SteA
07-02-2006, 15:43
:wave: just got back from Oulton, and I must say, what a splendid time one had :D and for only 59 english pounds.
No messing about with tools/wheels/tyre pressures and all that malarky (even spare wheel and stuff stayed in the car), just turned up, got fed bacon sandwiches, then onto the track :nod: Staff were excellent, and because there were so many of them compared to drivers it all felt very personal, I almost felt like a very rich bloke with his own private track ;)
There were only about 13 cars on track: 911's, CTR, M3, Alpina B9 :cool: track TVR, 3 MR2 turbos, entry level caterham and me...
This was the first proper shakedown of the car since the rebuild, and considering both myself and the car were somewhat off colour last time I visited Oulton I was keen to see how everything would feel, should I have gone for the bigger turbo after all??? And those pesky Falken Fk451's, would they perform? And dont forget the only loose nut in the car :wack:
Well the car was awesome, it pretty much munched its way through most of the field repeatedly. It was excellent comparing it to the 911's and a nice surprise to out accelerate the 911 turbo on the straight several times, not to mention being faster into and more importantly out of the corners, than any of them, although thats probably the loose nut behind the wheel and cautious porche drivers coming into play :wack: And the 911 turbo had a ring sticker proudly displayed :rolleyes:
The B9 was awesome for an old, not really modded car (mainly suspension apparently, very low), the only thing that seemed to slow it down were failing brakes... with less power, it was bombing around at a similar pace to me on occasion, very impressive :notworthy
Had an excellent 2-3 laps chasing the caterham after he passed me, he had a passenger and it was one of the lowest powered caterhams you can buy, but feck did it shift :eek: On some of the corners I had to really slow for, he just carried on accelerating.... I had to cane the ass off my car just to keep him in view, although the guy did used to race mini's, so it was probably a relaxed sunday drive for him :D
The other stuff was a rolling chicane :p
Power spread was perfect for oulton, and I absolutely love having 255's on front and rear, gives the car an amazingly neutral feel that you can turn into oversteer as and when you want, but so predictably and progressively its silly. It was dry and 10 degrees ish and the Falken F451's were nothing short of amazing, even at the end of a 20 minute session they just gripped and gripped... I didnt find the limits of traction today, I thought I knew where they were, but even with deliberate provocation the worst I got was the odd gentle 4 wheel drift. In the past if I entered a tight corner too quickly, it would tend to understeer, but that doesnt appear to be an option any more. The car ran at 80-85 degrees on track, so hopefully in the summer I shouldnt have cooling issues :)
Although all was well today, I'm still wondering if I will want coilovers for the summer.... to make it that little bit stiffer and more importantly lower for track...... would have to keep height at its current level for the road though....
Feck, will I ever be satisfied :p
All in all, what a stonking, no hassle day, drive there, have fun, drive home, no effort required :thumbs:
No messing about with tools/wheels/tyre pressures and all that malarky (even spare wheel and stuff stayed in the car), just turned up, got fed bacon sandwiches, then onto the track :nod: Staff were excellent, and because there were so many of them compared to drivers it all felt very personal, I almost felt like a very rich bloke with his own private track ;)
There were only about 13 cars on track: 911's, CTR, M3, Alpina B9 :cool: track TVR, 3 MR2 turbos, entry level caterham and me...
This was the first proper shakedown of the car since the rebuild, and considering both myself and the car were somewhat off colour last time I visited Oulton I was keen to see how everything would feel, should I have gone for the bigger turbo after all??? And those pesky Falken Fk451's, would they perform? And dont forget the only loose nut in the car :wack:
Well the car was awesome, it pretty much munched its way through most of the field repeatedly. It was excellent comparing it to the 911's and a nice surprise to out accelerate the 911 turbo on the straight several times, not to mention being faster into and more importantly out of the corners, than any of them, although thats probably the loose nut behind the wheel and cautious porche drivers coming into play :wack: And the 911 turbo had a ring sticker proudly displayed :rolleyes:
The B9 was awesome for an old, not really modded car (mainly suspension apparently, very low), the only thing that seemed to slow it down were failing brakes... with less power, it was bombing around at a similar pace to me on occasion, very impressive :notworthy
Had an excellent 2-3 laps chasing the caterham after he passed me, he had a passenger and it was one of the lowest powered caterhams you can buy, but feck did it shift :eek: On some of the corners I had to really slow for, he just carried on accelerating.... I had to cane the ass off my car just to keep him in view, although the guy did used to race mini's, so it was probably a relaxed sunday drive for him :D
The other stuff was a rolling chicane :p
Power spread was perfect for oulton, and I absolutely love having 255's on front and rear, gives the car an amazingly neutral feel that you can turn into oversteer as and when you want, but so predictably and progressively its silly. It was dry and 10 degrees ish and the Falken F451's were nothing short of amazing, even at the end of a 20 minute session they just gripped and gripped... I didnt find the limits of traction today, I thought I knew where they were, but even with deliberate provocation the worst I got was the odd gentle 4 wheel drift. In the past if I entered a tight corner too quickly, it would tend to understeer, but that doesnt appear to be an option any more. The car ran at 80-85 degrees on track, so hopefully in the summer I shouldnt have cooling issues :)
Although all was well today, I'm still wondering if I will want coilovers for the summer.... to make it that little bit stiffer and more importantly lower for track...... would have to keep height at its current level for the road though....
Feck, will I ever be satisfied :p
All in all, what a stonking, no hassle day, drive there, have fun, drive home, no effort required :thumbs: