TVRCC City Region :-(
Discussion
Very bad accident today at Snetterton apparently. Driver of a Mitsubishi Evo hit the tyre wall at speed. Driver reported to be suffering from whiplash and passenger reported to be in a very serious condition.
The other drivers at the day are being advised to go home.
A timely reminder that we're not invincible on the track and that road cars aren't race cars...
Best wishes to those involved.
The other drivers at the day are being advised to go home.
A timely reminder that we're not invincible on the track and that road cars aren't race cars...
Best wishes to those involved.
Track days are most definitely the most fun you can have with your clothes on. Even better if you could do it naked I suppose 
Tracks are tremendously safe places. The martials will have you off the track if you do drive like a berk, and there is usually very good run off and medical facilities if the worse does happen. After all, on the public roads, you don't have an ambulance following you around just in case!
You do have to remember that this is motorsport though! The consoling thing has to be that modern cars are *so* much safer than ever before and if Mr EVO had crashed in his car 5 years ago, he'd probably be dead.
Best wishes to the chap and passenger.
Tracks are tremendously safe places. The martials will have you off the track if you do drive like a berk, and there is usually very good run off and medical facilities if the worse does happen. After all, on the public roads, you don't have an ambulance following you around just in case!
You do have to remember that this is motorsport though! The consoling thing has to be that modern cars are *so* much safer than ever before and if Mr EVO had crashed in his car 5 years ago, he'd probably be dead.
Best wishes to the chap and passenger.
Don't let it put you off loudpedal, as ted says, if you drive within your limits you will be fine and have a great day.
A lot of people who have seen me drive joke that I drive too fast and take risks, but I'm not that bad and when I do a track day I really do know my limitations. Some people, even in inferior equipment are quicker than me and are better drivers so I let them past....
however, every time I have done a track day there are always a couple of people who seem incensed if you try to pass them, they go a bit quicker to try to keep you behind and all their concerntration goes out of the window. Best thing is to back off and let them go....
It may be a total co-incidence but every track day I've been on some poor sod has stuffed either an Imprezza or an Evo...
Every car has a limit where it will let go and unless you are driving something with a full roll-cage it's going to bloody hurt if you hit the tyres....
Hope these two people are OK......
A lot of people who have seen me drive joke that I drive too fast and take risks, but I'm not that bad and when I do a track day I really do know my limitations. Some people, even in inferior equipment are quicker than me and are better drivers so I let them past....
however, every time I have done a track day there are always a couple of people who seem incensed if you try to pass them, they go a bit quicker to try to keep you behind and all their concerntration goes out of the window. Best thing is to back off and let them go....
It may be a total co-incidence but every track day I've been on some poor sod has stuffed either an Imprezza or an Evo...
Every car has a limit where it will let go and unless you are driving something with a full roll-cage it's going to bloody hurt if you hit the tyres....
Hope these two people are OK......
quote:
Don't let it put you off loudpedal, as ted says, if you drive within your limits you will be fine and have a great day.
Agree 110%
quote:
It may be a total co-incidence but every track day I've been on some poor sod has stuffed either an Imprezza or an Evo...:
They have so much control, that when they go, they go much harder and with little warning. A Chim (for example) will give a loads of warning and have varying levels of 'going' at a lower speed.
Incidently, pics of the day www.pikeynet.com (though of course, none of the accident).
Think you are right Pikey. I drove my mates RB5 Impreza and wouldn't want to be "on the limit" in one of those really, unless it was in an empty field or runway..... plus my mate is a traffic cop and it's nervy enough driving with him, let alone when you're behind the wheel of his new Impreza
Any news on the occupants of the evo??
Any news on the occupants of the evo??
quote:
however, every time I have done a track day there are always a couple of people who seem incensed if you try to pass them, they go a bit quicker to try to keep you behind and all their concerntration goes out of the window. Best thing is to back off and let them go....
It's such a pity that they don't just blend out of the power on the straight and let you pass, as you've probably just made 500yds on them in a lap, but because they're fast in a straight line I guess you can't pass.
Anyone can go fast on the straight, no real skill there... but just let people past.
Hope the guys involved here are OK and back soon.
Craig
Hope both involved are ok.
I was at said track day, and had a fantastic time - thanks to City Region for another well organised event. Shame the TVR dealers with shiney new cars and lovely buffet were absent this year. Any reason why ?
On the subject of the accident I was in the same group as Evo man. Mighty impressed with how fast the car is, but got to be said he was an accident waiting to happy. Every corner was taken in Tiff Ned sideways style. Most entertaining to watch until he lost it completely.
So, anyone thinking of giving it a go, just be sensible and it is bonkers fun !
I was at said track day, and had a fantastic time - thanks to City Region for another well organised event. Shame the TVR dealers with shiney new cars and lovely buffet were absent this year. Any reason why ?
On the subject of the accident I was in the same group as Evo man. Mighty impressed with how fast the car is, but got to be said he was an accident waiting to happy. Every corner was taken in Tiff Ned sideways style. Most entertaining to watch until he lost it completely.
So, anyone thinking of giving it a go, just be sensible and it is bonkers fun !
quote:
Mighty impressed with how fast the car is, but got to be said he was an accident waiting to happy. Every corner was taken in Tiff Ned sideways style. Most entertaining to watch until he lost it completely.
I always thought those things were fixed to the apex of the corner with an invisible strand of elastic - you probably couldn't hear the twang as said band snapped over the noise of the tyre screech!
To reiterate a couple of points. Firstly, and most importantly, I do hope the guys in the Evo are OK. Incidents on track days are fairly inevitable, purely because few of us are skilled enough to know exactly where the limit is at all times.
Also, with regard to overtaking, I think track days work best when all involved respect the fact that each and every driver (provided they're driving safely) has paid the same and has an equal right to track space.
Has anyone seen a 4WD car driven well on a track? I'd be interested to know if they lend themselves to being driven sideways anyway, leading to accusations of overdoing it.
My brief experience driving a Scoobie around Brands Hatch led me to think that perhaps you can't drive fast without adopting a very different style to RWD/FWD cars.
My brief experience driving a Scoobie around Brands Hatch led me to think that perhaps you can't drive fast without adopting a very different style to RWD/FWD cars.
Ted,
I took my Prodrive modified Impreza to a couple of TVR track days (only ever passed by one V8 TVR!! but passed by Trevor Jasper's Vixen), however the style of driving in a well set up car is not much different from a rear wheel drive car, except that you can carry an enormous amount of speed into corners, this can get you into trouble when following TVRs because although they had the legs of me on any straight I would be all over them in the corner. You also have to remember to keep the revs up, as no boost is no go.
Once drivers of the fast straight line cars realised and let me past on the next straight, then all was fine and very rapid progress could be made.
I did not drive my car like a rally car at all, it had Prodrive's trackday suspension settings and the turn in was incredible.
However the car only broke away once under power (oversteer slide), this is not surprising as 235bhp, four very sticky and warm Pirelli Pzeros and 1235kg suggest that the car is not overpowered for a compenent chassis. BUT was definitely unsettled by hitting kerbs, I got on the exit kerbs at Cascades at Oulton Park and the car just turned sideways, fortunately if you don't panic and just correct slowly a Scooby will come back in line, staring out of the drivers Window to whereyou are going at 85mph is not good for the soul.
I took several diehard TVR men around Cadwell (a suitable Impreza Circuit) and Oulton Park and they were amazed how easy it was to drive fast and how much speed you can carry through the corners.
Although it was very quick (Castle Combe old circuit 1.13 dry, 1.21 pouring rain), it was not as much fun as punting a TVR around a circuit.
davidy
I took my Prodrive modified Impreza to a couple of TVR track days (only ever passed by one V8 TVR!! but passed by Trevor Jasper's Vixen), however the style of driving in a well set up car is not much different from a rear wheel drive car, except that you can carry an enormous amount of speed into corners, this can get you into trouble when following TVRs because although they had the legs of me on any straight I would be all over them in the corner. You also have to remember to keep the revs up, as no boost is no go.
Once drivers of the fast straight line cars realised and let me past on the next straight, then all was fine and very rapid progress could be made.
I did not drive my car like a rally car at all, it had Prodrive's trackday suspension settings and the turn in was incredible.
However the car only broke away once under power (oversteer slide), this is not surprising as 235bhp, four very sticky and warm Pirelli Pzeros and 1235kg suggest that the car is not overpowered for a compenent chassis. BUT was definitely unsettled by hitting kerbs, I got on the exit kerbs at Cascades at Oulton Park and the car just turned sideways, fortunately if you don't panic and just correct slowly a Scooby will come back in line, staring out of the drivers Window to whereyou are going at 85mph is not good for the soul.
I took several diehard TVR men around Cadwell (a suitable Impreza Circuit) and Oulton Park and they were amazed how easy it was to drive fast and how much speed you can carry through the corners.
Although it was very quick (Castle Combe old circuit 1.13 dry, 1.21 pouring rain), it was not as much fun as punting a TVR around a circuit.
davidy
I drive an impreza and have driven it briefly around Brands (until the clutch went bang!).
I don't think 4wd are massively different in terms of driving them quickly around the track. Sure, you have the option of doing the 4 wheel drift through some corners, but in my limited experience I would say that's not the quickest route round the track, but it probably would be the quickest way round a rally stage. I suppose it's akin to powersliding the rear end out of every corner in your TVR. Great fun, but not always the fastest route around a track.
The 4wd allows you to brake much further into a track corner than conventional cars and the Scooby tends to understeer coming out of the corner much like front wheel drive cars. It is certainly more forgiving than any other 2wd car I have driven with mistakes that would usually end up facing the other way just causing the 4wd system to distribute the torque around to settle down the car.
They're bloody brilliant fun too.
I don't think 4wd are massively different in terms of driving them quickly around the track. Sure, you have the option of doing the 4 wheel drift through some corners, but in my limited experience I would say that's not the quickest route round the track, but it probably would be the quickest way round a rally stage. I suppose it's akin to powersliding the rear end out of every corner in your TVR. Great fun, but not always the fastest route around a track.
The 4wd allows you to brake much further into a track corner than conventional cars and the Scooby tends to understeer coming out of the corner much like front wheel drive cars. It is certainly more forgiving than any other 2wd car I have driven with mistakes that would usually end up facing the other way just causing the 4wd system to distribute the torque around to settle down the car.
They're bloody brilliant fun too.
The understeer can be killed by using the Prodrive suspension settings, the car becomes much more neutral and much more like a big go-cart. This also makes the turn in much later, no scary I'm going to understeer off the track moments!!!)
As for the braking, I tended to brake in a straight line, then turn in balancing the power as you would with a rear drive car. I can tell you from experience that if you are still on the brakes hard in the wet when turning in, it will just turn sideways on the first little bump that it hits.
Next time you go on the circuit, get the Prodrive settings applied to your car (max negative camber at the front, equal on both sides!! and I can't remember the amount of rear toe-in, but the SIDC should be able to tell you), this will kill the understeer, you can then brake later, turn in later and be more neutral through the corners.
As for the braking, I tended to brake in a straight line, then turn in balancing the power as you would with a rear drive car. I can tell you from experience that if you are still on the brakes hard in the wet when turning in, it will just turn sideways on the first little bump that it hits.
Next time you go on the circuit, get the Prodrive settings applied to your car (max negative camber at the front, equal on both sides!! and I can't remember the amount of rear toe-in, but the SIDC should be able to tell you), this will kill the understeer, you can then brake later, turn in later and be more neutral through the corners.
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