davyboy

I wondered who's those green scoobs were!
You should have seen some of the flames it produced!!

I spoke to the guy who owned that, it had only done 800 miles from new! He bought it at a classic car auction last week. It was mint, still with "cold start procedure sticker" on the inside of the windscreen! It was a real peice of history.

Clare

Lizzy, we'll have to talk next time we go, and yes, it is much better fun thrashing someone else's car!!

John, thanks for the lend of your cap - my head would have snapped off in the cold if you hadn't lent it to me!

Nezz10

Simon220 - I would like to know that as well. I do live a litle futher away but would make the effort to come down if it is available.

Does anyone know if it is every week?

The website does not really help much

Clarebabes

They had a booking for these dates and they cancelled. That is why this has happened basically. Don't think it would normally be this cheap.

Aye Lynne, it is very cold. I suggest thermals and heavy snow gear for optimum warmth next time.

johnfelstead

pleasure Clare. It looked better on you anyway.

and yeh, it's fookin freezing at dono!!

CraigH

1st thing I did was jump in a hot shower for 20mins. Nearly thawed me out.

then I got completely pi55ed and forgot I was cold

ADP

Hi All,

wicked day yesterday(I was the silver fugly-sti looky likey) and my mate was in the very standard blue turbo - oh and my other mate was the one who dinged his Boxster ----oooopss - spent the rest of the day getting the gravel out of it(what a pig, gravel all up in the rims etc.

Donning was mega cold, had a ski jacket and a goose down body warmer on to keep warm.

I have some pics and vids that Ill post up soon,

Andy

ps Redkop was your cossie in the car park, there were 2 I saw??

flat4

didn't know there was that many scoobynetter's there i captured most my on track antics on miniDV but not got a cable to download it to my PC yet, i'll try and put something up soon if i can sort it - don't hold your breath though


kev

Redkop

Yeah it was mine There was another black one parked next to it - dunno who that belonged to though. It turned up in the afternoon. I saw that Boxster - ouch!!!

Shall brave the elements again next Sunday as we are going to a party not far from Dono on the Saturday night


BTW Clare, I did manage to get a pic of your car - it's not very good though cos of my frozen mits shaking
PS How much do I owe for gas



[Edited by Redkop - 12/9/2002 12:17:09 PM]

ChrisB

Donnington is *always* cold! Bar the time the Lister Storms were testing - that was a shorts and shades day.

Think Artic trip though!

johnfelstead

Dono has lots of it's own trackzone trackdays during the year, get in touch with them and ask to be put on the mailing list. They are usually in the £110 range and are always open pitlane. They usually have Rob Mack controling the days activities too, so you get a very safe, no bull, no wasted time day.

Dono is one of the best tracks in the UK, i havent a clue how many laps i have done there. easily over 1500. It's very rare to have any long stopages, they have it very well organised and marshalled.

ADP

I take it you were the one on the big rims Redkop ?

igratton

Thanks for your very kind words John.

Craig and I are very flattered by your comments on the cars build and to have you try it out. I know we did most of the work but we would have never got there if it wasn't for the help from others (yourself, Dingy, My brother and other folks - you all know who you are) offering to give up their spare time. I would also like to thank our partners (Chris and Shelly) for being patient whilst we built it. Its great to see the XTR2 blasting down the pit straight and thinking god...we built that

I know we are nowhere near capable enough for the car at this point in time - but that learning process is going to be fantastic fun and teach us a great deal about the finer points of car control. It is actually nice to go out and lap the track in something different. Craig and I have done so many days at dono it was starting to feel a little 'ordinary' if you know what I mean. Donington no longer feels like the same track anymore - every corner is now so detailed thanks to the feedback from the steering and suspension. Its weird - I found myself going quicker thru the bends than I was on the straights - I guess some of that was mentally down to how the brakes felt - just couldn't trust myself to brake late. Grip, however, is just incredible.

I remember having dingy out in the car with me and I could see him jumping about in his seat wacking the dashboard as we rapidly punched thru the gears on the back straight - the sensation is incredible - and the performance endless (for the time being) - I guess he enjoyed it

I need to get myself a properly fitted quality helmet for the 29th. My visor is now completely missing from my lid - which makes your face incredibly cold. Its was also a little worrying going flat out under the dunlop bridge and your helmet trying to lift off :rolleyes

Also managed to get a ride in my brothers GT4 (him and his girlfriend meredith were both our driving). The guy is a nutter - crainers with a full turn of opposite lock at 115mph is pretty tasty stuff. He also took great pleasure in drifting the entire of redgates - crazy boy. Unfortunately I think the engine got munched yesterday as it now as oil pressure problems and a 'knocky' top end

Martin's Pug Mi16 was also flying - my brother likes the car so much he is hopefully starting to build one this week !!!.

I think sunday has helped to make up for the previous weekends disaster. Totally enjoyed it. I found myself sat at home just grinning like a fool and sniggering to myself for the rest of the evening.

Now - when can we do it all again ???

Ian

Hoppy

JohnF, great report on the Westfield. Thanks. So it hasn't got a heater, then I'm having some silly thoughts at the mo, so can you/Craig/Ian tell me...

If you stack it, what's the damage? Road cars are seriously expensive, but I've never spent more than £400 to put my son's race kart back together after a close encounter of the tyre-wall kind. Just a couple of big blokes to help straighten the chassis, a stub axle, a wheel and some bodywork. Quickly and easily fixed, unless you're unlucky. Is the Westie more car than kart?

What do you think about bike engines compared to, say, your old Cossie-engined Westfield? Is mid-engined bike-motor the way to go? I guess so, with fabulous throttle response, light weight, loads of revs and sequential box. They're mini-F1 motors in many respects.

Are you thinking about building another track car? If so, what?

Cheers,

Richard.

CraigH

Reckon if we have an off in the westie, it'll be fairly cheap.

5k would cover a totally new shell, new chassis, new suspnesion, wishbones, uprights etc etc.

Or just bend the wishbones and uprights and it'll be a few hundred.

A LOT cheaper than a car.

Redkop

Yup ADP that's mine

dingy

Ian, there is an MI-16 Pug for sale in Admag about 1k, needs finishing......

igratton

Cool - will let him know !!!

Ian

johnfelstead

Thanks Ian, it really is a privilege to be given the chance to drive the beastie after you worked so hard to get it up and running.

The only thing the XTR2 and my ZEi220 have in common is the Westfield badge; they are totally different types of car and get their lap speed in very different ways. OK, that a bit of an exaggeration, as the basic suspension layout is the same, double wishbone suspension with coilover shocks and simple antiroll bars, same size and type tyres, same size wheels, same hubs, same brakes etc. But that’s where the similarity ends.

My ZEi220 was one of the quickest westies ever to run on track, it was definitely the quickest road car they have built, after I had finished with my modifications (which were pretty extensive on some of the systems) it was untouchable as an alrounder. The thing that I really liked about the ZEi was how lazy you could be, 330Lb/ft of torque in a 700Kg car is a lot of grunt, It was particularly good at long runs, such as to the nurburgring. Compared to the XTR2 it was positively luxurious, with its leather seats, **** pile carpet, heater, windscreen and leather dashboard. As a road car, the ZEi220 wins hands down, it’s much easier to drive and feels normal in terms of it’s basic behavior. I personally couldn’t live with the XTR2 on the road; I would have to make some big changes to the throttle control in particular. I think with some development, the XTR2 could be a much better road car, but at the moment, it’s hard work and I wouldn’t dream of driving it 1200 miles to the ring and back in a weekend, I would be completely exhausted. (and deaf! )

On track is where the XTR2 is most suited; this is really what this car is designed for and where it comes alive. Weight wise, it’s over 200Kg lighter, you feel this instantly the first time you change direction. How I managed to corner my ZEi at the same speeds as guys in R500’s and superlights is beyond me, no way should I have been able to do that based on the feeling the XTR2 gives. Weight makes a huge difference to corner speed and direction change, even taking into account the fact the XTR2 is mid engined, I am still a bit surprised by what my ZEi managed to do against caterhams finest.

The overall balance of the XTR2 is outstanding, it feels like a mid engined car should feel, no understeer to fight, no unprovoked oversteer either, it’s just neutral and your inputs make a big difference. It’s very early days yet as regards the setup of Craig and Ian’s car, but as it is right now, with the brakes sorted, I could wipe the floor with an R500 or my ZEi220. I would think it’s going to be 5 or 6 seconds a lap faster at donington than I could manage in the ZEi. The way it makes that time up will be very different though. In a drag run my ZEi would walk all over it, especially above 100MPH, the thing is though, in the XTR2 I would be exiting the corner 20MPH faster so I would have to really try hard in the ZEi to make that back up. The XTR2 isn’t as exciting in terms of raw, hold on, acceleration, but through the corners its much more a racing car, you can be very precise and carry a lot more speed. It’s a different kind of driving challenge and thrill

The thrill with the XTR2 isn’t the nutty acceleration and hard work power slides in the corners, (don’t forget I am comparing this to a very fast seven, not a road car like a scoob) its the way you have to push yourself to brake very late and very little and then keep the speed through the corners. It doesn’t feel that quick in a straight line (it is still accelerating at a hell of a rate, but there is no kick up the backside), but it is very quick through the corners, finding the limits in the corners are where it will become very exciting. I have no idea how quick we were going on the straights to be honest? Maybe Ian or Craig could fill me in on that one?

The noise is fantastic, shifting gear at 10,500rpm is a lot of fun, brings back memories of my Hillman Imp rally car actually. Earplugs are definitely required; the noise from the induction system is mental, with the airbox inlet right behind your head. An aerodynamic helmet is needed too; my current one didn’t like 6th gear much at all.

I could waffle on for quite a while about the XTR2 and how it could be developed, it’s a fantastic platform to build from, given the choice I would definitely choose this car over a normal seven if I was doing trackdays, if I was mainly a road user I would stick with the ZEi220. The two cars are very very different, I love them both. God knows what it would do round the nurburgring, I think it would be awesome. (but I would trailer it there!)

As to myself, I am helping out with a supercharged Ariel atom, 290BHP in a 470Kg chassis. This should be on track in spring and it will be mindblowingly fast. I can’t see it being as well balanced as the XTR2 though, so it’s going to take a lot of driving to get the speed out of it. The XTR2 would definitely be a better bet for a novice to learn track driving at high speed with, it’s got huge potential, once Ian and Craig have sorted out a few issues that are hampering its feel, such as the seats (which are not rigid enough), the pedal box (which is not friendly) the general brake feel (which is not nice) and the throttle (which is tricky) its going to be very very fast and big on the grin factor.

Hoppy

Cheers for that, John

Nezz10

Do all of you bother with track day insurance?

Does you company do it or do you go through a private broker?

davyboy

Never have done yet.

Although I am led to believe it is easier to get trackday cover on your exsisting insurance cover with a Porsche, I find out next time I renew.

johnfelstead

I had it as part of my road cover on my westfield, i insure my STi on track with eggar lawson.

I cant afford to lose £16K in a few seconds, which is a possibility on a trackday, so i buy insurance and budget that as part of the days expenses. So far, after 10 years on track i have never crashed, or even scratched a car, so you could say i am wasting my money, but it only takes one incident, maybe some tit taking me out (which nearly happened at dono last year, you know who you are!) to wipe me out financially, i am not going to let that happen.

I think it all comes down to the costs involved, can you afford to lose the cars value vs the cost of covering it. If it was a £2K ****box, i wouldnt bother with insurance because i could afford to lose that.

Redkop

Totally agree with you John, the RS500 I was telling you about yesterday after it's coming together with the grandstand/pit wall has cost in excess of 9k to repair. But track insurance has covered that.

logiclee

I was all set to come down, really wanted to see the Westie.

My wife was taken into hospital on Friday so I couldn't make it.

If I get chance and Lorraine's out I'll drop in this Sunday.

Cheers
Lee

CraigH

Cheers for that John.

Don't forget - at this monet in time the car is as slow as it will ever be

Ithink the gearing was too long for Donington - would pull just over 160 in top given a long enough straight - so gearing down to 140ish would be good for that track.

Think you got 130-135 down the back straight John - not that quick but quick enough.

Car isn't that quick in a straight line - certainly not above 90ish - but it has only got 160ish hp.....

And it seems quite quick if you accept how little power it's got

We're sorting brakes right now - pedal box will be done shortly - all the things that aren't spot will be done over the winter/spring rebuild.

Then there's a few aero mods to do 'cos it dosn't grip well enough

And the weight loss 'cos it's too heavy

3months time after we've done the bits we wanted to do but didn't have the chance pre SVA, it will be "quite" quick

Given the suspension, weight and other bits I can't see it being much off the pace off a high spec Radical.

Unless I'm driving of course

ARRON BIRD

Shame...if I had known it was a free for all Westie drive in I would have made a special trip.
P.S STI **** itself today.not bad eh.pick up Friday....broke by Monday.

DodgeT

craig/ian,

"once Ian and Craig have sorted out a few issues that are hampering its feel, such as the seats"

if you come to sell these, id take them off your hands cause i need to get rid of me bench seats!!

davyboy

This car, while not the fastest was my favorite! It sounded absolutely amazing. I am not sure of the history or or even the model (other than its a 993), maybe an RSR, GTS-R, GT2?

catflap

Anyone there again this sunday???

if my car is sorted me and Dodge will be there

Look out for another silly westy stickerd up this time with transformers logos


P.s some of you big fast porkers.. can we have a ride lol