Road America Data

Check out the latest version of the Spec Racer! LBoth ligher weight and more powerful!!! Available soon, racing in 2015!
User avatar
Former Specracer National Champion
Former Specracer National Champion
Posts: 92
Joined: Fri Jun 08, 2012 5:42 pm
Location: Denver, Co.
Chassis:
247-1
PostPosted: Mon Jun 17, 2013 9:19 pm
Road America GEN3 data

First I'm really sorry for the bad start in sprints race #1 I started as I was asked to...

Ok, on to new data... looking at the screen shot of CDS data
First, you can see my lack of competitive seat time…as in some corners I’m less than a GEN2 and in a couple I just touch better.

I should have been a touch better in all because, 150 lbs. less weight…it’s been 11 years since I have driven at Road America, so all in all I feel ok about my performance.
The GEN2 lap was 2:40.8 and mine was 2:35.6 I made about .55 sec of mistakes on the lap if I was just equal in every corner to the GEN2 car. Both laps are from the same session.

If you know the signature of the track as a MPH graph…I will point out the new driving challenges…

You can see the GEN3 is about 8 to 12 MPH faster at the end of every long straight, 3 to 5 MPH on the shorter ones. Top MPH no draft was 128. So the brake zones are a little more challenging, sense of timing needs to be just a touch better. I was having an issue with in T5 brake zone.

Easy or most of the time flat turns like 7, Carousel, Kink and 13 are going to require some new set up or skill level to make flat again.
I made 7 flat a handful of times 13 flat most of the time, But Oh boy the Carousel
and Kink not even close any time. I could follow a good GEN2 within 5 feet or so
through the Carousel at half throttle with no drift and just drive around it before the Kink.
I was amazed at the difference in mental stress approaching the Kink @ just 5 to 7 MPH faster than a GEN2 car.
A lot of guys asked are you flat in the Kink…I said hell no…not even close and in fact 50 % of the time I touched the brake.

For some reason I never managed to get 14 right…


The EFI tuning is getting pretty good, mainly just warm up cycles, Accel and Deccel throttle tuning.

I asked some guys how much fuel they used in both races, I used right at 4.6 or 4.7 Gal in race 1 and that was right on par with fast GEN2’s Feel pretty good about that.

So over the last 4 or 5 months a lot of people have asked will it bend vales on a missed upshift from 4th to 5th…you know when you put it in 3rd instead. Well someone had to be the first one to do it….so it might as well be me…I did it.
I shifted @ 6500 RPM from 4th to 3rd on an intended shift to 5th. I don’t have my car back yet to do a leak down but everything seemed fine. The data showed 8036 RPM and it lived. That was good thing…so if you look at all the 5th gear shifts they are all pretty slow…I didn’t want to do it again.


Road America is the only place we had some issue with the sound level of an FE, so I thought it could be a problem with the GEN3 too….well it looks like we will be getting a run all the time or Spec muffler…it was right at and over the limit from time to time. I’m bummed about that…it’s just 5 lbs. I didn’t want to add back to the car.


I also had 2 part failures, the water header tank split for the 3rd time and I’m pretty sure I broke 3rd gear in the bonus race.
We might need to redesign the water tank, I will wait and see with the 12 R&D cars.
The 3rd gear failure, I’m not worried about it this point, my gear box had 34 / 36 weekends and a bunch of test days doing EFI and GEN3 testing. That might have a touch early…but we have not been nice to the gear box at all.

I also used the same type of oil cooler we use now, but the next size larger one. That was really positive, as the oil temp was never higher than the water temp the whole weekend… (High 170’s to low 180’s)

Well I’m getting really excited, engines are little behind, but due in over the next couple of weeks, 90% of the parts are in stock. Flatout received our first born so to speak and converted their car to GEN3 in 3 nights during the Rose Cup event @ Portland. Where they were running 18 GEN2’s I believe. I think Andy did most of the work…he told me it wasn’t bad at all….Let’s hope everyone has the same experience!

Track records beware….
Mike Davies
SCCA Enterprises
User avatar
Former Specracer National Champion
Former Specracer National Champion
Posts: 92
Joined: Fri Jun 08, 2012 5:42 pm
Location: Denver, Co.
Chassis:
247-1
PostPosted: Mon Jun 17, 2013 9:24 pm
The screen shot of the DATA
Attachments
RA 1.6 vs 1.9-2.jpg
RA 1.6 vs 1.9-2.jpg (31.63 KiB) Viewed 16585 times
Mike Davies
SCCA Enterprises

Forum Hermit
Forum Hermit
Posts: 111
Joined: Wed Nov 30, 2011 12:12 am

Chassis:
809
Facebook Page:
https://www.facebook.com/Hutch52
PostPosted: Mon Jun 17, 2013 10:59 pm
Awesome narrative Mike, thanks. As someone whom you passed coming out of 5 in one of the sessions, the sound was "sweet" and the car "quick up the hill". Well done.

Still Learning to Type
Still Learning to Type
Posts: 40
Joined: Wed Nov 14, 2012 2:33 pm

Chassis:
678
PostPosted: Tue Jun 18, 2013 9:19 am
I'll second that sweat sound - it's going to be a shame to put a muffler on it! Tremendous job all weekend Mike. It was great talking to you and looking at the changes you've made to the car. I'd also like to thank Erik and SCCA Enterprises for the raffle prizes. Can't wait to get the new tubular upper A-arms installed.

- Dave
User avatar
Needs a Life!!!
Needs a Life!!!
Posts: 740
Joined: Mon Dec 05, 2011 10:03 am
Location: Greenwich, Connecticut
Chassis:
860
PostPosted: Tue Jun 18, 2013 11:10 am
razerx wrote:I'll second that sweat sound - it's going to be a shame to put a muffler on it!
- Dave


Maybe steal an idea from Sports Renault and go with a Super Trapp? That might save 2-2 1/2 pounds back there, as well as being a bit less exposed to impacts due to its smaller size.

Needs a Life!!!
Needs a Life!!!
Posts: 389
Joined: Fri Dec 02, 2011 6:02 pm
PostPosted: Tue Jun 18, 2013 11:53 am
If you have to have a spec muffler, IMO it might as well be one that can pass at Laguna Seca and some other tracks like it. Might allow the Gen 3 to play at DE's that currently don't allow race cars due to the noise.
User avatar
Needs a Life!!!
Needs a Life!!!
Posts: 484
Joined: Thu Dec 01, 2011 11:26 am
Location: Rockville MD
Chassis:
298
PostPosted: Tue Jun 18, 2013 4:51 pm
Bob Devol wrote:
razerx wrote:I'll second that sweat sound - it's going to be a shame to put a muffler on it!
- Dave


Maybe steal an idea from Sports Renault and go with a Super Trapp? That might save 2-2 1/2 pounds back there, as well as being a bit less exposed to impacts due to its smaller size.


Or a commercial-off-the-shelf muffler that can be easily and cheaply replaced (like the Subaru Brat radiator) ?

Still Learning to Type
Still Learning to Type
Posts: 38
Joined: Wed Nov 30, 2011 9:50 am
PostPosted: Tue Jun 18, 2013 11:08 pm
Mike-- Have you tried retarding the exhaust cam timing? There's a chance you could help the noise without measureable power loss.

Still Learning to Type
Still Learning to Type
Posts: 38
Joined: Wed Oct 17, 2012 8:08 pm
PostPosted: Mon Jul 08, 2013 6:35 am
I'm all for making them all pass at Laguna (or in my case Waterford) for sound.
On a different note what octane fuel were you running? I assume Shannon is making this motor work on pump gas?
User avatar
Former Specracer National Champion
Former Specracer National Champion
Posts: 92
Joined: Fri Jun 08, 2012 5:42 pm
Location: Denver, Co.
Chassis:
247-1
PostPosted: Thu Aug 08, 2013 2:56 pm
Yep...The 1.6 has been tuned to use 93 octane unleaded, but having said that...it is 11 to 1 stock.
We are not sure how sensitive the engine will be to low octane or low quality fuel.
That's what the R&D program is all about. We should have a phew hundred hours on the group of cars, before the first retail conversion kit is sold.
No problems to date...
Mike Davies
SCCA Enterprises

Return to Spec Racer Gen3

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 11 guests


cron