Old fart going mad again
Turbo Mini Forums

Sounds like a good day out! :)

My build thread..

http://www.turbominis.co.uk/forums/index.php?p=vt&tid=542985

Great stuff David, keep flying the flag for the old farts!

'Where does the engine go?'

OK now episode 4 - Oulton
Lovely sunny day and dry track so whoopeee !
And I did not spin, not even once.
Was in company with two very good racer friends who brought along the racing A35 you may have heard me mention. Only two of us were driving as Tom was saving himself for the meeting at Silverstone next Sunday, racing the V8 Sierra in which he set pole at Snetterton two weeks ago, won his class and was second overall.
The A35 owner suggested that we swop cars, which made me a bit worried as I have not driven a "proper" racer and I would only be the third person allowed to drive after the owners. Did a bit of familiarisation in the paddock and on some of the roads around the paddock and decided, despite the comment "you bend it you mend it" decided to venture out. Despite covering brake an accel with the same foot and having to take the escape lane as a result I really had a lot of fun. Overtook two Porsches (slow drivers, natch) and arrived at Druids after a late overtake a touch too quick for the owner, who was sitting beside me, but a bit of heavy braking and some luck and we got round. All credit to the car, not me. It really is an incredible tool.

Getting back into the Mazda was a bit of an anticlimax after that but, with more coaching from my friends, I got my new Mintex 1144s smoking and blued the discs as well as taking an awful lot out of the tyres. When I was taken round in my own car it was a real eye opener with it moving around a lot, all under complete control from a very experienced racer.

Best track day yet

Excellent. From the videos you've show us of the A35 racer, I bet it was great fun.

You're lucky to get a dry day. It's been hail, then sun then back to hail every couple of hours here.

In the 13's at last!.. Just

I travelled back down the M6 in a snowstorm ! All the fields and even the hard shoulder was white !

It,s not pleasant sitting that low down in the spray for 100 miles.

Like you say. At least you got a dry days racing in before the weather closed in.

In the 13's at last!.. Just

can't beat a bit of snow in the mazda

Episode 5.

Bit of a gap since last time but have been doing things with the A35,

Decided to have a day out at Castle Combe, which I last drove(in the A35) about 10 years ago.

Nice dry track and a warm day (too warm for me in the car after 6-8 laps)

Only 8 cars allowed on track at a time (noise control ?) so even although it was open pit lane there were often quite long queues.

As usual started off a bit slow and inconsistent but learned the track quite quickly and by the afternoon I was really getting the hang of it, There were three A30/35 racers there, preparing for the race meeting there in three weeks time but I only managed to get out with one of them in my sights. I overtook, and I think he let me do that, but then I found it quite difficult to shake him off. Difference between a race driver and an old fart I suppose.

I had the benefit of coaching once again from my friend mentioned in previous episodes and his best tip was to drop the tyre pressures. I measured the dynamic pressures (hot pressures) at around 30 psi (Cold, standard pressure is 26psi) I dropped 6psi off the each wheel and the difference was quite marked with no more peeling off of the tread and a much more stable feel on turn in.
Quarry no longer bothers me even although I struggle with understeer to make the apex. Tower and the next chicane I think I have nailed and Camp just gets better and better the faster you go.

Next out at Snetterton again next month and then I plan to give Mallory a go in August

im off to castle Combe on the 15th. Looking forward to it.

So what was your cold pressure in the end? 20psi? Seems really low!

I drove home with the same tyre pressures so I need to check them this morning to see what the cold pressures are. As you say, if they turn out to be 20 psi that does sound low. However, the tyres are slightly oversize (205 instead of 195) so would normally need a little less pressure.The theory offered to me is that the tread shuffle on high pressures causes the tread wear and the lower pressure allow the tyre walls to flex, leaving the contact patch in better contact with the surface. Sounds feasible and experiment seems to prove it. When I was doing trackdays on bikes it was normal to drop a huge amount of pressure and the bike felt horrible until they warmed up.

I run my A35 on the road with 19 front and 21 rear on 165/65x13 tyres, but that is mostly to try and damp out the inherent instability !!

Checked those cold pressures - 22.5 psi,so not quite as low as suspected. Of course the difference between two sets of hot pressures will not be the same as the difference between hot and cold.

Snetterton today and very hot so tyres got a bit hot and bothered. Made the mistake of getting offline to let things like Radicals and GT3, go past so picked up a lot of rubber which unbalanced the wheels and gave a lot of vibration. Nevertheless got about 30 laps in before the very early (5.25 a.m.)start and the heat got to me and I called it a day at about 3.00 p.m. to the great disappointment of my racer friend who was coaching me.

I went to Castle Combe as a spectator last Saturday as well as the previous trackday there and was at Snetterton last Wednesday as pit support for the V8 Sierra on another trackday, just settling it down after repairs from the Silverstone crash in prep for the race meeting at Brands this Saturday Hardly time to get the A35 sorted for the Silverstone Classic !!

Long interval since I last posted, but the Honda S2000 mentioned in another thread has now been blooded.

Snetterton last Wednesday on a lovely clear sunny day.

Needed to get acclimatised to the car before doing anything silly and did not spin all day !

Once again I had the benefit of a coaching friend which was invaluable. My biggest fault is inconsistency in that I can get all the corners right but not all on the same lap.

However I was reaching about 115mph on the Bentley straight (25mph up on the MX5) and, with a lot of encouragement, was braking at 140 yards. Even then I am sure with bigger balls I could get down to 100 yards. Got Coram sorted and was able to overtake round the outside.Agostini is still a bogey corner for me as I usually arrive too fast and leave too slowly !

Dropped tyre pressures 7 pounds (25psi cold cf 32psi normal) and this made the back end a lot less skittish.

As soon as I moved the car after the lunch break there was a terrible grinding from the OSR - brake pad down to the metal.
These were new pads less than 500 miles old and new calipers too. Only the outer pad on one side went, and I suspect the material had parted company from the backing plate.

Drove home via A11, M11 and M25 and managed to not touch the brakes until I turned off the M25 at Chorley Wood.

All new rear discs and pads now fitted and looking to fit Mintex 1144,s as soon as they arrive.

Roll on next trackday !

Lucky you noticed when you did. Could have ended worse on the track

Honda tucked away now as they have started spreading salt so I have bought a slightly sad looking MX5.

Supercharged engine, roll cage, full set of Gaz coilovers aftermarket exhaust,7" wheels etc etc.

It is MOt,d so I can use it on the road and it will be going on track asap after I have given it a good checkover.

Ooo sounds good get some pics up, even tho 'sad looking' i bet it was still a pretty penny, they seamed to have gone up in price again especially charged ones

Nipped out between downpours and got these.

Do you like the registration ?
http://s302.photobucket.com/user/tadge44/m...2806_1.jpg.html
http://s302.photobucket.com/user/tadge44/m...2804_1.jpg.html
http://s302.photobucket.com/user/tadge44/m...0_2805.jpg.html

doesn't look too bad to me

Photos never tell the whole truth. Interior is bit shabby and there is some rust bubbling on both rear arches. Sills have been done, as has the front chassis extensions - a very common rust spot.

Rust stains in the engine bay are from a struck thermostat a while ago. No overheating on an extended test drive - it also has an oversize alloy rad.

It will look a lot better under the bonnet when I have had a go at cleaning it all up.

nice.

Medusa + injection = too much torque for the dyno ..https://youtu.be/qg5o0_tJxYM

Long time since I posted on this subject but much has happened. The charged MX5 seemed a bit fragile, engine wise, with a very crude method of maintaining mixture strength as boost came on - just increasing fuel pressure by reference to boost. I suspected it would not survive track use even though it was VERY fast on the road. I also found that I had to re-do all the welded repairs to the chassis members and sills as they were very poorly done. All this took time and I then sold it !

Since then I have bought two more MX5,s (they are like a drug !) !One is a very low mileage Mk 3 with the 2 litre Duratec engine kept for Sunday best and the other is a bog standard Sport model with the LSD, bigger discs, Bilsteins 6 speeds etc but 100k on the clock and NO RUST !!

This is my present trackday car, trailered to Cadwell, Snetterton (rained all day) and Oulton all in the last 4 weeks.

The wet day was good training for a damp start at Oulton, my all time favourite track, but it dried out and the sun shone all afternoon yesterday. Had the best day of my life on track and did 187 miles altogether.

With the three events so close together I felt very at home and also, for the first time, felt I was starting to get the hang of some high speed driving. I found that I was quickest round Old Hall and Cascades in fourth rather than third as the down change unsettled the car( and me ) but third gear and full bore around the hairpin making best use of the steep camber felt fabulous.
I,m probably boring you now but you can tell I am really enjoying growing old quite disgracefully

Yesterday was my first time out at Thruxton with the MX5. I had read how fast it is and how hard it can be on tyres but was still surprised. On most circuits te MX5 struggles to get to 100mph but at Thruxton it happens several times per lap. Church corner is one where the deal is to try and do it flat, With just myself in the car I worked up to a 100mph entry speed with just a little lift before, and got round.BUT !! on the next session, with a 100kg passenger (!) I tried the same and spun twice across the track, on and off the grass and finished up at least facing the right way.My passenger, a racer of 45 years experience, said he has never travelled backwards that fast.

Went out afterwards and the NSF felt a bit uncertain so came in for look. Not only was the tyre comprehensively shagged but the tread was delaminating . Those Yoko A048,s do grip well but they don,t last long.

Ho hum new set of tyres then, after four trackdays.

After the Thruxton debacle last year I got the offer at £100 to go to an "experience" day there, driving a Cayman and a single seater. I also had some conducted laps in a Skoda VRS which was an eye opener as the car was totally bog standard and on standard road tyres but was being drifted everywhere - and 100 mph round Church, 4 up, was no problem. Puts into context the gulf between me and a racing driver.
Anyway, three laps driving a Cayman with an instructor telling me to slow down and on top the single seater.I could not fit into the open wheeled Formula Renault ( I am BFB size) but was let loose on a Formula 2000 Tiga chassis with enclose bodywork. First experience of single seater with rifle bolt gearbox tiny steering wheel and instant responses but within half a lap I was really enjoying myself. Downside was a 4500 rpm rev limit with a soft limiter so I was on the limiter most of the time. Apparently 4.5K in top is just about 100mph and that, round Church was totally without drama. Bogey laid to rest then ? Most frustrating was closing on lots of exotica being driven by numpties spending their Christmas presents but them being able to leave me for dead on the straights.
Sun shone all day but I was done by 11.30 so back home, Tescos and treated the missus to a lunch out.
First trackday of 2018 in the MX5 next month which will probably feel very tame now.

sounds like a good outing

More nonsense.

Visited Blyton Park today for the first time as the racing Sierra was on a shakedown run after a comprehensive series of modifications over the winter, and had intended to take the MX5. However, with a 4.00 a.m. start I chickened and just took the Kuga. Did about 15 laps in it and it was entertaining but not very fast. Did not do any more because the brakes got very smelly hauling up nearly two tons repeatedly.

Finished off with a very high speed tour in the revitalised |Sierra which will be out at Snetterton on 8 April racing in the Future Classics .