Motors My RX-8 at Castle Combe track!!!

Hi finally took my car to a track day for the first time and it was awesome!

Check it out on Youtube!.. Although you can download it too...



Download (57MB)

I highly recommend it to anyone petrol minded!

 

Nice! Shame about that Boxster in front of you though.

 

New engine after that?

 

Looks like a 997 cabrio to me

Seems like you had a blast

 

Nah, vertical rear spoiler, smaller, more even flanks - it's a Boxster.

 

Deffo a Boxster.

Damn those Rotaries sound nice. Reminds me so much of my dads RX-7.

 

So it is my good man, looked like a 997 to me because of the spoiler, don't see them up very often

 

Well they come up at 80 or so, but I've never seen a 996/997 911 Convertible on the motorway...

Fairly easy mistake to make really, the video's not great, the spoiler gives it away. On 911's it's a big, vented whale-tail, because as well as being a spoiler it's extra engine ventillation. On the boxster it's just a solid black flap, perpendicular to the bodywork - rather nasty if you ask me, but that's the Boxster for you.

 

Not bad that, check these guys out for a comparison of driving styles/what can be done at coombe when you know it: http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=banzaiundersteer&num=10&so=3&start=0

 

It was a Boxster [edit] actually, looking back, I think it was a 996 actually... as I distinctly remember one when I pulled up at the car park but then there were Porsches everywhere.. , although there were some really nice machines out there... a morgan and a noble as well as a caterham megabusa!

 

Oooo... Megabusa goodness. That's a rare thing.

Was it a normal, public track day?

 

What sort of speeds you get out of the car in that session?

 

I'm not a big fan of the SE3P, but a track day is a track day. Great stuff! Was that a Caterham that flew by?

 

Good track Castle coombe, I live next to it and go there a bit, it flows pretty well even though they slowed it down by putting the chicanes in a few years back.

its not the fastest track for a road car, where he enters the track at the start of the video is the probably the fastest section, it is effectively a straight before heading into quarry corner, there you will top 130-135mph depending on how well you get around the corner before unless you have a TDi like me these days and you'll only hit 115-120mph

 

Aaaah a 996 makes sense. Watched it again and it still didn't look like a boxster to me, the 'hump' in front of the spoiler looked too pronounced. If it was a 996 that explains the smoother flanks.

Megabusas are crazy machines

 

You're right, I hadn't watched the whole video before, but that bit at ~5 mins where you pass him settles the matter tbh.

 

Yeah, it was a normal trackday session at Castle Combe.

I booked it last minute.

It's really quite a fast circuit with my car bleeping in 4th gear and having to change into 5th gear on one part of the track, although I decided not to as I'd only be in 5th for only a while before having to brake for a 2nd gear corner and my heel and toe isn't that good yet.
Was doing around 120-125 top speed before having to brake for corners. I could get u to 130-135 if I really pushed into 5th gear.

Couldn't really go that much faster as i'm not good enough yet (only my first track day ever!) and I think I need more power.

But braking for corners and cornering itself I was really holding my own... I had a 20 minute tuiton from the track pro on proper lines and techniques and I was beating more powerful cars around the track, primarily catching them up on the corners.. the only thing (that was on the track at the same time as me) that I couldn't beat were the Caterhams and that damned elise!

I know it sounds boastful but people initially thought I'd been too many track days at Castle Combe before. It was such a compliment

 

Yup, the SE3P is quite a featherweight, so the tighter corners would be in your favour. I'm guessing you also found the factory suspension quite stiff as well, but not a back-breaker.

 

Buy another RX-8 and strip it down to the bear essentials as a track day car.

 

You don't need an RX-8 for that! For much cheaper, you could go old school hardcore JDM and get a Sprinter Trueno GT Apex ('86 Corolla GT-S, internationally). It's about 950kg stock. Now strip *that* out and add in ground effects with large front canards for the ultimate track machine in terms of performance *and* fun; it's good on fuel.