Since the last post, SG Motorsport have had the car as we had a bit of an issue with one of the driveshaft tulips that are splined onto the end of the diff and rather than have the whole lot let go, we thought it wise to pull everything out and investigate. While it was out, Scott replaced the clutch (a Tilton twin-plate unit that was about to become dust), changed the timing belt and a whole heap of other V6 known foibles were checked, beefed up or changed. Then the car's geometry was checked to make sure that everything was square. Scott then had a harmless "indiscretion" with the car which made us all the more nervous of the way the car handles
With all that in mind, the last thing we wanted was rain but as we left our hotel at 6.30am, it was bucketing down, and basically it stayed that way all day long! A cock-up on the wheels front meant that we had less tyre choice than we would have liked and the choice was between intermediates and M&S (Mud & Snow, not Marks & Spencer!) tyres. We chose the latter and as it turned out wets would probably have been even more useless!
After noisecheck which was a bit marginal - please don't ask "What zorst is it" or "will it fit my vee"! - scrutineering was passed with flying colours. I then sat wondering whether I should feign a war-wound like Basil Fawlty rather than venture onto the first stage in the p***ing rain in a car that likes to swap ends so easily.
On the first stage I was caught by the 2 cars behind me (30 sec starts so I'd already dropped a minute). The same happened on Stage 2 but I was 30 secs quicker - the only trouble was, so was everyone else! As the day went on, we got more confident and although we spun a few times, they seem to occur at very low speed when we run out of lock. It's almost as if the car says "I'll let you think you can get away with it" and then goes beyond the point of no return as a parting gesture! Luckily I managed to keep the engine running so didn't have to endure the starting procedure with the Marelli management which takes 30 secs....
So what did we gain from the experience? Firstly, you CAN drive the car sideways without compulsory pirouettes:
On the fast sweeping sections (5th & 6th gear) the car feels ultra light on the front end and it gently understeers across the bend - fine except lifting off or braking causes the opposite reaction by a factor of ten. I know you don't brake in a corner but this is a rally car that is expected to cope with unexpected circumstances, brows, chicanes and surface changes are always going to catch us out but the car needs to cope with them in a more predictable way and we need to work on smoothing the transition as best we can. Tyre choice may be part of this as we were using Michelin D10's which were ripped up on the back but almost untouched on the front. Kind of confirms our intention to run softer on the front and harder on the rear.
The heated front screen caused major problems on two stages - we have no heater and the screen has some kind of time or heat sensor that turns the elements off after about 30secs and won't allow you to switch on for a period after that. Consequently we did two stages with the screen so misted up that it was impossible to see. The belts are so tight that you can't reach to wipe and both Mike and I were also being showered on bends from the roof vent. All very entertaining!
Scott is going to change the shape of the centre console to allow us to build a clutch foot rest. With nowhere to put my foot and the car crashing over bumps, my leg flails around and the slightest touch on the pedal causes the flat-shift electronics to kick off. Similarly, I have to try and be more decisive with with the gearchange as a bit of hesitation with the lever gets the whole thing confused. The new Geartronics indicator works a treat though, and when we put MoTec on in a few weeks, we'll keep the indicator despite having a repeat in the new digital dash.
Considering the extent of the work that Scott had done before this event I'm happy to report nothing needed tightening or fettling throughout the day and we certainly gave it a full test! I'm dead chuffed with the way he works and I'd recommend him to anyone needing V6 treatment.
We ended the day 20-something overall and 3rd in class in an event that was the most unsuited to the car that you could imagine. Not the best of results but I've always needed to build my confidence rather than overstepping the mark, and, having broken three ribs the first time out in my Evo, I so wanted to get the car (and me!) home without any damage.
Next stop Millbrook.
If you could suggest the most approprite polish for this lot I'd be grateful - the heat from the engine has baked it on like pebbledash.
Thanks to Graham Robins for the pics!