PCNSW Super Sprint No 3

[Buchanan Automotive]

Another big day  , this time at Eastern Creek South Circuit for round 3 of the PCNSW Super Sprint  for 2018 , fantastic weather , just as well because the South Circuit has no cover at all for most of the competitors if its rains etc , we have been lucky up to this point in time in relation to weather 

 

60 or so cars competing & the South Circuit is quite small , so the speed groups have to be carefully handled to make sure there is not too many cars on the track at any one time , good turn out of this and last century Porsche cars & naturally there was a large number of late model GT3's etc .

 

Front engined last century Porsche cars pushed above their weight "again " , Chris Moriarty in his 951 ( 944 turbo road car ) did a Personal best and won his class 4A , Sean Buchanan in his 951 road car did a better time than last year at the same track & on the same old tyres from last year & came a very competitive 2nd place in 1A  &  3rd outright fastest Porsche with "R" spec road tyres 

 

Here is a bit of a list of the Porsche front runners on "R" spec road legal tyres }

 

991 GT3RS 4.0      0.59:9420  Class 1A = manual gear change unlimited power & "R" spec tyres

991 GT3RS 4.0      1.00.2340  Class 1P  = Paddle shift = quicker gear changes unlimited power & "R" spec tyres

944 Turbo ( Sean ) 1:01.0410   3.0L 16V E85 Class 1 A = manual gear change unlimited power & "R" spec tyres & drives to work 6 days a week

997GT3

981 GT4

991 GT3RS

981 GT4

991 GT3RS

991 GT3

991 GT3

944 Turbo  ( Mark Bloxham ) 3.0L 8V E85

996GT3

996 GT3

981 Gt4

 

Many Thanks to all the volunteers who helped today 

 

Regards

Bruce Buchanan

Buchanan Automotive 

[hugh]

Thanks for the write up Bruce, looks like another successful day. 

I love competing in my old Porsche and I'm typically up against newer and much more sophisticated cars, it definitely keeps it challenging. That said, I'm guessing Sean's car is far from stock as I'm in a 41yo 3.0L 911 and I can usually hold my own against a relatively stock 944 turbo. So it would appear that there is some critical detail here that's missing for context.

(Note I also run R spec tyres, have a manual gear change, drive mine to and from the track and have been known to stop and buy groceries on the way home)

[Buchanan Automotive]

Hi Hugh , nice to hear from you , yes it was quite a good day at the track & interestingly most of the time for the last few years now , Sean & I  leave the track around lunchtime  so Sean only generally does two track sessions ( morning only ) and then we pack up & go ( weekend family commitments etc stops us for staying longer )

Experience plays a very big part in getting a car ( any ) to go faster & faster around any given track , I have lost count the number of times in my younger days ( I am 61 now ) that I would compete in dirt bike events ( Enduro events ) with my 15 or so years experience by the mid 1980's riding reasonably fast dirt bikes in the 1980's there was always someone else on exactly the same dirt bike , same engine mods & same suspension bits & I couldn't catch them no matter what I tried , they were just naturals at it , so it was just the talent of the rider ( bikes ) and drivers ( cars ) that we often overlook

Sean started competing in his near stock standard 951 back in 2005 with the Mazda Rotory car club ( up against RX7's etc ) that was great fun & they were very nice guy's who were just as interested in Sean's 951 as we were with their souped up RX7's etc  & very early on we realized the standard 1986 951 ( nice balanced car that it was ) needed a lot of things done to make it a more competitive car for the track but keeping it a usable  road  car , so in other words Sean's 951 had to stay a road car first & a track friendly car 2nd

We just started with some basic suspension & brake upgrades ( by 2006 availability of parts etc ) of 2nd hand refirbised 968 CS M030 front & rear shocks ,  so for some years Sean's 951 just had the standard engine ( 2.5L ) with the standard little turbo but with modest boost improvements , but the tiny/small standard Brembo front brakes were a real problem , so we just initially just went to 2nd hand 951 Turbo S ( 928S4 ) front brake calipers and new discs etc & Pagid Blue pads , but still with the little skinny 16" telephone wheels , that helped a lot , but eventually few years later went to a Vitesse stage 3  Turbo , injectors & Piggy back system with a hot wire air mass meter , Lindsay racing dual port waste-gate , different BOV , etc etc , this made the car come on boost earlier & a lot more drive-able with more power & better torque 

Then we ran into problems with not having a proper 4 plate LSD ( losing time going into corners & exiting them  ) plus the standard 951 trans final drive ratio are all way too tall , making the gear you really should be in never quite right , but we already knew that because for some years earlier we had already been changing  the final drive ratio's on other 951's and we knew what a difference it makes , so we changed the Crown Wheel & Pinion ( Porsche 944S2 )  & a Guards Transmission 4 plate motorsport diff ( fantastic diff ) and adjustable 

Then as Sean progressed up though the classes ( getting quicker & power to weight ratios ) we finally retired the poor old 2.5L engine & Sean & I purchased a 2nd hand 3.0L 16V  944S2 engine & we knew exactly what we would do with it  , the bores were perfect so we had custom Wossner pistons made ( 8:1 ) and custom con-rods ,standard Glyco bearings ( more to this but no time here )  , standard sump & oil baffle ( no dry sump or a crack scraper ), but a large oil cooler & 25w-60 Valvoline race oil & STP( super important ) , standard cyl head & standard valves & springs & standard cams , custom fabricated inlet manifold & Sean fabricated the exhaust headers & custom dump pipe to tail pipe system ( Sean fabricated )
Vitesse Stage V  ( larger Turbo & different injectors & piggy back because now its going to be running on E85 ( 85% Ethanol )  at the track & some street driving , but most of the time Sean switches over ( different maps ) to 98 premium unleaded to keep the injectors clean , on the E85 and 1.3 Bar Boost the 3.0L 16V engine produces between 550Hp to 580Hp

On the road its as docile as a normal road car , very smooth and very easy to drive , naturally the clutch is a bit heavier than normal , but that's just because it has a stronger pressure plate to cope with the power
At the same time upgraded to 993 Turbo front brake calipers & discs to suite & 18" dia wheels to get a better selection of  "R" spec tyre compounds , Sean changes over the brake pads ( Pagid Blacks & puts the street legal 18" wheels & drives to & from the track 

The car is quite heavy as we have mainly added weight to the car over the years , the twin cam engine and associated bits are heavier , the front brakes are quite a lot heavier than the standard small ones , added a half cage = more weight , the car has to be a road car first , so it retains all the interior sound insulation & full carpets , full climate control / A/C , power steering , electric windows & full steel doors , guards & roof etc & full glass ( no plastic windows because its a road car )  

Even the 18" wheels are heavier than the standard 16" telephione dia wheels , plus spacers with studs = more weight

Full sound system with at least 4 speakers  & an electric aerial  = more weight  , the only consolation is Sean fabricated a carbon bonnet for it so that reduced the weight a tiny amount compared to what we have added to it  , as we all know ,adding lightness is Expensive

The Shocks are nothing outrageous , nice set of MCS with Eibach springs and rear torsion bar delete to make ride height adjustments much easier .

This 951 has reached the end of its development if we are to keep her as a road car 1st & track car 2nd , which she will remain , its too nice of a road car to do it to her & with its fantastic A/C its just a joy to drive even in mid summer in traffic &  I / we know many people are amazed of what she can do on the track , but remember Sean's driving skill/experience with this car over a long time has produced something quite fast & quite special without spending way too much 

Remember a really fast car sitting on the side of a race track with no driver is just a parked car , it can not perform to her best without an experienced driver , an average driver is really quite slow in the same car

Last but not least , a very fast car driven hard on a track requires a whole lot more maintenance as opposed to just driving the same car to work & back

Regards
Bruce Buchanan 
Buchanan Automotive

 

[hugh]

Yes, there is no substitute for plenty of laps/experience and it definitely helps if you have a level of natural skill and/or talent. Obviously you & Sean have invested a significant amount of time and energy to get the car (and his driving ability) where it is - I'm sure he rattles a few ego's in that 951!  

It does beg the questions though, how fast would he be in a GT3?