"Sailing" the German boat on a small track (track action)

[ven0m]

Putting the suspension to work on our German boats. Had a fun track weekend on two smaller tracks that focus more on handling. Quite a bit of work for the 4000lbs family sedan.



And a few laps while mangling the tires. (2 for warm-up and a fast lap after the Honda let me pass)



Managed the 4th fastest lap time that day, with an Alfa 4C (street car), Peugeot 106 (racecar) and Alfa 156 (racecar) ahead of me. Killed a set of Michelin PSS over the weekend. These tires were simply amazing how much of a beating they held and they would still be drive-able for a season, hadn't I torn the sidewall structure on one of them when hitting the curbs. I have a separate set of 18" track dedicated wheels, but I had to get rid of the Michelins (too big 275/35) as I bought a new set of Pirellis (255/35). The suspension held marvellously.

Suspension setup:
- KW Clubsport Coilovers
- Hotchkis Rear sway bar (stiff setting) + rear/front 034 solid end-links
- 034 Adjustable upper control arms
- 034 Solid subframe bushings

Coliover adjustment:
Front-axle (moderate) - Rebound 6 - Bump 4
Rear-axle (moderate/hard) - Rebound 6 - Bump 2

Wheel alignment:
Front-axle: Camber -1.75° (toe slightly open; caster slightly closer to steering rack)
Rear-axle: Camber -1.4° (toe slightly open)

Brakes & Tyres:
- AP Racing 365x34 front
- JHM lightweight 322x24 rear
- Ferodo DS2500 brake pads
- HEL SS braided brake lines + Motul RBF600 brake fluid
- Michelin Pilot Super Sport 275/35 ZR19 100XL (had to kill this set as I bought the wrong dimension a few years back, they are simply to big/clumsy for our cars) + OEM rims and 12mm spacers front
- Kumho KU36 semi-slick 265/35 ZR18 96XL (track tyres) + OZ Alleggerita 18x9 et25 lightweight rims












Another track the day before




Just for picturing, as I imagine you guys in the States run completely different track cars; this was the fastest Alfa that day. A 156 shell running a 3.0 GTV n/a engine and home-made suspension with a very wide front axle for tons of mechanical grip.

[Seattle squash]

Great writeup and awesome videos, and looks like a fun day! Was hoping to see your remote lift setup at the PIT with the snowmobile battery conversion!

Hope all is well with you!


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[ssc_rs4]

Very nice!!! Looks like a ton of fun and awesome job on being the 4th fastest of the day in the family sedan!


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[OscarMeyer]

Love your posts! Always so informative!

Glad to see you putting the beast to work!

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[blubusdrvr]

Nice job Venom. Love seeing guys using these cars to their potential!

[ven0m]

Thanks guys! Whaling these boat-cars around track is something special. They are not the best performers, they get you through some traffic but any proper racecar just eats you up. But they drive like a charm; you learn to shift properly, you learn to move its weight around properly and you hold your butt & enjoy the ride! A few of the older racedrivers came to me saying that they really enjoyed driving behind me, because the car manoeuvred so elegantly that it was very easy for them to stick with my tempo, lines and brake points.

Had another trackday this weekend on a proper track! They used to drive the Euro STC 2000 series here back in the day with DTM style cars. Quite difficult track with a lot of footwork! Enjoy the ride, I gave it my best after finding "middle" grounds with the car on which lines we agree.











And we also had a few of the big boys go to quick! Complete brake failure on the EVO IX at the end of the start/finish straight. Went straight into the fence...

Great writeup and awesome videos, and looks like a fun day! Was hoping to see your remote lift setup at the PIT with the snowmobile battery conversion!

Hope all is well with you!

All good brother! I'm currently in Panama for work, so a bit closer to the US than usual. Hope you and the misses are doing fine as well!

Haha, I didn't get the chance yet to take the lift with me. I'm juggling the idea of taking it with me to a car-show next week and putting the car on the lift in the middle of the show between all the ultry-low #stancedBro cars, for a bit of a laugh.