A couple more videos from our Spring nationals event in Lincoln, Nebraska.

 

looking good!!

 

Awesome post- couldn't stop once started. Hell of a setup for auto cross- would love to see this in a road course! I'm frequently out with VID997 who has another badass build in the works. These are quite monstrous platforms and easy to tap into with the right team which you clearly have- congrats and enjoy!

 

Do you track this or just autocross?

 

The plan is to start running some track events in the fall, after we get done with the SCCA Solo II and ProSolo national championships in September. Until then we are trying to get as much autox seat time as we can. In my class (SSP) I am one of 3-4 guys that could win the year end pro solo class championship, if I can win the finale event.

I have started working on the brake cooling updates for track work - we already have PFC and Ferodo race pads. Just got done installing GT2 front fender liners and brake scoops. In the wheel well itself the fitment works perfectly.


I decided to make some quick screens too for this.


They do not fit well toward the leading edge of the bumper, there is a gap that I had to make some cover panels for.


Next will add gt2/3rs rear brake scoops to the rear control arms.

I did just finish some mesh screens for the bumper grilles.

 

Good luck in the championships!

 

Good luck Stan!

 

GL with the new track weapon…looking forward to following your story!

 

Wrapping up preparations for the Pro SOlo Finale and Solo Nationals in Lincoln Nebraska starting this weekend. The last few races have been a blur, as we struggled porpoising on the rougher courses like Mineral Wells
And then with oversteer after the last round of shock revalving.
After trying more spring and swaybar changes, and not making any forward progress, we decided just before nationals to go with the 100% solution - bigger 345 rear tires. A short test at college station showed the results we wanted, so we are ready to attack in Lincoln now.



Stocked up on E85, with a fresh corner balance and ECU tune touch up at Cobb. Also took care of some of the weathered decals and a fresh clean and polish.



We race at the Pro Solo Finale on Saturday and Sunday, and I have a mathematical chance, in my class, SSP, to take the year end points if I can win this last event. There are a few corvettes and Porsche's and Lotus's who will be working hard to prevent that. It should be quite the showdown!

 

Good luck! As a former Lotus Exige owner myself, it's great to see that a well-prepared and well driven 997TT can hold its own against the remarkably agile Lotus cars that are nearly half the curb weight. I traded my Exige for a turbo since I decided I wanted to go back to more of a compromise car that I could drive comfortably on the street and had a back seat for my kid, yet still post decent lap times at Laguna Seca and Infineon when needed.

 

keen to see how you go with the 345 tyre at the rear, what size do you run at the front?
did you try to run lower tyre pressures or soften the rear susp?
how much heavier are the 345s vs 325s?
considering the 345 setup as well for the very same reasons ...

 

Pro Solo Finale wrap up

Finally decompressed from the Pro Finale and Solo Nats trip. This year had more weather influence (rain) than any other I can remember, and also more cones hit for me and Su than any other year I remember.

We brought a new setup to the finale, our 2nd try at running 345's on the car to try to hookup better and increase mid corner Gs. We tested this briefly at A&M, but had limited runs to try to preserve the rear tires, as they would have to last through the Pro and Solo II with both drivers - more on this later.
We did some Friday practice starts to fine tune the boost off the line settings (4300 4psi now), and practiced clutch modulation techniques to control wheelspin or bog. This is key for us, as we run 4 runs back to back, and the cold tire launch always spins, 2 & 3 are solid, and 4 sometimes bogs as the motor and intercoolers heat soaks.

At the start of the Pro Finale, the car was balanced quite well, it responded well to shock setting changes, and felt on pace. I was able to get into the low 40's on the left with a bogged launch, and the top cars were in the 39's. My wife Su was also able to stay in the top 4 for the whole event.

Lots of strong competition, well prepped corvettes, a V10 R8 and an GT3RS and supercharged Lotus Elise.

The event had some operational delays, so the afternoon runs were pushed late. By the time Su ran, it had just showered heavily. So no chance for time improvement, but a good chance to test the awd in a damp setting. She tested the various modes, Sport, PSM on and off, and felt good about the car.


On Sunday morning, conditions were good, Su drove well, made some improvements, and finished 4th in her class, and also in the year end points.
I kept over driving the early sweepers by braking too late and pushing or spinning. The others in class executed much better, so deserved to finish above me. A bit dissapointed overall, but the warthog ran flawlessly, with no breakage. We are now up to over 250 launches!

Lots of Porsche representation at this race, GT3s, GT4s a plenty. I think over ten were registered in the street tire classes.


So done now for the Pro Solo, we do not run until Thursday/Friday, so lots of time to mingle with the other 1300 enthusiasts there. Lots of watching the other races, checking out the cars, cleaning up and prepping our car.
The crew from Austin arrived Sunday evening and began setting up their biergarten - they know how to bring the Texan hospitality!




Solo Nationals update to follow.....

 

This off season was time to catch up on some maintenance, and address some areas for improvements.

Because we were borderline on sound readings at some events, I planned on re-packing the mufflers with a well known packing material (Bristol Core spec31). The Kline GT2 system has rebuildable cans, just need to drill out the rivets and pull apart. The packing was actually in good shape, with just a bit of burn through, but I repacked anyway since I was in there.


The perforated tubes were re-wrapped with this fency steel wire mesh


Then new packing is stuffed into the cans around it. Looks like hippie hair.



On the engine side, our goal was to improve boost response from low engine speeds in 2nd gear. This is tough because of the lack of load against the motor. Cobb has some tuning areas we will be testing, but we also are looking at some hard parts as well.

New SRM intercoolers replacing the 997.2 units. Also added do88 inlets as well, the goal is mainly to improve flow and help boost response. These are very solid units, only time consuming part was the shortening of the hoses which took some trial and error.


Wrapping the stock headers to help retain exhaust energy and improve response.



An unplanned starter failure killed our opportunity to dyno last weekend. Boy are these ridiculously priced from Porsche. Had to source a fresh bosch unit from amazon, as no one in town had one. Love the warning sticker


Refresh of fluids to get ready for the new season. Not shown is the litre of front awd controller fluid from Porsche.


Now ready to get strapped down and shaken down.

 

I am really looking forward to seeing some more video of this beast on the track. What a cool build you have put so much effort into!

 

looking forward to the review on new parts and more vids,
considering the inlet pipes as well ...