About two years ago, we decided to run a 15/17” wheel stagger for more tire selection, and in doing so, we had to install smaller front calipers (More detail on that here). The Cup brakes that our S240 came with were too big for 15” wheels. We were able to get a few 15” wheels to fit over them, but it required running some large wheel spacers. The set up we decided on were the AP Radical front calipers and the OEM 2 Pot calipers in the rear. Since the changes, the brakes never felt as good as the stock set up. The larger calipers require more fluid volume, and with the stock master cylinder, that meant the pedal had more travel and felt softer. We also noticed more ABS “ice mode”, which could be related to the change in brake bias and front to rear tire diameter.
I am thrilled to announce the return of Toyo Tires to our race program for the 2023 and 2024 seasons. I have had the pleasure of working with Toyo for many years previously, and this partnership renewal marks a commitment on both sides for shared success.
You’ve probably already seen the results online, 3rd in class (E1) and 9th overall. But what you don’t know are all of the details, the drama, the trials and tribulations and the blood, sweat, and tears that went into this past weekend. Fortunately, that’s what this blog is for…so please, read on.
This year seems to be just flying by. We last raced at the end of March, and since then the team has been busy with a wide variety of cool projects at the shop. Personally, my calendar has been filled with work, travel, and everything in between. One event in particular that transpired during this time was the official launch of the Yokohama A055 tire.
Before doing anything K-swap related to the new chassis, we started by transferring parts over from the original tub to the new one. Since this was a low mileage car, it wasn’t difficult selling the drivetrain. Timing worked out perfectly as there was another Elise in our shop needing a motor due to a failure.
We left off in March after having just picked up our new (to us) J32A2 engine, and as promised we've been busy getting it ready for the demanding rigors of race conditions. We were thrilled to receive high-performance valves, springs, and retainers from my partners at Supertech Performance in order to do just that. These awesome parts allow us to rev the J32A2 engine well beyond it's OEM redline limitations, but safely.
This past Saturday, April 7, we hosted our very first Trackspec Tech Talk, "Handling 101," featuring Shinoo Mapleton, owner of InoKinetic. Being in the Lotus industry for several years, Shinoo offered his knowledge on car handling, for Lotus Elise, Exige and Alfa 4C.
JRZ recently released “095 edition” dampers to commemorate the first-ever JRZ shock designed and developed by company founder, Jan Zuijdijk, back in 1995. The “095 edition” dampers are available in two trims: double adjustable as the RS PRO, and with the addition of low-speed compression as a triple adjustable shock in the form of the RS PRO3. As a longtime JRZ partner, I was honored to be chosen as the recipient of and test driver for the world’s first ever set of RS PRO3 dampers; built for my 2016 F80 BMW M3 6MT, “Betty.”
Sonoma Raceway, again. But we aren't complaining. The track is beautiful, and it's only an hour away from the shop. October 28-29 marked the last race weekend of the NASA NorCal region, and this would be the weekend where we secured 2nd overall in points for the Super Touring 4 (ST4) Northern California Regional Championships. It was also where we would try our first-attempt at endurance racing for our Trackspec Autosports Honda S2000, "Irene."
This weekend marked the first time Trackspec Autosports had ever competed in the NASA Western States Championships. The event is still commonly referred to as, "NASA Nationals," because up until 2015 it gathered racers from across the United States together to compete against one another. But for the last 3 years, NASA has split the national championships into two events (East and West) in order to make it easier for racers to still compete against the very best; without having to tow more than halfway across the country. The result? We finished 8th in Super Touring 4 (ST4). But the journey to get there? Well, that's where things got interesting...
Sonoma seems to be the NASA Northern California Region's favorite race track this year. Once again, we packed our bags on Friday September 8th and headed up to wine country for Round 6 of the 2017 NASA Super Touring Series. "Irene" had received her usual post-event treatment at Trackspec after two days of hard racing at Thunderhill last month. This included a thorough inspection from head to toe, fresh GLOC brake pads (the fronts were getting low), an alignment, fresh Motul fluids, and a new differential cooler pump switch (we discovered that the automatic temperature switch was no longer working and opted for a more reliable route)...
Former US Secretary of State and four star general Colin Powell once said, "there are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure." We couldn't agree more. After a pretty good weekend (4th place both days) at Sonoma Raceway back in June, our team spent the entire month of July improving, learning, and preparing for Round 5 of the 2017 NASA Super Touring Series August 12th and 13th. The result? A great weekend at Thunderhill Raceway...
One of our really good customers invited us to participate in a car show he helped created years ago. From a shop called Weksos Industries, no longer running but which primarily focused on the sale of aftermarket car accessories, evolved one of the biggest and most well-known car shows in the nation: Wekfest, which is now hosted all over the map, including Hawaii, Long Beach, Japan, Chicago, Seattle, New York, and of course, San Jose....
Barely 3 weeks have passed since our last race, but it was once again time to pack our bags and head up to sunny Sonoma, CA for Round 4 of the 2017 NASA Super Touring Series (June 17-18). This weekend was special for a variety of reasons. First, it's rare for NASA to repeat racetracks back to back during the season. Second, it was Father's Day weekend. And third, it was the first time my good friends, Graham Downey and Liam Downey were returning to NASA Pro Racing after a 6 year hiatus...
We had our first 2-hour Enduro Gokart Race this past weekend on May 27, 2017 at LeMans Karting in Fremont! ...There were 41 drivers, 11 teams. With most of the participants being experienced trackday drivers and a couple professional racers and karters, I decided to sit this one out as I wasn't in the mood for a blood bath that day.
Hey guys, Tom Tang here. I’m excited to write the first of many blog posts here on the Trackspec Autosports website. As you may have seen or heard, I’ve teamed up with Trackspec for the 2017 season and together we are campaigning my Honda S2000, “Irene,” in the NASA Super Touring series (in ST4 class).
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