Keeping Up the Skills (or at least trying to)...

So thanks to my friends Derek and Mike at Pacific Coast JDM, I got to do some race driving as a guest driver at an endurance race last weekend, Race 3 of the Mobara Endurance Race Series at the Mobara Circuit in Chiba.  I know this isn't directly GT-R related, but I learned (and relearned) so much about driving and I think it's important that anyone who really considers himself/herself a gearhead go out and get proper driving lessons, or even better, participate in races/track days.

The day started early - the drivers meeting was scheduled to start at 0800 and by the time I got there at 0745, Team Gaijin Escape (Derek and Mike) were already busy unloading their race car, a very stripped down Mazda Roadster (NA).

Complete with roll cage, fat tires and super large wing

The loader was a Nissan! The NT450, to be exact (no originality in truck names huh)

Truth be told, the NT450s are made by Isuzu for Nissan

 Back to the race car - here is the cockpit - all business! No aircon, no radio, just 3 pedals, a gear shift and a steering wheel (the speedo and tacho weren't really working...)

The guys told me the cockpit is always evolving...this time a new seat for improved driving posture

Before qualifying, we all got busy doing what we could to get the car ready. Not wanting to touch and break anything I did what I'm best at, cleaned up a lot of dirty parts...

Note, the large rear wing. Just for looks? Well...

Amateur racing is always fun, because it's all about bang for the buck, fuel and driver change strategy, and driving skill.

Just the basics.

Anyway, between the drivers meeting and the race, we had plenty of time to get the car prepped, as well as time to practice on the track.  As this was my first time on the track, I was clearly the slowest on the track, trying to figure out the best lines, braking and acceleration and shifting points, etc.  I did manage however to shave about 5 seconds from my initial run to my best practice lap time, with my best time in the 56 second range (I was assured this wasn't bad for a first timer, although everyone else seemed to be running in the 52-54 second range).  The car is actually very easy to drive, telegraphs early on when the rear end starts losing grip or when it's about to understeer. Not much power but very responsive and a pure driving experience!

Then it was time for lunch!

Not exactly the healthiest, but got the essentials - carbs, fat and protein!

And then the race began at 1330. Five cars - S15 and S14 Silvias, our Roadster, a weird Nissan Micra, and a Mitsubishi FTO!

Both photos from race results page -  http://www.mobara-tc.com/5/20_endurance_riz.html

So...I went second, after Derek started the race.  While waiting my turn, Mike was kind enough to give me pointers about shift and braking points, as well as some track idiosyncrasies.  Nevertheless, I will admit that during my stint, I was getting faster and faster despite the turbo-charged competition, got a bit too overconfident and tried to go a bit too fast in the last corner - hitting the apex incorrectly in 3rd gear rather than taking what seemed to me a slower and sharper turn... and the centrifugal force was a bit too much! Meaning that I ran into the cushions on the sidewall. Ouch!

Luckily I wasn't hurt, and the car didn't seem too damaged either:

See the green tape- that's where the car hit the cushions - that should buff right out!

Little did I know, however, that the cushions had also ripped off the rear wing!

And believe it or not, that huge wing DID generate a noticeable amount of downforce.

We were all surprised at how the car, without the rear wing, lost a lot of rear traction. Unfortunately, this meant that both Derek and Mike ended up a couple seconds slower from their qualifying times in the 52 and 53 second range after they got in the wheel after I drove.

So basically - yes the guys were doing great, and the car was competitive. Until I got behind the wheel - not only was I slower, I ended up damaging the car (less rear downforce) and thus slowing us down.

And the result? There were only 5 cars in the race, and we came in fourth... in my defense, all the other cars were turbocharged and insanely fast (especially the S14 and S15) and obviously the drivers were all veterans of the track. Although they've yet to have a podium finish in the last 2 years, Team Gaijin Escape could have done much better, although secretly I believe that even if I hadn't damaged the car, the end result would have been the same, albeit with a few more laps to our name.

The only consolation for me (Derek and Mike were very understanding) was that the race winner was this stripped down Nissan Micra/March. Not only was it super fast (and loud), but their main driver was super skilled, pulling lap times in the high 40 second range - faster even than the Silvias! So as a Nissan employee something to be happy with, I guess?

In any case - many thanks again to Derek and Mike for the invitation and for putting up with my poor driving skills. Obviously I've been hanging out with the wrong crowd, I need to be driving much more like I used to on the track! Maybe that's something I will start doing again, even if not in the GT-R.  Maybe invest in a more track worthy car? Stay tuned...

Fixing the Interior, Part 4 (DEFI Heads Up Display)

So one unique item I've had on my car for many years is a Heads Up Display (HUD) unit made by DEFI called the VSD Basis (no longer in production but here is the English instruction manual!) that displays speed or engine revs (it's a primitive system) on the lower right side of the windshield.  I got this because for the longest time I did not want to change the OEM speedometer, which only displays up to 180kph, but of course the car is capable of much more (especially after installation of the Mine's built engine) and I needed a way to figure out how fast I was going on the track. Since unlike some other GT-R owners here in Japan (especially a certain rich millennial BNR34 owner), I actually track my car. (or used to, anyway - and will again soon - that's what the car is designed for!).

Control unit on left, display unit on right.
From: https://minkara.carview.co.jp/userid/131534/car/41102/41491/note.aspx

The control unit for the Defi had previously been attached by double stick tape to the fuse box cover - right above my right knee and readily accessible so I could change not only between speed and engine revs, but also brightness depending on time of day.

So of course when I got my car back from Nakamura of WORX, I was SUPER PISSED OFF to find out that the control unit had disappeared. When I asked where it was, he told me he had placed it BEHIND the driver's side kick panel - out of sight, out of mind.  WTF?? UNACCEPTABLE!

Now, I understand he didn't want to tape or glue it to the leather covered fuse box cover (and THANK GOD he didn't - or worse BOLT it on...), but could he have not made a bracket? He had shown such creativity with the additional fuses in the trunk, and the bracket in the glove box which he had even covered in matching Alcantara (but then proceeded to ruin it by drilling two screws into the leather... sigh...)

Custom fuse box for audio items in trunk by Nakamura. Nice, right? Except now that I've uncovered his errors, I'm worried about this. Will have to go and double check there aren't any problems...

At least he didn't damage anything this time. I should be grateful, but now it was up to me to figure out how and where to place the control unit.

So I decided to take a look. When I removed the cover, I discovered that he had used various zip ties to secure the unit, and at the same time, had used shrink tubing to shorten the length the wiring going into the unit. This meant that I would not be able to relocate to the left side of the dash nor next to my left leg - the control unit would have to stay relatively close to its original location.

After re-routing the wiring to its maximum length, I found and bent a piece of thin aluminum in an effort to make a bracket.  My idea was to use one of the bolts securing the dashboard as the base to which the bracket would attach.

Unfortunately, after a few tries I discovered that my solo DIY efforts were not going to work. And, unless I was willing to be very patient and have a very special bracket made, a quick solution was not going to present itself.

In the end, I decided that the original fuse box cover was indeed the correct location, not only because I was used to it but ergonomically it works very well. So, the next step is then to decide how to affix the control unit.  Clearly, I do not want to use glue or super strong double stick tape, which would likely damage the leather.

So, the only solution I could come up with was to use rubber bands to literally strap the unit to the cover. But, that is ugly and ghetto (excuse the term).  Time to get creative.


What I ended up doing was to finding a small black rubber work glove at the local hardware store, and cutting off the fingers and using the rest of it (essentially the wrist portion). Luckily, that wrist portion fits snugly around both the cover and the control unit. Once the control unit is inserted, just need to make the wiring is zip-tied out of the way.

Being black, from a distance the black rubber looks like it's supposed to be there. Not the ideal and most permanent solution but since it cost me less than 300 yen, it will do for now until I can figure out how to mount the control unit without damaging the leather.

Incidentally, the green arrows point to the 1) alarm LED (blue) and the microphone (un-needed) for the Navi unit.

Ok so a couple of more posts left on stuff I had to fix due to damage done or illogical placement by Nakamura at WORX during the alarm and stereo install.  As you can tell from this post, these aren't necessary permanent fixes, but simply enough to get by without annoying the heck out of me everytime I get in my car.  One of these days I will find a proper shop and get everything properly sorted, but until then my fixes will work.

(Temporarily) Back on the S-Tunes! My Impressions...

So as I mentioned in my last post, I had my old NISMO S-Tunes shock absorbers temporarily re-installed by Ninomiya-san at BeAmbitious onto my car while the Ohlins DFVs usually on the car are being re-built at Labo Carrozzeria, the Ohlins distributor/service factory here in Japan.

The Ohlins Japan service factory. From: http://ohlins.czj.jp/service/

When I went to pick up the car after Ninomiya-san had gotten the GT-R successfully registered for another 2 years, the first thing I noticed was that the front of the car seemed lower than before. But, as he had told me that the car did not pass shaken until he put the S-Tunes on, I assumed that the ground clearance was better with the NISMOs than with the Ohlins.

Anyway, on my short drive home, I immediately could tell the difference - after driving around for a while on the stiffer sprung Ohlins (which were probably more stiff than usual because it was long overdue for a rebuild), the S-Tunes felt amazingly smooth and supple. Still very sporty, and in fact, they responded very well to the dips and bumps in the road.  In short, the car feels very close to OEM, in that most people might be satisfied with level of firmness combined with good ride comfort.

Although these S-Tunes are sporty enough that I went to several track days such as at Fuji Speedway, as you can see in the photo below (sorry for the low-def), hard braking meant that the car would literally scrape the front lip. So, one impetus for switching to the DFVs was a higher (stiffer) spring rate. Although, as I mentioned in my previous post, the DFV technology also results in a very smooth ride.

As you can see from this old photo, at full braking my front lip was scraping the ground!
http://www.r33gt-r.com/2008/07/photos-from-sunako-juku-last-lesson-at.html

Then, pulling into the garage, the front lip scraped... meaning that in fact, the car WAS lower than before.  So I don't quite understand how the car could pass the shaken rules with the S-Tunes when it was lower than the Ohlins, but oh well.  When I called Ninomiya-san about it, he thinks it might be due to the Do-Luck Roll Center Adjusters, and while that makes sense about the height, I'm still a bit confused about how it could pass Shaken...

You can see how close to the fender the tire/wheel is.

In any case, the car needs a proper alignment so I'm not driving it until I get the Ohlins re-installed and the alignment done.  Of course meanwhile I will simply have to have other projects to keep me busy, although I expect the Ohlins to be rebuilt and ready to go fairly soon. I'm really looking forward to experiencing the DFVs when as good as new!

Sunako-Jukucho is Back! (or, how I got ready for the SSCT Track Day at Fuji)

Those of you who have read this blog for awhile may remember this entry -

http://www.r33gt-r.com/2008/07/photos-from-sunako-juku-last-lesson-at.html

Sunako Jukucho (real name - Teruhiko Sunako) was, before his retirement in 2008, one of the top professional race drivers in Japan, well known in GT-R and Porsche circles. He also taught a select few students, running a high performance driving "juku" (prep school) hence his nickname "jukucho" (literally prep school master).
Here is his bio (in Japanese, sorry):
http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/砂子塾長

Anyway, I was pleased to find out that his retirement from the car world was short-lived. At a recent social gathering, I found out he was back in Tokyo and now in charge of introducing the Base Performance Simulator (one of only 5 in the world) to Japan. Essentially, it is a high performance racing simulator, kind of like the PlayStation Gran Turismo game series...but on steroids.

Developed by double LeMans winner Darren Turner, the BPS system is recognized as being literally one step below the full on million dollar simulators F1 Teams use to train their drivers. Read more about how fantastic this simulator is here.
http://www.baseperformance.net/

Due to my status as a former juku-sei (prepschool student) of his, I was lucky to be invited to try this machine out before its unveiling to the paying public.

As I had been recently too busy to really think about my past driving both good and bad at Fuji, this was a perfect opportunity to remind myself of my weakpoints - ie sections of the track that I always seem to have trouble with - and work on improving my techniques not only by driving in the simulator, but getting advice directly from Sunako-san.

How fantastic is this? I can try different things before actually hitting the track and risking damage to my car (as well as any others that might happen to be there if I spin out)- Fuji is a high speed track after all, so a mistake can be expensive!

First time I hopped in, I was embarrassingly slow. Yes there was some initial disorientation - I mean the displayed images made me dizzy in the beginning, but then you get used to it. The wheel has force feedback, but this simulator doesn't move up, down or sideways like some others. But it was also the vehicle I was virtually driving, a GP2 formula car... The thing accelerates so quickly that if you're not careful, just like in real life, your car suffers oversteer and... yes, you spin. And braking - no power assist here! Just like a real formula car. And the force feedback is so strong sometimes I was glad I heeded Sunako-san's advice and brought my racing gloves. So getting used to the virtual car for me took some time.

But once I started getting used to the formula car steering wheel, and the DSG style shift paddles, and the acceleration and the braking - then it quickly became apparent that I had a whole list of weak points on how to drive the Fuji track itself - for example, how to take the Coca Cola corner properly without upsetting the balance of the car, the proper entry speed and clipping points for the 100R, braking and acceleration points for Netz Corner, and the proper line for Panasonic Corner - and those are just the obvious ones.

And the result - during the actual SSCT track day, I found myself flying through Coca Cola corner with no fear, my car behaved exactly as predicted and simulated. Other problem areas were not much of an issue too, although the number of cars on the track that day made taking the ideal lines more the exception than the rule...but anyway, the simulator did its job and got me prepared!

No photos from my first session, but after my actual track day at Fuji, I went again - this time with another juku-sei, Russ of RE-Xtreme. Here are some photos he took, plus some more on his blog entry: http://re-xtreme.blogspot.com/2011/12/base-performance-experience.html

So check this out - First Corner approach (Russ driving):

Then coming out of first corner, accelerating and mentally getting ready for Coca Cola Corner (me):

Getting ready to brake before Coca Cola (Russ):

Another tough corner for me, Panasonic Corner (and what's distracting is, that LCD billboard on the upper right, ACTUALLY plays Panasonic TV commercials...!!!)

Then down the straight:

Then the Motec software, which keeps a running tab on what you're doing, displays it all for Sunako-san to breakdown and analyze. Brutally.

But you know, I'm really glad I had this opportunity. It's so much better to spin out and wreck virtually than in your own pride and joy...

Anyway, for those who might be interested in preparing for their own track days, the simulator has, on file, in addition to the major tracks in Japan, dozens of tracks from around the world, ranging from Laguna Seca to Nurburgring.

Actually, the true benefit of this simulator is - my car is already very well prepped - I am the weak point. So instead of going to the track, which costs time and money, plus puts wear and tear on the car, polish my driving skills on this simulator first! So next time, I will hopefully be able to extract the maximum potential of the car...

For more information or to arrange your own session, Sunako-san can be contacted at: sunako@yukes.co.jp

Here is a link to his blog, where, in addition to more pictures and information on the simulator, if you read long enough, you may stumble upon a picture of me...
http://star.ap.teacup.com/sunakojyukuchou/

He does understand some English, so don't be shy... And tell him I sent you!

Report - Fuji Speedway with SSCT

Truth be told, I did want to first discuss those other mods I did to my car before the SSCT track day on the 23rd at Fuji Speedway as I had mentioned in my entry for December 12. But as it turned out, not only did my friend Dino accompany me and agree to take some video of me flying by on the long straight, but Adam from FEAST Auto Group was also at Fuji and took some photos and was kind enough to allow me to use them for this blog. Thanks guys - this stuff is too good NOT to publish first - so the post on the other mods will have to wait!

This time, both Thomas (purple R33 GT-R - his blog) and Terrance (white R33 GT-R who ran with me at Tsukuba in September) decided to run in this track day. So we convoyed to Fuji and arrived a bit past 0800, checked in and proceeded to get our cars ready for the run.

Here is how we looked, ready to go.



Oh, you may notice one "mod" here - I was one of the lucky few to be able to order, and purchase new, these limited edition Nismo LMGT4 rims. Of course, me being me, before I put them on I spent some time in my garage apply some glass coating.

The wheels:


The glass coating.


This worked great on my stock 17inch rims, which to this day I can blast with water and the dust just rinses off. But on black wheels, I have to say I am not sure about its effectiveness - first because black actually doesn't show the dust as badly as a silver wheel, and also because, in its application, I found that it's very easy to leave minute scratches in the gloss black.

But, in the end, it was worth it - and here is a close up of the front wheel and the R35 caliper and rotor.



On this day, SSCT had blocked off two full hours - one at 1100, and the other at 1300. However, I chose to run only 30 minutes at a time, for a total of one hour. In retrospect, I probably should have taken advantage and run the full 2 hours, but I was worried about putting too much stress on my car. In part, I was worried about how the new brakes would hold up - but that turned out to be NO PROBLEM at all, I ended up being able to easily slow down for the first corner with no fade, every single lap. Best mod ever?

Temperatures were cold that day, I believe the track surface was about 2 or 3 degrees C, and it took a while for the tires to warm up. But I was fiddling with a few new items - one the DigSpice GPS track data recorder, and also the new iPhone app called "Harry's LapTimer" which allows video recording (of every other lap) plus GPS data plotting. I also had on board my trusty old Panasonic video camera, as well as the LapShot laptimer device.

Needless to say, my first 30 minute stint I was more concerned about getting all of these working properly than setting my best time! In the end, I discovered I had gotten the DigSpice and LapShot to work, but not the iPhone app the first time out. And second time out, I got all three to work, but the iPhone holder failed, resulting in video taken at various weird angles.

Howver, I plan to have the data and video from the above items processed soon, and will post an entry with these materials soon.

Anyway - here are photos from Adam of me in action:


At speed:



Finally - here is video of me (third car) flying by on the Fuji straight. I was probably still accelerating on my way to about 260kph - not as much boost that day - about 1.2 I think - meant a lower top speed. Enjoy!

Tsukuba Circuit Track Day with SSCT

What a scorcher! It must have been one of the hottest days of the year! Although my friend Alex (who kindly volunteered to accompany me, and be photographer for the day - although he WAS researching the track for his eventual run in the future), arrived at the circuit at 0715 - a bit early - it was already hot. By the time I drove and finished, I had changed my shirt three times!

Ran with SSCT, did two 25 minute runs.

Anyway - I think I will let the photos that Alex took, tell the story. Enjoy!

Welcome to Tsukuba Circuit - 40 years old! (SSCT is also celebrating their 25th anniversary)


The famous Dunlop curve


Some other cars were running before we got there:


Here I am getting my car ready:


Meanwhile, Alex had spotted this other 97 GT-R, sporting Advan RS in the dark metallic black


View of the pits


The Other Machines


Taped Up and Ready To Go!


View of the chicane leading to the first hairpin


View of chicane, first hairpin, and Dunlop corner


Coming down the chicane


Attacking the first hairpin


Here I am followed by the 2 replica R32s


Powering up after the first hairpin


Getting lined up for the second stint!


On the back straight


Going through the Dunlop corner


I guess I could have been more aggressive...


Oops, too much roll, gotta get the suspension a bit tighter.


Alex - thanks for taking these awesome photos!!!