We went to Bedford Autodrome on 25th October 2021 for a track day organised by Track Obsession. Our previous tack day had been an evening session at Brands Hatch which had highlighted to me the need for a stiffer suspension set up and more negative camber. The only change that had been made to the car since Brands Hatch was the V6 airbox installation.
Bedford Autodrome is a 2 hour drive from home. Things started well when I was woken up by
@EthanMenace at 5.30 am as my alarm had not gone off and we had agreed to leave by 5.30 am. After signing on we went on a bit of mystery tour and found the pit lane and garages. The track wheels went on with the Direzzas - they were bought part worn and this was track day number 4 for them. I was expecting the Direzzas to wear out at Bedford.
@EthanMenace did the sighting laps and I went round as a passenger. I like to do a bit of prep before a track day to make sure I have a vague idea what the track layout is like and what corners I really need to pay attention to. Unfortunately I could not find a game for my Xbox Series X that had Bedford Autodrome on it. After the sighting laps I took the Clio out blind not really knowing the track. At the first hairpin bend the car felt a bit unsteady and was sliding around - but in hindsight I think that was due to the tyres being cool, me not having enough confidence on the car, and my over eager driving. I came back in after a 20 minute stint still not knowing the circuit very well. As I came back in
@Big Ben turbo was literally glowing red and
@Helpimonfire had turned up. It was a sunny day and this is the only photo that I have of all three Clios together.
The morning went well apart from an Integra causing a red flag that lasted about 30 minutes. It damaged to dump an array of fluids over a mile stretch of the track.
@EthanMenace had some tuition about 11 am and I had a session about 12 noon. After the tuition we spent most of out time critiquing each other's driving.
@EthanMenace was definitely the faster driver out of us both.
In the afternoon session I had a ride as a passenger in
@Big Ben car. It is a real beast with 377 BHP of Megane power in a Clio shell. It was obvious out on track that the car confuses bigger powered cars like M3s. I also had a ride in
@Helpimonfire 197. He has recently installed some Yellow Speed coilovers and I wanted to compare the ride of Ben's Gaz Golds to Martin's Yellow Speeds. I find that the B14s on my car are now too soft. I knew that they were not stiff and are non-adjustable when they went on the car but at that stage I was happy to spend £400 to improve the handling of the car compared to standard cup shocks and springs. The B14s have improved the ride quality but I now I just want a stiffer ride for track days. In August this year I had a ride in
@IainMac Clio and his car felt planted and had virtually no roll around corners. I got the same feel out on track with both Ben and Martin's cars.
By about 4pm people started to leave and the track was a bit clearer. I felt a lot more confident at the end of the day in the car. The car sliding around corners in a controlled manner was now fun. I had been far too gentle with the brakes for most of the day and I was now confident to literally stand on the brakes when slowing down from 115mph going in to turn 11 in second gear. Taking the chicane at turn 7 at about 70 to 80 mph was good fun. With the V6 airbox installed the Akrapovic was noticeably louder from inside the car and was popping on gear changes and when I lifted off the throttle. I genuinely have no idea if the V6 airbox has added any extra power of torque to the car. Fortunately none of the electrics failed and the PC680 battery was perfect all day long. Engine wise and brake wise the car was perfect. The Direzzas are still in reasonable condition and may even have another two track days left in them. It was just the suspension that I felt was a bit lacking.
There was evidence of the tyres rubbing on the drivers side front arch by the end of the day - unless that was rubber debris?
The next upgrade for the Clio will be a set of Yellow Speed coil overs with stiffer track spec spring rates, and adjustable top mounts. This will hopefully solve the Clio having a slightly bouncy feeling and give it a comparable planted ride to Iain, Ben and Martin's cars. The plan is to get the Yellow Speed coil overs on between December and January.
The only other complaint I have about the Clio at the moment is the lack of grip when accelerating out of corners. I know that my right foot is sometimes over eager and some of the lack of grip is caused by me pushing on the throttle too early. Next years big upgrade will definitely be an LSD.
We have no more track days booked for this year. I think that the next track day is not going to be until spring 2021 when the winter weather is changing to a warmer and sunnier outlook. Bedford was track day number 5. We have done 4 track days in 2021 and hopefully we will book up at least 6 for 2022. Bedford Autodrome is a very flat track but I enjoyed the mixture of straights, chicanes and hairpin corners. The weather was excellent all day with brilliant sunshine and after a tiny bit of spitting the rain held off. Big thanks to Ben and Martin for their company and the rides in their cars. Bedford was another good track day.
