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| Wednesday, 1-Nov-2006 01:45 |
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Alfa 75 - 3
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Alfa 75 Milano
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1987 Alfa Romeo Milano Verde
The Alfa Romeo Milano sedans are considered by some to be the last "true" Alfa Romeo (i.e., rear-wheel drive). There were four models of the Milano produced from 1987 to 1989: three 2.5 liter versions (Silver, Gold, Platinum), and the 3.0 liter version (Verde, for the green Quadrifoglio emblem).
In a European Car review, the Alfa Romeo Milano Verde was compared favorably to the Porsche 944 for performance:
0-60 in 7.7 seconds
Top speed: 136 mph
Fuel economy: 21.9 mpg city / 35 mpg highway
Standard features on the Milano Verde model include: power steering, ABS, Recaro interior (including heated driver's seat), headlight washers, front and rear foglights (rear are known as the "afterburners"), and a taller 3.55 ratio transaxle (vs 4.11 for the other models).
The Milano Verde model can be spotted immediately, and is differentiated from the Silver, Gold and Platinum models, due to the fender flares, side skirts, and rear deck spoiler. And, of course, the Quadrifoglio badge on the rear (only affixed to the highest performance models of all Alfa Romeos).
US Alfa Romeo Milano Model Information
Known as the Alfa 75 in Europe, the Milano was made in four different models between 1987 and 1989. The cars were built on a separate production line, and have US specification bumpers which look different from the European version. All cars have Bosch L-Jetronic fuel injection.
Standard Features (by model)
• Silver
o 2.5 liter V6 (155 hp)
o 5-speed 4.11 rear end
o cloth seats
o 14" steel wheels
• Gold
o Same engine and drive line as Silver
o fog lights
o power mirrors
o cloth seats with different pattern
o 14x5.5" alloy wheels
• Platinum
o Same engine and transmission as Silver in 1987
o 4.11 limited-slip rear
o alloy wheels
o leather seats with heating and power-adjustable backs
o fog lights
o power/heated outside mirrors
o other luxury car features
o ATE MkII ABS system
o 1988 and 1989 Platinums have self-leveling rear shocks and
automatic transmission instead of the 5-speed + limited slip setup.
• QV (Quadrifoglio Verde)
o 3.0 liter V6
o 5-speed 3.55 limited-slip rear
o alloy wheels
o front/rear fog lights
o power/heated outside mirrors
o power windows/locks/antenna
o air conditioning
o ATE MkII ABS system
o Stiffer springs and bars
o Recaro seats (driver's side heated)
o Fender flares, rocker skirts, and rear deck spoiler
o 1989 models have cruise control and Euro-style front grill
Alfa Romeo Milano Verde statistics
Engine
Type: SOHC V6
Displacement: 2959 cc
HP: 183 @5800 rpm
Torque (lb-ft): 181 @3000 rpm
Dimensions
Wheelbase: 98.8 inches
L/W/H: 170.5 / 6.42 / 53.1 inches
Curb weight: 2907 pounds
Chassis
Front: Upper/lower parallel links, torsion bars, tube shocks, antiroll bar
Rear: de Dion tube with double jointed axles, Watts linkage, coil springs, tube shocks, antiroll bar
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| Wednesday, 1-Nov-2006 01:35 |
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Alfa 75 - 2
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Alfa 75 Evoluzione
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You'll learn the true meaning of "handling" in this car. Try to drive one! I found this website and it's pretty interesting. He is a true Alfa lover. http://www.nizam.com/index.html
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| Wednesday, 1-Nov-2006 01:26 |
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Alfa 75 - 1
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On the 17th of May 1985 Alfa Romeo presented a new car to the press. The car was introduced as the 75 - the number refers to Alfa Romeo`s 75 years of exisistence. The coachwork was designed by Ermanno Cressoni, head of Centro Stille. The design had the codename K-1 and was developed under the supervision of Domenico Chirico.The new Alfa had to be a true sports sedan without looking too aggressive or having a racy appearance. Ermanno Cressoni designed the wedge-shaped coach-work we all adore. The car`s mechanical layout was based on the
Guilietta, Alfetta and the 90, therefore it features the rear transaxle configuration as found in those cars.
Because the 75 (code named series 162B by Alfa Romeo) was introduced only six months after the introduction of the Alfa 90, the press spoke of cannibalism, but Alfa Romeo wasn`t concerned about that at all. They saw the Alfa 90 as a comfortable car for the traditional businessman, while the Alfa75 was more of a sport sedan. Alfa said that both cars would have their own buyers.
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| Tuesday, 31-Oct-2006 09:06 |
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Chief instructor-Chevrolet Advanced Driving Training
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Driving Poster
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Has the experience as the Chief Instructor - Chevrolet Advanced Driving Training during my tenure with HICOMOBIL was a great experience. Was sent for Comprehensive Rally Driving, High Performance Driving and Australia V8 SuperCar Driving Training. I would like to share some of the experience with you guys who are interested. Some may not believe that Chevy is a good car to drive & has lot of potential.
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| Friday, 20-Oct-2006 04:32 |
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Oversteer - Part V
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Salam & hello, please click the website below and later click the video to view a lady doing sideways and drifting in a standard car with ease; whicle explaining to the viewers.
Regards,
AZAD
http://www.litchfieldimports.co.uk/subaru_06forester.asp
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| Saturday, 14-Oct-2006 04:02 |
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Oversteer - Part IV
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Let's try to conclude this topic. It's one of my favs. Oversteer is hard to describe if you've never experienced it before. However, it's more exciting, dangerous and fun than understeer so we'll cover it first. From above, picture a car approaching a sharp right-hand corner. When oversteer occurs, rather than following the path of the corner, the rear wheels lose grip and follow a tangent from the current position in the corner. In extreme cases this means that the car will leave the road backwards as the rear wheels head towards the outside (left hand side) of the corner.
Oversteer can occur in three ways; a. Through excessive power or wheelspin,excessive corner entry speed or lift-off oversteer. Each of these causes are examined below.
Excessive Power Oversteer through excessive power only exists in rear wheel drive cars. It can occur when accelerating away from a sharp corner, typically when leaving a T-junction. Applying too much power and generating wheelspin causes the rear wheels to lose grip and stop following the path of the corner. In these situations the front wheels remain on-course and the car pivots around the front wheels. If deliberately provoked the car can be made to turn 360-degrees around the front wheels - known as a "doughnut". Correcting excessive power oversteer at low speeds is best achieved by reducing power to a modest level (but not closing the throttle completely). At the same time, and as is common to all forms of oversteer, you should also apply corrective steering by turning the front wheels such that they point in the opposite direction. Corrective steering is commonly referred to as opposite lock, although this is misleading as it implies a maximum amount of corrective steering.
Exactly how much corrective steering to apply depends on the angle of oversteer and is a matter of practice makes perfect. If in doubt, apply a little corrective steering and add more until the front wheels and rear wheels are travelling sideways at the same rate. When the right level of corrective steering is applied the car will be travelling sideways in a four wheel drift. When in a four wheel drift, grip will be restored when enough speed has been lost. In the oversteer through excessive power situation, this will happen immediately because stopping the wheelspin (by reducing power) will restore grip.
Once grip is restored it is important to undo your corrective steering. If you don't "unclock" soon enough it can result in the car snapping into oversteer in the opposite direction - known as "fishtailing". Once a car starts fishtailing it can be extremely difficult to recover as momentum increases and the amount of oversteer in each "flap" increases until a spin occurs. Learning how much corrective-steering to apply (and how quickly to unwind) is best done on an airfield day. Here you can spin, fishtail and four wheel drift to your heart's content with loads of space and nothing to hit. I would strongly suggest attending an airfield day or two before going to a motor racing circuit track day where there are gravel traps and armco barrier to hit if it all goes horribly wrong.I always had "fish tailing" during my tenure in the Elise. It's pretty hard to drift in the Elise when I started 2-3 years back.
Once in a four wheel drift, if excessive power is sustained then you can perform a power slide so long as the correct balance between throttle and steering is maintained. More throttle will increase the angle of oversteer therefore requiring more corrective steering. Every car has a critical angle of oversteer beyond which it cannot be recovered. The Elise, with it's relatively short wheelbase and rear-biased weight distribution, has a low critical angle of oversteer and can't cope with more than about 30-40 degrees before a spin is inevitable. I haven't had enough experience on the 4WD on tarmac as most of my 4WD "sessions" were on gravel. I had a WONDERFUL esperience praticing Subaru STi rally prepared car with Mr. Stewart Reid in Australia. I learnt a lot about driving a 4WD drive cars there.
Another useful lesson learnt at the open parking space where the critical angle of oversteer is reached and how best to spin neatly using the least amount of room. Holding a terminal oversteer at opposite lock is fruitless if you know you will spin. Once you realise you have a case of terminal oversteer, the best course of action is to hit the brakes (and dip the clutch to protect the engine) which will result in a tighter spin, requiring less room to come to a halt. There is a saying, "in a spin, both feet in", which is to remind you to dip the clutch. Spinning means that you will travel backwards and if you're in a forward gear that can mean bad news for the engine and transmission unless you dip the clutch. When spinning, remember that the steering wheel will spin violently when the car points in the direction of travel. For this reason, do not put your thumbs inside the rim of the steering wheel - they are easily broken.
Excessive Corner Entry Speed. Oversteer through excessive corner speed is unusual. Most cars suspension and tyre sizes are set up such that should you enter a corner too fast the front tyres will lose grip before the rears. This results in understeer through excessive corner entry speed which is easier to deal with for drivers not used to skidding! To a certain extent the Elise is set up to behave in the same way, although mild in its execution. However, given a slight change to suspension geometry (easily done), use of wider front tyres or worn rear tyres can easily result in oversteer through excessive corner entry speed.I had my my first experience in an Elise in 1999 when I drove the car at "the late" Batu 3 Race Track Shah Alam at the Rothmans corner. At that time, I had very little man hour in the Elise and I did the trial braking and eased off the brake a little too late and had the oversteer with my ex office mate at USPD (now known as Proton Edar. He is Mr. Azam).
Correcting oversteer through excessive corner entry speed requires the right amount of corrective steering and a good deal of room. The faster your speed, the greater the angle of oversteer and the more room required to lose enough speed for grip to be restored. There is of course a critical corner entry speed, above which the angle of oversteer will be unrecoverable. However, in real world situations on public roads you will have slid off the road long before losing enough speed to regain grip. In these situations you have a choice; hit the brakes and leave the road backwards or apply corrective steering and leave the road sideways. The safest choice is probably to leave the road backwards which reduces the chances of turning the car over and puts the engine between you and the scenery. However, unless you have experience of this (or tremendous presence of mind) you are likely to attempt correction - it's a bad situation in any event.
Unless your corner entry speed is only a little over that required to induce oversteer, you effectively have a case of terminal oversteer because there simply is not enough room on the public road to regain grip. That said, there is more room available on left hand bends so long as there is no oncoming traffic. The maxim "slow in, fast out" is particularly apt in these circumstances. The Elise, unless you are particularly talented, is not a car you can simply chuck into a corner and sort it out if it goes wrong. The inherent balance of the car lends itself to a "slow in, fast out" approach because power can be applied early on in the corner and then balanced on the throttle through to the exit.
Lift-Off Oversteer. Lift-off is a result of weight transfer and is particularly relevant to the Elise. Imagine taking a corner a little too fast. The front tyres start to lose grip and your natural reaction is to step off the accelerator so that you slow down and restore grip. What happens in this scenario is that weight is transferred to the front tyres (in the same way as the front suspension dives during heavy braking). This produces the desired effect of restoring grip to the front tyres but reduces the weight over the rear tyres causing them to lose grip suddenly. This is the reason why backing off the throttle when in oversteer has dramatic effects - it increases the oversteer by lightening the rear-end and more often than not results in terminal oversteer.
The Elise is particularly prone to lift-off oversteer firstly because its suspension is set up for neutrality (so it's as likely to oversteer as understeer) and secondly because its weight distribution is biased towards the rear. Reducing weight at the rear has a dramatic effect because the suspension is set up to expect the majority of the weight of the car to be there. For this reason lift-off oversteer is rare in front engined cars because the suspension already expects the majority of the weight to be at the front. That is not to say that front engined cars do not suffer from lift-off oversteer. Most every car will do it but the provocation required is extreme. I just had a wonderful experience with my instructor, Tg Azizan of Proton in an Elise last week, He taught me the wonderful experience of the controlled-drift in an Elise. It took me quite sometime to absorb the drifting in an Elise. Alhamdulillah, I got it. Thanks Sifu!
Lift-off oversteer, depending on the extremity, can be recovered by restoring power and applying corrective steering. This is, however, normally only possible with very mild cases of lift-off oversteer. But there are situations where lift-off oversteer is desirable and can be induced. One way of curing understeer is to jab the brakes, transferring weight to the front wheels and reducing grip on the rears. This technique should have the effect of pointing the car in the desired direction but is very easy to get wrong and should be used with extreme caution.
AZAD
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| Saturday, 14-Oct-2006 03:58 |
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Oversteer - Part III
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RWD - Full opposite lock in a Porsche
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FWD oversteer.
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4WD oversteer
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So, if you are interested in the performance driving, kindly spare sometime to "play around"" with any standard specs car. Just try to instigate oversteer in order to bring you out of the box of a normal driving condition. Do it at a safe place.
What's the best way not to get into a skid? Avoid it in the first place! One of the best ways to avoid trouble on the road (not just skids) is to drive smoothly. True professionals drive so seamlessly that you do not feel anything when they shift, turn, or brake. Plan ahead, watch carefully, and slow down, especially if you are unfamiliar with the road. Skids almost always happen because the vehicle was running too fast for conditions.
Be careful when conditions might be slippery, as this is when most skids occur. But no matter what the road's surface condition is, skids are caused by driver error. Try to turn too sharply, enter a turn too quickly, or use excessive acceleration or braking, and you'll get the chance to practice skids! Keep your brakes maintained and properly adjusted, because a lateral imbalance in your brakes can cause or aggravate a skid.
There are two common types of skids. "Oversteer" (or fishtailing) occurs when your front wheels are taking a shorter path than desired and the rear-end breaks loose and fishtails. This is the result of power and side forces causing loss of traction on the rear wheels; there is too much power applied for the existing steering input and the resulting side forces cause the rear wheels to break free, often as a result of trying to accelerate out of a turn. "Understeer" (or plowing) occurs when you have too much steering input for the power you are applying (too sharp an angle between the tires and the direction of motion), and the front wheels skid ahead as a result.
Professional driving instructors advise a new way of teaching skid recovery, instead of the old rule, which was, "Turn into the skid." They say this "new" way is more understandable to non-professionals, but either way, they adamantly say the result is the same. This change was made because many folks didn't clearly understand what "turn into the skid" means.
If you find yourself in an over-steer skid, first thing to do is get off the gas, keep your foot off the brakes, or smoothly release brake pressure if already applied, and if you are driving a standard shift vehicle, disengage the clutch. Quickly turn the steering wheel in the direction you want the front of the car to go (down the road). Specifically, this means align your tires with the direction of your intended travel. As your vehicle turns back in the correct direction, you must then counter steer in time to stop the turning and stay on your desired path. If you do not do this promptly, the vehicle will continue to turn past your intended direction, and you may then skid in that direction. You may have to counter-steer more than once to get things under control.
There are two situations where the previous techniques could actually make the skid recovery more difficult. When you are driving either a front-wheel drive vehicle or a rear-wheel drive with the four-wheel drive engaged, a quick reduction on the accelerator can cause a result in a loss of control that mimics what happens when the brake pedal is depressed -- namely, the front wheels are slowed faster than the rear wheels increasing the over-steer skid problem. What is generally recommended is to place the vehicle into neutral (or depress the clutch) to allow the front wheels to coast as the vehicle is turned in the direction described above. My own experience is that control is much easier to reacquire by applying a steady pressure on the gas pedal as one "drives" out of the skid, but this assumes that the driver was traveling an appropriately slow speed to begin with.
For an under-steer skid, slightly reduce your steering input while slowing (without heavy braking) so you'll regain your directional control as the tires again grip the road surface. In this skid, the critical issue is to reduce speed so that you can regain a grip on the road and complete your turn. Even just a slight decrease in steering input, combined with the reduction in speed, may be enough to stop the skid from progressing.
These techniques are something you need to practice. If there are any high performance driving schools in your area, take advantage of the "safety" course they offer and you'll get the opportunity to practice skid recovery under safe, controlled conditions. You'll have a better idea of what to do, and a better idea of your own capabilities behind the wheel. I guarantee you will be a safer driver.
Regards,
Safety First,Last & Always
AZAD
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| Saturday, 14-Oct-2006 03:56 |
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Oversteer - Part II
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Aerial view of Holden Performance Driving Centre
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Mike Doohan testing Paul Morris's Touring Car
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Skid Pad at the centre - Very fruitful training
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I started learning drifting with numerous outings of oversteer cars. Had the experience to learn the Australia V8 SuperCar with Paul Morris Motorsports (www.paulmorris.com.au) when General Motors sent me for a high performance driving in Australia. They started with the normal Holden V8 with 380bhp and later put me in the 640bhp Australian V8 Touring Car. It's a beast! You can simply slide even at 160km/h with this car. Once you step on the throttle, the rear tyres will spin. Immense torque.The power is awesome. However, you can just slid with any car but please remember to play safe. I love the driving experience so much.
Below is the spec of the car .
The specs of the Australian V8 SuperCar
MAKE/MODEL : VZ Holden Commodore
CAPACITY : 600-bhp @ 7,500-rpm
CLUTCH : AP triple plate carbon clutch
GEARBOX : 6-speed H pattern Holinger
DIFFERENTIAL : 9-inch crownwheel (spool)
FRONT SUSPENSION : PMM designed and manufactured double wishbone with CNC billet uprights
REAR SUSPENSION : Live rear axle, watts linkage, rose joints, 4 link
FRONT BRAKES : 375mm disc, 48 vane, 24 slot, AP Racing UK 6-spot caliper (monoblock)
REAR BRAKES : 343mm, 48 vane, AP Racing UK 4-spot caliper (monoblock)
WHEELS : 17-inch x 11-inch Oz Racing wheels
TYRES : Dunlop 280/680 R17 Control slick and/or wet tyre
FUEL TANK : 120 litres
WEIGHT : 1,355kg (minimum weight)
COLOUR : black, orange, and silver
Regards,
Safety First, Last & Always,
AZAD
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| Thursday, 12-Oct-2006 09:04 |
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What is oversteer/opposite lock- Part I
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Countersteer also known as Opposite Lock
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When you can control your skid,you'll get addicted to it.
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Salam & hello, this is different from drifting. Drifting is about controlled-skid or controlled-oversteer whereas skid is always unexpected.I'd like to shere something which I think can give you the idea on skidding. You'll get addicted with it once you can control the skid/the slide and later will bring you to another world called "Drifting".
AZAD
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| Thursday, 14-Sep-2006 13:49 |
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Drifting
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Look at the drfit angle - Nicely done!
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Oucch! This is not one of the techniques. T16 too much sideways.
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One of the perfect cars for drifting - Fiat 131 Abarth
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I was introduced by one of my instructors on this technique. Tg Azizan of Proton Berhad or Bang Jan a.k.a. as Sifu introduced to me the technique years back, in 1999 when I was in the 1st batch of Proton Precision Driving Team. We have only 3 drivers back in 1999 - 2001 (Faidzil Alang - This year's MME Champion/Satria GTi Champion, Norhisham - Familiar face in Satria GTi Race, MME and Malaysian Super Series Races and yours truly). Tg Azizan can easily drift the Lotus Elise using some many techniques while he was actually explaining to me in the Elise; and with the smile on his face. My fidu is now recovering after the operation and InsyaAllah I'll be going be in my classsroom (Elise is my classroom) again and ready for my next syallabus.
Tg Azizan introduced me with Mr. Gavan Kershaw, the sideways champion in UK and he is currently the Vehicle Principle Dynamics Engineer at Lotus UK. Gavan brought me in the Lotus Elise on Sepang track and he did drift at all ( I mean ALL) turns at Sepang. It started from Turn 1 until turn 15 and he did it so easily and smooooooooth and faaaaaassssssssst! He was doing around 140-160 at some turns and they way he modulated the throttle and the techniques he was holding the steering were perfect. No jerking and I can still remember very vividly the way he did the scandinavian flick at turn 15 (at Sepang) before doing the 4 wheel drift. Right after my laps with Gavan, Datuk Mokhzani Mahathir requested gavan to show him the tricks in Datuk's Lotus 340R.
I personally think it's a pretty difficult technique to master. This is my personal view - Most people can drfit but not many people drift properly and I'm still learning this black art of driving. Why not we just learn the techniques together using some of the officially-known techniques"by the drifters.
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Heel Toe Shifting (Double Clutching)
Heel toe shifting is a race shifting technique that allows drivers to downshift quickly while applying the brakes. Proper heal toe shifting keeps the engine, transmission, and wheel speed matched up so there is no jolt through the driveline while downshifting. When drifting, heel toe downshifting allows drivers to downshift in order to increase engine rpm, while braking to transfer weight forward and off the rear wheels.
1. Before entering a turn, do your initial braking to transfer your vehicle’s weight forward. Double clutch / heel toe downshift (see next step). Turn your wheels into the corner. Carry enough momentum into the corner to induce oversteer.
2. Clutch in, bring your vehicle into neutral, and release clutch. While on the brakes, slide your right heel over to the gas pedal and rev up (blip) the engine to match transmission and engine speed. Without matching revs on downshift, the engine speed will cause a jolt through the driveline, upsetting rear traction uncontrollably.
3. After matching revs, clutch in, and downshift your vehicle. Double clutching is optional, but reduces wear on your transmission. Use e-brake if momentum and downshift do not create enough oversteer.
4. Release the clutch, get off the brakes, and press the accelerator. Accelerate enough to keep tires spinning to continue oversteer. Add steering input (countersteering) to keep your vehicle from pivoting or spinning out
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Power Over Drift
1. Enter a turn at any speed. The powerover drift is based on horsepower so it does not necessarily need much speed or rotational force to perform.
2. Turn your wheels sharply into the turn, and get on the throttle enough to cause your wheels to lose traction. The cornering force of the vehicle combined with the excessive throttle will cause your vehicle to oversteer.
3. When you feel the vehicle’s rear end kicking out, immediately countersteer the wheels to face straight with the road. Your vehicle will pull in the direction of the front wheels, as long as the wheels are still moving. Keep on the throttle. If you press the brakes or let off the throttle because your vehicle is in an extremely oversteered condition, you will spin out or leave the road.
4. When you wish to straighten out your car, after completing the drift, let off the throttle smoothly and straighten out the wheels as your vehicle kicks in line behind the front tires
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Swaying Drift (using Scandinavian flick)
1. Enter a turn at medium to high speed to perform this drift.
2. Turn your wheels away from the turn.
3. Hold in the release button on your E-Brake / hand brake and pull up your brake sharply, then quickly release (e-brake is held up for only about 1 second). If using a RWD car, clutch in while pulling your E-Brake.
4. When you feel the vehicle’s rear end kicking out, immediately countersteer the wheels to face straight with the road. Your vehicle will pull in the direction of the front wheels, as long as the wheels are still moving. Keep on the throttle.
5. Your vehicle will now be sliding sideways in an angle away from the turn you wish to make.
6. When you want to turn your vehicle back into the direction of the turn you wish to make, let off the throttle quickly and completely. By letting off the throttle quickly, your vehicle will snap back in the opposite direction. Once your vehicle is at its desired angle, get on the throttle again to maintain the drift.
7. Let go of the steering wheel so that your vehicle's wheels line up with the road again. Countersteer if necessary.
8. If your vehicle begins to lose speed while sliding sideways, heel-toe downshift into a gear low enough to pull your vehicle through the drift.
9. When you wish to straighten out your car, after completing the drift, let off the throttle smoothly and straighten out the wheels as your vehicle kicks in line behind the front tires.
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Long Slide Drift
1. Enter a turn at high speed to perform this drift.
2. Turn your wheels into from the turn.
3. Hold in the release button on your E-Brake and pull up your brake sharply, then quickly release (e-brake is held up for only about 1 second). If using a RWD car, clutch in while pulling your E-Brake.
4. When you feel the vehicle’s rear end kicking out, immediately countersteer the wheels to face straight with the road. Your vehicle will pull in the direction of the front wheels, as long as the wheels are still moving. Keep on the throttle.
5. If your vehicle begins to lose speed while sliding sideways, heel-toe downshift into a gear low enough to pull your vehicle through the drift.
6. When you wish to straighten out your car, after completing the drift, let off the throttle smoothly and straighten out the wheels as your vehicle kicks in line behind the front tires.
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Kansei Drift (Inertia Drift)
1. Enter a turn at high speed. The Kansei Drift should be performed at race speeds. (if you do not drift, your vehicle should experience severe understeer at this speed).
2. Turn your wheels sharply into the turn, and let off the throttle quickly. The cornering force of the vehicle combined with the loss of throttle will cause your vehicle to oversteer.
3. When your vehicle begins to lose traction, get on the throttle again quickly. This will overpower the wheels for the traction that is available, sending your vehicle into a drift.
4. When you feel the vehicle’s rear end kicking out, immediately countersteer the wheels to face straight with the road. Your vehicle will pull in the direction of the front wheels, as long as the wheels are still moving. Keep on the throttle. If you press the brakes or let off the throttle because your vehicle is in an extremely oversteered condition, you will spin out or leave the road.
5. When you wish to straighten out your car, after completing the drift, let off the throttle smoothly and straighten out the wheels as your vehicle kicks in line behind the front tires.
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Braking Drift
1. Enter a turn at a speed too high for the vehicle to handle (if you do not drift, your vehicle should experience understeer at this speed).
2. Heel-Toe Downshift to get your vehicle into a gear low enough to cause the rear tires to break traction when you accelerate (2nd gear).
3. Turn your wheels sharply into the turn. By the time you finish downshifting and turning your wheels, you should be at the apex of the turn.
4. Accelerate hard, but balance the throttle to maintain the drift.
5. When you feel the vehicle’s rear end kicking out, immediately countersteer the wheels to face straight with the road. Your vehicle will pull in the direction of the front wheels, as long as the wheels are still moving. Keep on the throttle. If you press the brakes or let off the throttle because your vehicle is in an extremely oversteered condition, you will spin out or leave the road.
6. When you wish to straighten out your car, after completing the drift, let off the throttle smoothly and straighten out the wheels as your vehicle kicks in line behind the front tires.
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Jump Drift
1. Enter a turn at medium speed.
2. Turn your wheels into the turn and stay on the throttle, but drive the inside wheels of your vehicle over a low curb.
3. When your rear wheel bounces over the curb, stay on the throttle. When your wheels return to the road, they should be spinning faster than what available traction can handle, causing your wheels to break traction. Stay on the throttle as your vehicle begins to drift.
4. When you feel the vehicle’s rear end kicking out, immediately countersteer the wheels to face straight with the road. Your vehicle will pull in the direction of the front wheels, as long as the wheels are still moving. Keep on the throttle. If you press the brakes or let off the throttle because your vehicle is in an extremely oversteered condition, you will spin out or leave the road.
5. When you wish to straighten out your car, after completing the drift, let off the throttle smoothly and straighten out the wheels as your vehicle kicks in line behind the front tires.
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Feint Drift
1. On approach to a turn, steer your vehicle away from the direction of the turn you wish to be made. The distance you begin to turn your vehicle away from the turn depends on how fast you are traveling. When you turn your vehicle away from the direction of the turn you want to make, you are loading up your suspension on one side of your vehicle, compressing the springs so that when you turn in the opposite direction, your vehicle will "bounce" back to its desired direction.
2. Once your suspension is compressed on the side of your vehicle opposite of the turn you wish to make, quickly turn back in the opposite direction. This feint motion should be done smoothly, but not necessarily quickly. Turning your wheels too quickly in opposite directions will cause your vehicle to understeer.
3. After rebounding your vehicle back into its desired direction, get on the throttle. When combined with the rotational force of the rebound, the excessive throttle will send your vehicle into a drift. FWD vehicles can use the E-Brake instead of the throttle to induce oversteer.
4. When you feel the vehicle’s rear end kicking out, immediately countersteer the wheels to face straight with the road. Your vehicle will pull in the direction of the front wheels, as long as the wheels are still moving. Keep on the throttle. If you press the brakes or let off the throttle because your vehicle is in an extremely oversteered condition, you will spin out or leave the road.
5. When you wish to straighten out your car, after completing the drift, let off the throttle smoothly and straighten out the wheels as your vehicle kicks in line behind the front tires.
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Dirt Drop Drift
1. Enter a turn at low to medium speed.
2. Turn your wheels into the turn and stay on the throttle, but drive slightly off the roadway with the side of your vehicle opposite of the turn you wish to make. (ex. if you are turning left, let your right side wheels drop into the dirt)
3. When your rear wheel goes off the roadway, the low traction surface should cause your wheels to break traction. Stay on the throttle as your vehicle returns to the roadway to continue the drift.
4. When you feel the vehicle’s rear end kicking out, immediately countersteer the wheels to face straight with the road. Your vehicle will pull in the direction of the front wheels, as long as the wheels are still moving. Keep on the throttle. If you press the brakes or let off the throttle because your vehicle is in an extremely oversteered condition, you will spin out or leave the road.
5. When you wish to straighten out your car, after completing the drift, let off the throttle smoothly and straighten out the wheels as your vehicle kicks in line behind the front tires
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Shift Lock Drift
1. Enter a turn at a speed too high for the vehicle to handle (if you do not drift, your vehicle should experience understeer at this speed).
2. Turn your wheels into the turn and quickly downshift into a lower gear (2nd gear).
3. By quickly downshifting (but not Heel-Toe Downshifting) you will put stress on the driveline, causing the vehicle to slow down and your engine rpms to increase.
4. After downshifting, quickly get on the throttle causing your wheels to break traction, sending your vehicle into a drift.
5. When you feel the vehicle’s rear end kicking out, immediately countersteer the wheels to face straight with the road. Your vehicle will pull in the direction of the front wheels, as long as the wheels are still moving. Keep on the throttle. If you press the brakes or let off the throttle because your vehicle is in an extremely oversteered condition, you will spin out or leave the road.
6. When you wish to straighten out your car, after completing the drift, let off the throttle smoothly and straighten out the wheels as your vehicle kicks in line behind the front tires
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Clutch Kick Drift
1. Enter a turn at a speed too high for the vehicle to handle (if you do not drift, your vehicle should experience understeer at this speed).
2. Turn your wheels into the turn and stay on the throttle.
3. At this speed, your vehicle should start to experience understeer. When this happens or right before this happens, clutch in, but stay on the throttle.
4. By clutching in and staying on the throttle, your engine will now rev up to high rpms. As soon as this happens, dump the clutch, causing your rear wheels to break traction.
5. When you feel the vehicle’s rear end kicking out, immediately countersteer the wheels to face straight with the road. Your vehicle will pull in the direction of the front wheels, as long as the wheels are still moving. Keep on the throttle. If you press the brakes or let off the throttle because your vehicle is in an extremely oversteered condition, you will spin out or leave the road.
6. When you wish to straighten out your car, after completing the drift, let off the throttle smoothly and straighten out the wheels as your vehicle kicks in line behind the front tires.
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E-Brake Drift
1. Enter a turn at a speed too high for the vehicle to handle (if you do not drift, your vehicle should experience understeer at this speed).
2. Heel-Toe Downshift to get your vehicle into a gear low enough to pull you through a drift (2nd gear).
3. Turn your wheels sharply into the turn. By the time you finish downshifting and turning your wheels, you should be at the apex of the turn.
4. Hold in the release button on your E-Brake and pull up your brake sharply, then quickly release (e-brake is held up for only about 1 second). If using a RWD car, clutch in while pulling your E-Brake. If using a FWD car, keep on the throttle while pulling your E-Brake.
5. When you feel the vehicle’s rear end kicking out, immediately countersteer the wheels to face straight with the road. Your vehicle will pull in the direction of the front wheels, as long as the wheels are still moving. Keep on the throttle. If you press the brakes or let off the throttle because your vehicle is in an extremely oversteered condition, you will spin out or leave the road.
6. When you wish to straighten out your car, after completing the drift, let off the throttle smoothly and straighten out the wheels as your vehicle kicks in line behind the front tires.
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Who is Gervan Kershaw?
Lotus 340R Long Term test Drive - Auto Express Car Review - 2002
Last month's evo had barely hit the shelves before Gavan Kershaw (Lotus's ace chassis development engineer) was on the phone with an answer to our tyre problems: 'Got just the tyre for you. Been testing alternatives to the A038 up here at Lotus and if it's excellent road grip you want with good wet weather performance you need Yokohama Advan Neovas. We fitted the 340R with A038's,' Kershaw continued, 'because they're the ultimate dry weather trackday tyre, thinking the car would never get used in the wet, what with no roof and so on. But that didn't account for the changeable British weather and so we've had another look at alternatives, and we've come up with these.'
What's interesting is that Yokohama actually finalise the spec of the tyres with Kershaw up at Hethel, tweaking compounds and construction according to Lotus's input. Gavan admits it's all a black art to him; he's just asked to set times and give feedback to the Japanese engineers. At the last test he was amazed he was 0.3sec quicker through one corner just because the radial belt construction was slightly different on one set compared with the other.
The net result of all this testing is that Yokohama now has specific tyres for Lotus - just look for the tell-tale 'LTS' stamp on the tyre wall. They're worth searching for because the Elise in all its variants tends to be that much lighter than other cars so it can wear softer compound tyres than those suited to other, heavier machines.
As to the new tyres' performance; it's a guarded thumbs-up at the moment, since I've only covered around 200 miles with them and Gavan warned me that Yokohamas need a fair bit of running-in since they seem to stay greasier for longer than other makes. I can vouch for that as I had a quick blat round the Bedford Autodrome in the wet when they were just 150 miles old and they felt horrid compared with the A038s, which could generate surprising grip in the damp if there was no standing water about. So we'll have to do a decent mileage on the Yokos before a meaningful verdict. Well, Gavan can't have all the fun...
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www.dailysportscar.com
http://www.britishgt.com/driverbio.php?countkey=49
Gavan Kershaw Racing
One team that is taking the 2004 British GT Championship very seriously is Gavan Kershaw Racing. Despite the name, this is very much a collaboration between Gavan Kershaw and Barrie Whight, and stems from their time as competitors (and rivals) in the Lotus Road Sports Series. As we will see shortly, this collaboration is much more than the traditional car-owner / team relationship.
The two team principals have very different backgrounds, both in racing and professionally.
Gavan Kershaw has been around cars from an early age, having raced in Karts from the age of eight (and winning several junior British championships in the process). At 16, he fulfilled many a young man’s dream and began an apprenticeship with Group Lotus. Over the course of the next 15 years, he spent time in every department (at least four months in each; also spending six years on an engineering HND) and obtained a very thorough grounding in engineering, before specialising in ride and handling. He is now regarded as the face of Lotus, dominating the Autocar Sideways Challenge for a number of years (for an illustration of his skill, keep an eye on him during warm-up) and being sent all over the world to demonstrate handling. Indeed, shortly after the Donington race in April, he was flown out to China on company business.
If further evidence were required of Gavan’s reputation amongst the motoring world, then look no further than this quotation from Autocar (30.03.04), in an article comparing the Lotus Elise 111R with the Ferrari 360CS: “As for the regulars, though, we’d take Gavan Kershaw over Dario Benuzzi any day of the week. Largely thanks to Gav and co., the newly re-invigorated, Toyota-powered Lotus is probably the best road-going Lotus ever, certainly the most talented Elise.” Gavan raced for two seasons in the Lotus Road Sports Series and dominated the 2003 season. He also took part in two British GT races at the end of the year.
Barrie Whight, in contrast, only began his involvement with motorsport three years ago, when he debuted in the Lotus Road Sports Series at Oulton Park. While he has gone on record as stating that he became a racing driver to impress women (a tongue-in-cheek statement stemming from a radio poll he heard on the way to his first race), Barrie is very serious indeed about his racing, his hobby rapidly becoming a passion. Barrie was a regular in the Lotus series and achieved his first race win at Donington Park in 2003, something that indicated further to his father, Paul, that he did indeed have potential as a racing driver. By this time, the link-up with Gavan had already begun, with the latter prepping Barrie’s car in the series. As 2004 loomed, plans were laid for Barrie to race his father’s Exige (as raced in the 2003 BGT) in the 2004 Cup class, and the car was taken to Norfolk for a very thorough overhaul.
During the week, Barrie works as a project manager for P D Savills in London, but this does not prevent him playing a very active part in the team. As mentioned previously, this is no ordinary partnership. When Gavan agreed to prepare the Lotus for the 2004 Cup class, he insisted that Barrie be involved in every stage of the car’s (and team’s) progress. If the car was to break down, then Barrie needed to understand why it had happened. Conversely, if the car was to run quickly and reliably, then he had to understand why that was, too. Barrie readily agreed to this.
Over the winter, the team stripped the car down to its component parts and went about the business of rebuilding it. It helps, of course, that a number of the team are also Lotus employees and know the car well: but what makes this whole project extraordinary is that every penny available goes directly on the car’s development – nobody in the team is paid a bean. This does not do their social lives any favours (the car comes first with every member of the team and most free hours are spent in the workshop), but it does mean that an incredible number of man-hours go into the build. An example of what this can result in is the fact that ten kilos were pared from the car’s weight, simply by rewiring.
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Selamat Menyambut Ramadhan Al-Mubarak
"Capturing the moments and blooming of colours"
