Operation Touring Car: Part 2
A few weeks back we announced that VRPerformance is going racing in SPEED World Challenge Touring Car. It is a daunting exercise that we are nonetheless excited to start. The first step was picking the car.
A few weeks back we announced that VRPerformance is going racing in SPEED World Challenge Touring Car. It is a daunting exercise that we are nonetheless excited to start. The first step was picking the car.
Time to go racing! Welcome to the first of many entries documenting our entry into the SCCA SPEED World Challenge Championship. As our busy summer season winds down, we’ve taken on the task of building a race car with the goal of competing in the Touring Car category of the SPEED World Challenge. Call it a stretch goal. We’re under no delusions as to how expensive and challenging this endeavor will be, but we have the car, the enthusiasm, and hopefully the stamina to see it through to a worthwhile conclusion.
In the final installment (for now) of the Civic Si project we tackle the suspension. The suspension really is the most important aspect in the overall performance of the vehicle. All the power in the world doesn't help if you can't control it. You want the four tire's contact patches touching the ground in as balanced a fashion as possible, controlling the car's motion. A good suspension set-up works with the tires and the road to provide the best possible grip in all conditions when accelerating, cornering and braking. Its mission is to keep the wheels planted and the body stable. We specified the best TEIN kit available, the "Driving Spec Control Master Type Flex" coil over system with "Electronic Damping Force Controller" (EDFC).
And the transformation of the Civic continues... One of the weak spots on the 2006+ Civic Si is the braking system-- perfectly adequate for street driving but toast on the track. Our balanced approach to all things automotive dictates that we look at the entire system as we make upgrades. We've already tweaked the suspension some, detailed here (and there's much more to come in this department, stay tuned) and upgraded the intake and exhaust system, detailed here. So now it's on to the brakes.
One of the earliest entries in this blog describes the installation of an Injen brand cold air intake and exhaust system on a Mazda6. We described the quality of the kits coming from Injen then, and let me just say, two years later, that their products continue to impress. Case in point, we just installed the same type of Injen components on a new Civic Si sedan and were again happy with the outstanding quality and fitment.
We work closely with our customers to put together a performance package for their car that best fits their needs. The new Civic Si is a great car out of the box, but it's not perfect. And when you take it to the track, as the customer in this case study does, the weaknesses are amplified. The Si has plenty of motor, but is lacking in the braking and grip departments.