Prep for the season *** North Weald Update***
Posted: Mon Mar 05, 2007 12:18 am
Well,
Everyone is talking about their cars at the mo, and to be honest my attention was on the GT3 and the track day which was make it or break it time for me and the car. I gave it new brakes and boots and it did me proud, so I guess I will keep it (although there are a couple of other things seriously pulling at my heart strings at the mo !!!
) for the time being, besides which it is now March and EDC is only 1MONTH away 
I havent taken any photos yet but orginally the plan was this....
Go mad - spend a fortune, particularly on some lovely HKS Step3 head kit to allow me a 9500rpm rev limit and 450bhp from a HKS GT-RS with some other bits on the engine. We also needed a new rollcage to comply with this years regs and whilst at it we thought a major revamp of setup would be good.
However,
As some here know, my main business hasnt been doing too well lately, and with the purchase of the Porsche and what with the other cars money has been pretty tight for me. To the extent that gradually all of the above had been sidelined. At Christmas I was even concerned I wouldnt be able to afford the new rollcage as it was rather high spec and that a compromise solution may be needed.
Fortunately events have unfolded to allow some of the original plan to go ahead, with some slightly different ideas coming through too.
Basically the car is in small pieces right now, about to get smaller and the following should be done in the next 3-4weeks.....
New "Full Monty" rollcage by GBH's secret weapon. This will also increase the rigidity of the car by at least 100%. It will also include external jacking point system so I dont have to worry about getting the jack dead right on the rear diff (the only part of the car I can currently get the lowest jack money can buy underneath !!!! ) It will also mean I can jack the front of the car up as well which is currently impossible without ramps. The new cage will also allow me to have a safer mounting for my harness than it currently does and we will be welding in extra mounts so 5/6point harness can be used in future if required. The additional rigidity will particularly influence the strut tops and suspension mounts which even with braces front and rear experience some movement.
Weight reduction - I originally hoped that a few carbon goodies would find their way onto the car and it would go on a severe diet over winter. This couldnt happen as I couldnt afford to replace any bits we took off, however we have now taken the plunge and decided to strip any parts we can within reason that are left to try and get a halfway house ready for new parts perhaps later in the year. My original target weight of 1000kg's with a 1/2 tank of fuel is now 1100kg's which will still be almost 100kg's lighter than it is currently - 1195 will full tank. There is a fair bit of metal that can come out from inside still, and some of my last remaining creature comforts will be going as even when the new drift car arrives later in the year the Orange will still be used at events, and will ultimately become a track weapon as well, possibly running in Time Attack or some other series. The strength of the new cage also allows us to do some slightly more radical weight savings if we wish as basically the car will be self supporting without so much reliance on bracing of the monocoque.
I hope to get a lightweight bonnet as my only "expensive" item, as currently this is standard and weighs a fair bit and I am paranoid about taking too much weight out of the rear of the car and upsetting its balance. Probably a moot point with a lump like me as a driver, but at least i know this is the "proper" way to do it !!!
The biggest deficiency with the current spec is that the rest of the guys were faster than me to begin with, got quicker as the season progressed - although we did catch up a fair bit - but over winter I know that quite a lot of them are going all out this year. The only way I can increase my corner speed is through grip. I realise some people may think this is irrelevent in a Drift car, but i promise you its not. We are basically taking the same racing line you would for grip type driving but are simply sideways whilst doing it, we still need a similar amount of grip to get us round the corner, its just we sacrifice some as smoke/noise/and heat !!! To this end I have to get wider rubber on the back end as the strecthed, relatively narow 215's I use now just wont cut it. This also means a slight alteration to geometry and suspension, but it will also mean that my most hated thing - understeer - will return. As a result I will need more extreme geometry up front and wider tyres here too to maximise grip, its a constant battle !!! With all this extra grip I will also need more grunt to get the car spinning up properly, as well as the fact I should be in the next gear up - usually 4th whilst in mid drift. This means basically the whole Power>Grip>Control trianlge needs to be raised up a couple of notches.
I have mentioned most the things that we are doing for grip and control above, as for power then it will simply be a matter of winding some more boost out the turbo, however at that point I dont want the engine to be unreliable, and I also want a bit more crispness from response. Soooo HKS pistins, trick rods and a very trick knife edged crank will be used to make rotating masses as low as possible, whilst increasing strength and should allow more power and boost. Head mods, a steel gasket and some GBH magic should also help gain torque, revviness and overall power. I may well do something with the exhaust which I keep getting marked down for as it is so quiet judges assume I am not on the gas when i am, so a slightly louder note maybe required, although this is ultimately dependent on how mint my new last year Apexi GT exhaust is, I dont want to cut a box out of such an expensive item really !!!
The other few bits a merely doing things that need doing - my wings are both cracked so they are getting sorted, the splitter is toast so thats getting replaced, generally it will have a tidy up and of course the power wouldnt be complete without a remap from the experts at Abbey.
Im sure I have forgatten bits, and if im not online as much as previously then it will be because Im down the workshop more.
Lastly, I know this is cheeky, and everyone wants help, but if you know of any companies that you think would spnsor me for the season then I would be eternally grateful for any assistance. Its a cheap form of racing, but it is getting more competitive and therefore expensive. I was in at least one magazine pretty much every month last year, and I have already had a full feature this year in Banzai and am in the current issue of Redline, so the advertising space on the car does have some value !!!
I will update this thread with pics and news as it happens.
Cheers for reading,
James.
Everyone is talking about their cars at the mo, and to be honest my attention was on the GT3 and the track day which was make it or break it time for me and the car. I gave it new brakes and boots and it did me proud, so I guess I will keep it (although there are a couple of other things seriously pulling at my heart strings at the mo !!!
) for the time being, besides which it is now March and EDC is only 1MONTH away I havent taken any photos yet but orginally the plan was this....
Go mad - spend a fortune, particularly on some lovely HKS Step3 head kit to allow me a 9500rpm rev limit and 450bhp from a HKS GT-RS with some other bits on the engine. We also needed a new rollcage to comply with this years regs and whilst at it we thought a major revamp of setup would be good.
However,
As some here know, my main business hasnt been doing too well lately, and with the purchase of the Porsche and what with the other cars money has been pretty tight for me. To the extent that gradually all of the above had been sidelined. At Christmas I was even concerned I wouldnt be able to afford the new rollcage as it was rather high spec and that a compromise solution may be needed.
Fortunately events have unfolded to allow some of the original plan to go ahead, with some slightly different ideas coming through too.
Basically the car is in small pieces right now, about to get smaller and the following should be done in the next 3-4weeks.....
New "Full Monty" rollcage by GBH's secret weapon. This will also increase the rigidity of the car by at least 100%. It will also include external jacking point system so I dont have to worry about getting the jack dead right on the rear diff (the only part of the car I can currently get the lowest jack money can buy underneath !!!! ) It will also mean I can jack the front of the car up as well which is currently impossible without ramps. The new cage will also allow me to have a safer mounting for my harness than it currently does and we will be welding in extra mounts so 5/6point harness can be used in future if required. The additional rigidity will particularly influence the strut tops and suspension mounts which even with braces front and rear experience some movement.
Weight reduction - I originally hoped that a few carbon goodies would find their way onto the car and it would go on a severe diet over winter. This couldnt happen as I couldnt afford to replace any bits we took off, however we have now taken the plunge and decided to strip any parts we can within reason that are left to try and get a halfway house ready for new parts perhaps later in the year. My original target weight of 1000kg's with a 1/2 tank of fuel is now 1100kg's which will still be almost 100kg's lighter than it is currently - 1195 will full tank. There is a fair bit of metal that can come out from inside still, and some of my last remaining creature comforts will be going as even when the new drift car arrives later in the year the Orange will still be used at events, and will ultimately become a track weapon as well, possibly running in Time Attack or some other series. The strength of the new cage also allows us to do some slightly more radical weight savings if we wish as basically the car will be self supporting without so much reliance on bracing of the monocoque.
I hope to get a lightweight bonnet as my only "expensive" item, as currently this is standard and weighs a fair bit and I am paranoid about taking too much weight out of the rear of the car and upsetting its balance. Probably a moot point with a lump like me as a driver, but at least i know this is the "proper" way to do it !!!
The biggest deficiency with the current spec is that the rest of the guys were faster than me to begin with, got quicker as the season progressed - although we did catch up a fair bit - but over winter I know that quite a lot of them are going all out this year. The only way I can increase my corner speed is through grip. I realise some people may think this is irrelevent in a Drift car, but i promise you its not. We are basically taking the same racing line you would for grip type driving but are simply sideways whilst doing it, we still need a similar amount of grip to get us round the corner, its just we sacrifice some as smoke/noise/and heat !!! To this end I have to get wider rubber on the back end as the strecthed, relatively narow 215's I use now just wont cut it. This also means a slight alteration to geometry and suspension, but it will also mean that my most hated thing - understeer - will return. As a result I will need more extreme geometry up front and wider tyres here too to maximise grip, its a constant battle !!! With all this extra grip I will also need more grunt to get the car spinning up properly, as well as the fact I should be in the next gear up - usually 4th whilst in mid drift. This means basically the whole Power>Grip>Control trianlge needs to be raised up a couple of notches.
I have mentioned most the things that we are doing for grip and control above, as for power then it will simply be a matter of winding some more boost out the turbo, however at that point I dont want the engine to be unreliable, and I also want a bit more crispness from response. Soooo HKS pistins, trick rods and a very trick knife edged crank will be used to make rotating masses as low as possible, whilst increasing strength and should allow more power and boost. Head mods, a steel gasket and some GBH magic should also help gain torque, revviness and overall power. I may well do something with the exhaust which I keep getting marked down for as it is so quiet judges assume I am not on the gas when i am, so a slightly louder note maybe required, although this is ultimately dependent on how mint my new last year Apexi GT exhaust is, I dont want to cut a box out of such an expensive item really !!!
The other few bits a merely doing things that need doing - my wings are both cracked so they are getting sorted, the splitter is toast so thats getting replaced, generally it will have a tidy up and of course the power wouldnt be complete without a remap from the experts at Abbey.
Im sure I have forgatten bits, and if im not online as much as previously then it will be because Im down the workshop more.
Lastly, I know this is cheeky, and everyone wants help, but if you know of any companies that you think would spnsor me for the season then I would be eternally grateful for any assistance. Its a cheap form of racing, but it is getting more competitive and therefore expensive. I was in at least one magazine pretty much every month last year, and I have already had a full feature this year in Banzai and am in the current issue of Redline, so the advertising space on the car does have some value !!!
I will update this thread with pics and news as it happens.
Cheers for reading,
James.
.......it's a massive commitment in the wallet and the heart, so the best of british to you 