Big Bens non Clio

[Big Ben]

Update:
My camera for trackday videos has arrived. Pretty pleased so far without really trying it out but seems well made and have managed to clamp it to passenger headrest with the accessories that came with it so no extra cost on an aftermarket clamp which is a plus!




Can be linked to an iPhone app which makes things a doddle to control.
Below is a pic of what the camera will show. Pretty happy with the view
Sound quality did seem a bit quiet so might look into an external mic.



@Pav sorry I didn’t reply to your fuel line question! Answer is I don’t know haha! Stainless braided Earls I think but I’ll let you know once it’s fitted.

 

[Pav]

good stuff Ben..thanks.

when i was buying my dash cams,yours was nb 2 to buy..decent price and good quality..lots of reviews on youtube..

 

[RossWoods93]

Sound quality did seem a bit quiet so might look into an external mic.

This is a must Ben, need to hear them nervous whimpers while you’re flat out round Spa!

 

[Beany]

This is a must Ben, need to hear them nervous whimpers while you’re flat out round Spa!

It wont be the flow of his exhaust you’ll hear it’ll be his bowels letting loose

 

[Big Ben]

This is a must Ben, need to hear them nervous whimpers while you’re flat out round Spa!

It’s the Nürburgring that’ll do that to me

It wont be the flow of his exhaust you’ll hear it’ll be his bowels letting loose

Tucking trousers in socks

 

[Big Ben]

Bit of prep today for Spa trip on Tuesday. Cars come up pretty well. Few stone chips on front bumper that I’d like to address soon



Changed the front pads to DS1.11 they have more bite than the DS2500 that I normally run, so looking forward to seeing how they go on track. Added a bit more heat shielding around the turbo. Precautionary as I’m guessing it’s going to get pretty hot under the hood!


Can’t wait to meet up with the other forum members who’re going. Should be a great few days

Pics and maybe the odd video to follow later in the week.
Thanks for looking

 

[sevenfourate]

You thought about one of those 'Turbo bags' to keep the heat in / out of the engine bay Ben ? My bud just got one for his R5T.....

Cars looking great dude !

All that's left is to have a hugely fun and safe week and return the car back to the UK in the state you found it

Have a fab time pal.

 

[Big Ben]

You thought about one of those 'Turbo bags' to keep the heat in / out of the engine bay Ben ? My bud just got one for his R5T.....

Cars looking great dude !

All that's left is to have a hugely fun and safe week and return the car back to the UK in the state you found it

Have a fab time pal.

There is an original turbo shield that looks like a turkey dish that comes as standard but several people remove them!? I’ll be googling your suggestion though. Cheers

 

[sevenfourate]

There is an original turbo shield that looks like a turkey dish that comes as standard but several people remove them!? I’ll be googling your suggestion though. Cheers

Google "Turbo Heat bag" - and search images:

***** https://www.google.co.uk/search?biw...7i30k1j0i5i30k1j0i8i30k1j0i24k1.0.vOwOFIn0huw

 

[Big Ben]

Google "Turbo Heat bag" - and search images:

***** https://www.google.co.uk/search?biw...7i30k1j0i5i30k1j0i8i30k1j0i24k1.0.vOwOFIn0huw

They look great. I’ll research more and see if I can find a price. Thanks

 

[sevenfourate]

They look great. I’ll research more and see if I can find a price. Thanks

My bud with the R5T has recently bought one - and it's a little too big for whatever turbo he has; and he's getting someone to tailor it to fit.

I'm sure with some research you can get exactly what's needed for yours. I reckon they look good; and would undoubtedly help under the hood temps no end......

 

[Big Ben]

Spa report:

Was all going so well until the trackday...!!
Nice early start at the tunnel terminal Tuesday where most of us met up. Sun even came out for our cross Europe cruise.
Had a look at the track when we arrived. Spectacular setting with some impressive machines giving it the beans. Couldn’t wait...

Nice evening meal with the boys in Spa. Everyone got along really well which was great.

Early breakfast at hotel then over to track. Wet conditions greeted us sadly. Safety briefing over and green for go.

That’s when things took a turn for the worse for me. Track was undoubtedly spectacular but boy was it greasy!
Even on the sighting laps I felt uncomfortable having Yokos on!

First stint I did was testing. Trying to get heat in tyres was very hard. Had little traction out of corners and was constantly crossed up. Had even less grip on turn in which culminated in me skidding out on a right hander. Back to the pits then. Frustrated and concerned

Tried again through the morning with different tyre pressures but again found it tested me more than I was comfortable with. Having seen a couple of quite big prangs as well I was pretty disillusioned with it all and decided to not race in the afternoon as there was no sign of a dry line appearing and more rain was forecast.

So all in all it could’ve gone better for me lol.

Still glad I went though. Was an itch I needed to scratch. Couldn’t of done it in better company either.

Not sure what this means for me and my car going forward. I don’t think I’ll be selling up anytime soon but I’m not sure I’ll be doing trackdays either. Too soon to tell.

Special mention goes to @Micah for pulling this trip together. Also setting up the Spa WhatsApp chap group away from the forum was also a great idea. Got the banter flowing nice and early!

Cheers

 

[Sean197]

They look great. I’ll research more and see if I can find a price. Thanks

save your money, they're useless. best thing for heat is to have the turbo and manifold ceramic coated or use zircotec products - https://www.zircotec.com/heat-resistant-finishes/

 

[Sean197]

Shame about the track day Ben, just use it as an excuse to buy another set of wheels with some wet tyres then

 

[Micah]

Spa report:

Was all going so well until the trackday...!!
Nice early start at the tunnel terminal Tuesday where most of us met up. Sun even came out for our cross Europe cruise.
Had a look at the track when we arrived. Spectacular setting with some impressive machines giving it the beans. Couldn’t wait...

Nice evening meal with the boys in Spa. Everyone got along really well which was great.

Early breakfast at hotel then over to track. Wet conditions greeted us sadly. Safety briefing over and green for go.

That’s when things took a turn for the worse for me. Track was undoubtedly spectacular but boy was it greasy!
Even on the sighting laps I felt uncomfortable having Yokos on!

First stint I did was testing. Trying to get heat in tyres was very hard. Had little traction out of corners and was constantly crossed up. Had even less grip on turn in which culminated in me skidding out on a right hander. Back to the pits then. Frustrated and concerned

Tried again through the morning with different tyre pressures but again found it tested me more than I was comfortable with. Having seen a couple of quite big prangs as well I was pretty disillusioned with it all and decided to not race in the afternoon as there was no sign of a dry line appearing and more rain was forecast.

So all in all it could’ve gone better for me lol.

Still glad I went though. Was an itch I needed to scratch. Couldn’t of done it in better company either.

Not sure what this means for me and my car going forward. I don’t think I’ll be selling up anytime soon but I’m not sure I’ll be doing trackdays either. Too soon to tell.

Special mention goes to @Micah for pulling this trip together. Also setting up the Spa WhatsApp chap group away from the forum was also a great idea. Got the banter flowing nice and early!

Cheers

Was a shame Ben, but it was very tricky out there - no idea how @jamesgw200 managed to get round to be honest!
@tombate911 took me out in his on the Rainsports and it was sticking like shit to a blanket... at least that's how he made it look! Nothing but admiration for how he dances on the pedals, and he was proper focused throughout. In hindsight he should have tried yours to see what could be different, but the AD08's were probably the biggest issue - just look at @Benno's trips off track
Trip overall was tremendous fun with great company and the food wasn't half bad either! Really glad you came along, I hope this won't be your last track day as you'd be laughing in the dry, that's for sure!

 

[suj]

So gutting about the rain, that is the problem with Spa, so unpredictable (never driven there, but every time I have been to watch the racing, it's been on and off).

If it is anything like the Ring in the wet, it's so god damn slippy! So you did the right thing of taking it easy, it's not like it's a few miles from home.

It's not all about the lap times, it's about having fun when out there also

 

[Johnny 99]

@Big Ben, so sorry it didn't work out for you. There was briefly a dry line. Perhaps with your extra power & torque you should buy a cheap set of 2nd hand rims & bung some rainsports on. Have them with you for wet conditions. It'd be a pity not to track the car again as it's the only place you can use it's full potential. Nice meeting up with you again mate.

 

[Beany]

Echo the above comments mate, don’t give up on track @Benno had a few moments on same type of tyres and your pushing almost 100bhp & torque more.
Some cheeky spare wheels and you’ll be set. Don’t let one bad wet day ruin future events.

 

[tombate911]

Was a shame Ben, but it was very tricky out there - no idea how @jamesgw200 managed to get round to be honest!
@tombate911 took me out in his on the Rainsports and it was sticking like shit to a blanket... at least that's how he made it look! Nothing but admiration for how he dances on the pedals, and he was proper focused throughout. In hindsight he should have tried yours to see what could be different, but the AD08's were probably the biggest issue -

Was sad to hear that you'd gone home early from the track day. But if you're not feeling it there's nothing you can do. Shame we didn't get to see each other's cars in action, still undecided about my engine choice! I did manage to take a few people out for passenger laps though. Proper wet tyre choice is important in those conditions and plenty seat time in those conditions to get used to how smooth you need to be with the car. I did an hour session in the afternoon just working on gentle turn in, throttle positions, general smooth driving and wet line choices. Glad to hear you had a good time overall though! Great to meet you.

 

[Benno]

Echo everything above mate. I would have been a lot more comfortable on Rainsports I think, couldn't get any heat in the Yokos until that slight dry line appeared after lunch, which was swiftly followed by my first pirouette of the day as soon as it rained again..

Please don't give up on track days! Your car is insane and I still haven't had a passenger lap! In all seriousness I reckon a set of wheels and some slightly more forgiving wet tyres and you'll be away mate. Was great to see you again.