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Trackday Writeup – Thunderhill – Jan 16 2005
This was an SCCA High Performance Driving School, they have 3-4 per year at this track. At $195 for a full day of driving, instruction, lunch, T-shirt, this is a great value for track time at a very nice facility in Northern CA.
I was instructing for the day because the SPG is not ready for a full-blown track session. Actually it’s in several piles of parts right now waiting for various coatings, mods, and general assembly. Anyhow, my wife Laurie was driving our new 9-3 Aero. A couple years ago she ran in the same school with our 1998 900SE Turbo (sold), so with the new car she was able to pick up where she left off and really get some speed out there!
Laurie was in B group (A=novice, B=novice/int, C=expert) and ran the 1.6 mile “East” loop twice in the morning. This is a short 7-turn course basically for warmup and practice. There was a cone chicane constructed at the end of the main straight to slow people down and prevent drivers from stuffing their cars into Turn 1 (100mph+ is a normal race speed in Turn 1). In the afternoon they opened up the whole track which is 3 miles and 15 turns. This came with yet another chicane to protect drivers from stuffing it in Turn 7, which is another 100+ turn connecting the East and West loops. With the full course there was a lot more room for cars to spread out, plus there were 3 passing zones (2 straights and a near-straight), which helps keep traffic from getting jammed up.
Instructors are mandatory for all Group A and B students, but there are not instructor/student assignments, so every session you get a new instructor and a new opinion of your driving! My student cars included a modified Miata, stock Mustang GT, Saab 9-3ss Aero (twice), Porsche Carerra 4S, a Group C Corvette (holy crap those things have TORQUE), and my all-time absolute FAVORITE CAR EVER, the new Lotus Elise, with Touring and Sport Package. Out on the track this thing was a gem…handling, balance, gobs of traction, coupled with hard pulling acceleration from 4000rpms and up! Too bad that there was an A student behind the wheel…I wanted to have a go with that myself!
I wrapped up the day with a session in the Aero, this time me driving and Laurie in the passenger seat. I ran about 6 laps with the stability control (ESP) engaged, and 1 lap without. I found that if you keep the throttle on (at least halfway) then the ESP works but doesn’t hurt the cornering or speed too badly. If you are hesitating on the throttle or even tap the brakes, the system comes alive and really puts the hammer down on your fun. Best to stay aggressive or it thinks you are panicking! So in the less-active mode it probably cuts engine power up to 10-15% and is constantly cycling the ABS on various wheels like RR or LR to try and keep the car’s direction appropriate. I think the ESP helped defeat understeer in quick transitions, while the rear-steer geometry prevents understeer in long corners where the chassis has time to roll & settle. The ABS limits were reasonably high (as in, it doesn’t start cycling until the wheel is actually locking up) and the brakes got a little soft at the pedal but stayed 100% functional the whole time, which beats the ng900/9-3 by a long shot. With the ESP switched off, everything felt very smooth from the driver’s seat. The ABS stays active but only on braking. The chassis is very composed and solid feeling, and still has that wonderful rear-steering effect, which works great but you have to be careful if you are on the brakes + turning because you can get too much rear steer when the rear end is light.
Overall an excellent car: it performed at a high level all day with zero issues/problems. If I was prepping it for track duty I’d only change a few things: interior removal could probably shed 300-400 pounds, BSR PPC for more power, set of track wheels and slicks, stiffer springs maybe 1” lower and stiffer/adjustable shocks. As it was in totally stock trim, Laurie had no problems chasing down those pesky Porshes, Mustangs, and VWs and getting the courtesy “point-by” on the straights for passing.
NEXT SCHOOL IS FEBRUARY 6TH…LET ME KNOW IF YOU ARE THINKING OF TRYING IT!!!
posted by 65.78.13...
, Mon, 17 Jan 2005 19:20:02
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