january 2009 preview
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Preview of the printed Track & Race Cars Magazine, Issue 57TRANSCRIPT
LOTUS 211 GT4WE TRACK TEST THE LATEST LOTUS & IT’S A KTM KILLER
JANUARY 2009/ISSUE 57/£3.99
NEW!CLASSIFIED
RACE CARS FOR SALETIN TOPS, SINGLE SEATERS, SPORTSCARS, PARTS & MORE… RALLY RIDE
RIDING SHOTGUN WITH MOTO GP STAR LORIS CAPIROSSI
TECHRACING SECRETS BEHIND SPHERICAL BEARINGS
FRESH GEARTHE LATEST NEW PRODUCTS TESTED
TECHNIQUELEARN HOW TO HEEL & TOE LIKE A PRO
TRACK DAYSTHE LATEST TRACK & TEST DIARY DATES
THE ESSENTIAL MOTORSPORT MONTHLY - WRITTEN BY THE RACERS FOR THE RACERS
NEW YEARNEW LOOK
TAKE A TOUR…
SPORT
TRACK
12 ROUGH GUIDEOur series of quick fire guides to kick starting a motor sport hobby continues. This month: Karting
14 LOTUS 211 GT4Behind the wheel of the car KTM and its X-Bow have nightmares about: the rapid Lotus 211 GT4.
21 BIRKETT RELAYJohn Hayman reports back on the relay race with a difference and describes how not to arrive in style…
28 SWIFT SPORT CUPRiding shotgun with Loris Capirossi in a Suzuki Swift Cup rally car while chatting about drifting. Bizarre?
35 MARSHAL LAWThe Editor spends the day enthusiastically waving flags with the Castle Combe Circuit marshals
95 CLASSIFIEDPick up a bargain inside the all-new classified section. Single seaters, tin tops, sports and saloons plus more
CONTENTS / JANUARY 200914
21
35
TECH
TEACH
4 TRCMAGAZINE.COM - JANUARY 2009
7 NEWSAll the latest paddock gossip
55 TRACK PREPARE……A Mazda MX-5 on a budget
85 TRACK & TEST DAY DIARYAll the latest track and test dates
55 SPHERICAL JOINTSImprove steering wheel feedback
70 NISSAN 200SX BUILDOur new track day hack explained
76 NEW PRODUCTSTesting the latest gear
41 HEEL & TOETop driving tips from the experts
45 POSITIVE, MENTAL…Mentally prepare before racing
50 SNETTERTON GUIDE Part two of our circuit guide
Visit us online for updates on what’s coming up in the next issue:
www.trcmagazine.com
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WELCOME TO / TRC MAGAZINE
H ello and welcome to a fresh new year. As you can see it clearly states in the top left hand corner of this spread that it is officially 2009… Well almost. As ever this edition will hopefully see you in good health over the Christmas - sorry - Festive Holidays. I hope Mr Christmas brings you everything you want.
As you may have noticed we have decided to give the magazine a facelift for the exciting season ahead and introduced a few new features along the way, too. From now on the magazine is broken up into four main categories, Sport - for motorsport - Track - for track days - Tech - for, erm, technical stories - and Teach - for the section we hope lends a helping hand for you to develop as a driver.
We’ve also extended our New Product pages to include more of the stuff you like, which seems to be testing them to destruction. Throughout the year we’ll certainly try our best. Another story you must keep an eye out for every month is our track day preparation guides on the key cars we can all afford. We kick start the series on the wonderfully cheap Mazda MX-5 over on page 55. Enjoy.
Keith Wood
Editor
ISSUE 57
Roberto GiordanelliEuro Correspondent
New Year Resolution?
To blag that Lamborghini Trofeo drive (and to not forget to invite the Editor while doing so ~ Ed)
Andrew BrownPhotographer
New Year Resolution?
To not buy another Alfa Romeo until the others have rusted away to a small pile of dust (won’t be long… ~ JH)
John HaymanSpecial Correspondent
New Year Resolution?
To squeeze into that blasted FreeM race suit I managed to shrink by putting it in the tumble dryer for a tad too long
Tom SaundersAd Manager
New Year Resolution?
To jump in more passenger seats of the cars we feature (reluctant after watching Hayman drive? ~ AB)
TEAM TRC
PublishingFounding Directors: Keith Wood, Andrew Brown
Printing & Distribution: Warners Group Publications Plc, West Street, Bourne, Lincolnshire, PE10 9PH
Special thanks to: Matt and the gang at Bruntingthorpe for putting up with the Punto (and now another one too)
for far longer than Keith originally promised…
EnquiriesEditorial: P1 Media Ltd,
194a Upper Richmond Road West, London, SW14 8ANTelephone: 020 8296 5467 Fax: 020 8240 8901
Email: [email protected] Website: www.trcmagazine.com
Editorial Assistant: Michael Wood
AdvertisingAdvertising Manager: Tom Saunders
Telephone: 020 8395 2653Email: [email protected]
SubscriptionsTelephone: 01778 392481
Online: www.trcmagazine.com
Pit Stop© 2008 P1 Media Ltd ISSN:1742193
Track & Race Cars Magazine is published twelve times a year by P1 Media Ltd. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without prior written consent of the publishers is strictly prohibited. While every effort is made in compiling Track & Race Cars, the publishers
cannot be held responsible for errors or omissions. All prices correct at time of going to press but subject to
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Independence Track & Race Cars Magazine is lovingly published every
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It is entirely independent. And we speak as we find… The opinions of our contributors are not connected with
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5JANUARY 2009 - TRCMAGAZINE.COM
123
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14
SPORT / Lotus 211 GT4
Above: We were the first magazine to test the GT4 spoe Lotus 211 and although the weather conditions were cold and wet, the experience was still awe inspiring
When the FIA finally acknowledged light weight sports cars to be included among the frantic fight for European GT4 honours it looked as though KTM’s X-Bow was the only challenger for the title. Until Lotus arrived…
Dver since a Caterham
won its class at
the legendary
Nürburgring 24-hour
race back in 2002, the
small light weight sports car category
has predominantly been banned from
any of the major racing events across
the globe and forced to create their
own one-make formulas. But although
these creations have been booted off the
world stage it has done little to stunt the
continued growth and development of
these wonderful creations that swamp
our track days here in the UK.
So when news filtered from the
FIA that the 2008 FIA European GT4
Championship (effectively a Group
N road legal sports car class) would
also welcome a ‘light’ category it was
welcomed with open arms, even if it did
surprisingly coincide with the launch
of the KTM X-Bow… Tongue in cheek
maybe but this meant that not only did
KTM have a world stage to promote
its all-new four-wheel venture onto, it
also opened the door for other, more
established manufacturers.
The inaugural Sports Light race would
take place at Silverstone and although
a private entry Lotus 211 did make an
appearance it didn’t take the start of
either of the races and duly handed the
first ever victory to the pair of X-Bow
cars entered by Reiter Engineering.
In fact it wasn’t until rounds seven to
nine at Oschersleben that the Sports
Light category actually started to take
shape. Before then it was just two KTMs
following each other around. Until Lotus
bravely took on the challenge and
wheeled out its cost effective GT4 Sports
Light competitor; the 211.
Pronounced two eleven - for those who
may not have read TRC’s previous track
tests on the car before - the wild road
legal open topped sports car first burst
onto the scene in the shape of the
KTMKILLER
TRCMAGAZINE.COM - JANUARY 2009
Photography: Andrew Brown
15
LOTUS 211
‘Circuit Car’, a concept built in just 11
weeks to celebrate the centenary of
the Shelsley Walsh Hillclimb in 2005. It
then eventually launched after much
anticipation early in 2007 and utilised
its engine partnership with Toyota by
using the supercharged 1.8-litre 2ZZ-GE
engine. Weighing an emaciated 745kg
with a power figure of 252bhp the 211
was, as you may have expected, quick.
Fast and slow turn in was razor sharp,
the accelerator pedal was beautifully
weighted for pin sharp accuracy
(particularly handy as our day was wet)
and the driving aids (traction control
and launch control) a worthy addition
rather than an annoying hindrance. After
my drive alongside my fellow motoring
hacks on the launch at the Lotus HQ in
Hethel I was suitably impressed and I
wasn’t alone. Extra laps were requested
by us all, in fact I’ve never seen a bunch
of Journos slurp fine cups of coffee
quicker or skip chocolate digestives in a
bid to jump the queue.
Even though a track day special kit
(without lights, catalytic converter etc)
JANUARY 2009 - TRCMAGAZINE.COM
Above: Even though this is an International GT4 Super Light challenger it still uses the majority of components off the road car
28
SPORT / Suzuki Swift Cup
Above: The Ed gets a taste of rallying from a MotoGP rider who rubs shoulders with the GOAT, aka: Valentino Rossi. It doesn’t get much better than this…
It takes quite a driver to
massage my nerves and
coaxes me into the passenger
seat but when I got the call
from Suzuki with the invitation
to ride shotgun with Loris Capirossi
how could I say no? As well as the
associated perks of sampling Suzuki’s
Swift Sport Cup - the only car that
competes within a manufacturer backed
UK rally championship - I wasn’t going
to miss the chance to sit alongside a
three times motorcycle World Champion
even if the rally stage at the Bill Gwynne
International Rallyschool (www.
billgwynne.com) was edging on the
verge of freezing.
For Loris Capirossi it could have
been colder and you still would have
still struggled to chisel off his smile.
Comparing him to an excitable puppy
probably isn’t exactly a charming
comparison but he certainly didn’t
repress his display of eagerness when
it came to testing the Swift Sport Cup
car he and Craig Thorley was to share
in South of England’s Tempest Rally.
I managed to grab a few words with
him before he stepped foot onto the
Turweston rally stage and discovered his
love of two wheels crosses over to four.
As I was one of the first journalists
to arrive I managed to jump in with
probably the most used question of the
day; ‘have you done much on four-wheels
before?’ It may seem simple enough but
I wanted to know if Loris had a passion
for bikes and bikes only or if this PR
stunt would be a serious outing? The
reply was rather interesting, “I have a car
back home that my brother built and I
have used it for tarmac rallies but mostly
drifting and having fun” Loris responded.
I wanted to know what car he had, “It’s
a specially converted Lancia Delta
Integrale within a lengthened wheelbase,
which makes it perfect for driving
sideways” he beamed back to me.
TRCMAGAZINE.COM - JANUARY 2009
RIDERIDEHOT
29
SWIFT CUP
Keith Wood rides shotgun with MotoGP star Loris Capirossi aboard a Suzuki Swift Sport Cup car as he prepared for the 2008 Tempest Rally…
JANUARY 2009 - TRCMAGAZINE.COM
Photography: Andrew Brown
35
MARSHALS
Above: Keith and the a small group of the many friendly Castle Combe marshals crew. Dave Weston, your author for the day is situated at the far end of this group. Give us a wave Dave!
Which ever race
event you may
have attended
in the last five
years only
recently would you have - without a
doubt - noticed the once large number
of marshals is significantly lower than it
was only a few years ago. The reason? As
an active marshal I can probably shine a
more direct spotlight over the key areas
affecting our numbers and even if it’s
particularly difficult to actually pin-point
a direct cause I can reveal it’s probably
down to the increased fuel costs;
family commitments; and the growing
alternative social activities sweeping our
country.
Amazingly its the drivers that could
If the credit crunch is putting a squeeze on your racing budget but you still crave the adrenaline rush that circuit racing delivers, then why not become a marshal? Dave Weston explains how…
BehIndLife:tHe BARRieR
help our numbers while benefiting
‘themselves’ by participating. You may
not know this but some championships
award extra points (useful if you’re a
couple of places away from the sharp
end of the grid) and if you’re new to
motor racing and need to lose that black
cross off quickly then a day marshaling
and the resulting signature will certainly
help. But if nothing more, it certainly
opens up the eyes of the drivers and
demonstrates first hand exactly what
marshals do and just how close they get
to the action.
It’s probably best to speak to your
championship co-ordinator to see if they
partake in such schemes which award
points for marshaling but it’s good to
know that even the MSA has recognised
a problem could be on the horizon,
especially if they don’t act now. In a bid to
tackle this it has launched its ‘Volunteers
in Motorsport’ scheme which provides a
career ladder through marshaling (www.
volunteersinmotorsport.co.uk). So to
celebrate I thought it would be a good
idea to get the editor along to Castle
Combe for the day to see what the first
rung of this ladder feels like…
SHReDDeD WHeAtIt’s eight on a Saturday morning in
October. It is not an ideal day to be
standing outside, especially in the South
West of england - light rain and strong
winds seem to be the order of the
day - and yet all around the Wiltshire
circuit this morning there are pockets of
JAnuArY 2009 - TrCMAGAZIne.COM
Pho
togr
aphy
: And
rew
Bro
wn
We all want to learn the secrets of lapping quickly and the sure fire way to accomplish this is to master the perfect racing line. Offering a fresh approach to achieving this crucial goal, Keith Wood introduces you to Snetterton.
WELCOME ToSNETTERTON
50
PART 2
Our recent circuit guide for Brands Hatch seemed to be absorbed rather well by you, our beloved reader. It seems our insightful images
in full HD certainly bridged the narrow gap often created by, sometimes, too much written information. If I’m being honest I could write
a book about the various lines and techniques required to lap well around most of the UK circuits… But there is a limit to what we can all
absorb (and stay awake through) and I believe by splitting these guides into three smaller easier to digest features is a far easier way to
master the basic lines of the UK’s race circuits. Judging by your well received response we’re going to continue this format for Snetterton.
Norfolk’s former bomber base has certainly come a long way since the days of B-17s blasting down the runways courtesy of MotorSport Vision,
although one thing that certainly hasn’t been banished to black and white pictures are the adverse weather conditions. Of all the former bomber-base
tracks Snetterton has managed to retain its ‘windy’ status and along with the blustery gales you can often be ‘treated’ to wonderful sunshine, treacherous
rain, painful hail and even mushy snow - all in the course of a single day. But adverse weather conditions aside it is one very captivating layout, one that
can generate some truly fantastic motor racing and still stands as one of this countries quickest layouts. Although it has a relatively simple looking don’t
be fooled into thinking it’s simple to master.With corners such as the infamous Bomb Hole, sweeping Coram Curve and essentially tricky Russell Bend it
demands your upmost attention and commitment…
TEACH / Snetterton Track Guide
TRCMAGAZINE.COM - JANUARY 2009
51
Above: At the end of the Revett Straight it greets you with a very tempting run off. Approach with caution and turn in where we positioned the red star. Below: You’re aiming for the green star on your turn in so bear in mind this will be quite a way around the corner and will be blind. You’ll also need to think about downshifting so don’t go in too hot or you’ll scrap around looking for a gear and end up either fluffing the gear change ruining the right hander or simply fly off the track. Build up pace as you gain confidence
★
Everybody shifts over to the right for the perfect run down to the Esses
After travelling flat out the entire
length of the Revett Straight
comes the challenging part of
slowing down and attempting to tuck
yourself in for the often overshot Esses.
An escape road could add another few
hundred meters onto Revett Straight (and
does for some unfortunate drivers) but
don’t fall into the alluring trap of trying
to carry too much speed because of it.
Instead you need to adjust the speed
perfectly so you can position yourself
over to the left as much as possible for
the upcoming ninety degree right which
fires you off towards the Bomb Hole.
Sounds simple doesn’t it? In reality it’s
probably one of the trickiest curves to
conquer. If you go in too quick you’ll be
forever trying to slow the car down while
fighting to position yourself left before
quickly switching back to right hand
lock. For front-wheel drive cars this can
cause major lift-off oversteer.
So adjust your speed wisely so you
★
REVETT STRAIGHTTHE ESSES&
CIRCUIT GUIDE
JANUARY 2009 - TRCMAGAZINE.COM