Live Timing
https://www.theresultslive.co.uk/750-motor-club/2021/silverstone-international-7-8-august
Class C Lap record is 1.18.09
[Race 4] Silverstone International (August 2021)
[Race 2] 750mc Roadsports, Brands Hatch Indy
Intro
The weather was perfect for this one. Again sharing the drive with Mike Jacobs. He would drive first in both quali and race due to back-to-back races in his own Ma7da Locost. The Roadsports race is the only ‘endurance’ race of the day so are allocated garages. Parking in the garages makes you feel like a proper racing driver, albeit with imposter syndrome!
Pre race adjustments
The car adjustments were minor. Passenger seat and 10Kg ballast added to make the minimum weight (1315Kg @ 236.7 bhp for Class C is 180 bhp/tonne) and not require any remaining fuel to do so. Still finished with half a tank so all good there. May drop the 10Kg ballast next outing. Rear anti roll bar softened to it’s minimum setting. The front remained on it’s hardest setting. One click up all round on the dampers. Front now 17 of 21, rear 14 of 21. Will go up one at the front for the next race. And a car to pit radio fitted, with integrated helmet mic also spliced off for voice recording.
The race
We qualified 32nd of 38 cars overall, 12th of 15 cars in Class C. It’s obvious how much more seasoned the drivers are here (750mc) in comparison to the MSV Track Day Trophy (Race 1). Matt Creed (Clio 200) qualified in Class C pole with a time of 55.53, we managed 58.87 (Mike) and 59.07 (Ed). Rory Baptiste in a similar car to us managed a 55.62 to put him 3rd for the Class C start. this put us way back on row 14 out of 17.
On the grid 5 cars qualified within 1 second of us, and 14 within 2 seconds. We’d have a lot of work to do. It’s clear that with the rolling start that grid position really matters more than the standing start as we’re more spread out with much more track to make up for any position challenges.
The ‘Indy’ circuit is short at about 1.2 miles and is sub 1 minute laps, so being lapped, and lapping the slower cars, will be a major influence here. The fastest class A cars are lapping at 53 odd seconds, 6 seconds faster than us, so it will only be about 10 laps until they catch us. Then it will be continuous.
The results
“To finish first, first you have to finish” was ringing true here. In the end there were 6 DNF of the 32 cars that started (18%). We would ultimately end up finishing 21st overall (of 28 finishers) and 8th out of 12 Class C Finishers. I was delighted.
The damage
The car faired well with the same issues of the power steering reservoir ‘venting’ into the intake. This is possibly due to the maximum use of kerbs and the fact that the intake creating negative pressure adjacent to the reservoir. I’ll plug it with half an ear bud! The front nearside lower wishbone has taken a pounding giving some play in the inner ball joint. This will be replaced by a Meyle HD version for the next race.
Improvements
The nearside lower wishbone will be replaced. I saw the uprated Meyle HD versions on Amazon for £112 (pair) and couldn’t believe the price! I thought it couldn’t be true so ordered them anyway. No scam, just an amazing price, so I ordered another pair as spares. 🙂
The radio range is limited, as it’s a license free PMR446 setup and only 0.5 watts to comply. We experienced the signal ‘breaking up’ even in the close proximity at Brands so I’m fitting a Midland GB1 radio for the next time which has the same power due to the regulations but has a roof mounted antenna so should be free of the ‘faraday cage’ effect of the interior antenna. Next race is Snetterton which is a much larger circuit. Hopefully this will avoid any of the broken transmission issues we had at Brands.
I noticed that the AIM Solo 2 that we use for data logging was giving some erratic ‘G’ signals whilst mounted on the steering wheel and a quick phone call to them confirmed my suspicions that it’s not the ideal place to be mounted. The movement of the wheel affects the sensors so this will be relocated to the dash to provide a more accurate reading. I can now add a power cord rather than rely on the battery, and one less thing to forget to do!
Here’s the post race review video:
Qualification laps: RdSp_02quallaps_3
[Race 1] My racing debut at Silverstone National (MSV Track Day Trophy)
My racing debut couldn’t have gone any better really. The grid comprised of 4 of the ‘theoretically faster’ Class B cars, 14 similar Class C cars, and 15 ‘theoretically slower’ Class D cars. We qualified in 15th place out of 35 cars (9th in Class C). Mike set a time of 1.11.153 to put us on row 8 on the grid (out of 18) for my first standing start. I was happy to be within 2/10ths of his qualifying time at 1.11.399 so we were pretty evenly matched. The leading Class C racer, Stuart Donovan, put his Toyota Celica into 4th position overall with a blistering time of 1.07.548. A time to eventually aim for. Another known racer to me, Sam McKee set a time of 1.08.488 to start in 6th overall. The pole position went to the Class B Honda Integra with a time of 1.06.255.
In the race we made up one place during the race to finish 14th out of 31 finishers. Sam finished 12th overall in his e36, and Stewart held his lead to take the class win in the Celica.
Top half is a respectable start to my racing career and the car performed flawlessly. I just need to put fuel in it for our next outing at Brands Hatch Indy circuit in 3 weeks time.
Continue reading “[Race 1] My racing debut at Silverstone National (MSV Track Day Trophy)”
Oil Cooler Mod (330Ci)
Keeping the oil cool (total cost £425, including gauges)
This mod will work for all M52, M54 and M56 engines. Roadsports races last 45 minutes but the club enduro races are 2 hours. Others report that at close to 45 minutes the without an oil cooler the temperature gets uncomfortingly high. This presents a serious problem as the oil temperatures will steadily rise further and could exceed the design perimeters of the oil, typically 160 degrees. It can be compensated somewhat by using a heavier oil 10w60 instead of 5w40. The heavier oil helps maintain the oil pressure, and therefore protection, as the oil heats and thins. Continue reading “Oil Cooler Mod (330Ci)”
Silverstone International Track Day
Circuit Days Track Day, Silverstone International (9th April 2021)
So before I went to the circuit I used this video on YouTube to get familiar with the track.
With me on the day was a friend and fellow racer, Mike Jacobs from AE Racing Ltd. He took the car out first and discovered some lift off oversteer on turn in. His suggestion was to stiffen the rear dampers just a couple of clicks and see how it drove. Continue reading “Silverstone International Track Day”
e46 Differential Cooling Mod
Running a higher diff ratio puts more pressure on the final drive. Longer race durations simply multiply that even further! Standard drive ratio for the 330Ci manual is 2.93, and we’ll be running a 3.73 after the rebuild (April 2021). This all means that the input shaft is spinning faster for the same forward speed. There are more crown teeth engaging, therefore more contact, more friction, and more heat generated. We do this to improve acceleration at the expense of outright top speed. Continue reading “e46 Differential Cooling Mod”
750MC Test Day at Silverstone National
(3rd April 2021) First (and unexpected) outing better explained in the video.
Here’s where the line should be
Wilvern Floor
When you remove the carpet in an e46 you save around 20Kg. However there’s a little dip just short of the accelerator pedal. I’m assuming that it’s designed that way to add add extra cushioning at the heel contact point there. However with the carpet removed the contact point on the pedal now is lower down, the heel is lower than the pivot point, and your foot slides on the pedal when it’s depressed. This all feels slightly weird. Continue reading “Wilvern Floor”
So you want to go club racing?
Desire, money & commitment (not necessarily in that order)
Desire and it’s arch nemesis, fear of the unknown, go hand in hand. I’ve personally had a desire to go racing since my teens. Now almost 50, I delayed for far too long. By dispelling the myth that all racers are somehow ‘super human’, joining the ranks is easier than you might think. Everyone started in the same place! So what do you need to do to get started? Continue reading “So you want to go club racing?”
e46 Racer YouTube Channel
Click here or on the logo above to be directed to our YouTube channel where you’ll find build & race videos.
