What a great run ...

 

I feel the same about my 2007. I have Larani's complete exhaust & the AM power pack, which helps. Just wish I had about 390-400 lb of torque. And maybe the V12's brakes.

 

That's great...I have yet to see a V12 on the street. I'd definitely like to do a comparison. The 4.3 really comes on full boil up top...always try to stay in the lowest gear possible to keep the revs up to give yourself the best chance, but it sounds like you held your own. In my car if I punch it in 1st I usually lose traction towards the top of the rev range, so I feel like I'm not getting the most out of it yet below 60 mph. If I punch it in 2nd at over 4000 rpm it throws me back violently...I've measured the 60-100 time in under 5 seconds in 80 degree weather...in cooler weather like we had 2 weeks ago (temps in the high 50s to low 60s) the car felt much faster...I'd imagine a 60-100 time of around 4 seconds, which matches the SLS and LFA among others.

 

If you go with a set of lightweight wheels with wider/stickier tires, you will get added torque across the power band and better braking due to the lower rotational mass and upgraded tires. In my case I combined lighter but wider wheels with bigger but lighter tires and a slightly lowered suspension...the net result is phenomenal braking and grip...makes my M3 feel like an SUV by comparison.

 

I have the 20" DBS wheels & tires. Not sure of the weight.

 

I have an '08 Vantage V8 and really like 3rd gear for passing and playing around. At 55mph in 3rd I'm right at 4000 RPM, and that means I'm at a good point in the power band and can go to nearly 100 before hitting red-line.

 

The car is definitely not a 0-60 machine. I'm not convinced gearing itself is the major reason why the car is slow off the line, although shortening the gearing would certainly help as long as there was sufficient traction.

I think that reciprocating mass (and weight overall) is a big factor, so lightweight wheels, clutch/flywheel would help. But then things that you can't change, like a lighter crankshaft, etc would probably make a big difference. I think a lot of the changes that came for 2009 were in this area.

Another factor may be cams. I think the cams are pretty aggressive for a street car, and that's why the engine is so peaky for a 4+ liter V8. Once you get 'on cam' above 4000 rpm the car really rips. That's why the higher speed acceleration is better than the low speed acceleration because you're already past the sluggish spot and the revs don't dip below 5000 rpm as long as you stay on the gas.

The stock tune is very rich, so aftermarket tunes that lean it out (like the RSC remap) or add air (filters) can gain a lot...this helps with hard acceleration where the revs are up, but doesn't do a lot down low.

I've done some timed 0-60 runs and haven't seen much improvement, mostly because of traction limitations. The car definitely FEELS faster even in that area but I'm not willing to shock the drivetrain as hard as I'd need to in order to get better times. My best run was 4.7 secs with traction control on and a lot of wheelspin and power cutoff. I think it could get to the low 4s or even high 3s but I'm not willing to abuse the car to find out. Stickier track tires would help (my next set will be along the lines of Sport Cups or Toyo R888s), and I've even thought of starting out in 2nd gear to see how that does. The 1-2 upchange is hard to hit right, and the car has enough torque to pull, so taking it out of the equation might help. Shorter gearing probably wouldn't help me since I'd just roast my tires more.

But in other areas I see big gains, and in places where it comes in handy more, like 60-100, 60-120...I ran a few times last night and got 60-100 in 4.6 seconds in 70+ degree weather, and it wasn't a clean run. I'm sure it can do a few tenths better. That's a whopping 2.6 seconds off stock magazine measured times for the 4.3 coupe, and also 1.3 seconds faster than the 4.7 and 0.4 faster than the V12. Even better, it's faster than the R8 V10 (4.8), 600 hp Viper (4.7), F430 (5.3), Z06 (4.8), GT-R (6.1), CTS-V (5.0), Ferrari California (5.2), Mercedes SL63 (5.7), and Bentley CGT (not even close). And it's just off the mark for the 997.1TT (4.4-5.4 depending on test), 458 Italia (4.2), SLS (4.2), and LFA (4.0). I can't touch cars like the LP560, or 599GTB which are well into the 3's, or the 997.2TTS which is in the high 2's. Bench racing, yes, but it gives a good idea of how the car is doing. Good company to be in, for sure.

Of course there's always something faster out there, but it's nice to see this car performing where it should...except in 0-60 where I put on good shows of tires smoke if I'm not careful.

 

For a Fast 20-60 run, or even 20-70 you want to be in 2nd gear--You'll be at 2000RPM at 20mph, but very quickly be into the higher revs, and you'll be at 70+ at redline (notice MPH vs RPM are 1:100 in 2nd gear e.g., 40mph = 4,000RPM). Going on up to 100, you'll want to shift into 3rd right at red-line (about 70mph) the RPM will drop back to about 5000 and you'll be right in the sweet spot for your run to 100. However, if you're at Highway speed say about 55 an are getting ready to pass, don't go all the way down to 2nd, because you won't be there very long before you have to shift to 3rd--Start in 3rd and enjoy it all the way to 100!

 

At what speed would you hit redline to shift into 4th?

 

Right at 100 mph.

 

Great stuff guys...

Must have been a blast playing with the V12 Vantage!

 

There are a number of threads here and elsewhere with the RSC exhaust and Quicksilver exhaust notes uploaded...

 

It sounds like you had a blast!

I think cars can be great fun when surrounded by enthusiasts that aren't jerks about their cars. This is one of reasons why I love HPDE's.

I'm glad to see you're enjoying your car. It's one of the best looking cars - ever.

 

007 Vantage...

I guess its pretty subjective about what sounds good to our "ear". With the plethora of aftermarket exhaust systems ie RPI, RSC, Larini and Quicksilver (likely others I am not aware of) relative to the market size of AM V8's the choice becomes difficult indeed with so many claims of this and that...

 

It would be interesting to see what happens down in the lower rpm (4.3) if you added about 5-7b deg. of timing. I know the ingnition curve is pretty lazy on the V8. another .7Ltr. of displacement wouldn't hurt either. Anyone figure out how to do this yet?