Help with the next stage......

[Andycollins]

Well I'm coming to the end of a pretty successful first year hill climbing and as next year will be alot harder I'm looking to what I can do to make the car more competitive.
As it stands I have a 2002 clio cup with ......
k-tec coilovers
custom exhaust system
matched and ported inlets
k-tec induction
k-tec red solid mounts
whiteline Arb
custom cage
perspex windows
fibreglass bonnet and boot

im torn now whether to go down the better suspension setup or start looking at jenveys so looking for abit of advice

 

[Dan@SJM]

Better suspension. Look for KW or AST's.

 

[MicKPM]

AST's are alot though!

 

[Dan@SJM]

Or BC's then

 

[Andycollins]

Are kws better than the spax setup?

 

[MicKPM]

Or BC's then

LoLz, I'm not gonna try and sell him some coilovers. I've got a Sprinter/Hill Climb car coming in on the 21st for a set though and mine are still great so already better than the Spax (TeeHee)

 

[Dan@SJM]

Are kws better than the spax setup?

f**k yes.

 

[ed55j]

LSD?

 

[Pauleds]

LSD?

This!

i know you we're running stickier tyres than me at loton but all i did was wheelspin. its the first thing i would be doing as you would be pulling out the corners soon much better with a lower cwp and an LSD.

 

[Andycollins]

Yeah that could help but have been told it doesn't suit some cars, I'm down to 63.2 at the moment and I know the car can go faster as there were over trying errors in that run. I've also been looking at putting an enlarged throttle body on again and this time having it mapped to deal with the extra air going in

 

[Dan@SJM]

No point. The throttle body isn't restrictive. I ran 200bhp on the standard throttle body.

Diff will make a massive difference but its circa £1500 to be fitted.

 

[MicKPM]

Worth it though Dan especially in competition.

 

[Dan@SJM]

I agree, but I was just making him aware of the costs.

 

[Andycollins]

Oh I'm aware of the costs this car has already cost me a fortune but worth it as I plan on keep on keeping this long term. I had been thinking of getting a 2nd box and get it rebuilt with LSD and lower ratio but not sure where I can get it done in Shropshire.

 

[Dan@SJM]

most people courier their boxes to agency in Worcester.

 

[...]

there would be a couple of things i would be looking at .

You say more competitive , how close are you to the top cars in your class ?

Next look at what they run , scrute bay at an event is the place to be , look make notes ,and if your not comfortable get someone else to do so (do it before the close of season)

Setup will be key especially for a sprint car , as is weight , what can you loose within regs (losing weight is almost always free!!)

After looking at what others at the front are using make a judgement on suspension setup , but ask yourself what does the car not do that I want it to ? A new set of suspenders isn't always the magic answer.

Lsd on any competition car is a worthy addition (almost a must have ) don't waste what power you have .

Is it stopping as well as you want,need , a winter brake overhaul and maybe a change of pad material can help .you'll usually make up more time stopping than going .

Driver training (notice i haven't mentioned more power yet) get out on some track day , and hire a driver coach , you'll be amazed at the time you can gain from this , and do it a few times a year and it can and should give you the edge , remember anyone can bolt the right bits on a car , extracting that from it isn't half as easy , this can also help you work out where you need to go next with the upgrades as it will start with a good coach to help you identify what areas need improvement .

Get your arse in the gym , get fitter, alerter , and have an edge over your fellow competitors ........


most of that might sound like its pulled straight from a book , but its actually down to experience over the years on getting to the front , its a cost effective route as well , and THEN you can look at more power ,however doing it this way should keep the engine reliable as extracting more power always starts to lower the overall reliability factor.


Hope that gives a slightly different route to being competitive , far to many people go straight for the big power ,but you can bet anything thats not why the guy at the front is where he is .

 

[Adam G]

I know Prescott do driver training days Andy. You have to get on them quickly though as there aren't that many.

 

[...]

I know Prescott do driver training days Andy. You have to get on them quickly though as there aren't that many.

worth finding a driver coach with sprint experience although have heard good things about prescot days in the past , depends whether your championship is at a single venue where the course secrets help alot or multiple venues.

 

[Andycollins]

Oh I know how good coaching is, I started last year with one event and was looking at 73/74 second runs, I then did a driver coaching day and yeah I did a few mods but now I'm down to a 63.2 so a little improvement but I learnt most from the day learning the lines.
My main competition are 205gti and escort mk2's which run late 59's but they have been doing it for years. I have noticed my main issues are getting the power down put of corners getting alot of spinning up and the back end is very loose and twitchy when being aggressive

 

[...]

So you have identified to areas to improve .... you will also find sprint cars more softly sprung than circuit racers often to make use of cold tyres etc .... lsd is going to help along with a setup change ..... are you doing all events on the same course ?

 

[Andycollins]

Yes this year I have only competed at loton park mostly because its on my door step and secondly out of the local courses apparently one of the more difficult ones. I plan to compete again next season here while I sort out a trailer ect to take it to other events.
the setup of the car is quite stiff I have thought about getting softer springs for the rear. I've had alot more issues with the rear since it has been fully stripped as there is little weight over the back of the car but I do aim to put the battery in the boot to add abit of weight there

 

[...]

Get it corner weighted with you in it ... that will chsnge things as you can move the weight bias about .....

 

[n90rme]

went post loton yesterday and they had a meet on, thought about stopping to have a look but had something else on. coming back from my mum and dads in tywyn...

 

[Ph1 Tom]

Lightweight battery under the passenger seat, light 15" alloys and a LSD

 

[Dan]

what class do you run in? as some have regs on suspension and so on, maybe some better suspension and PMS top mount kit?

 

[Andycollins]

Ktec solid top mounts ready to fit, I'm in modified production not much you can't do

 

[Andycollins]

Passenger seat...... Long gone

 

[Dan]

I would sell ktecs top mounts and get a PMS kit

Is there a peak power output in that class?

 

[Andycollins]

No peak power aslong as the block is the same you can do what you want and well just did a spur of the moment purchase of some jenveysbso will soon be selling my ktec induction and ported inlets. At the moment id day he cars running at 190 ish and the torque for acceleration is amazing, it will be a great setup for someone who don't want to pay thousends