333pg333

We competed in the World Time Attack Challenge 2014 last weekend down here. I know Time Attack isn't high on the list in here but thought it might still interest a few. Here's a short video of our car going through the notorious Turn 1 at Sydney Motorsport Park. It's a 90 degree bumpy corner and if you get it wrong there are consequences. Seen a lot of cars get a wheel of the outside. Slide right and then shoot across to the inside wall followed by multiple rolls. The outside doesn't off as much respite on a wet outfield. (Don't ask me how I know).

Our car is about 2550lbs with 1/4 tank no driver. 500whp+. We are on what you guys call D.O.T. rubber (Yokohama AO50 soft) and the driver doesn't touch the brakes. Just backs off while allowing the Aero to do it's job before reapplying throttle. Unfortunately after a really good lead up year where we basically won every event and title we competed for plus broke all the lap records, we had a bunch of unforeseen issues that just killed us before we could mount any real effort. We only managed two lousy laps and they were on out of round rubber. Quite debilitating mentally afterwards but of course 'That's Racing!'

Anyway, here is my main driver Paul McKinnon going through T1 as fast or faster than some much more highly specc'd cars. A friend commented that the only reason he didn't go faster was that he's weighed down by two heavy cojones! His time of 1:31.4 in the first lap is on par with the latest 991 Cup racers and record Supercar V8 lap around there. We feel the car has a 1:29 in it now. That is not too shabby on legally available street rubber. He would have worked up to at least 140mph if we'd have had more than the 2 laps.

Cyril

impressive car and development Patrick!

Matt Romanowski

Wow. Those lap times are flyin'!

PPo

I am always amazed at the capability of the 944/951 series chassis. Well done Patrick and team! Thanks for sharing.

LuigiVampa

As David Hobbs would say, "he has large attachments."

reno808

Pat when are you going to start driving your own car?

BTW great development on the car....

David Floyd

I keep watching over and over..such a cool video of an amazing car!!

David Floyd

Lol @reno. Search my friend... Patrick does turn some impressive laps

Cory M

saw a picture of your car on speedhunters, looking good

pontifex4

You really seem to have nailed the set up! I can't remember whether your car is one of the ones running 996 rear arms -- did you do that? I'm also curious about your spring rates front to rear, if it isn't a secret. Are they roughly on the usual 0.7 ratio front/rear or is that totally out the window with all the aero?

Great work! Any in-car video?

txhokie4life

That just looks effortless -- but I know that is not the case.

I'd love to see some inside camera action to see the real magic :-)

Mike

analogmike

wow... how many Gs is that in mid corner?

333pg333

I do drive it Carlos but the lead up for this event has been long and sometimes tortuous. Paul is just younger and faster than me plus has tons more experience. So when I drive it I haven't been going 10/10ths in the attempt to bring it back to the pits in the same form that it left.

Unfortunately due to the dry sump pulley shearing in half, (being replaced by a better one on same day that Paul had to go and machine himself!) then the crank pulley shearing off from the motor hours later*, we can only surmise that there has been some top end damage. We probably have a bit of scoring on the bores due to the previous headgasket issues, so a rebuild is in sight. In which case the 16v motor is looking very tempting but a severe lack of funds will slow progress for now. Point being that I wanted to use next season to have more fun myself and we're possibly going to move to slicks for club events. Need to break more records next year!

*As an event it went down like a Hollywood script for us. We were teetering on it being a happy ending, but finished horrible instead. Despite all signs of success leading into it we were toast from before we even got there. Just didn't know it. The wrong CV's were sent by the Drive Shaft shop. So had to use backup ones that we knew would probably fail. They did. Prior to that I had both sets of new tyres heat treated and shaved. They turned out to be not round and out of balance. While they were able to balance them at the track, they were not much better. They gave us a new set of green tyres but by then we'd lost day 1. Still on the back of Paul's amazing 1st lap with no rear grip and tyres shaking his fillings out, we were still sitting in P2 over night. We thought with the new rubber we could have a crack in the Go session the next morning. This is typically where everyone has sorted their cars out, straps on new rubber, winds up the boost to 11 and goes for it. So we did the same. But coming out of that first corner Paul is struck by the blazing oil pressure lights. So he coasts to a stop and we get him back to the pits to find the dry sump pulley has sheared itself in half. We pull the front of the car off to get to it and Paul makes the decision to drive across town to his workshop and machine up a new one. An improvement on the one supplied. This through Saturday morning traffic. Some hours later he returns and we've lost another vital session. Last session is coming up very soon. We need to be out there. So they re assemble the car and we go off to get it weighed. Noticing the motor now idling high we find a 4" tear in one of the welds in the intake!!! 10 mins to go before last session for us. Paul rips the intake off and races through the crowd in his race suit looking for a vendor stand with a welder. Finds one and hurriedly seals it up and re attaches it to the motor. At this time I'm up in the control tower pleading with them to let us run in a following group. Not holding much faith I was surprised when they relented.

So out he goes for the first time since yesterday morning. Down the main straight for our chance at redemption and climb back up the leader board to ensure our place in the top 5 and make the evening's shootout session. Through T1 and the engine dies. Crank pulley shears in half. Game over!

To rub salt into the wound there was a protest on the 3rd place car which was upheld. So we were in 3rd and would make the podium on the back of our first lap of the event...except they let the guy running in 6th place join the shootout and he pipped us by 3/1000ths and we were back in 4th. Paul tried sooooo hard to make this happen. I felt bad for all of us. Motorsport can be cruel at times....

ps back in the shop we discovered the aftermarket torsion tube carrier has also buckled. Goes to show you just need to make your own stuff!!!

333pg333

INCAR:

This is our 1st lap. Even that started with a fizz before we could take to the track. Paul had the previous practice day's wrist band on and they wouldn't let him out there. He ran back to pits to find that our package had been rifled through and all the event bands were gone. So up to the tower to find someone to let him on track. Eventually it happens and out he goes. Rolls around for one lap as he felt the tyres shaking so much that he pulls into the pits to check that they'd definitely locked up all the wheel nuts just before he went out. Yup they did. So he goes out again just to try a lap. It's shaking him around and we have not much rear grip but he manages the 1:31.4 which is astounding. Note his car control. He's an ex Karting champion and went to the world titles when he was younger. It shows. What doesn't show is vibration, undulation and camber on video. I can attest to just how well he's driving on this track!

333pg333

1486ft/lb springs front and rear Charlie. Yes, Aero changes everything. We've got a bit going on under the car although not allowed to have full flat floor nor do we run a diffuser even!