[AC_Evora]

Curious how many Evora owners participate in autocross / hpde events. I recently picked up a 2011 Evora S, primarily with the intention of improving my performance driving skills (I live/work in manhattan and commute via subway so this is a weekend project). A few questions:

- Anything I should consider upgrading / keeping an eye on if I start taking the car out for autocross? The car comes off warranty this year and I'm keen to avoid expensive maintenance issues.

- How do you guys get comfortable safety-wise on track days? The idea of booting a fully stock car (no roll cage, stock seatbelt, etc) around a track makes me a bit nervous. Autocross is obviously safer...

- I'm considering signing up for a Bertil Roos 3-day racing course this summer. Good idea or no? What would you guys would suggest for solid instruction?

 

[LotusCC]

Congratulations on your new purchase and double congratulations for wanting to take her out on the track??
I would send a PM to brgelise. He has plenty of track experience with an Elise and Evora. I'm thinking he doesn't live too far from you either.
XHILR8N would be another member to PM. His last known address is 2 laps down?


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[Allan Gibbs]

You may want to consider this:
Dual Catch Can Kit for Lotus Evora

I think a few people here have it and can tell you if it's worth it.

 

[Gunpilot]

+1 on XHILR8N.......Bob is a great guy.

My two cents......Why not do both. They are two different animals.

Autox is safe and all about quick negotiation, sometimes violent.

Track is all about learning the fastest line and being smooth. Most company's that have track events require you to have an instructor until your progress is checked to allow you to go solo. I personally like Chin Motorsports.

A school will make you better but take it when your driving skills start to advance more so you actually get something out of it.

It's all about the seat time.

Mods.....the only thing you will need is a helmet for starters. Learn your car first. When your skills progress that require mods then do them.

 

[Plackslayer]

Congrats on the pickup - if you check out my youtube you can see how the Evora fares @ Hallett.

PlackSlayer - YouTube

PICS!

 

[invictusmaneo]

I have autocrossed my Evora thus far, hopefully a track day soon.

It isn't terribly well suited for shorter autocross courses IMHO-the course I ran was relatively tight and I often found 2nd gear was too tall, 1st gear too short to stay in the whole time without pinging the limiter, and going back from 2nd to 1st gear, even with great rev matching, can be hit or miss (for me, and I do suck )

That being said, it was still quick and for my first autocross in the car I put down some good times against some much more experienced drivers.


I did 5 runs, car didn't flinch. From what I have read, track days are much the same

 

[XHILR8N!]

Thanks for the referral guys but we have not tracked the Evora and don't plan to. Got that car as a zero mod situation, pretty much a garage queen.

I do wonder what she would feel like out there, but that can be a pretty brutal combat environment and don't want all that "ratshot" effect on her.

Also, I don't want to be out there without 6 point harness and a cage. And the readiness to thrash the heck out of everything, like we do with the Elise.

If I had the coin I'd love to have a factory prepped Evora for track

 

[ScottN]

Autocross, HPDE and other

Hello. I have only had the Evora for a few months but I do have a fair amount of track time in general. I bought a Lotus Seven (different animal than the Evora but the concepts are the same) in 2002. I autocrossed for a year, then decided to go vintage racing. I did two racing schools of which Bertil Roos was one of them. This was at Pocono which I assume is where you would be going.

You can drive there in your Evora but they use their own Formula 2000 single seaters for the school. This will give you the full into to track experience and it is tailored to a novice. Also, you don't have to worry about damaging the Evora while you are in learning mode. I would definitely recommend that.

As for autocross, I'm sure it would be fun in an Evora and it will be really good for lower speed (evasive) type of driving but you won't get to stretch the legs of the Evora. You can get cosmetic damage as the cones will jump out and find you.

If you are interested in High Performance Driving Education (HPDE) on track, then you will have a number or options (Chin, local Porsche/BMW club events). If you want to go to a specific track then you can Google the track name and HPDE and get a list. I use to live in the Binghamton NY area so there were choices like Pocono, Watkins Glen, Lime Rock, NJ Motorsports Park....

As a "beginner" in the HPDE world, you'll be assigned an instructor and get a good amount of Track and classroom time. I personally would not worry about a roll cage or racing type mods as there will be passing restrictions (straights only) and the instructor has as much to loose personally. They will let you know when to encourage you and when to throttle you back. They will also give you a car inspection form to be filled out by a mechanic. The Evroa by breeding will be track capable but you don't want to find a maintenance issue at the track. You will wear tires and you will wear brakes!

The last item is a cautionary note. Just be aware that stuff does happen and it is possible you could damage the car and you may not be able to drive it home. I have seen Corvettes come back on a wrecker and not be drivable. High HP and torque is the easiest way to "loose" a car at the track. I would not expect that to happen with a well maintained Evora with a good instructor in the car as it is such a great handling car.

I will also say that it is a great way to learn your car! At the lower levels of HPDE (beginner) you should not come anywhere near the limit of what an Evora can do but be well beyond what you'll ever experience on the street.

Personally, I will take mine out to a track day in the future. I have over 150 track days but when I take the Evora out for the first time I would want an instructor to give me feedback on my driving and also not be in the class where people have been on track with their cars for years.

 

[ScottN]

I went out to the Bertil Roos website and noticed a Precision Driving Clinic which I looks like it is modeled after HPDE concept (your car, their instructors). This is also another option rather than the formula car based race school. Lots of choices in getting you and/or your car on track. Noticed they also go to NJ Motorsports park if you prefer something closer to the beach rather than the mountains.

 

[Julian73]

Scott's points are well stated. You need to assess what you want out of the experience and where you want to get to.

Autocrossing may be the end all for you and while it is not stretching the Evora power legs it is a challenge of high g handling and finding the fastest line. HPDE track events range from the unskilled with instructors to time trial races. The more aggressive your climb, the higher risk of off damage or body to body contact. As with XHILR8N my car is too special for that risk and I have other track toys to fulfill the need, but I do mentally tug every day at wanting to see what the porn star can do in her natural environment and game.

The end goal may be road racing, for which your street Evora is not equipped. Where you want to go will also determine the level of schooling, there are good autocross schools, good HPDE schools and good racing schools.

While the 3-day racing schools leave you ready to get your SCCA regional racing license, and claim are tailored to all starters from non track novice to refreshers for racers I would not recommend starting their, as Scot mentions, get some track time under your belt first.

I made a mistake a few months back of inviting a p-car buddy of mine along to a 3-day Skip Barber racing school at Laguna Seca, my son and I went for refresher and enjoyed it from day one. My buddy made it through and learnt a lot, but I think fear in the second day shut down a lot of what he could have learnt. Like Bertil Roos, Skip Barber has some excellent instruction and seem to have gotten over their financial issues.. They also offer an wide range of products from 1 and 2 day high performance driving schools.

 

[SwampDawg]

Do both

I autocross mine (2011 NA, manual) regularly and have to agree with invictus, the gearing isn't all that great for autox. You'll end up in 2nd bogging, it's still fun though. Way more to learn than just being at the top of the pack. After a year I'm still not close to knowing the car completely. I have shifted down to first when speeds get real low (pivot cones), sometimes miss and would have been better off bogging in 2nd lol. Maybe an IPS would do better, not to mention a better driver

Cone-rash hasn't been a problem so far, everything has come off with "goo-b-gone", and no damage done. Yes, cones have flown

I have done 1 HPDE, that was a real eye opener, all I did was add Schroth Rally3 harnesses. I burned off my tires completely in 2 days (the rears, and 80% of front), be prepared to replace them The HPDE helped with autocrossing too. I've only gotten up to 140ish on the straights and stick the S curves here around 100mph (fun!).

I keep hearing "it's fun to drive a slow car fast", but I think it's "fun to driver a fast car very fast!"

In the Delta SCCA club we have some great drivers, I've had them drive it and shave 5-6 seconds off my times. That comes with experience and talent And don't be worried when you can't beat a Miata in autox, even with PAX hehe.

Cheers

Swampdawg

 

[Julian73]

I have autocrossed my S; the torque curve starts low and stays flat definitely removed the gear selection issue of the N/A, 2nd gear can break the tires loose. As to the cone damage, yes removable marks but no paint spiders or other damge. The from bumper msaterial is remarkably resilient ... how do I know?, at Hethel track hit cone marking inside of artificial chicane at 120mph at Chapman Curve .. barely a scuff mark on the car. And pulling onto my trailer, forgot I had spare tire in front, pushed RHS bumper in about 6 inch, zero damage.

 

[AC_Evora]

You guys are awesome - thanks for all the insight. Definitely going to start with autocross in March and take it from there. Obviously not keen on dinging up my car (cosmetically or mechanically) but I really want to learn to use it properly. All those folks in Hethel put a lot of work into designing a wonderful (and beautiful) machine and I feel like it would be a shame not to stretch its legs a bit.

Clearly full track days are harder on brakes/tires than autocross, but is autocross harder on the car in general due to the sharper / more violent movements?

 

[AC_Evora]

Do both

I have done 1 HPDE, that was a real eye opener, all I did was add Schroth Rally3 harnesses.

Swampdawg

Is it possible to install the harness temporarily without having to drill / add mounts anywhere?

 

[brgelise]

As a Manhatten guy you should do the 3 day Race school at Lime Rock park with Skip Barber. best in the business and it'll be best 3 days of education you EVER receive! I'm in Watertown which is only 35 minutes from Lime Rock and routinely drive with the SCDA group. Look up Sports Car Driving Association - Performance Driving in a Safe and Controlled Environment

BTW I have an NA car and it is bone stock quicker than my Elise was. Your "s" will be insanely fast and is essentially a track rocket with everything needed including the tires. If I see you , I'll show you my harness setup which some like, some don't but it works for me. As you learn all you need is the lap belts. Until you get to 65's or less you're fine unless you have a history of "losing it"

 

[CABT]

Get a good instructor and track her. Tracked at NJ Motorsports a few months back. Life changing. Driving fast on the road is one thing. Driving fast on a good track and being able to keep your eyes well ahead of you for the next few turns...not to mention the rabbit you are going to overtake in the 911 :nanner:...is entirely another.

 

[invictusmaneo]

the only drop in solution for a harness we have right now is the Scroth rallye 3..which involves no alterations, just removing the seat and some interior panels to bolt the harness up, and you can leave the factory belts on. It is an ASM, so it is better than nothing, but still not ideal.

 

[AC_Evora]

the only drop in solution for a harness we have right now is the Scroth rallye 3..which involves no alterations, just removing the seat and some interior panels to bolt the harness up, and you can leave the factory belts on. It is an ASM, so it is better than nothing, but still not ideal.

Does that require the rear seat belt points? Mine is a 2+0

 

[invictusmaneo]

TBD said it can be done without it...I'd confer with him

 

[brgelise]

I'm using rear crossmember and have 4 point setup. In the beginning it was considered sound by SCCA safety guys. Now it seems they retract their position but I figure its a hell of a lot better than subbing under a 3 point . If I hit something hard enough to cause enough G's that the crossmember flexes, the car is totaled anyway. Surprised no one has just decided to replace that cross member with a beefier one or sell an add on triangle to bolt to rear of front seat attachment points etc.
Many good points mentioned above. In SCDA you will have an instructor all day in all but advanced groups. (Mandatory in novice group, optional above that level.) This is great if you just want to experience a track in your car for a few days.
If you really want to learn to drive, go to a driving school. For example, their is no better way to learn threshold braking than in an open wheel formula car where you see the slowing tire rotation and puffs of tire smoke!!