing genius. So what should we make of Bentley, purveyor of stylish and luxurious transportation to the well-heeled, launching its fastest ever production car, the Continental GT Speed, and which has been developed in tandem with a GT3 race car: if you’ve ever seen the size of a Continental GT up close, you might question the wisdom of the project. On the other hand, a quick look at Bentley’s 54

history reveals that the company actually has a rich heritage of motorsport. Bentley Motors Limited was registered in 1919 by W.O Bentley, and by the time the first cars reached customers in 1921 they were already achieving success in hill climbs, racing at Brooklands and even averaging 80mph at the Indianapolis raceway. W.O. was an innovative engineer; as early as 1913 he had used aluminium in the design of Bentley radial aero engines, as put to fine use in the Sopwith Camel fighter plane, an example of which shot down Baron von Richthofen, ‘The Red Baron’. W.O. and his team quickly realised that motorsport was not only a gratifying pursuit, success in it could also improve sales. Early 3.0-litre Bentleys won the Le Mans 24-hours in 1924 and 1927; a supercharged 4.5-litre car followed suit in 1928, while Speed Six models won in 1929 and 1930. With that record, no wonder later Bentley road cars went by names such as Arnage and Mulsanne, not to forget Brooklands. And yet Bentley didn’t officially return to the track again until 2003, under the guidance of Brian Gush, then Director of Chassis, Powertrain and Motorsport. Essentially using Audi underpinnings in cars prepared by Joest Racing, Bentley fielded the Speed 8 at that year’s Le Mans. For jingoistic British fans it didn’t really matter what was underneath the evocative green paintwork of the Speed 8s; the fact that Bentleybadged race cars came home first and second was reason enough for patriotic fervour. Point proven – and doubtless budget well and truly spent – Bentley didn’t return in 2004 to defend its achievement. Instead the company focused its resources on the development of the exciting new Continental GT road car, which re-established Bentley as a major player in the prestige car market. The big GT has been evolving ever since, the new top tier model in the line-up resurrecting

the old ‘Speed’ moniker, and with some justification. Flat-out the Continental GT Speed will hit 205mph, thanks in no small measure to the 616bhp and 590lb ft of torque generated by its twin-turbo ‘W12’ engine. In order to properly harness those brawny outputs, the Speed deploys an eight-speed automatic gearbox with paddle-shift, driving through all four wheels set up with a 40:60 front:rear split: courtesy of their ministrations, the substantial two-door does the dash from zero to 60mph in 4.0sec, and standstill to 100mph in an impressive 9.0sec. With uprated power comes an improved aero package – compared with the regular Continental GT the Speed features a 7.5% reduction in drag and an 8% increase in downforce: thanks to an active rear spoiler the Speed enjoys 125kg of downforce when flat-out. Talking of which, the car’s 275/35 ZR21 tyres have been tested to 218mph… Performance of that calibre of course requires some serious brakes, which for the Speed are carbon-ceramic discs all-round (saving 20kg over the standard discs), those at the front vented, cross-drilled and 420mm in diameter, gripped by eight-pot callipers. And to ensure that the handling lives up to the promise of the rest of the Speed’s specification, the torsional stiffness of the wheels is increased by 79% compared with the Conti’s standard alloys, and they’re 15% lighter. Along with that technical highlight, a 10mm drop in ride height, stiffer springs and anti-roll bars, and a 15% increase in the front camber angle join forces to help reduce understeer. Brian Gush, the man who headed the victorious Bentley Le Mans team in 2003, is now the company’s Director of Motorsport and therefore head of the Continental GT3 project. He knows how to make great race cars. But will his efforts also spawn a great road car? As you’ll discover in the rest of this feature, Mark Hales has the answer…

bentley gt SPEED

masterclass with Mark Hales

‘Ever wondered how the good guys know exactly where the car needs to be? Find a way to plan your lap and manage your car and its tyres.’ A one to one with Evo and Octane contributor and hugely experienced racer Mark Hales, at the circuit of your choice. Discover why as well as how and you’ll never need cones again...

A more thoughtful way to develop your track driving skills

“Having spent several track sessions with different instructors, Mark really was a breath of fresh air. It is all too easy to sit in a car with an instructor and follow the instructions that are given, accelerate here, brake there, turn in now etc. Essentially you end up getting around because you have followed the verbal instructions provided, with little of one’s own application. Mark’s method was so very different and one that clearly produced results”.

Visit www.markhales.com or call Mark direct on 07860 757878

porsche 911 turbo

SOUL SURVIVOR?

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Bigger than before and with electric power steering and not even the option of a manual gearbox, has the new model destroyed the character of the 911 GT3? Very good questionâ&#x20AC;Ś Words & photos: Brett Fraser

porsche 911 gt3

hat a noise. What an awesome, bewitching, emotive outpouring of vocal mechanical ferocity. There’s an underscore of flat-six in the mix, but it’s the banshee shrieking that dominates the soundtrack, makes your skin prickle and your nerve endings ramrod to attention. And much of this comes after the new GT3’s tacho needle has shot well past 7500rpm… In fact, there’s lots more to go, because the GT3 doesn’t thump into the limiter until 9000rpm, at which stage it’s raging like a fully-formed race car and not just a road car with a strong track bias to its development and dynamic make-up. The 3.8-litre motor revs so frenetically that although it doesn’t develop its 468bhp peak until 8250rpm, you almost always seem to be in the zone, accelerating like you’re being chased by bloodthirsty disciples of Beelzebub. The most modest straight is suddenly a 120mph chunk of tarmac, particularly

as it’s impossible to resist the lure of trying to punt the needle around to 9000rpm at every opportunity, just to hear the GT3 scream. This car is monstrously quick and on the road you need to be wary of just how far beyond the legal speed limit you’re likely to be travelling without realising the fact. As with earlier iterations of the GT3, the new one’s engine has a dry sump, and for the first time also an oil separator to reduce the amount of ‘splashing losses’ in the crankcase. At the top end of the engine are completely different cylinder heads to those of the standard Carrera models, including larger intake and exhaust ports, bigger valves and improved lubrication and cooling. Rocker arms with hydraulic valve clearance compensation handle the valve actuation and in part allow for the very high engine speed, as do titanium con-rods and lightweight forged pistons. Like all previous GT3s, the new (991-series) car stands

Tail-out attitude can be provoked on the road by turning off all the driver aids and flooring the throttle, but in regular driving you’re unlikely to shake loose the grip of the GT3’s fat rear rubber

porsche 911 turbo

Fixed rear wing (above) has long been a trademark feature of GT3. It’s part of a serious aero package that includes large chin spoiler (centre) and diffuser under the rear

a distance apart from the rest of the 911 model range, not so much a loner as a family member with a very keenly focussed outlook on life. In the back of your mind it represents what you hope all 911s should be like, pure sports cars, even though from day one they never really have been. GT3s, though, have always been extra special and the new one continues the family tradition. Those of you who keep up to date with all things Porsche might question whether the 991 version is actually up to scratch: in common with all other 991s it’s saddled with electric power steering, and Porsche has chosen to make it available only with the dual-clutch PDK twopedal paddle-shift transmission, matters that have vexed aficionados of the marque. Frankly, though, you need only find yourself an empty chunk of blacktop – track or road – with a dozen or so corners, and any doubts over the efficacy of the technology or potential harm to the character or performance of the car, are promptly dispelled. Porsche has recalibrated the steering compared with the regular 911 Carrera, and done a bloody good job of it, too. The Alcantara-trimmed steering wheel feels meaty

blips and exhaust popping and farting. What’s interesting in the GT3 is that controlling the ’box for yourself offers much better fine control than leaving the PDK to fully handle the shifts – in the regular Carrera you’re sometimes left wondering if the electronics are doing a better job than you’d do on your own, but with the GT3 the ‘auto’ setting sometimes lags behind the speed of the car when you’re zapping through a series of tight corners. It’s almost as though the engineers who programed the system are subliminally encouraging you to get off your lazy arse and do things for yourself. Does this not, then, make you wonder if a manual might have been more sensible? Not really. The intensity with which the GT3’s engine revs, even to that 9000rpm red-line, and the demonic pace with which speed builds, means that you’d be hard pressed to find the time to take a hand off the steering wheel and drop it down to the gear lever, then get the ratio swapped and the pedals pressed and released, anything like as swiftly as the PDK manages. And on track you’ll appreciate the benefits even more acutely than you will on the open road. And what of the 991’s increased size over the previous

“ The intensity with which the engine revs, and the demonic pace with which speed builds, means you’d be hard pressed to find the time to take a hand off the steering wheel, get the ratio swapped and the pedals pressed and released, anything like as quick as the PDK” in your palms and wherever you point it, the GT3’s nose faithfully and precisely follows it. Missing the ultimate feedback through the rim that you used to get, say, with the 996-series GT3? Probably. But the reality is that the GT3 gets you to, and through, corners at such heroically high speeds that steering accuracy is all you have time to be thinking about. As for the PDK, well, what racer doesn’t crave paddle-shift these days? (Except for Hales and the other Historics Heroes…) Especially when it works with the excellence of the setup in the GT3. Porsche has made major mods for its use in its ultimate trackday special; the transmission no longer ‘creeps’ when in gear at idle and in manual mode it doesn’t automatically shift up if you hit the limiter; and if you use the gear lever instead of the paddles, pushing it forwards now changes down, which is far more intuitive when you’re hard on the anchors on the approach to a corner. (It also features shorter ratios than in the regular Carrera models.) As ever the upshifts bang through with ruthless efficiency, while the downshifts feature heel and toe-esque throttle-

generation 997? In theory it should dull the GT3’s edge. And yet… Porsche’s engineers have adorned the GT3’s chassis with a plethora of electronic aids that enable it to both dance through the twisties and maintain high-speed stability in a straight line or in three-figure lane change manoeuvres. Active rear wheel steering is a key element in making this comparatively long wheelbase car handle as though it has a short wheelbase. A pair of electromechanical actuators take the place of conventional control arms on either side of the rear axle, and at speeds below 31mph steer the back wheels in the opposite direction to the fronts, greatly improving agility through tight corners (as well as making the car easier to park) – this also has the effect of making the steering feel quicker. At speeds above 50mph the rear wheels steer in the same direction as the fronts, aiding stability. Adding to the actions of the rear-wheel steering is what Porsche calls ‘Porsche Torque Vectoring Plus’ (PTV Plus), and which operates as an electronically-controlled and fully variable locking rear differential. It works in tandem with the ABS, the brakes slowing down the

porsche 911 gt3

inside rear wheel slightly when you start to turn at low to medium speeds, which sharpens up the bite of the GT3’s turn-in: it also works as traction control when the road surface is iffy. Complementary to all this is Porsche Stability Management (PSM), your on-road electronic safety net, which for the GT3 is tuned to be more playful than it is in the Carrera models. For track work the PSM can be either switched off altogether, or you can just get rid of the stability control element so that you can throw the tail around, while retaining the ‘save me from a major moment’ function. Porsche’s German-based launch of the GT3 didn’t include any track miles, so we can’t tell you how well these systems operate on the circuit. On the road, though, you’re largely unaware of electronic intrusion, so well integrated are the various systems, although there is such a lot of mechanical grip – thanks both to gargantuan tyres (245/35 ZR20 on the front, 305/30 ZR20 on the back), and a broadening of the track front and rear – that perhaps we never actually got around to putting any undue stress on the chassis. We were, however, going pretty much as quickly as anyone needs

GT3’s buckets (below) are wonderfully supportive, and although they look to have fixed backs are, in fact, adjustable. An optional Club Sport package provides a half-cage in the rear, ideal for trackdays

to go on the public road; shame the route didn’t include any mountain passes, as the GT3 would be sensational entertainment in such an environment. Boosting your confidence on road and track alike are the GT3’s brakes, which even as standard are 380mm cross-drilled and ventilated items at each corner; they’re composite discs with cast-iron friction rings and aluminium bells, motorsport inspired and lighter than standard discs. Chances are, though, most potential owners will tick the box for the optional Porsche Ceramic Composite Brake (PCCB) discs, which on the front are 410mm and on the rear 390mm. These were the brakes fitted to the test cars, and while they’re a little dull underfoot at low speed, they’re mightily effective at high speeds; a couple of hard stops from 150mph on the autobahn didn’t faze them in the slightest and left us with red marks on our shoulders from where the belts dug in… Can’t see you having any problems using them all day long on a trackday. The GT3 looks the business, too. It sits lower than other models and rolls on 20in centre-lock rims. Its nose is extensively vented and sticks out a little further in the middle, while a fixed yet adjustable bi-plane wing looks after aero duties at the rear. Inside it’s a bit of a curious mix: chunky sports seats, Alcantara trimmed steering wheel, and the option of a half-cage, but also electric everything, climate control and satnav. It seems that just like with the original Lotus Elise, everyone loves the idea of a stripped out sports car, but when it comes to actually buying one, then everyone wants life’s little luxuries. What this means, though, is that unlike some other tracky type cars, there’s no excuse for not using your GT3 every day. Especially as the Porsche Active Suspension Management’s fancy dampers give surprisingly good ride quality on the road, while offering a suitably rock solid setup when you take to the circuit. Base price of a new GT3 is £100,540, which is a lot of money but a comparative bargain compared with the similarly intentioned Ferrari 458 Speciale that is likely to cost twice that amount. And having driven the GT3 on the road, we can’t wait to get one out onto a UK circuit.

Specification maKe Porsche mODeL 911 (991-series) GT3 Year 2103 eNGINe 3799cc flat-six, VarioCam valve timing, quad-cam maX POWer 468bhp @ 8250rpm maX torque 325lb ft @ 6250rpm FUeLLING Direct petrol injection TRANSMISSION Seven-speed PDK, rear-wheel drive, electronic locking diff TOP SPEED 196mph (claimed) 3.5sec (claimed) 0-62MPH KERB WEIGHT 1430kg BRAKES F: Six-piston aluminium callipers, 380mm drilled and vented discs. R: four-piston callipers, 380mm drilled and vented discs. ABS and PSM TYRES Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 F: 245/35 ZR20. R: 305/30 ZR20 PRICE From £100,540

porsche 911 turbo

THE TURBO FACTOR

The new GT3 is the obvious choice for track work, and yet the new 911 Turbo is surprisingly accomplished there, too: Brett Fraser gets a taste Photos: Brett Fraser

few weeks after driving the GT3 on the road, we got to drive the new 911 Turbo. On the track. The new Bilster Berg private circuit in Germany. The Turbo also wowed. How could it not with – in Turbo S spec – 552bhp and the potential to rocket from standstill to 124mph in just 10.3sec. It’s an utterly breathtaking performer and will ensure the iconic status of the 911 Turbo lasts for many more years to come. Clearly having a pair of variable-vane turbochargers strapped to its 3.8-litre flat-six set it apart from the GT3, as does its permanent four-wheel drive system. Yet it does share some of the track-goer’s tech. The Turbo is also PDK-only. And it features active rear-wheel steering, the fancy electronic diff, the numerous stability and traction control

systems, and the option of those colossal carbon-ceramic brake discs. What’s more, it features active aero devices, on the front as well as the rear, which is a first for a production-spec road car. You may not necessarily associate the 911 Turbo with agility, but it fair danced around Bilster Berg. Comparatively speaking, it moved around a lot on its suspension, gave you a sense of how hard it was working, which in turn made you feel more involved with the driving process than you’d expect of a four-wheel drive supercar. The 911 Turbo has such incredible mid-range punch that even at the end of the circuit’s shorter straights you’d be leaning very heavily on the ceramic discs; there was nary a hint of fade, even if the initial bite is a tad unconvincing.

However, it was hard to assimilate a fullyformed opinion of the Turbo’s track abilities at Bilster Berg. The circuit is extremely technical and has several blind brows, and we had only a handful of laps. Plus we were trying to drive ‘ducks and drakes’ with a 19-year old Spanish Porsche Carrera Cup pilot who didn’t quite understand the notion of taking it steady with a bunch of journalists who’d never been in the car before, much less driven the circuit… In the press pack, though, is a little hint of the Turbo’s potential. Apparently on road tyres it has lapped the Nürburgring in 7m 27sec, knocking that down to 7m 24sec on its optional trackday rubber. Those times are not only slightly quicker than the new GT3 achieves, they’re also better than what Walter Röhrl could manage in the Carrera GT.

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clio cup test

FRENCH

clio cup test

FANCY T

he Renault Cup for anything Clio-sized dates way, way back to the mid-’60s and the rear-engined Renault 8 Gordini. Ten points if you remember what one of those looked like. A decade beyond that, in 1974, the roly-poly Renault 5 Championship brought unique angles of entertainment to the racetracks of the UK and has evolved ever since, providing a race series for whichever of Renault’s small hatches is current. Yours truly competed in the first R5 Turbo championship in 1985, which proved a bit of a learning curve. The always generous prize money attracted legions of one-make front-drive experts who always seemed to populate these grids and soon made me realise how much I didn’t know about one make racing and, ahem, engineering to make your car competitive. It’s different now, of course, but so are the cars. Back then they were very lightly adapted road models: of late they have become semi-Touring Cars, built by RenaultSport and complete with sequential gearbox and so on. Always good value (Renault has apparently sold something like 50 of them for trackdays rather than racing), but the championship, too, is very different today. When I did it, almost anyone could have a go, whereas now the championship that supports the Touring Cars is for young professionals and single-seater refugees, average age, according to Renault, of 22. There is an impressive line of smartly liveried trucks from which the Clios emerge too, so this is definitely not an amateur arena. For next year’s TOCA championship, there is a brandnew turbo model based on the latest top-level sporty Clio, complete with paddle-shift, associated aero and electronics and all the stuff you need. This year there

Mark Hales rekindles his relationship with small Gallic hatchbacks, and discovers that the new Clio Cup has grown up into a very alluring and capable semi-Touring Car. And bargain priced, too Photos: Stuart Collins

has also been a National series for the first time – the Michelin Clio Cup – run by The British Automobile Racing Club and using Michelin slicks, obviously, which will continue to cater for the outgoing model in a slightly more amateur setting, more like it used to be. It has also included a new class within it, catering for almost standard road cars on road tyres and next year both will form a new, two class official championship. The people at Renault may feel that their own success has become a touch exclusive as well, because they make a point of saying how cheaply it’s possible to build a car for the new class. Take one lightly damaged write-off (if the airbags have gone off, a two-year old car is automatically a Category ‘D’’ write-off and you’re about to remove the dash anyway), which should cost around £4000; then add one RenaultSport conversion

clio cup test

frenchFANCY kit (derived from the European rally series production classes) at another £4K or thereabouts, and which includes seat, steering wheel, harness, Bilstein dampers, exhaust, clutch, brake pads and so on. Then mix in one Safety Devices roll-cage (cost £1000; the rally cage couldn’t be used because the Euro cars are left-hand drive). Braise gently throughout a few weekends in the garage and you have a modern race car with a Renault pedigree for no more than £12,000, in which you can contest a factory approved and supported series. The good news was that Renault had brought a couple of the road car racers (each built by UK specialist Monster Sport in Milton Keynes from a circa £4K write-off, but which looked like a three-year old car) plus one of the shiny new turbo Cup cars, to a baking hot Silverstone. The bad news was that we were on the school circuit which is an exercise of intestinal-shaped nadgeriness, more suited to karts than cars. That said, if a front-drive Renault performed round here, it would probably be mighty elsewhere. The car was ready and waiting, but there was an offer of a passenger ride with Renault single-seater racer Jack Dex. I’m always keen to study good work from the passenger seat but before that, I ask him what’s the best way to get the most out of the car. “Don’t go in too hard, square off the corner, keep it neat and tidy,” came the succinct reply. He duly kept the Clio arrow-straight until it almost seemed too late to make the tight left at the end of the main straight, then his feet blurred on the pedals, the front tyres chattered and chirruped in protest while his hand thrust the gearlever forward, then immediately back again. It’s not rough, but clearly the only important thing is that the gear is in the slot and the clutch is up. Jack then smoothly eased the wheel towards an apex way round the corner and gently brought in the power to sweep the car left as he banged in third gear, then

Keep it straight, square off the corner deep and late, and gently power out. I know from experience that the slightest rise in revs as you bring in the power signals a loss of traction that can cost you a place by the time you get to the next corner. But then, if you get in too deep, you tighten the middle part too much and lose a similar amount. Nobody said this was easy, but it would have been nice to have just a touch more bite at the front. All the time I felt I was trying to reduce speed to keep it neat rather than trying to add anything which would make it faster. The spec tyre is a Michelin Pilot Sport 3 (about £480 per set), so maybe something as simple as a slightly stickier option would do the trick. On the other hand, the brakes which had felt soft held up no matter what you threw at them; the car felt as if it would do it all day for a season. The racing will be close, that’s for sure. Next up, a go in the new Cup car which replaces the model that has been current since 2006. I drove that car at the same place when it was launched and, given that it was a while ago, I seem to remember that it was a bit like the current road car racer, only with more grip and more noise, a sequential gearbox and the like. Capable, but it certainly wasn’t a Touring Car. The new one looks much closer; it’s longer and wider than its predecessor and sports more obvious aerodynamic aids in the form of a front blade and rear diffuser, plus 320mm front discs inside 17-inch wheels with Dunlop slicks for the TOCA supports (Euro cars run on Michelins), and multiadjustable Sachs dampers. It is powered by the latest Renault 1.6-litre turbo four-cylinder which pushes out 220bhp, and drives through a six-speed sequential Sadev gearbox controlled by steering-wheel paddles (there is the option of a stick, but UK cars won’t have that). There is a clever limited-slip differential in there as well, of which more in a moment. Before that, there was another chance to see youth in

“ My driver meanwhile, appeared to have gone into slow-mo. He added no corrective lock, but instead gave the Clio a large bootful of power. There was a moment’s hesitation while the turbo spun up, but the swing stopped at exactly the right point” Yellow car one of the forthcoming turbo Clio Cups; getting the best from it requires restraint with the steering and deftness of the throttle pedal

combined the last dreg of lateral momentum with a sharp jerk of the wheel to the right, just as he banged it back down to second. The weight transfer helped swing the car right for the right/left sequence that followed, after which he was able to keep the wheel straight ready to brake deep into the long, ever-tightening colon which leads back past the pits. “Mustn’t hold on the lock here,” came a voice from the helmet, “just unwind it progressively as you bring in the power and it won’t break traction so easily…” It was all great to watch, and he did exactly the same thing in the same place every lap. Back in the pits, I asked how his season was going. “Oh, I don’t race anymore,” he replied. Ah, lack of dosh no doubt, I suggested. “No… I just don’t.” If some of my students were even in the position to display such indifference to their potential, it would give me much more to work with, but maybe that’s youth for you. At first I found it difficult to deploy a similar level of restraint, combined with sufficient commitment on the brakes. These are still well servo-assisted and the pedal quite soft and it was so very easy to get into the corner a smidge too fast, whereupon the front simply won’t respond. I tried backing it into the turns, but that didn’t work either, so it was exactly as young Jack had said.

clio cup test

action, this time courtesy of former Clio Cup champion, Philip Glew. I strapped into the right-hand side (all the cars are built in the Alpine factory in Dieppe and drive from the left) and off we went. Philip had already explained that the brakes need to be warm to work, and that first gear is very tall and spiking up the turbo while slipping the clutch doesn’t do the latter any good. You get the car rolling on minimal power, then you won’t need the clutch thereafter. Like Dex, Glew is very precise with his inputs and he also gets the car to do the work. The Clio Cup didn’t feel massively faster in a straight line but the big difference was that Philip headed straight from the braking point to the apex in a shallow arc, while pulling the paddle for the last couple of ratios. He’d already explained that unless you do that, you risk catching out the system, I assume by calling for the gear

when you are still going too fast and the electronics refuse the request. There was also a new set of slick tyres which he promised to look after for me… We arrived at the right/left sequence which had called for energetic rotation in the road car and Glew aimed early while off the gas. The Clio promptly swung round its nose and in an instant, we were pointing extreme stage right… Chuckle, chuckle, that’ll teach him, think I. We’re going round because there’s no way he’s gonna get that back. And so much for looking after my tyres… My driver meanwhile, appeared to have gone into slow-mo. He added no corrective lock, but instead gave the Clio a large bootful of power. There was a moment’s hesitation while the turbo spun up, but the swing stopped at exactly the right point. We were still about to head off the track to the right,

Black car (below) one of the current racers, and built up from a £4K ‘write-off’. It requires a very particular driving style to get the most from it

clio cup test

frenchFANCY large, but on the second lap I simply didn’t stand on the pedal hard enough for the left-hander at the end of the back straight. And I caught the accelerator with the edge of my foot, which made matters worse. Fortunately I remembered to keep pulling at the left paddle and I nearly ran off the edge of the track, but not quite. Most of the regulars brake with their left foot which would be a lot easier than trying to move a size 12 across and guarantee to get the pedal, and tread it hard enough. It’s something I should practice, but not today. Not the first time I’ve had to do this piece of programming… The trick was to realise that the important thing was treading the pedal hard enough, and close enough to the corner, but not the speed I moved my foot across. Simple, really. Meanwhile, the rest also needed some personal realignment. It was indeed possible to head for an early apex, braking all the way, pulling the paddle to shift down, then release the brakes and the car would rotate immediately. Then you get on the power, but instead of pushing the front wide as you might expect, the power tugs the car into the apex and pulls it round the corner. It’s spooky at first the way it does that, but a little practice allowed me to add just a touch more speed at the turn-in point, relying on the way the car would swivel, believing I could arrest it with the accelerator. It was just as Philip described; when the car is gently hopping, as in lifting then dropping the inside rear wheel through a tight corner, that’s about right.

“ Then you get on the power, but instead of pushing the front wide as you might expect, the power tugs the car into the apex and pulls it around the corner. It’s spooky at first, the way it does that, but a little practice allowed me to add a touch more speed”

Both types of Clio Cup offer the driver speed and entertainment, if he’s prepared to commit to learning their foibles, but the new model (above) has the essence of a mini-Touring Car in its driving experience and equipment – plus it’s a bargain

though, but Philip calmly steered left as he released the power again. The Clio swung to the left, and this time he does correct, but only a small shuffle of the hands, at the same time bringing back the power. The Renault sort of froze again, then headed straight towards the next corner. It was a very impressive display of restraint, timing and use of the power and differential rather than flailing at the steering, and he seemed to create time during the process. Lovely to watch. My go. Seated low with a simple need-to-know dash in front, get the car rolling and the clutch home and head out. First impressions are that the steering is amply assisted and very light, unlike the brakes which are like standing on a plank. My legs and feet are nothing if not

Glew attributes more of that to the dampers than anything else, but the diff must surely play a part, and so must the power assist for the steering. Turn that off and utilising the diff’s locking function effectively would be a different story. It is a hugely satisfying combination, though, and rather than trying to minimise the understeer as I did in the road-class car, it was more a case of trying to find some. I guess the point would come where the speed of the rotation as you come off the brakes would be too much for the power to catch, but it was interesting that it happened this way rather than the front end first ploughing on, as you might imagine. Hugely enjoyable, too. Every time you think “I can just get that a bit better,” rather than the more normal “WTF does it keep doing that?” The next time someone rolls up in Anglesey and mentions they would like something exciting for trackdays but can’t afford it, here’s a suggestion: sell the GT3 in which they arrived and buy a secondhand Audi A6 diesel estate and a good trailer with some stowage space for wheels and tools, ready for your forthcoming season. In the meantime, use them to fetch your new Clio from Dieppe and have a nice lunch in the town. Get home and see you have a lot of factory-built race car for just €39,900. You might even have saved the VAT because you bought the car outside the UK. Just don’t say I said so… www.renaultsport.co.uk www.monster-sport-europe.com

clio cup test

• 1200bhp state-of-the-art rolling road • 900bhp at constant speed for engine mapping • Single roller design for optimal traction and accuracy • Sophisticated software for instant readout of all parameters • Data supplied on disc for later replay For the best on-track performance from your car come to Northampton Motorsport — our rolling road tuning will get the most from your engine, while our sophisticated corner weighting and suspension set-up technology will help get that power to the track. For trackday cars, classic racers or formula cars.

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www.northamptonmotorsport.com

OLD DOG, NEW TRICKS… Even after two decades of rolling road experience, Dave Walker is still learning, particularly as he has a new machine and a new method of measuring peak power

have been operating the rolling road for nearly 20 years now but the Superflow engine dyno is a very new toy to me. I have only done a handful of engines to date but I must say I feel a bit spoilt, sitting in the control room, with no ear defenders, no fumes and no road noise. Luxury would be one word for it. The argument is that as long as you use the same kit for measuring the power, it is either better or worse

and that’s all you need to know. To some extent that’s right, but what you should be able to do is compare engines from different dynos and get a realistic comparison. If I buy a 12-inch ruler I don’t argue that it doesn’t matter if it is 13 inches long as it is the only one I am using. Since you have pretty much unlimited cooling capacity, you can really study what the engine is doing across the rev range and with

my drive-by-wire throttle, I can dial in any load I like and it sits there rock solid. Having time to play with the engine shows up an interesting phenomenon. I can set the engine to accelerate at different rates or hold the rpm in steady state and watch the power reading. What I soon discovered is that if you accelerate the engine quickly you get less power than if you accelerate slowly. Hold it on steady state and you get

walker’s wisdom

the highest reading of all. I know that on the rolling road a power run generally takes about 20 seconds, so I set the dyno to 200rpm/second to try to duplicate that. The difference in observed power is down to something called ‘slew rate’. I am indebted to my good mate Paul Cronin for the info on slew rates and how the motor industry tests its engines. If the engine is accelerating, some of the engine power goes into driving the flywheel, crankshaft, dyno shaft, etc. This reduces the power available at the load cell on

years back and we ran the car up to make a comparison. It was close and with a jet change it actually ended up making 3bhp more than previously, with slightly better mid-range torque. This was all done on full throttle, but I wasn’t happy with the way the car picked up from part-throttle. Everyone get obsessed with peak power figures (see my earlier thoughts), but the way the car drives is equally important, or at least I think so. The mixture was too rich on part-throttle, but Colin

MGA Twin Cam on the rollers (main picture), has engine modified with belt drive to the cams. By reducing the fuelling on partthrottle, Dave gave it cleaner pick-up out of corners, with good results for the owner

“ Everyone gets obsessed with peak power figures, but the way the car drives is equally important, or at least I think so” the dyno. Once the engine stops accelerating the power goes up because the losses from accelerating the engine are no longer there. In the motor industry the norm is to hold the load until everything has stabilised and then record the power. This is a step test, in fact, with about 30 seconds between steps. However, on the track you are never (or almost never) operating in steady state mode, so I’m sticking with my 200rpm/second measurement on the rollers as being representative of what you might see on the circuit. What this information does do is make the pub arguments about power outputs even more amusing, because the way you measure the power alters the results. I think the ultimate question is, and always has been, “does it go okay?”

MGA Twin Cam

The MGA Twin Cam isn’t something I see every day. In fact, I have only seen this car a couple of times before and it runs in an Historic series which in turn means running on Weber carbs and distributor ignition rather than management. What isn’t original is the belt drive to the cams, which the owner, Colin Jones, engineered and this allows you to tweak the cam timing on the rolling road. I normally only do mapping on our rollers these days, but because I have done this car before, I do run it up for Colin from time to time. Chatting before starting work, Colin was saying that he isn’t as quick as he used to be: the cylinder head had been changed but the power seemed okay, so maybe it was just old age taking the edge off his driving. I found the power curve from a few

only had a few jets that we could play with. The best compromise was a little bit too weak but I managed to dial it in with a cheat. I richened up the idle screws to cover the progression mixture. Okay, it idles a touch too rich, but so what? The bit that really matters is the track driving, not the paddock manners, although it is nice to have both. With a bit less fuel on part-throttle I felt the engine picked up much cleaner and while I can’t quantify it with a figure, it felt more responsive to me. I was curious as to what Colin would make of it on the track. His next meeting was a big one at Silverstone and I asked Colin if he could email me to let me know how he got on. Here’s what he sent: Hi Dave, As agreed, I said I would let you know how we did at Silverstone on Saturday following the day on your rollers. The car was so much quicker out of corners which increased the speed down the straights. Finding that power and torque in the mid-range has transformed the performance. The results were: for the Thoroughbred Sportscar Championship first in class, road modified cars up to 2000cc; class lap record on the Grand Prix circuit; and voted Driver of the Race. What can I say – never thought I would achieve such results again. Thanks Dave. Regards, Colin Obviously I was chuffed to get the email but you can’t take away from Colin’s driving ability. I think having the engine back on song probably gave him the mental edge to scratch that bit harder. A good result for both of us.

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BMW M3 (E36) RACE CAR

Photos: Jonathan Fleetwood. Portrait: Owen Brown

John Mawdsley decided to go race his M3 in the 360 Motor Club’s six-hour event at Donington Park and invited along Mark Hales as his co-driver. What could possibly go wrong? Funny you should ask…

hree hundred and sixty is what I call a ‘good’ number. It has a simple symmetry: it is a well-balanced number with an indelible association to the geometry of a circle, clocks and time. For those who can remember ‘old’ money, numbers that are easily divisible by 12 also feel somehow reassuring, whereas the decimal seems cold, dull and without challenge. Three hundred and sixty is the number of analogue degrees in an hour and, of course, the number of minutes in six hours. Three hundred and sixty minutes (or thereabouts), happens to be the time it takes for light to travel four billion miles and sound to travel 4000 miles. And hopefully it is the amount of time it will take an E36 M3 to circulate Donington Park around 240 times. I met up with Claire Smith the matriarch of the 360 Motor Racing Club at Race Retro at Stoneleigh in February. It was her enthusiasm, combined with change of venue from Snetterton to Donington Park, which convinced me, in the absence of the Britcar 24 from the calendar for 2013, that this, the fourth running of the 360, was one event I had to do this season. As mentioned, the choice of car was to be my trusty E36 M3, but there remained

a question over who was to share the drive with me. I had a number of ex-Britcar and Barca 24-hour teammates willing to step in to share the driving, however, as the year progressed clashing events got in the way. Just on the off-chance, I asked TrackDriver editor Mark Hales if he would consider pedalling alongside me. And no, I wasn’t going to pay him… All credit to the boss: without even thinking, he graciously and immediately said yes! Now some may think that sharing a car with such a doyen of the motorsport fraternity brings a sense of wellbeing and relief. Let me assure you this is not the case. I now compare his agreeing to drive with a number of pressurised experiences I had whilst trying to crawl up the corporate ladder. Don’t get me wrong, MH isn’t the sort of chap who will pull rank or give you the sharp edge of his tongue for no good reason, yet I knew I now had a serious responsibility – to ensure I provided good organisation with teamwork to match, a car properly prepared and, most of all, making sure my driving skills didn’t let the side down. No pressure there then… It was clear the M3 would need a number of modifications from its CSCC Modern

Classics 40-minute race spec to cope with six hours. The highest priorities surrounded the fuel, brakes, differential and tyres. Since the start of the season we’ve had a recurring problem with fuel surge from a quarter full. We had only partially solved the problem at Brands by fitting an additional fuel pump and it would stand up to the rigours of the 360. The solution was in a swirl-pot arrangement where the existing fuel pumps act as lifters to the swirl-pot, the engine being fed by a further pump. Overall fuel consumption was also a concern if we were to keep the number fuel stops to a minimum. The standard 70-litre tank would mean at least five stops: as each stop was likely to cost upwards of five minutes or three laps, we bit the bullet and installed an additional 60-litre tank in the boot which gravity fed the main tank. This addition could, we thought, reduce the fuel stops by at least one, and there was a possibility we could get by with just three stops in total. This would be touch and go as there was a maximum driver stint of 90 minutes but it could save us nearly 10 minutes overall. As they say, the best laid plans of mice and men… As for tyres, our two CSCC races to date showed that the Toyo R888s were standing

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BMW M3 (E36) RACE CAR

“All out of shape” doesn’t necessarily mean your handling! Mawdsley’s M3 got smacked when Hales spun and got hit by another car under a yellow flag, but despite its wonky nose, it still qualified 11th

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“Meanwhile, under waved yellows, a nameless yet clearly half asleep numpty decided to take Coppice too quickly, understeering his Starion into the previously pristine BMW! Fortunately the damage was limited to bodywork” up really well to the long stints, so we plumped for sticking with what we knew. The Toyos are predictable, hard-wearing and well-priced, and although we hadn’t tried them in the wet, I was confident that my experience of them from the Production GTI championship meant that we shouldn’t have any concerns. Endurance, of course, does mean that we will need at least one change of tyres and therefore wheels too, and in the absence of a spare set I called BMTR, which supplied a new set of staggered Team Dynamics PR1s at a very competitive price. I’m told the E36 Achilles Heel is the differential, so we went for a diff cooler in which a small pump and thermostat arrangement run the lubricant through a tiny cooler fitted just behind the diff and protected by an aluminium plate. To ensure the final pieces of the jigsaw were working properly we tested at Brands

without problem. I was brought up to the challenge by enjoying a rear-wheel drive session at Donington with BookaTrack in one of its Caterhams, and for the price of the hire I also got some great tuition from resident instructor, Stuart Jones And so to race day and qualifying. Two 40-minute quali sessions may seem like great value track time, but why thrash the car for an extra 80 minutes when there’s 360 still to go? Strategically then, we were going to use first quali to set times for a respectable grid slot without going all-out. Mark, of course, hadn’t driven the car before, so I popped out for half a dozen installation laps to bed in some new pads and tyres. Mark was then to spend the rest of quali 1 getting to know the car. Unfortunately, even the best of us can get caught out by a new car… A harmless spin at Coppice found Mark beached and the marshals couldn’t get the car out so

called for a safety car. Meanwhile, under waved yellows, a nameless yet clearly half asleep numpty decided to take Coppice too quickly, understeering his Starion into the previously pristine BMW! Fortunately, after being returned to the garage we could see that the damage was limited to bodywork, and through good fortune alone the radiator and suspension were undamaged. However, virtually the whole nearside corner had been demolished. With typical fortitude, Team Saxon set to with sledgehammer and crowbars, and presented a mechanically sound, if not very pretty, E36 for the scrutineer to accept as worthy of competing. Scrute worries over, we had missed second qualifying, so had to be satisfied with our 11th position grid slot on the rolling start grid of 19 cars. First stint was my privilege and as the lights went out there was some scrapping for places into Redgate; the next

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BMW M3 (E36) RACE CAR

Patched up repairs to Mawdsley’s M3 keep it on the pace, while team members, (right), offer words of wisdom to the boss. Later Hales razzes the M3 around at great pace, only to run out of fuel!

few laps saw us picking off occasional places until we were up to 5th by lap six. Communication was a little difficult without radios, but I had already decided to run my own race at a pace I thought would mean the car would still be there in 360 minutes. Having said that, there was some close racing against the Intersport Mini and the Elise of Watson Wanderers. Then on lap 10 the rain came. And boy did it rain… Cars were falling off all over the place, resulting in a safety car period for a few laps. In these awful conditions it was just a question of keeping it on the black stuff. Easier said than done: it was very slippery and both standing water and visibility were huge problems. Yet I did manage to keep it going with only a single spin down the Craner Curves and an hour into the race we were up to 2nd overall behind the Intersport M3 GTR, albeit helped somewhat by others’ pit-stop strategies and a further interruption by the safety car. The first stint came to an end after an hour and 29 minutes – 60 litres of fuel were fed in by Harvey on churns, with Whizz on extinguisher. Tyres were inspected and the wear rate was good. So Mark was loaded in and off we went again. Because of the rain and safety cars, it looked very much like we could get this race done on three stops, so

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“What could possibly go wrong? Well, the fat lady had yet to commence her repertoire when the car went past the pits with a serious misfire – no, not now, please! What could it be?”

Mark was set for a stint of an hour and 29 minutes. Fortunately the track had by now dried out and although we had lost six places in the pit-stop, things were looking good. Mark put in a raft of consistently quick laps and over the next hour brought us back up to 3rd overall – huge fun watching Mark reel in the Intersport Cooper S. Stint three: another 60 litres of fuel and back out in 5th with work to do. After ten laps I was delighted we had decided to put on a new set of Toyo R888s when the rain came again. This downpour wasn’t as bad as the first for visibility, but the track felt more slippery. Close racing in the company of the Intersport Mini again culminated in a move through the Craners and into the Old Hairpin which stuck, and we pulled out a few seconds. Later, some great fun overtaking Rikki Cann’s Aston. It was really moving on the straights but struggled on damp corners, particularly Coppice where, after a few chances, I finally managed to get past, only to out-brake myself into the chicane, crossing the dreaded ‘sausage’ kerb sideways… No damage, just a red face. Stint four, the final stint – this was going to be a breeze. Mark put in some great laps on a completely dry circuit and with half an hour to go we were in a comfortable 4th overall, 10 laps ahead of the Can Aston and

on the same lap as the MEV kit car special and only a lap behind the Mini and catching at four seconds a lap. This was going to be close. What could possibly go wrong? Well, the fat lady had yet to commence her repertoire when the car went past the pits with serious misfire – no, not now, please! What could it be? End of the lap and Mark was in and the bonnet up – we calculated even at 20 seconds a lap slower we could still manage 4th overall, so Mark was sent out to crawl around. Except he couldn’t and stopped at McLean’s, out of fuel. How could we have miscalculated so badly? Well, we’d forgotten to take into account the beneficial effects on fuel consumption of my stints in the bad weather and behind the safety car. Mark had gone hard for the last stint and the consumption had spiralled downwards. We thought we had more than compensated, but a faulty fuel gauge also conspired to deceive us. It was heartbreaking to know we had gone so far and now with poor Mark stuck out on the track, there was nothing we could do. Except the clerk of the course thankfully put out a safety car and, using the ‘live snatch’ facility allowed in the regs, the M3 was towed in to have a splash and dash to the line some three laps later. With a racer’s instinct, Mark pitched in with the car’s fastest lap of 1:22.1. Thanks to the safety car we scraped a finish – 6th overall and third in class. Not too bad, considering we had snatched defeat

from the jaws of victory. The emotions of the last half hour are not ones I want to relive again in a hurry… But we had come through it and congratulations should go to the nine other finishing teams, the 360 Motor Racing Club, the officials and, of course, the marshals, who had to endure the vagaries of the British summer. My personal thanks go to the Saxon Team – Mark and Simon just get on with things, bolstered by the ever-jovial enthusiasm of Harvey. And then there was the smiling Whizz, who at six months’ pregnant made sandwiches, did pit signals, manned the extinguisher at fuel stops, and even managed to deliver encouraging words and a neverending supply of coffee: wow! The numbers look a little less important now the event is over. Until lap 193 the car worked without a hitch. We completed a total of nearly 400 miles at an average speed of 67mph. The engine did 360 degrees around about two millions times, as did the Toyos. The simple symmetry of 360 came full circle and now there are only memories and hopes for next year. The 360 is such a simple concept and the 360 MRC has done something really special: it deserves to succeed. Okay, it has taken a few years to get going and its organisation is not without challenges, but I believe this type of racing is here to stay. I recommend it to anyone as an easy entry to endurance, bearing in mind that to finish, first you must have fuel in your tank…

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Alfa Romeo 2600 Sprint

Photos: Jeff Bloxham and Tony Murray

shattered in 2013. To recap, I had the car on Dyno Solutions’ rolling road at the end of last season just to check for possible power loss: it was marginally down from the beginning of the season and running too rich. So, nothing too serious, meaning that I had the budget to get the cams worked on to achieve a better spread of power. Kent Cams did a great job reprofiling the cams to give me a wider range of torque without losing top-end power. Trawling the internet as one does, I found another 2600 race car for sale, in Switzerland: they wanted €55,000, way beyond my budget. Plus, I’ve already got one. The interesting part was the detailed specification I managed to prise out of the dealer. The Swiss car produced around 200bhp and significantly ran a limited-slip differential – Touring Car stars Patrick Watts and the late Will Hoy have raced my 2600 at the Goodwood Revival and both said that all it needed was an LSD and a decent set of cams. Delving further into the spec sheet I uncovered the name of an Italian tuning company that had worked on the Swiss

“ We fired up the engine – no nasty, unwanted noises. So we proceeded to do a power run. That’s when the clutch started slipping… The ‘new’ pressure plate was from a period Alfa and obviously a little past its sell-by date”

ince my last piece on the Alfa (TD15) things have not gone entirely to plan. Yet things started so well. From first racing the 2600 Sprint in 2010 I have had very little to complain about. The car has been reliable – apart from the heater hose bursting at Donington last year – and I have enjoyed my racing. Yes I generally qualify

poorly, but then I’ve consistently run midfield in the races and enjoyed some spirited dicing with my fellow competitors. The Alfa is unlikely ever to be a front-runner; she’s too heavy and it’s beyond my limited funds to extract any more than the 185bhp or so she now produces. But oh dear, that reliability record has been

2600 – Bacci. Although Bacci principally deals with Fiat Abarth products, the Italian company did sell an LSD for the 2600 ‘off the shelf’. What a result. After some negotiation and translation hiccups, and my sending the old crown wheel and pinion, and a half shaft, to Italy so that Bacci could be sure of a perfect fit, eventually the LSD arrived at my workshop in Kent and was easily fitted. The prospect of improving my performance for the 2013 season was looking good – on paper. I had to take the 2600 back to Dyno Solutions to set up the cams and triple 45 Webers, so a slot was booked for the Thursday before my trip to Silverstone for the first round of the HRDC Allstars race on Saturday. And that is when it all started to go wrong – Aaron and Steve set up the car on the rolling road, only to hear a metallic tinkling sound from the gearbox bell housing… We hadn’t touched this area during the winter modifications and experienced no problems during our end of season power runs, so were perplexed by the noise. No choice but to remove the gearbox and find out what was going on: we immediately found a small piece of metal laying in the bottom of the bell housing, which turned

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Far left: the romantic vision of how Tony might have wished his entire season had gone – sadly the reality didn’t have the same rosy glow. Above: Neil Cuss of RW Racing Services grinds some weight off the Alfa and fits new pads. Top: Finding the right clutch parts was tricky

out to be a fragment of metal from the clutch pressure plate. With no chance of a repair, now the task was to find a 1965 Alfa Romeo 2600 clutch in next to no time. But we couldn’t. The nearest I got to a solution was Classic Alfa, whose computer said there was a full kit in stock; but the computer lied and it would take about a week to get another from Italy. I was resigned not to race at Silverstone, but still went along to give my support and cry on a few shoulders. Then, during a conversation with fellow competitor and Riley 1.5 driver, Ding Boston, he mentioned that one of his ex-students (Ding runs his car through the Oxford University Motorsport Foundation, a student initiative designed to give hands-on practical experience to students) was now working for motorsport clutch specialist Helix. I called my new contact, Alex Champion, first thing the following Monday: yes, Helix could possibly adapt a clutch from a base Ferrari GTO unit it stocks, but needed a look at my clutch and couldn’t quote a delivery time. I only had a short while until my next race at Oulton Park and was a little concerned. So called my friends at Rusper Alfa Romeo for help. Luckily they had an original 2600 pressure plate which we then fitted, put the gearbox back in, and then returned to the rolling road. We fired up the engine – no nasty, unwanted noises. So we proceeded to do a power run. That’s when the clutch started slipping… The ‘new’ pressure plate was from a period Alfa and obviously now a little past its sell by date.

No choice but to scratch from the Oulton race and go back to Helix and get the job done properly. The new Helix device would be of the modern ‘paddle’ spring design rather than the coil springs on the original period clutch; stronger and more efficient. The old clutch and flywheel were removed and taken to Helix’s premises in Banbury. There the team worked their magic, returning the complete clutch assembly and machined flywheel to me in time to enter the next race at Brands Hatch. Two weeks before the Brands race, Alfa and I went back to Dyno Solutions, fingers, toes and everything else crossed – this time all went well. The Alfa completed several power runs, Aaron and Steve fitting smaller diameter carburettor chokes in order to increase air flow, adjusting the ignition timing to match the re-profiled cams and ending up with a very satisfactory 184.2bhp and a decent torque curve with no flat-spots. In order to avoid any last minute dramas I arranged to have a short ‘shakedown’ test at Brand Hatch on the Tuesday before the Saturday race, just in case. A small problem occurred with the ignition that was quickly sorted by Aaron: handy Dyno Solutions being based at the back of Brands. On Saturday morning I prepared the car and went out for my 20-minute qualifying session. I’d not driven Brands for some time and never race it in the Alfa, so was struggling to find my lines and braking points when suddenly, after only five laps, the clutch pedal went bang to the floor and I coasted along the start finish straight and parked up on the

grass infield. Back in the paddock I was joined by Alfa guru, John Day, whose Day & White’s workshops are on the Brands Hatch estate. He quickly diagnosed failed seals on the clutch master and slave cylinders and being a special Italian fitting, an easy repair could not be done. I elected to leave the 2600 at John’s workshops so that he could order the new cylinders from Italy on Monday. So, three races entered so far this season and just the five laps completed at a very modest pace: what next? Upon further inspection it was found that the clutch actuation rod and fork had also bent. John made up a new high-tensile steel rod fitted with a cast fork from a Lancia Delta Integrale, together with the new cylinders. I now have the smoothest clutch I have ever had on this car. Now can I go racing?

Specification maKe mODeL Year eNGINe maX POWer FUELLING GearBOX BraKes tYres WHeeLs WeIGHt VaLUe

Alfa Romeo 2600 Sprint Bertone coupe 1965 2582cc straight-six, dohc 168bhp @ 6200rpm Triple 45 DCOE Weber carbs Five-speed manual Brembo discs front & rear Dunlop CR500 – F: 500M X 5T R15 L Section R: 500M X 5T R15 Technomagnesio – F: 5J x 15in R: 5J x 15in 1450kg £28,000 approx

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Audi TT

e all have our favourites: for me it’s GT and sports cars. So when I decided to go racing, that’s what I wanted to drive. Unfortunately the realms of Porsche and Ferrari were a bit beyond my budget, so I had an alternative plan: I’d create my own sports racer. So I started looking at what would be a fun, readily available, highly tuneable GT/Sports car – my wife had 3.2 V6 Audi TT that I enjoyed driving and that was my inspiration for a racing Audi TT quattro turbo! The Audi TT has a good racing pedigree in Germany, winning the DTM (German Touring Car Championship) in 2002, so maybe I could build a mini DTM car. Next, before I started, was to find a race series my car was eligible

Photos: Carl Owen

for. After a bit of research I discovered the Classic Sports Car Club and the ‘Deutsche Mark’ series (now renamed Modern Classics and open to other marques), comprising 40-minute races with a mandatory pit stop – it seemed perfect for my mini DTM. The next step was to find a donor car – sounds simple but was much harder than I thought. I wanted a silver Audi TT 225bhp 1.8-litre turbo, which are very common: the problem was that they were all too well cared for and therefore expensive. My plan was to rip it apart and replace most of the running parts, wheels, brakes, suspension, etc, so I wanted a bit of a lemon – I had set my budget at £3000 and most were around £4-5K. Finally one came up locally that was

totally un-loved, had a blue interior, a few minor dings, worn tyres, brakes, and some rattles on the suspension. Perfect. The deal was done for exactly £3000. Then the fun really started. First was stripping out the interior, an activity I thoroughly recommend as being very therapeutic: out with the blue, in with the new. During the stripping out phase I also researched the new parts I was going to fit: • Custom Cages full weld-in roll-cage • Brembo GT Senior four-pot 328mm fully floating discs (front). • Tarox upsized rear floating discs (rear). • H&R anti-roll bars. • Poly bushes all-round. • Race Haldex (controls the four-wheel drive). • K&W Club Sport adjustable race suspension. • Race seat and mounting rails. • Six-point harness • Detachable steering wheel. • LifeLine fire extinguisher. • Cartek solid state battery isolator. • Varley Red Top race gel battery. • Black Race Wheels and Yokohama ADVAN A048 tyres. Not wanting to waste time I ordered everything and packages were arriving daily, much to the wife’s curiosity! This point was a real high, but then reality started to hit me: how on earth am I going to have time to do all of this work? Also, there were some jobs totally beyond me, such as welding in the roll-cage to FIA standards. It very quickly became clear I’d bitten off more than I could

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Audi TT chew and I needed a race car preparation company to help me with the build. Looking locally I was surprised to find several firms, but what I really wanted was a small, friendly company that specialises in VAG (Volkswagen-Audi-Group) cars. I was lucky to find ProTrax Racing (PTR) in Ripley, which had already worked on several Audi track and race cars. So I loaded everything up and dumped it in PTR’s garage – literally! Thankfully PTR was much faster than I would have ever been and, more importantly, thorough, spotting several other things that needed to be done to make the car safe to race, such as replacing the brake lines. First to be installed was the Custom Cages roll-cage. I’d decided to go for the full weld-in option having read several comments regarding the strength of the bolt-in equivalent. With the full cage you also get braces going through the firewall to the front suspension mounts and across under the dashboard, plus door bars, etc. It’s a pain as you have to totally remove the dash, but I wanted it to be as safe as possible. Before we could even start, PTR had to complete a weld test piece and return it to Custom Cages for quality control and destructive testing. Upon completion you then have to send in several photos of the welds for approval before you get your FIA approval certificate and plaque. Next task was the suspension: removing the old anti-roll bars and fitting poly bushes to each suspension joint (not a job I would have relished). Apparently poly bushes make one of the biggest differences to the handling of these cars, so fitting them is a must. I chose K&W Club Sport fully adjustable coilovers that are made especially for club racing and not road use. After the suspension came the bigger brakes and new braided brake lines. I’ve gone for floating discs, as these deal with the heat expansion and contraction much better under race conditions without warping. Also on the front I opted for grooved discs over drilled:

Photos: Carl Owen

the latter can start cracking around the holes during the stresses of racing. Fitting the seats was a much bigger job than expected. We had to weld in some extra rails with threaded bushes to mount the seat rails, then move the seat around to make sure it was far enough away from the roll-cage. In the end it was a good job I’d gone for a detachable steering wheel, as I couldn’t get in and out without removing it. Another area of additional work was supporting the steering column, as we had to remove the original mounts to put in the front roll-cage bar – PTR added some substantial supports in anticipation, I guess, for me sawing at the wheel! Once PTR had done its job, the TT came back to me to spray the new roll-cage in silver and sort out the mass of wires that had been exposed and put the dash back together, now with several roll-cage parts in the way… Fortunately electronics is my thing, so it was soon tidied up and re-assembled together with an all-new aluminium centre column and hand-cut alloy door alloy cards, etc. I also fitted the fire extinguisher and electrical cut-off circuitry. In the end I went for a solid

Specification Roll-cage arms that link to the front struts meant removing the dashboard; putting it back again was the hard part. Seat so far forward (left) that Owen is forced to remove the steering wheel to get in and out. Finished TT (above) looks the biz and ready to race

state electrical cut-off as this avoided long, high-current wires to and from the battery. Also required for racing is a rain light. It turns out you can either have a single, centrally-mounted light or two fog lights. Since there really wasn’t anywhere to simply fit a single rain light, and the TT only having one rear fog light, I had the brainwave of buying a rear light cluster from Germany as the fog light is on the other side to UK spec cars. I scoured eBay and managed to pick one up for a song and with a little rewiring we now have two rear fog/rain lights. But the list goes on. Also for racing you need a transponder which sends a signal from your car to the timing lines in the track. These have a unique number that enables the timing companies to identify your car down to a fraction of a second. I was a bit shocked at the price of these but there really is no alternative; you can rent them but if you race regularly it’s better to have your own. Finally, though, my new Audi TT miniDTM was ready to test on track: that test revealed an oil surge issue that required a complete engine rebuild, but that’s a story for next issue…

maKe Audi mODeL TT 1.8T (225) Quattro Year 1999 eNGINe APX in-line 4cyl, 1781cc, 20v, DOHC, K04 turbocharger, FMIC maX POWer 224bhp @ 5215rpm (Note: Dyno showed a faulty fuel pump, should be 250+ @ 5900) FUeLLING Multipoint fuel injection GearBOX Five-speed manual BraKes Front: Brembo four-pot callipers 323mm floating discs. Rear: stock callipers with Tarox conversion kit and floating discs Y tYres okohama Advan A048 WHeeLs 18in x 8in WeIGHt 1350kg

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MG ZR 160 Racing Car

any things are said about motorsport, amongst them how it’s something you can never really get out of your system. A guy I once worked with, Alan, who races Austin 7s, told me motorsport makes heroin addiction seem like a mild craving for salty crisps. I’m not into hard drugs (nor is Alan, to my knowledge) but I do know what he means: as fun as they are, trackdays seem to be missing some vital ingredient. After I retired from the XR Challenge, my trackday RS2000 – which you’ve read all about the past few issues of TrackDriver – has proven infinitely faster and more involving than my old race car. However, it just doesn’t quite quench my longing for dicing with other cars. For quite some time I’ve been researching different championships and cars; preferably something tin-top, frontwheel drive and based in the north west, with close but clean racing on a variety of good tracks and with nice competitors. That tick list has been quite tricky to fulfil, but I’m happy to say I think I’ve found it in the form of the MG Car Club’s race championships. They vary from V8 MGBs to modern(ish) Metro GTi’s, and cater for all levels and forms of motorsport. Plus the MGCC is very proud of

Photos: Ray Collier

the driving standards and wants to maintain a high level of fair competition. Which just left me to find a suitable car. So, my new project has arrived. Not being one to follow the convention of buying a proven working and winning car, I have purchased the main parts of a racing car in a sort of kit form. Languishing outside a workshop at MIRA (Motor Industry Research Association) was a brand new MG-Rover shell, one of only three plucked from the Longbridge line when Rover-MG closed; as a bonus, most of the parts – including a variety of unused engines and gearboxes, as well as some racing parts, such as the cage,

Leda suspension and poly-bushes – were also included in the sale. All I would have to do was put it all together into what should be a brand new racing car. My plan is to compete with it as an MG ZR 160, as they are eligible for a number of the MG championships and the engine cost is lower than the VHPDinspired (Very High Performance Derivative) 190 versions. Now, I’m quite happy taking things apart, especially Fords and VWs, but the MG was a whole new ball game; plus I really don’t have the time or expertise to build a race car to a suitably high standard. So eventually I decided the best option was to use an expert MG ZR shell (above) is brand new, but left-hand drive. Ray bought it complete with several boxes of race parts (left) but doesn’t have the time, inclination or ability to assemble the car himself

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and the most highly regarded outfit my research unearthed was CMC Motorsport and its proprietor Dan Surridge. Dan spent his apprenticeship at MG Rover in the vehicle development department, before moving onto MG Sport and Racing in 2001, finally making his way up to the engineer in charge of customer group N rally cars and clubman racing cars. During this time Dan was also working with Creative Media Communications, with the responsibility of preparing all the Rally Scholarship cars including those for the Wales GB Rally. That’s where he met the MG Scholar Champion, Matt Beebe. But in 2005 it all ground to halt as MG-Rover went bust. And yet as one door closed another one opened; Dan and Matt teamed up, Dan creating CMC Motorsport and Matt running M8T BB Rallying. They share facilities in Nuneaton where they build and maintain almost every championship-winning MG ZR, as well as many other octagon-badged cars including 1950s twin-cam MGA racers. They are definitely the people to build my car for me, and given the number of different bits in the boxes I’ve delivered, plus the things they have already found they don’t like, such as the seagull poo welding on the quite

Left: Dan Surridge of CMC Motorsport is doing the build for Ray, as he already looks after several championshipwinning MG ZRs, as well as some more classic MG racers

important seat mounts and the missing load spreading mounts for the roll cage, I’m glad I’ve left this build to the professionals. Hopefully the car will be up and running before the last race of this season. But there are a lot of hurdles to leap, some big and some silly, mainly concerning previous poor workmanship: for example, the dash flocking which has started to peel off, and the wiper mechanism being missing. Then there’s the fact that the shell is left-hand drive, so parts aren’t readily available. My next update will probably be on the therapeutic effects of peeling flocking of dashboards after trying

to fit upside down right-hand driver wiper mechanisms to bodyshells! If you have any MG motorsport aspirations you should check out both the MG Car Club’s racing website and CMC Motorsport. Only, don’t bother Dan too much as he was last seen trying to scrape MG X-Power green paint off a ZR’s roll-cage, as a particularly meticulous customer wants everything powder-coated white… CMC Motorsport 02476 355079 www.cmcmotorsport.co.uk

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Mazda MX-5

’ve been doing this a while now, but unless I count the media day at Rockingham which Vauxhall kindly organised earlier this year, I realised I hadn’t actually competed in a pukka sprint event in 40 years. Step forward Richard Usher, mastermind behind the rise of Blyton Park circuit and confirmed sprint enthusiast. Every time I visit, he mentions how sprinting is such good value and how you only need a car – any car will do – and how it’s one of the cheapest forms of competitive motorsport, and, and, and so on…

“Thanks, but I haven’t got a suitable car,” I retort. He points to the Mazda MX-5 in which I am doing my coaching. “That will do nicely,” he says, before adding the clincher: “And I’ll pay the entry fee.” I didn’t think any more about it until the day before, when I saw the entry in the diary. Damn. A rare weekend at home where I was due to spend a morning in the workshop making swarf, cut the grass and then watch Moto GP. Instead I was at Blyton where there were people wearing MSA shirts, some of whom were wielding clipboards. What could this

had my regular protective headgear inspected, I found myself in possession of a sticker. When I got back to the Mazda I also discovered that Jane Usher had applied some numbers to its flanks. Could it really be that easy? Following the lowest key driver’s briefing I have ever attended – yet which contained important information, such as the first lap uses a different part of the circuit to the second – the answer appeared to be yes. Meanwhile, I could sense that instincts bred over several decades were beginning to assert themselves. Against whom would

“ Later in the day following the practice runs, I saw a whole family sharing the same car. One came back from the track to join the queue while another peeled a number off and added another to suit the next driver” I’ve always understood how all this might be true, but I’ve got used to going round and round for as many laps as it takes to hone a better one, and I like the thrill of overtaking. For me, that’s a large part of why you do it, but Richard says that’s what puts a lot of people off racing. The fact you have to consider all the other cars around you and the very real possibility that you might come into contact with one of them, and all that. Anyway, there I was doing some coaching when Richard follows his usual evangelical bit with a direct entreaty. “There’s a sprint on here in a few weekends’ time. I’ll put you down for an entry…”

be? Turns out it was because the event for which Richard had so kindly paid the entry was a proper MSA-regulated sprint, no less, for which there would be scrutineering. That was all right, then. The MX-5 is bereft of niceties such as a cage, full harness belts, extinguisher and battery master switch. I might be able to blame the MSA, stay long enough to be polite and drink a cup of tea and get back in time to watch Lorenzo and Co defy the laws of physics. “Is your car completely standard,” asks the scrutineer, “and are you going to leave the head restraints in place?” Those were the only questions, and since it is and I was, and having

I be competing? By how much would, say, a completely standard Mitsubaru turbonutter four-wheel drive with visible headrests but a secret 360bhp chip, be able to eclipse the Mazda’s 157bhp and 215-section Dunlops? Both cars displace two litres, but is there an equivalence for turbos? I needed to know. And would there be rain? Weather which when combined with experience can sometimes come to the rescue would only make matters worse. Damn again. Best find a foot pump and put some extra pressure in the front tyres… As it turned out, I was in a class of two, created on the day by Richard, in which he

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was the opposition, driving a Mazda MX-5 wearing a consecutive registration. Such are the parameters of press fleets, but already I could see some good points, not the least of which was that Mr Usher could devise a class on the day with which the MSA took no issue. More to the point, I was competing using the car in which I arrived. There could easily have been a dozen others and then we could all have had a proper punch up. Ahem, without actually laying a glove on the other, that is. And later in the day following the practice runs, I saw a whole family sharing the same car. One came back from the track to join the queue while another peeled a number off and added another to suit the next driver. A wander round the paddock had meanwhile revealed a wonderful variety of stuff, like a Fiat special with elegantly swooping bodywork that looked for all the world like an aristocratic Italian of the 1950s

but had been created entirely by its driver’s hand, as had its tow car. And amongst much else there were masquerading Minis, hiding boosted Hyabusa engines (or not), all running on slicks, a Cortina with a Fiat twincam engine which turned out to have been built many years ago by a photographer colleague, and a Zeus Formula Ford owned by one Mark Haines. Close enough to be a spelling mistake but closer still was the fact I’d driven the sister car (which he also owns) for a Motoring News feature in 1984. “Would you like a go?” he asked. Yes of course I would, and thank you, but how? Turned out that when they finish the official runs the course stays open and the timing gear remains in place until the end of the day. Provided you have a wristband and present yourself in the queue, you will get a time. So I did. It was a wonderful reminder of what has made the original Formula Ford category

endure for so long. The Zeus was built to accommodate all sizes so that was the first bonus, but one seat, light weight and great balance – well, a bit too much turn-in oversteer – combined with telepathic steering, minimal grip and, of course, a Hewland gearshift, is a large part of why single-seaters became the aristocracy of motorsport. The difference here is that you can experience it for less than the price of an average family motor. The last Formula Ford race I saw was at Anglesey and included a 70-year old and a 17-year old: neither finished last. Back at Blyton the desire to avoid pitching the Mazda into needless oversteer by hanging on to the brakes for a fraction too long into Bishop’s, and to avoid needless understeer caused by carrying too much speed into the unnamed parts of lap two, assumed monster status that demanded attention every subsequent run. Instincts, instincts; all of them now fully in control.

“ The point was, though, that this kind of event provides access to motorsport for anyone with a car, licence and helmet. Using what you already have on track is something I’ve banged on about for ages. I had a thoroughly enjoyable day” The point was, though, that this kind of event provides access to motorsport for anyone with a car, licence and helmet. There weren’t a huge number of competitors but only because there were several clashing events on the same day, so sorting out the calendar might prove more difficult than sorting out the event. But I’d had a thoroughly enjoyable day. I had created the competition within myself, but without having to spend any money on extra hardware and using what you already have on track is something I’ve been banging on about for ages. The bonus is making it competitive with nothing more than your head, hands and feet. The other bonus was a thoroughly enjoyable day which was all the better because it was so unexpected. Thank you Mr and Mrs Usher. Always knew you had a point.

A class of their own: Hales and Blyton boss Richard Usher used identical MX-5s. Hales impressed by the sheer variety of cars that turn up for sprinting

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1987 Peugeot 205 GTI 1.6, Plus Spares Fully caged, extinguisher system, cut-off switch, FIA seat and harness. Fully balanced 150bhp engine, quickshift, competition suspension, uprated brakes, Polycarb windows (except windscreen). Needs nothing other than fuel to go racing. This year six class wins and fastest laps out of six races in French Trophy Series. 07815 502 796 for more info. £2850 ono http://www.motorsportads.com/24236.html

1992 Iveco Ford Race Truck/Motorhome Rear garage, full-size awning and flooring, tail-lift, will take two motorbikes, complete with tyre rack. Sleeps five: cooker/oven, fridge, WC, shower, electric heater. An old truck with general wear and tear, but clean and drives beautifully. Serviced April 2013, MoT to end April 2014. Viewing available, near Basingstoke. £6000 ono http://www.motorsportads.com/24221.html

20-Metre Modular GH Awning This awning comprises 4 x 3m bays and 2 x 4m bays and projects outwards 8m from a 4m high truck. May split, please phone to discuss. For more details please call Adrian Coles on 07867 301401. £3875 ono http://www.motorsportads.com/24220.html

Race Car Transporter: Full Living Accommodation Will carry sports, small saloon or open-wheel race car, with hydraulic tail-lift, aluminium ramps, electric winch, awning. Unique truck, converted for maximum comfort and carry my sports car: whole internal centre section slides back to increase room at track. Tachograph exempt – can be driven on a car licences. Big price reduction because of ill health – just £8950 ono http://www.motorsportads.com/24024.html

How to advertise – It’s so easy for you to place ads like these for

cars • bikes • karts • tools • parts • jobs • stuff

go to: www.motorsportads.com Within two minutes you could have your ad online and attracting buyers Polyurethane Bush Kit for Tomcat Vehicles Contains bushes for - front & rear radius arm to chassis mounting; f & r radius arm to axle mounting; f & r Panhard rod. Developed by Tomcat Motorsport and Superpro to be more heavy duty and avoid stress loading: see website. Bushes can be bought separately. Also stock Superpro bushes for other 4x4s. £246 including VAT and free delivery http://www.motorsportads.com/24000.html

MGF/TF Race Car Unique and distinctive class-winner. Three lap records. Probably UK’s best known MGF: one of the original press cars converted for racing by MG Rover – body no.7, build no.VIN72. 1800cc VVC Dave Andrews engine. Complete build history from MG records on request. Impressive specification and lots of spares/wheels/ tyres. Lots of detailed work done to make it quick. £4950 ono http://www.motorsportads.com/24025.html

Pace American Explorer RT Trailer for Dodge Ram As new condition, fitted out to carry small car, go-kart, quad, or up to three motorbikes. Perfect for motorsport long weekends – shower, wc, double-bed, cooker, fridge, hot/cold water. Normal trailer electrics: jaw hitch and ball hitch. Dodge Ram pick-up also for sale – could be sold as a package. Trailer is £12,995, but sensible offers welcome http://www.motorsportads.com/24127.html

Pit Perches. Tyre Warmer Tents. Tyre Racks Tyre trolleys from £245. Tyre warmer tent, £1190. Pit perches from £1390. Plus VAT. Other paddock equipment available. Pit perches in two styles: Compact and Formula Pro – range of colours. Bespoke perches on request. Tyre warmer tents designed to fit largest GT wheels into frame. Frame – light aluminium, with heavy duty vinyl cover. Two styles of tyre trolley, in powder-coated stainless. From £790. http://www.motorsportads.com/23603.html

Quaife 26Z 6spd Sequential and Geartronics Flatshift Kit Based on Sierra Type 9 casing, dog engagement, straight-cut gears, 1:1 final drive. Frequent oil changes, no leak, noises, etc. Come with full Geartronics Flatshift kit, incl ECU potentiometer,custom loom manuals, etc. If you don’t want the flatshift the gearbox on its own is £2400, but otherwise £2700 http://www.motorsportads.com/24211.html

Leyland Daf 7.5-Ton Truck Suitable as car transporter or race support vehicle. Hydraulic rear lift for easy access and oversized 4-ton winch and tyre rack inside. Accommodation for two, with four-ring gas hob and grill, fridge, hot/cold water, 12- and 240-volt power: light via 2.5kW inverter, new leisure batteries or external supply. Includes large awning for three cars. £7500 http://www.motorsportads.com/24055.html

BMW 325 E30 Race/Track Car Ex-Kumho BMW series. 975kg with 210bhp at the wheels. Umpteen tyres, wheels, spares. Fast, cheap track car or ready-to-go racer. 19 spare tyres, six spare wheels incl treaded, wet and slick. Removable steering wheel. Lightweight bonnet, boot-lid, side windows. Passenger seat with four-point harness. £5150 http://www.motorsportads.com/23973.html

Two-Car Race Transporter (7.5T) with Full Awning IVECO 75E15, 5.9-litre, R-reg. Well maintained and presented; ideal for two single-seaters or similar. Twostage tail-lift, runways inside, seating/data office area that converts into sleeping area, lots of storage. Awning has 7m projection, windows in every panel. Needs C1 licence, tacho exempt, no speed limiter. £19,500 (private sale) http://www.motorsportads.com/24156.html

Immaculate Swift SC97 Formula Ford 1600 Converted from Zetec to Kent in 2011; only three events since completion. Stainless exhaust, lightweight discs, digital instrumentation, new extinguisher. By separate negotiation: full set of push/track rods and wishbones, LD200 ratios and tyres. Can may also be available with Neil Bold engine. James on 07516811266 or james@oldfieldmotorsport.co.uk. £6000 http://www.motorsportads.com/24201.html

Mazda MX-5 Mk1 MSA approved car. Ready to go. One of the most entertaining small sports cars you can drive. £4495 http://www.motorsportads.com/24149.html

Ready to Race Junior TKM. 2009 Haase. Well maintained Nine hours since engine rebuild - parts from Modus Motorsports. Rebuilt brakes, too. Complete with AIM telemetry, spare sprockets, trolly, wets on rims (used twice) engine currently unrestricted for Hooton Indi series. Current dry tyres will need replacing but remain OK for practice. Haase ID plate on chassis. £1495 ono http://www.motorsportads.com/24200.html

2011 Lotus Cup UK Championship-Winning Car Immaculate championship-winner, available immediately. Ready to race – there’s no better or higher spec car on the grid. They all say it, but this car actually has been built and prepared with regard only for performance and longevity – not a single corner cut. This car has everything you can buy, and a pedigree that you can’t. £28,500 http://www.motorsportads.com/23878.html

SC Sporthome Mercedes Atego 1024, 2008, Automatic Air suspension, full leather, seven-berth, air-con/ heating, 36,000 miles. New price – £147K! Fully-kitted kitchen, shower, toilet, TV and satellite dish. Workshop and drop-down garage area, electric awning, storage for two karts. Abundant electrical outlets, Honda generator. You can’t buy a better Sporthome for this bargain price; massive saving on new. £74,995 ono http://www.motorsportads.com/24199.html

Chevron B38 F3, Fully restored Up-to-date and ready to race. No expense spared rebuild by Fortec Motorsports, incl uprights and driveshafts, braking system, gearbox overhaul by PDS Racing, new springs, damper service, new belts and extinguisher. Toyota engine. FIA logbook. Available for viewing in Daventry – call 01327 879999 to discuss. £85,000 http://www.motorsportads.com/23926.html

ASCHE LP383A40MK3 Transporter, 3-axle semi-trailer 1.5-ton tail-lift, hydraulic upper-deck, on-board generator, compressor, 12m x 6m awning three years old, internal wheel racks, internal and external power sockets, lots of storage, recent white paint, excellent tyres, long test: carries four saloons or six Caterhams. Gross weight: 31840kg. Was £9695 + VAT. Now £7950.00 + VAT http://www.motorsportads.com/24128.html

Toyota 3SGE Revision 3 Race Engine Fully re-machined and professionally assembled in-house to our very high standards. Includes genuine over-size Revision 3 pistons; also all new gaskets, seals, oil pump, water pump, etc. Meets 750mc MR2 Championship regs. For other engine builds, parts design and fabrication, contact us via our website. £2995 http://www.motorsportads.com/24144.html

Alphabetical web directory listing

CAR MANUFACTURERS Caterham Cars www.caterhamcars.co.uk

CLOTHING & EQUIPMENT Croydon Race and Rally Centre www.croydonraceandrally.co.uk

ARRIVE & DRIVE

www.brookspeed.com

www.chevronracing.com

Lohen www.lohen.co.uk BRAKES & PADS AP Racing www.apracing.com EBC Brakes www.ebcbrakes.com Cambridge Motorsport www.cambridgemotorsport.com Tarox www.tarox.com

www.roadtrackrace.com CAR PARTS & TUNING

CAR HIRE Atom Hire www.atomhire.co.uk Bookatrack www.bookatrack.com

www.brookspeed.com

Grand Prix Racewear www.gprdirect.com Rude Racing www.ruderacing.co.uk

In2racing www.in2racing.co.uk

1-2-1Track Driving Tuition/Corporate George Ostrumoff www.carandtrackdrivingskills.co.uk Tel. George 07831 499790 ARDS

DATA LOGGING & VIDEO BJR Technology Ltd www.bjr-technology.co.uk

OIL & LUBRICANTS Anglo American Oil Company www.aaoil.com

www.videoVBOX.co.uk Race Technology www.race-technology.com DVD

PUBLISHERS Haynes www.haynes.co.uk

Lohen www.lohen.co.uk

Duke Video www.dukevideo.com

Veloce Books www.velocebooks.com

Matt Roach Racing www.mattroachracing.com

EXHAUSTS Ashley Competition Exhausts www.ashleycompetitionexhausts.com

ROLLING ROADS

Piranha Motorsport www.piranhamotorsport.com ProTrax Racing www.protraxracing.com

FORUM TrackDay Forums www.trackdayforums.com FUELLING Huddart Engines www.huddartengines.com

Team Parker Racing www.teamparkerracing.com

Webcon UK www.webcon.co.uk

Track-Club www.track-club.com

GEARBOX & DRIVETRAIN

Track Focused www.trackfocused.co.uk

Wheelsports www.classicgt.co.uk

Unit 18

Tran-X

www.unit18.co.uk

www.tran-x.com

RSR N端rburg www.rsrnurburg.com

Mark Hales www.markhales.com

www.roadandracegear.com

CAR PREPARATION

www.brookspeed.com

INSTRUCTION & COACHING Anthony Dunn www.iwannagofaster.com

INSURANCE

SVG Motorsport www.svgmotorsport.com

RPM www.rpmtechnik.co.uk

www.m2d.biz Plays Kool www.plays-kool.co.uk

www.burtonpower.com

CAR CARE www.autoglym.com

www.gprdirect.com

HARNESS & BELTS Corbeau www.corbeau-seats.com

www.quaife.co.uk

www.amdtuning.com

www.dyno-solutions.co.uk

www.lohen.co.uk www.northamptonmotorsport.com

www.parr-uk.co.uk

TrackDriver

For inclusion in the Web Directory email or call our sales team for details about the fantastic deals available on both lineage web listings andbranded box ads T: 01629 581250

ROLLING ROADS

E: ads@trackdriver.com

TRACKDAY ORGANISERS Apex TrackDays www.apextrackdays.co.uk

www.rgs-motorsport.co.uk

Bob Watson Porsche Ltd

BHP TrackDays www.bhptrackdays.co.uk

www.bookatrack.com

www.rollingroadcentre.co.uk www.wheelsports.co.uk www.slarkraceengineering.co.uk

SEATS Corbeau www.corbeau-seats.com SHOWS Autosport International www.autosport.com MotorsportUK Show www.motorsportshow.co.uk STORAGE Jar Motorsports Services www.jarcarstorage.co.uk SUSPENSION

www.blackartdesigns.com

www.eibach.com

www.gazshocks.com Matt Roach Racing www.mattroachracing.com TOOLS Laser Tools www.lasertools.co.uk Power-Tec www.power-tec.co.uk

Castle Combe www.castlecombecircuit.co.uk Club MSV www.clubmsv.com Gold Track www.goldtrack.co.uk Javelin www.javelintrackdays.co.uk Lotus on Track www.lotus-on-track.com RMA www.rmatrackdays.com Rockingham Trackdays www.rockingham.co.uk RSR N端rburg www.rsrnurburg.com Track Culture www.trackculture.com TRAILERS & TOWING Enclosed-Trailers www.enclosed-trailers.co.uk TRANSPORTATION Pro-Driver www.pro-driver.org VIDEO HIRE OnBoardVision Limited www.onboardvision.co.uk WIRING LOOMS Bespoke Looms www.bespokelooms.co.uk

TRACKDaydiary CONTACTS TrackDriver Recommends APEx TRACkDAyS www.apextrackdays.co.uk email: michael@apextrackdays.co.uk tel: 08448 581591 BHP TRACkDAyS LTD www.bhptrackdays.co.uk email: enquiries@bhptrackdays.co.uk tel: 01342 83795 BOOkATRACk.COM www.bookatrack.com email: info@bookatrack.com tel: 0843 208 4635 CASTLE COMBE www.castlecombecircuit.co.uk email: info@castlecombecircuit.co.uk tel: 01249 782417 CLuB MSV www.clubmsv.com email: cartrackdays@clubmsv.co.uk tel: 0870 850 5014 gOLDTRACk www.goldtrack.co.uk email: info@goldtrack.co.uk tel: 01327 361361 JAVELiN www.javelintrackdays.co.uk email: colin@javelintrackdays.co.uk tel: 01469 560574 RMA TRACkDAyS www.rmatrackdays.com tel: 01628 779000 RSRNuRBuRg www.rsrnurburg.com tel: +49 (0)2691931952 TRACk CuLTuRE www.trackculture.com tel: +44 (0)845 075 4045 WHEELSPORTS www.classicgt.co.uk email: wheelsports@classicgt.co.uk tel: 07776 085557

VENUE

ORGANISER

DETAILS

october

ESTORIL CIRCUIT www.circuito-estoril.pt

19 Oulton Park, full circuit

ClubMSV

Some Novice

FOCUSED EVENTS

19 Woodbridge

Javelin Trackdays

2 Mile Airfield

www.focusedevents.com

19 Santa Pod Raceway, drag strip

Santa Pod Raceway

20 Santa Pod Raceway, drag strip

Santa Pod Raceway

22 Donington Park

BookaTrack.com Ltd

Full day

23 Silverstone, GP

Gold Track

105db

26 Spa Francorchamps

Curbstone Track Events

107db

27 Cadwell Park

Opentrack Track Days

27 Anglesey, Coastal circuit

BookaTrack.com Ltd

www.liverpoolmotorclub.com

27 Santa Pod Raceway, drag strip

Santa Pod Raceway

LYDDEN HILL

28 Goodwood

MGs on Track

29 Brands Hatch, Indy

Circuit Days

30 Brands Hatch, GP

BookaTrack.com Ltd

30 Oulton Park, full circuit

Javelin Trackdays

FR TRACKDAYS www.trackdays.fr GOODWOOD www.goodwood.co.uk OPL

KNOCKHILL MOTOR CLUB www.trackdays.knockhill.com LIVERPOOL MOTOR CLUB

www.lyddenracecircuit.co.uk

MGs only

MOTORSPORT EVENTS www.motorsport-events.co.uk 105db

OPL

NSX DAYS www.nsx.ch

november

Snetterton, 300

Opentrack Track Days

Bedford Autodrome, GT

Javelin Trackdays

101db

OPL

Silverstone, International

Gold Track

105db

OPL

Donington Park

BookaTrack.com Ltd

Full day

Cadwell Park, full circuit

Javelin Trackdays

www.pistenclub.de

Oulton Park

Circuit Days

PORSCHE CLUB UK

Croft

Javelin Trackdays

NÜRBURGRING NORDSCH www.ringhaus.com

105db

PEMBURY/BARC www.barc.net PISTENCLUB

OPL

www.msdpcgb.co.uk PORSCHE CLUB (BELGIUM)

8 Donington Park

RMA

Spa Francorchamps

BookaTrack.com Ltd

Anglesey, Coastal & GP

Javelin Trackdays

Bedford Autodrome, GT circuit

Gold Track

Donington Park

Circuit Days

www.silverstone.co.uk

Lydden

Lydden Hill Race Circuit

SLICK ET STOCK

Cadwell Park

Track and Tour Events Limited

www.slicketstock.eu

10 Spa Francorchamps

BookaTrack.com Ltd

THE RACING LINE

10 Silverstone, GP

Silverstone

105db

OPL

www.the-racing-line.co.uk

11 Spa Francorchamps

Curbstone Track Events

107db

OPL

THRUXTON MOTORSPORT CENTRE

11 Donington Park, National

BHP Trackdays

Unsilenced OPL

13 Brands Hatch, Indy

ClubMSV

Some Novice

16 Oulton Park, full circuit

Javelin Trackdays

105db

OPL

16 Snetterton, 300

Javelin Trackdays

105db

OPL

www.porscheclubfrancorchamps.be RACE DAYS www.racedays.co.uk 105db

SILVERSTONE CIRCUIT

www.thruxtonracing.co.uk TRACTIONDAYS www.tractiondays.co.uk TRACKSKILLS www.trackskills.com

• db = Decibels • Morn = Morning Only • Aft = Afternoon Only • Eve = Evening • ND = Noisy Day • OPL = Open Pitlane • S =Sessions • T = Chrono/Timing • RC = Road Car Only • RCN = Road Car Novice • R/T = Road & Track Trip •

Comprehensive insurance solutions for all your track day insurance requirements

+44 (0)1799 510880 info@insuremytrackday.com

Quick and competitive Track Day Insurance The first online “quote and buy” system solely for the track day user, supplied by established track day and motorsport insurance provider – Ryan Motorsport Insurance InsureMyTrackday.com can provide quotations for; • Damage to your car on a track day, regardless of fault • Any circuit in the UK and Europe, including Spa and Nürburgring Nordschleife • Inclusive cover for barrier damage at the Nordschleife • Vehicle recovery available for circuits in Great Britain • Organisers and Clubs – promotional rates and discounts • Storage and transit for vehicles and trailers To get a quotation log on to www.insuremytrackday.com and provide the required information. In most circumstances you will then be able to pay online and print off your policy documentation which will detail the full coverage in place. As well as catering for the individual track day clients we also work with track day / experience day organisers to provide discounted cover for the cars on your events and can provide the required public liability cover at a very competitive premium. Insure My Trackday is a trading name of Ryan Motorsport Insurance - an appointed representative (557405) of Independent Broking Solutions Limited who are authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority, registration number 312026

To obtain your quotation today, log on to

www.insuremytrackday.com

BRITAIN’S BEST TRACK DAYS For more information and to see our 2012 track day calendar:

Call 01327 361361 Email info@goldtrack.co.uk Visit www.goldtrack.co.uk 91

TRACKDaydiary VENUE

ORGANISER

DETAILS

november

17 Woodbridge

Javelin Trackdays

2 Mile Airfield

17 Silverstone, National

Circuit Days

22 Oulton Park, full circuit

ClubMSV

Some Novice

23 Goodwood 98db

Gold Track

OPL

24 Donington Park, National

Javelin Trackdays

30 Elvington Airfield

Javelin Trackdays

98db

OPL

30 Snetterton, 300 circuit

Gold Track

105db

OPL

30 Castle Combe

BookaTrack.com Ltd

30 Oulton Park

Track and Tour Events Limited

december

Silverstone, GP

Silverstone

105db

OPL

Snetterton, 300

Javelin Trackdays

105db

OPL

Cadwell Park, full circuit

Javelin Trackdays

VENUE

ORGANISER

DETAILS

december

Brands Hatch

Track and Tour Events Limited

Brands Hatch

MGs on Track

Brands Hatch, Indy

Opentrack Track Days,

Croft

Javelin Trackdays

105db

OPL

Castle Combe

BHP Trackdays

100db

OPL

Oulton Park, full circuit

Javelin Trackdays

105db

OPL

8 Silverstone, GP

Gold Track

105db

8 Anglesey, Coastal & GP

Javelin Trackdays

14 Bedford Autodrome, GT

Javelin Trackdays

20 Oulton Park

Circuit Days

28 Mallory Park, full circuit

Javelin Trackdays

29 Donington Park, National

Javelin Trackdays

105db

101db

OPL

95db

OPL

It’s narrow, it’s twisty... Can you drive it flat out? Try the challenge of Speed Hillclimbing at the

Gurston Down Hillclimb Drivers School

GIFT ERS VOUCH LE B AVAILA

• No experience necessary • Qualified, MSA-licensed Instructors • Helmets provided (if required) • Superb lunch and refreshments included

• Full day’s activities just £150 • “Gurston grin” guaranteed!!

• Competition Licence upgrade option available (ask when booking) Year’s top student receives a free day at the Thruxton Motorsport Centre!

Places still available on June 11th, July 9th BOOK NOW! Contact Andrew Hext on 07971 989517

2013-TD-190x133-0305.indd 1

Supported by Car & Commercial Services Member of the Association of Hillclimb and Sprint Schools Gurston Down is located in superb surroundings 9 miles south west of Salisbury, Wiltshire

Full details at

www.gurstondown.org 5/3/2013 12:26:49 PM

BHP

TrackDays Ltd

For your circuit driving experience

National Circuit

Open pit lane track day UNSILENCED 11 November 2013 Full details and booking at www.bhptrackdays.co.uk Or call on 01342 837957 Tuition and garage hire available

BHP TrackDays Ltd, 23 Rushfords, Lingfield RH7 6EG Tel

+44 (0)1342 837957

Enquiries@bhptrackdays.co.uk

Web

www.bhptrackdays.co.uk

Active Member

Lotus Cortina Race Car FIA Spec RHD 7th O/A in U2TC 2012 4 Race Series Turn Key ready to Race OIRO £40,000 1965 Lotus Cortina Race Car FIA Spec LHD-Less Engine & Box Early Shell-Superb Condition £30,000 Mk1 Cortina 2 Door shell Race prepared-can be supplied with Alloy Boot Bonnet & Doors, Cage etc. Price dependant on spec A35 Race Car Test mileage only, Goodwood spec Absolutely superb as featured in Track Driver Test

for all race rally and fast road requirements

Donington Park 2013

Xr3i Race Car Fully prepped and eligible for XR Challenge series Would also be a superb track day car £3,750 A suitable trailer could also Be available Manufacturer of the Appendix K Lotus Cortina exhaust manifold

Tel: 01922 720767 Fax: 01922 721354

For Brochure: Email: karen@ashleycompetitionexhausts.com

TestDaydiary

VENUE

Organiser

October

DEtAilS

18 Snetterton, 300 and 200 circuit

ClubMSV

23 Brands Hatch

ClubMSV

Exclusive & Gen

23 Mallory Park

Mallory Park

Morning only

24 Brands Hatch

ClubMSV

Exclusive & Gen

25 Brands Hatch

ClubMSV

Exclusive & Gen

25 Snetterton, 300 and 200 circuit

ClubMSV

27 Knockhill

Knockhill

30 Mallory Park

Mallory Park

ANGLESEY T: 01407 811 400 www.angleseycircuit.com

mALLorY PArK T: 01455 842931 www.mallorypark.co.uk

BLYToN PArK T: 01629 650 764 www.blytonpark.co.uk

PEmBrEY T: 01264 882200 www.barc.net

cASTLE comBE T: 01249 782417 www.castlecombecircuit.co.uk

rocKiNGHAm T: 01536 500500 www.rockingham.co.uk

DoNiNGToN PArK LTD T: 01332 819503 www.donington-park.co.uk

SiLvErSToNE circ LTD T: 08704 588255 www.silverstone.co.uk

GooDWooD T: 01243 755000 www.goodwood.co.uk

mSv : BrANDS HATcH cADWELL PArK ouLToN PArK SNETTErToN T: 0870 950 9000 www.motorsportvision.co.uk

Morning only

CONTACTS

november

15 Rockingham, ISSC Long

Rockingham Circuit

30 Anglesey

Anglesey Circuit,

General Testing

KNocKHiLL T: 01383 723337 www.knockhill.com

Blyton Park

£99

27th Oct

Blyton Park

£109

30 Oct

Oulton Park

£129

30th Oct

Donington Park

£149

Bedford Autodrome GT

£139

2 Nov

Blyton Park

£119

3rd Nov

Cadwell Park

£129

Croft (105dba)

£149

Anglesey GP & Coastal

£129

10 Nov

Blyton Park

£119

16th Nov

Oulton Park

£129

16 Nov

Snetterton 300

£129

17th Nov

Woodbridge

£99

Blyton Park

£119

Donington Park

£149

Oulton Park

£99

30 Nov

Bedford Autodrome

£129

30th Nov

Elvington

£99

1 Dec

Cadwell Park

£99

1st Dec

Snetterton 300

£99

Prices increase as places sell

6 Dec

Croft (105dba)

£129

Friendly Paddocks - Excellent Safety Record Online / Telephone Booking

7th Dec

Oulton Park

£95

8th Dec

Anglesey GP & Coastal

£129

Blyton Park

£99

Cadwell Park

£89

12 Dec

Snetterton 300

£89

14th Dec

Oulton Park

£89

Blyton Park

£89

Blyton Park

£99

2 Nov

7 Nov 9 Nov

VALUE FOR MONEY

CIRCUIT & AIRFIELD

TRACKDAYS

24 Nov 24 Nov 27 Nov

BOOK EARLY & SAVE

Find out for yourself why drivers keep coming back to Javelin Trackdays

Established 2000

Tel

01469 560574

or visit

www.javelintrackdays.co.uk

8 Dec 11 Dec

15 Dec 28 Dec