same here, i went to B&N in hickory this weekend, bought 5 copies off the news stand and handed them out to my family while i was home thinking my copy would be in the mailbox when i got back so now i don't have one... :facepalm:

Awesome! Can't wait to read about this effort! Sounds like real deal!

Are those the stock calipers?

Nice spread!
;)

Yes, both World Challege teams (DWW & SFR) are still running the factory Akebono Brakes. All that is changed is the fluid, lines, pads and brake ducting. Both teams are using a Racing Brake 2-piece brake rotors if I recall correctly.

Brian Kleeman experimented with a BREMBO 350Z/G35 rear caliper conversion at the Detroit event. I have not heard if he is retaining this brake combo for Mid-Ohio or not.

:iagree: they are using Hawk pads, not sure what fluid

thanks BJ, when are we doing your driver Q&A article? :stirthepot:

Ur suppose to let me know that!
;)

You guys are going to be at Mid-Ohio this weekend right?

We will not be.
We have decided to pass on running Mid Ohio and concentrate on continuing to develop the the 370Z RC ... And work towards Laguna Seca.
There was a chance that I was going to be in a Boss 302 for Mid Ohio GTS race... But that looks like it is t happening.
From what we have learned... the Boss 302 Mustang makes almost 45 more hp in World Challenge trim ... Than it does in Conti tire trim.
There should be 3 other Z's running up there though.
Best of luck to all the Z teams running.

:( A little sad to hear this. I was hoping your car would have atleast been there on display so I could get a look at it.

Bring plenty of HP to Laguna. It's a power course. Can't see 370z doing well against V8s there. Laguna isn't hard on tires either. Brakes on other hand take some punishment.

Actually it's a braking an handling track.
Torque does help for sure getting out of the final corner and up the hill...
But I you have a chassis underneath you and consistency with the setup and tire life there ... It's a huge advantage.... Espc if we race there and it's hot.
I can see us dipping ino the 35's there.
But we shall see.

I disagree. I have been going there since 1970's. Driving it since early 2000. Plenty of experience in lower powered cars there and while yes there are some sections you can put some hurt on bigger cars its outweighed by huge long uphill straights that put real emphasis on HP.

Only place you have a chance is from turn 7 down the hill to 11 after that its 3 drag races two of them uphill! There is a reason why high horsepower cars do well there. Maybe ....just maybe if other guys are hard on brakes might gain some advantage going into 2 and 11. But drag race from turn 11 to turn 2 at 40 MPH to over 125 mph isnt a handling course in my mind. I have passed HP cars going into 11 just to have them pass me again up the hill to 1.

Hot in Monterey? Dont count on it! Heck you might get cold fog and 50 degree weather.

Just found this post. Congrats on the racing. Loved the video's. Though I can't make the events this year, I'll be watching from the field with my 5 year daughter who is Cheering you on! She loves the car and thinks its cool.
Thanks to everyone supporting the Z. We will continue to cheer you on!
via-
A new Fan:tup:

I hope you're taking notes BJ.... :what:

You forgot turn 8 :eek::icon17:. I've driven it in Gran Turismo a thousand time and I think it's a bit of both :icon17::rofl2:. It does lean a bit more towards power though.

Again... We shall see and hopefully we get that chance.
In my experience at pro races... Emphasis is on handling, braking and tire wear.
Cars with torque have a huge advantage coming onto the front straight.
If you can properly dial in a chassis turns what I call 3-4 can make the run down to 5 very long. Turn 5 is commonly over slowed and if you again can dial the chassis in can carry your speed in ... Which extends the straight.
Next what I call 6 again that is handling ... Again extending the striaght up the hill.
Corkscrew and the entire run down to the front straight... All handling.
The key there is making straights longer than they are ... Or making something out of nothing.
Been there done that...
And our advantage happens on long runs....
If its sunny there... And there is green the higher hp cars will burn up their tires.

Got to see Brian and Ric race on Saturday at Mid-Ohio. It was awesome to see a couple Z's on the track. Looks like you guys had a better day on Sunday, wish I could have been there for that race too.

Here's a link to the results from the races.

Saturday:
SCCA Pro Racing World Challenge

Sunday
SCCA Pro Racing World Challenge

The rain on Sunday definitely made a huge difference. IMHO it's kind of sad that the Z isn't more competitive than it is and by no means is that a shot at the two teams that were there. Unfortunately the Z is just out powered by the competition.

SCCA just doesn't do as good of job as Grand Am with the competive adjustments and I think that has a lot to do with the decline of World Challenge and the rise of Grand Am.

I'm not sure why that is... Brian said at ZdayZ that WC basically told them "whatever you need to get competitive." But then again it sounds like some things are off the table.

The big thing is budget.
That series is getting back to what killed it off in the first place.
KIA has a large budget and so does Acura ... And when one of the series owners and rule makers.... Also fields a factory team... Is a good indication of where it's going to be expensive to out spend them.
The GTS class was originally intended to be a cost effective ... one step above SCCA T2 ...class ....but it's not that way.
Again the Boss 302 mustangs for instance are allowed a different airbox and restrictor in WC GTS config... Which is about 45 more HP.... Than they are allowed in Grand Am.
And our Z isn't something tht we can just take the restrictor out of ...
Unfortunately in GTS the way it sits... the Zs are going to have to go to ecu , dry sump, full headers, etc. which is $$$$$$ and not a little step above SCCA T2.

I went up this past weekend for the races. Ran into Randy Probst and chatted with him for a bit about the GT500, he certainly likes the 500. The 370's looked solid out there, the Volvo's cleaned up with Randy leading both of his races beginning to end and he made it look easy. The mustangs looked surprisingly solid out there, what was funny is watching the camaros struggle...they were all over the place in turns 4 and 5. That surprised me since they are supposed to be such a great handling car.

The track looks like a lot of fun, I was going to race it a few years ago but things came up last minute and I was not able to make it up there. If I start racing again, I will make it a point to make it out there, the elevation changes look like a lot of fun and I really like the layout. I am sure it is fun in a car but for me...on a motorcycle those elevation changes would really make for some serious fun!

I raced at Mid Ohio at the NASA Championships back in 2006 and it was a fun track. We used the chicane so there was only one good passing corner on the track. I would love to go back and try it without the chicane.

It's my favorite track. After watching the second WC race of the weekend I noticed that it didn't seem like many of the folks knew the wet line. :)

BTW, Happy birthday, BJ. :P

...Well Randy did...he won the wet race pretty easily. It was entertaining watching the race between 4 and 5. A few cars ended up kissing the tires though but most were able to continue. One of the cars leaked oil which caused all sorts of issues...at least they were in cars, on bikes those issues turn into some nasty offs!

It looks like SCCA pissed off a whole lot of people this weekend.
Mustang Boycott
Also, the TC winning Jetta was DQ'ed

Yes I don't think there is the proper structure behind the series that grand am has.
This has been an issue since SCCA pro racing was underfunded.
Not saying Grand am is the best at officiating but... They have a strong backing behind them and it's pretty darn solid.
The mustang protest is an absolute jooooooke If I have seen one.
Again they make 45+ more hp than the Conti cars.
Perhaps the biggest nut they (mustangs) could change to be more competitive .... Is the one behind the wheel.
Just sayin

Seems silly. You gotta think that there's another solution though.

fwiw according to Dustin both 370z's were running the Grand-Am spec motor.

They are running a different cam spec than stock/OEM.
They are missing Bosch engine mang, full headers, full intake , and dry sump system.
This all adds up to about $18-$20k worth of updates.
And that's just the beginning .... We are looking for more power as well
;)
A far cry from 1 level above SCCA T2.

I was wondering how the 370z was doing so well against Boss 302s this season. Didn't realize they changed to big restrictor plate. That sucks.

Again.... It makes 45+ more hp in WC trim than it does in Conti trim.

What have they done to slow them down in Conti series? As much as i want to see 370z platform do well I hate series that artificially limit power with restrictor plates. Didn't realize they were doing this to the cars. So besides huge weight penalty in Mustangs they have to run a restrictor plate? I bet you hope the Mustang protest is a joke! Lol!

The thing these series seem to keep secret from general public are all the specific rules for each car. I'd love to see clear set of rules for each model competing, weights, artificial power restrictions, weight distribution percents, etc. Some people have perception these cars are all competing on equal footing. ....Not really.

Wonder what the mustangs have to do now in Conti series to restrict power? What is their weight?

World Challenge:
SCCA Pro Racing World Challenge
Appendix A is general weights, plates, tires sizes, etc
Click "Vehicle Technical Specifications" for details on each vehicle (approved part numbers, etc).

Grand-AM:
GRAND-AM Competitor Information presented by SunTr
Click the "Grand Sport & Street Tuner Specific Car Regulations ("SCR")" for details.

Note that sometimes they just say "restrictor" or "Grand Am provided restrictor" because they can change them event-to-event so there is no set size.

Basically in World Challenge, we'd have to develop the car further than Doran since WC GTS is a little faster (MidOhio pole was a 1:29 in WC GTS, 1:32 in Grand Am GS). I know Doran has done a ton of work on that car, so theoretically we need to be beyond that. Our budget is far more limited though and until we start having success, finding willing sponsors is going to be difficult. Budget/success = chicken/egg. I'll be honest, 2012 has been pretty frustrating. I think our results are not reflecting our talent.

The Pirelli tires are worth some time vs the Conti / Hoosiers.
But knowing what you guys are up against we felt it was going to be an uphill battle and would rather focus on going to Laguna.
If the Mustangs in Conti had another 45 hp.... They would dominate every weekend ... I would be ugly.
Most pro series equalize cars with restricts and weight.
The mustangs in Conti run a restrictor and weigh 3300 lbs.
They are making (w the restrictor 420 at the wheels pulling 8000 rpm)

Yup BJ, I think the Pirellis make up the time that we're missing with power. I've compared in-car videos from Mid Ohio and we've got anywhere from 0 to +6 mph mid-corner on you guys depending on the corner, but you're up +6 mph from us at the end of the back straight (even with the same exit speed) and +3 mph at the end of the pit straight. Your motor seems to rev more freely than ours, especially below 6500 so you're making up the time right out of the corner. We're back on the dyno on Thursday... and motor #2 (which should have more goodies than motor #1 does) should be here by the end of the week.

Sorry for the confusion on this. The motors are similar since they are the 350Z HR/370Z Hyrbid engine. There are still some variations due to class restrictions between the WC and Conti- cars.