Guran's NA6 "Little Reddy"

[Blesif]

Bryan, I've really been enjoying reading your garage talk starting from the beginning. Only joined this forum recently. I'm about half way through reading but decided to skip ahead and put in a post. I've got a road registered NB8A which I bought in Feb 2011. Its got a few desirable mods and is a delightful little car. Started track days in May 2011 at Wakefield as a first timer and have done 6 now, I think. I share the car with my son who is, naturally, a bit quicker than me. We use the same data logger performance box as you. Earlier this year we were told at scrutineering to take it out but pleaded a case and it was passed as okay as long as it was jammed in the front corner of the windscreen a la a certain M. Shedden. Its a great tool for a shared car as we can impose my laps over Alex's and compare. We will be at Wakefield Dec 2. Its very busy sharing the one car and we find that the tyres, Adrenelin RE002s, get overheated into the early 40psi range (up to 44). Do you recommend letting out air to keep them around 40 max? Another point, I short change to 4th after exiting turn 5 right before turn in to 6. Also change to 4th briefly up the back straight. This means there are two turns, fishhook and 10 where I heel-toe from 4th to 2nd. I like this as one seems to set my mind up nicely for the other. Alex stays in 3rd from 5 to the fishhook. We are uncertain which is the better - do you have an opinion? On another racing point: we have a standard seat and belt but would like a harness. Is there a recommended harness that can be used with the standard seat? Greg and Leesa Bunn tell me swapping drivers with a race seat installed is very difficult. I can't imagine trying to lever in and out of a Sprint V in a hurry!! On another topic: I was at the last Illawarra branch meeting with Phil Reid who is having his first track run Dec 2. He's mad keen so give him a boost. Its great to see the Illawarra with its own group and I will lend moral support where I can.

[Muzdaman]

A harness with a stock seat is not a good idea from a safety perspective.

If you are tracking a car regularly you really want a seat, harness and a roll bar. Getting in and out of a bucket seat can be tricky but its well worth the small hassle at the track.

[Sailor]

A harness with a stock seat is not a good idea from a safety perspective.

If you are tracking a car regularly you really want a seat, harness and a roll bar. Getting in and out of a bucket seat can be tricky but its well worth the small hassle at the track.

Hmmm as opposed to a lap sash?
You're kidding!

[Muzdaman]

A Factory seat is designed with a stock 3 point in mind.

Try mounting a 4 point on a stock seat and telling me it looks in any way safe.

There is no way to get the shoulder straps directly over your shoulder, the seat is too wide. Factory seats with harness slots are obviously a different story.

[Guran]

Bryan, I've really been enjoying reading your garage talk starting from the beginning. Only joined this forum recently. I'm about half way through reading but decided to skip ahead and put in a post. I've got a road registered NB8A which I bought in Feb 2011. Its got a few desirable mods and is a delightful little car. Started track days in May 2011 at Wakefield as a first timer and have done 6 now, I think.

Hi Nero. I'm guessing you're Neil and your son is Alex? At first I was guessing that you might be Kenny and your son Amos - they were my first-timer students at the May 2011 track day! They also have a modified NB8A.

I share the car with my son who is, naturally, a bit quicker than me. We use the same data logger performance box as you.

The Performance Box (and similar units) is a brilliant tool. If you'd like some advice on your track driving, please email your best Performance Box file from the last club trackday and I'll do some analysis for you (president@mx5.com.au). Then you can practice the tips next weekend.

Earlier this year we were told at scrutineering to take it out but pleaded a case and it was passed as okay as long as it was jammed in the front corner of the windscreen a la a certain M. Shedden. Its a great tool for a shared car as we can impose my laps over Alex's and compare. We will be at Wakefield Dec 2.

I've not had any problems at our club trackdays over the last four years, but the scrutineers at Supersprints are tougher about suction cups. I used to put it in the glovebox but have recently been using race tape to secure it to the steering wheel hub in front of the speedo. It's very secure there. I also use a remote antenna when mounting it out of direct view of the sky.

Its very busy sharing the one car and we find that the tyres, Adrenelin RE002s, get overheated into the early 40psi range (up to 44). Do you recommend letting out air to keep them around 40 max?

I've not tried the Adrenalin RE002s but went through three sets of RE001s. I preferred to set them at 39psi hot. Letting them go up to 44psi will cause them to be very skatey. Just let some air out to bring them back to 39psi. Better still, after these ones wear out, get yourself a set of Dunlop Star Specs from Gary's Motorsport Tyres up near Eastern Creek. For $190-$200 they are a superb tyre and have given me similar times to Toyo R888s.

Another point, I short change to 4th after exiting turn 5 right before turn in to 6. Also change to 4th briefly up the back straight. This means there are two turns, fishhook and 10 where I heel-toe from 4th to 2nd. I like this as one seems to set my mind up nicely for the other. Alex stays in 3rd from 5 to the fishhook. We are uncertain which is the better - do you have an opinion?

Alex is faster so I guess that gives you a hint. You're better to hold a lower gear as long as possible because when you change gear you're not accelerating. I hold 3rd gear all the way from turn 2 to the fish-hook. I imagine the taller diff ratio in the NB8A will offset the extra power/weight vs my NA6, so you ought to be able to get away with 3rd gear too. Turn 9 is flat in 3rd and I usually need to shift to 4th on the back straight - unless there's a strong headwind. I find the 4th to 2nd change for turn 10 can be tricky to master.

On another racing point: we have a standard seat and belt but would like a harness. Is there a recommended harness that can be used with the standard seat? Greg and Leesa Bunn tell me swapping drivers with a race seat installed is very difficult. I can't imagine trying to lever in and out of a Sprint V in a hurry!!

Using a harness with the stock NA or NB seat is not a great idea. If you mount the harness to the rear plate of a BD rollbar, they are both quite a distance from your shoulders, and there's a risk that in a frontal impact, the harness straps will slide off your shoulders. The MX-5 Plus rollbar can mount the harness on the torque box section which is much closer to the seat back, and there's probably less risk of losing the straps off your shoulders. However, in both cases, you might consider using the harness AND the standard seatbelt underneath. The stock seatbelt will give you restraint if you crash, and the harness will hold you down in the seat for the other 99.999999999999% of the time.

As for sharing a harness between two drivers, the main problem is that if you're very different in size, you'll need to adjust the waist straps every time you swap drivers. The shoulder straps usually have a fair bit of adjustment in them and are easier to accommodate two different sized drivers. It's possible to manage it, and I don't think it'd be any more/less difficult with a race seat. If you like, I have an old "out of date" harness that you can use to experiment with. Let me know and I'll bring it on 2nd December.

On another topic: I was at the last Illawarra branch meeting with Phil Reid who is having his first track run Dec 2. He's mad keen so give him a boost. Its great to see the Illawarra with its own group and I will lend moral support where I can.

That must have been the only meeting I missed because I don't remember seeing you there. Yes, I've been giving Phil lots of tips and advice about the club track days, and it'll be great ot see him give it a try in a couple weeks. He'll be nervous as hell, but will absolutely love it!

[mazmad]

There are a few people in the club running a '4' point harness ( no crotch straps) on a standard seat. The crucial thing is to get the waist straps really low and tight. And yeah it works well with the MX5 Plus tall boy rollbar.

Monza is a good 6 point harness, just use the waist and shoulder straps. And having just gone to a Sprint V - yeah getting in and out is not a quick operation

[Sailor]

A Factory seat is designed with a stock 3 point in mind.

Try mounting a 4 point on a stock seat and telling me it looks in any way safe.

There is no way to get the shoulder straps directly over your shoulder, the seat is too wide. Factory seats with harness slots are obviously a different story.

Maybe on an NA / NB.
On the NC the harness fits tight along the side of the headrest and attaches immediately behind and slightly narrower.
When I'm strapped in I need to ensure that my gloves are in my lap, the door is slightly closed and my helmet is on the console.
If not I need to unhook to reach them , NO WAY can I get out from under the shoulder straps.
Lapsash..easy, just reach across..hell I can even fish around in the glovebox.

I guess that if I rolled the car my chances of survival might be slightly increased
if I was thrown out of the lapsash rather than do a Bevan Gibson and be ground down to the shoulders IF the NC rollbar and screen collapsed.
You're welcome to have a sit in the seat and see just how secure you are at Wakefield.

[Muzdaman]

Fair enough, I haven't looked closely at an NC.

[Blesif]

That's a very comprehensive and helpful reply, Bryan. Alex is quicker than me slightly out of 10 (so more speed down the straight) and noticeably out of 2. Otherwise the data shows us pretty much identical in speed and cornering line. Put it another way, we could both be making the same errors. He's in the mid 1:16s and feels there's more to come even on the Adrenelins. He has the data sheets so I'll get him to email them. I feel that we need to get a race seat with a harness and forget the other compomise I was suggesting - was exploring an idea and I appreciate the feedback from everyone. We already have a BD roll bar fitted. The car has a PSS9 Bilstein suspension, 15x7 6ULs, extractors with matching exhaust, toda cams, gredy piggyback computer, Mania cold air intake, larger slotted front discs, Hawk pads, so ...its a nice little unit but aren't they all? You were at the meeting by the way. Phil has been on the track before in his Alfa days and he is a very capable driver so will be respectable pretty quickly I'd say. Thanks again, certainly enjoy your exploits in Little Reddy.

[Guran]

Ah OK, I think I was way down the other end of the table. Well I'll have to make sure I say gudday at the next Illawarra meeting.

You should find the race seat helps a lot. You get much better feel for what the car is doing. Just make sure you fit it with the stock rails so you retain the longitudinal adjustment. If you're interested in a Sprint V, make sure you try sitting in one first (I found it didn't suite my body shape).

Looking forward to playing with your Performance Box data when it arrives.

[Guran]

28th October 2012
NSW Supersprint Round 8 – Sydney Motorsport Park North

Last round for the 2012 NSW Supersprint season, with ARDC running the show. I enjoyed a more relaxed start to the day after staying overnight with Lesa & Greg at Penrith, and having a much shorter drive to the track. The day started a bit murky but remained dry and mild. Temperatures ranging from 16°C to 21°C, and atmospheric pressure was 1026hPa. Pretty favourable conditions.

The MX-5 Club needed a good points result to ensure a win in the club championship, with ARDC only 43 points behind us. Of the 98 drivers entered for this round, ARDC had 29 to our 16. Thankfully, that included a lot of non-championship drivers from ARDC, and the number of championship entrants was 14 from ARDC and 15 from MX-5 Club. Yet ARDC drivers were split across more classes though, and sure to gain more points. It would be a close finish!

Again, the re-numbering of turns on the North Circuit will take some getting used to! Turns 1 to 3 are the same as the original circuit, turn 4a and 4b is the left/right flip-flop, then we have turns 16, 17, 18 which used to be called turns 10, 11, 12. Essentially, it's eight turns in 2.8km with an average speed (in my car) of 125km/hr. Hence it's fractionally faster than the 4.4km circuit at Phillip Island. It's also very light on brakes since there is only one big brake for turn 2, a light dab for turn 4a, and a medium brake for turn 17.



Run 1: Gradually built up some heat into the R888s and beat my old PB 1:21.588 with 1:21.509 on the third lap! That was improved to 1:21.230 on lap 4, and then 1:20.922 on lap 5. On that last lap I was gaining quickly on Rob Young's modified NC but didn't need to back off for the last turn - it was his first run on the North circuit. I experimented with downshifting to 4th for the short straight between turns 1 and 2 - it seems to shave off a tenth and I stuck with it for the rest of the day.

Run 2: Building up on this run with 1:22.779, 1:21.700, 1:21.312 and 1:21.007, I was all set for a last lap flyer but then made a mess of turn 2 with a slide, catch, slide, catch, slide & give-up. Bugger - trying too hard.

Run 3: This run was a write-off. After building to 1:21.848 on lap 3, I was overtaken into turn 1 by a Porsche 944 Turbo which badly compromised the start of my lap. Then we were robbed of a fifth lap with the run ended early for unknown reason.

Run 4: An excellent clear run that built up with 1:21.334, 1:21.039, 1:21.065 and then a new PB of 1:20.903. I was starting to catch Rob Young's NC on the last lap, was all set to lop another couple tenths off my PB ... until I overcooked the last turn and visited the dirt. Bugger - trying too hard again.

Run 5: The fifth and final run was a corker! I started with Glenn Thomas behind me in his standard NB8B. Overtook an MR2 on the first lap (1:21.207), and then improved my PB to 1:20.672 on lap 2. Glenn did his own PB of 1:20.087 on that same lap and was right up my clacker through turn 1 on the next lap. Going through turn 1 at a true 170km/hr with another car only metres off your rear bumper takes huge trust from both drivers - it gets your heart rate going too! However, I had a slight brake lock into turn 2 , ran wide and let Glenn through on the inside. I was forced to back off a couple times on the next two laps in order to give myself some space behind Glenn. Then on the last lap of the day, I set my final PB of 1:20.652! That included a very slight lift into turn 1 as the R888s were starting to overheat.

At the start of this day, I didn't have a particularly high opinion of the north circuit for our MX-5s. But I've now changed my mind - it is huge fun when you really attack it. The turn 4a/4b sequence is a good technical challenge, and turn 1 will always get your attention.

1:20.672 on run 5 lap 2 (includes nice footage of Glenn on two wheels through turn 4a)


PB 1:20.652 on run 5 lap 5 - last supersprint lap of the year


I finished the day 5th in Class 1B & Type 1, behind Alexander Ball's Elise 111R (1:13.369), Stewart Temesvary's NC (1:18.234), Carl Kosutar's "standard" NC (1:19.348), and Glenn Thomas' NB8B (1:20.087), with Keith Monaghan's NB8B and John Mansell's Pulsar behind me.

So at the completion of the supersprint season I finished second in Type 1 and Class 1B by steadily picking up points throughout the year . Better still, the MX-5 Club of NSW won the club championship for the eighth time!!! With 761 points, we were only 35 points clear of ARDC (726), but well ahead of arch-rivals NSWRRC (531) who have also won the club championship eight times. ARDC have never won it! This is a fantastic effort from a single-model club.

Anthony Crott's NB8A was bumped to Class 2B for the last round because it was judged to be modified. Sadly, it was one round too late. They didn't backdate the pointscore to round 7 which means Keith Monaghan was deprived of the third place in Class 1B & Type 1 that was due to him.

Natsoft Results

Thanks to Scott Walker for taking the photos!

Exiting turn 2

IMG_6863 by Guran5, on Flickr

Approaching turn 3

IMG_6898 by Guran5, on Flickr

Two wheels through turn 17

IMG_7212 by Guran5, on Flickr

Exiting turn 18

IMG_7205 by Guran5, on Flickr

[Guran]

2nd December 2012
MX-5 Club of NSW Track Day – Wakefield Park

This was our first club track day at Wakefield Park since 29th July, and it was booked out weeks in advance. There were 84 drivers listed on the gridsheet which is the absolute maximum we can cope with: divided into 7 groups of 12 cars. Four drivers didn't show, and Ray Estreich had a plumbing issue with the oil supply in his SE and lunched his turbo. So there were 79 runners in the end.

On the drive down, Little Reddy was loaded up with a set of used NC tyres that I sold to Patrick Bramston. Good to be rid of them. I met up with Peter & Jill Feutrill at Sally's Corner and we travelled the rest of the way in convoy, passing Dominique on the way.

The heat and humidity of summer track days are often a massive physical challenge. For this one, we had to cope with 29°C and 65%RH . It was awefully hot and sticky, especially sitting in a non-airconditioned car with a black roof, clad in full race suit and helmet! I drank four litres of fluids during the day in an effort to keep hydrated. At least the forecasted thunderstorms never showed.

I was rostered to train a first-timer but my student was sharing Ian Caldwell's NA8, which didn't have a passenger seat. Nigel already had a full day on the track the day before, so he was good to go anyway.

Run 1: I started behind Ian Vickers' NB8A in group 3, and caught up to him on the second lap. He eventually let me past, and I had a decent lap of 1:17.23. At the end of the first run, Barry Jones led Class 4 (1:16.89), John Karayannis was second (1:17.07), I was third, and Allan Cruz was fourth (1:17.39). Only half a second splitting four drivers! Ian Vickers is usually in the mix too, but struggled in the heat with a 1:18.28 (improved to 1:18.13 on the last run).

Run 2: Ian and I swapped places for the next run, which I proceeded to undo on the first lap, when I spun at turn 5. Ian, John Burgess (NC) and Gus Elias (NB8B) all flew past and I got going again. The next four laps ranged from 1:17.09 to 1:17.42 on my PBox, and my official time improved to 1:16.97. That put me into second in Class 4, with no improvement from Barry, John and Allan.

Run 3: Gus started ahead of me on the next run. I had to lift in turn 2 after John Burgess had spun his NC (rolled the tyre of the rim!), but still did a 1:17.38 on the first lap. Then I had four nice consistent laps with times between 1:16.84 and 1:17.11. That slowest lap included a rallycross exit from turn 5 onto the dirt! John Karayannis also improved to 1:16.41, which put him into first in Class 4, with me second, and Barry Jones slipped to third. Allan Cruz improved fractionally to 1:17.34 but stayed fourth.

During the lunch break, Ian Caldwell gave me a drive of his modified NA8. I didn't get any lap times but it felt very quick with huge reserves of grip in the corners and very strong brakes too. Great fun and very easy to drive! Ian's best on the day was 1:13.19 and the car felt even quicker than that.

Run 4: I had another consistent run of six laps, with times ranging from 1:16.87 to 1:17.28. I mucked up the third lap with a big slide at turn 2 (1:17.52). Moments after returning to the pits, I had a few people congratulating me for doing a new PB of 1:15.30! Clearly a mistake had been made in the timing and I let the ladies know - my PBox said it was 1:16.98. Zan deleted it from the final results. There was no change in Class 4 times and rankings.

Run 5: Last run of the day. The first lap was not timed (1:17.28 on PBox). The PBox told me that I improved on lap 2 with a 1:16.59 but the official time was 1:16.88. Lap 3 was better again with a 1:16.42 on PBox and 1:16.37 official - my fastest on the day and only 0.57s slower than my 1:15.80 PB. For lap 4, the delta-t was showing that I was a tenth faster approaching turn 2 ... and then I had to take quick evasive action to avoid hitting Gus Elias' NB8B which was facing the wrong way on the turn 2 exit. It was a close one! I let Glenn Thomas past at turn 3, and then followed him for the last lap, finishing with a 1:17.08. Unfortunately the memory card on my spycam ran out and I didn't get any video of this run. At least Gus got it!



That last run put me into first place in Class 4 (1:16.37), fractionally ahead of John Karayannis (1:16.41), then Barry Jones was third (1:16.89), Allan Cruz fourth (1:17.34), Lindsay Burke fifth (1:17.65), and Ian Vickers sixth (1:18.13). Once again, the first four drivers were within one second (top three within half a second), and there were plenty of order changes through the day. Class 4 is great competition and hugely entertaining!

I now find myself in the rather embarassing situation of leading the Class 4 pointscore ... with a standard NA6 and none of the four performance modifications that I'm permitted. It wasn't supposed to work out like this!

[Guran]

For ages I've been wanting to overlay my GPS data onto track day videos, but never seemed to get around to it. Well an email from DashWare with a "holiday offer" of US$39.99 was too good to miss and this afternoon I bit the bullet. It took me a few goes to get it right, but I'm pretty happy with the results. Here is a new version of the video from my 1:15.80 PB at Wakefield Park on street tyres (Dunlop Star Spec Z1).

[plohl]

Well done! Are you sliding as much as it sounds in some of the corners?

Dashware fairly easy to use?

[Regie]

hahahahaahah nice commentary at the end of the lap Bryan!!