So, to Bedford we go. All ready:
I set off in torrential rain. Perfect weather for a first test of brakes and suspension. Not.
Nothing I could do about it, so I got there, signed on and went for noise testing. 96dB/97dB, the same as my noise meter I'd bought. Higher than I'd like, so I'll have to look at that again.
After drivers briefing, I went over to the pits, unpacked and went on the sighting laps.
Which immediately raised an issue. I have no demister. 2 slow laps, and I couldn't see where I was going. I need to order some RainX.
I did some brake tests, and was able to modulate well enough, but it was very slippery. This also meant I was able to test the traction control, which worked well.
I came in, wiped down the interior, and propped open the passenger side window half an inch.
Back out, and this worked well enough. I did a few laps, exploring the conditions, working out where the grip was, and where I could brake. I spent most of the day braking far too early, but wanted to drive it back on to the trailer.
First impressions.
Matt at Spires knows suspension. The car behaved exactly as I'd asked him for. It's neutral, but I can induce the rear out if I want to.
This thing is ludicrously fast. It was too fast for the conditions today. I managed 130mph at half throttle!
The bottom graph is the traction control working. That's a pull down the back straight, from second to sixth. Yes, the traction control is stepping in at 120mph in sixth over the bumps!
The traction control works really well. As it was wet, I've set it to be super restrictive. I was able to roll on to the throttle, looking for the limit of adhesion.
However, when it broke traction, instead of having to get out of the throttle again, I simply held it and let the ECU keep things under control.
Then repeat until I had to brake for the next corner.
Mid corner traction was immense. I could barely get the tyres warm, but never really felt short of lateral grip. If the rear started to go, it gave plenty of notice, and was easy to control.
The front was rock solid on turn in, and coped with the power well on corner exit. The traction control obviously helped.
I was even able to lift mid corner when someone spun in front of me, without any real drama.
Braking was a little trickier, but a large part of that is me still getting over the previous issues. The good news is the fronts now lock before the rears. A cone is testament to this.
I managed 4 good sessions this morning, and wasn't passed once. I passed quite a few others, so was happy enough with that.
I ended up leaving at lunch time to get back to the office.
I'm hoping to get to Rockingham this Sunday, as the sprint series I'm entering has it's first meeting of the year there on the 25th.
Future Plans
Redo exhaust system so that I can do some proper testing at a track day. Although I'm probably OK for most tracks now, I'd like a safety margin.
I want to do some proper driver training, so I can start to use the potential of the car, and learn more.
I need to get the cage redone, as Bill has condemned this one.
I have an SQS Shifter, which will allow clutchless upshifts in conjunction with the ECU.
If I'm also able to fit our E-Shift unit, I'll have clutchless up and down shift via paddle shifting. Otherwise I still have the MME pneumatic system, which will give me the same.