Will go like a scalded cat
APT Saxo- The end is....... now!
All the late nights and hours of overtime don't go unrewarded at APT. Gary has had his fun with the Evo at the recent MLR Sprint, and decided I should get some track time. So a few weeks ago, he booked me on a novice trackday with the Saxo.
Sometimes working for someone else has it's benefits.
Former APT employee Chris donated his old Sparco bucket seat for the track toy, Gary found a Saxo/106 mount kit, and with a bit of work the seat was in the day before the tracktime. In a typically lastminute.com panic at 7:30pm, we realised the original seatbelt would no longer work as the buckle was attached to the old seat. We had an old set of harnesses upstairs, but no eyelets to fix them in. Luckily Gary found some spares in his toolbox, but the problem remained with the lack of a mounting position for the left belt/eyelet. 5 minutes later, the passenger seatbelt buckle found itself on the floor and the new eyelet and belt secured in it's place.
Friday morning arrived, along with more panic. I had a torque wrench, but no suitable sockets, and no way of checking/adjusting the tyre pressures either. With early morning traffic making it an utter arse to get across town and onto the A11, and a slight toofeckingearlytobeup mood, I decided to just drive to Snett and beg/borrow if I needed them.
I reached Snett with 30 mins to spare before signing-on finished and the briefing began, so quickly dropped the tools off in another garage, got my wristband, and went to Tyrrels to wash my hands. Leaving the toilets, I found the dividing wall had been drawn and the briefing was underway. Having done 2 full trackdays before and knowing the basic procedure, I decided to satisfy my hunger for a sausage and bacon roll instead.
Time for the first session, in traditional ducks-and-drakes fashion. With the 300 being so much longer now, 20 mins at 40mph goes pretty quickly, and 3 laps later we were back in and waiting for the second car group and other two bike groups to complete their learning laps.
Finally, it was our turn again-
<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/30210753? ... portrait=0" width="640" height="480" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen allowFullScreen></iframe>
I know, Ben- it's not a GoPro. Deal with it.
As you can see, on lap 2 I encountered some dropped oil from a Lotus Elan around Hamilton, after which the session was halted while the marshalls could clean up the mess. On the restart I decided to leave the camera off as I doubted I would be pushing hard with the amount of oil that had been dumped around the in-field and under the bridge.
Session 3, pushing a little nearer the Saxo's limits. Notice how the radiator is so efficient, it takes nearly two laps before oil and water temps are high enough to rag it... until then I was short-shifting at the original red-line-
<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/30241600? ... portrait=0" width="640" height="480" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen allowFullScreen></iframe>
Yep, first component failure- the washer bottle decided to drop-out (luckily) after I finished the session, so it was quickly removed for the rest of the day.
Forgot to record the 4th session- annoying really as I was really having fun pushing the boundaries. Afterwards, I found the Driver's side wheelarch trim was lifting on the front edge. It might have stayed on ok, but the risk of it blowing off mid-session would not have made me popular, so it too was removed and left on the floor with the washer bottle.
5th and final session- I started the camera, and had an epic session, starting last in the queue and chasing down 4 cars over the time on track. Unfortunately, having left the camera running for 10 mins while sorting out the washer bottle, I had filled the 4 Gb memory card, so only a couple of laps were recorded-
[Will post in a few days as it will be over my upload limit]
So, a good day was had. The Saxo's engine behaved impeccably all day, with not a drop of oil used or spilt, and the handling was showing promise, despite not knowing what the tyre pressures were like. Stock gear ratio's seem surprisingly long, with hitting 120 on the straights with plenty of revs left on 4th, and finding 2nd gear was best used for the turn 2 hairpin, as well as giving a better 'launch' onto the front straight if used through Murrays at the end. The new Coram is "interesting" when on the limit- I found I could alter the Saxo's line with merely a lift or further prod of the throttle, and pushing hard through turn 3 could induce some TA Pirelli-style skipping to the outside kerb.
Fuel economy wasn't bad either- driving there and back, plus 100 minutes on track, only used half a tank. Must be efficient mapping in there.
Sometimes working for someone else has it's benefits.
Former APT employee Chris donated his old Sparco bucket seat for the track toy, Gary found a Saxo/106 mount kit, and with a bit of work the seat was in the day before the tracktime. In a typically lastminute.com panic at 7:30pm, we realised the original seatbelt would no longer work as the buckle was attached to the old seat. We had an old set of harnesses upstairs, but no eyelets to fix them in. Luckily Gary found some spares in his toolbox, but the problem remained with the lack of a mounting position for the left belt/eyelet. 5 minutes later, the passenger seatbelt buckle found itself on the floor and the new eyelet and belt secured in it's place.
Friday morning arrived, along with more panic. I had a torque wrench, but no suitable sockets, and no way of checking/adjusting the tyre pressures either. With early morning traffic making it an utter arse to get across town and onto the A11, and a slight toofeckingearlytobeup mood, I decided to just drive to Snett and beg/borrow if I needed them.
I reached Snett with 30 mins to spare before signing-on finished and the briefing began, so quickly dropped the tools off in another garage, got my wristband, and went to Tyrrels to wash my hands. Leaving the toilets, I found the dividing wall had been drawn and the briefing was underway. Having done 2 full trackdays before and knowing the basic procedure, I decided to satisfy my hunger for a sausage and bacon roll instead.
Time for the first session, in traditional ducks-and-drakes fashion. With the 300 being so much longer now, 20 mins at 40mph goes pretty quickly, and 3 laps later we were back in and waiting for the second car group and other two bike groups to complete their learning laps.
Finally, it was our turn again-
<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/30210753? ... portrait=0" width="640" height="480" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen allowFullScreen></iframe>
I know, Ben- it's not a GoPro. Deal with it.
As you can see, on lap 2 I encountered some dropped oil from a Lotus Elan around Hamilton, after which the session was halted while the marshalls could clean up the mess. On the restart I decided to leave the camera off as I doubted I would be pushing hard with the amount of oil that had been dumped around the in-field and under the bridge.
Session 3, pushing a little nearer the Saxo's limits. Notice how the radiator is so efficient, it takes nearly two laps before oil and water temps are high enough to rag it... until then I was short-shifting at the original red-line-
<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/30241600? ... portrait=0" width="640" height="480" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen allowFullScreen></iframe>
Yep, first component failure- the washer bottle decided to drop-out (luckily) after I finished the session, so it was quickly removed for the rest of the day.
Forgot to record the 4th session- annoying really as I was really having fun pushing the boundaries. Afterwards, I found the Driver's side wheelarch trim was lifting on the front edge. It might have stayed on ok, but the risk of it blowing off mid-session would not have made me popular, so it too was removed and left on the floor with the washer bottle.
5th and final session- I started the camera, and had an epic session, starting last in the queue and chasing down 4 cars over the time on track. Unfortunately, having left the camera running for 10 mins while sorting out the washer bottle, I had filled the 4 Gb memory card, so only a couple of laps were recorded-
[Will post in a few days as it will be over my upload limit]
So, a good day was had. The Saxo's engine behaved impeccably all day, with not a drop of oil used or spilt, and the handling was showing promise, despite not knowing what the tyre pressures were like. Stock gear ratio's seem surprisingly long, with hitting 120 on the straights with plenty of revs left on 4th, and finding 2nd gear was best used for the turn 2 hairpin, as well as giving a better 'launch' onto the front straight if used through Murrays at the end. The new Coram is "interesting" when on the limit- I found I could alter the Saxo's line with merely a lift or further prod of the throttle, and pushing hard through turn 3 could induce some TA Pirelli-style skipping to the outside kerb.
Fuel economy wasn't bad either- driving there and back, plus 100 minutes on track, only used half a tank. Must be efficient mapping in there.
Finishing off the Ford
Well done Danny. Looks like it goes pretty well. What sort of power and weight is it now to compares to my Metro?
Eddy
Eddy
Authorised trader. Bespoke & direct fit exhaust/induction solutions, silicone hose specialist, Millers oils, Whiteline, EBC + much more. Find me at http://www.fast-eddys.biz
330hp Pulsar Gti-r, 153hp Metro and 185hp Smart Car!
330hp Pulsar Gti-r, 153hp Metro and 185hp Smart Car!
