A journey into track days

[BatMobile]

So I decided to replace the pig snout, its always bothered me but finding a proper solution proved hard. Most exhaust places quoted an hour and when I went and saw their work I could see how they did it so quickly - yes it looked fine from the outside but the welds, engineering of the solution was just basic and poor. 

So I found a TIG welder who came highly recommended and saw his work - Ryan at REC welding https://www.recwelding.co.uk - and we agreed it would be done properly regardless of how long it took. After all the first one is always the hardest. 

A reminder of the piggy below. 

First off remove the pig snout - we broke down the casing leaving as much of the pipework as possible so we could position the new pipes perfectly. The important thing here is that the whole section where it goes from one pipe into two pipes is removed so that you can properly weld on the new tips. You can also see that the bracket on the backbox is key as this provides strength and support otherwise the whole area is supported by one weld into the silencer (bottom left of the backbox) which would put enormous stress on it over time and allow movement. 

 

The section was cut off allowing Ryan to weld the new tips onto this section. Every weld was cleaned inside to ensure a perfect seal and no restriction on airflow.

Test fitting the new tips in place

We then did a test fit on the car (the wonkiness is as they hadn't finished tightening the bolts) - a huge thanks to Will at WB Autos who let us use his lift and helped. 

 

 

[BatMobile]

Ryan's welding was just superb and he fitted reducers onto the new tips to give a perfect fit. It made the original Janspeed welds look like an amateur had done it.

As well as welding onto the original bracket he also added a supporting bar to overkill the strength and guarantee it was securely in place.

And here is the final result which I'm very pleased with. Slightly louder but a lot more pops/bangs.

It took around 5 hours from start to finish but Ryan believes its around a 3 hour job now he knows how to do it. At £50/hour it gives a great option for those wanting to change the look of the exhaust but not lose the ability to get onto a trackday.

I can't speak highly enough of Ryan, a perfectionist and someone who takes great pride in his work. 

The tips I bought were - https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/3-5-inch-Round-304-Stainless-MagnaFlow-Exhaust-Tip-Tail-Pipe-35123/252625627382?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649 

[2011 Chrome Orange]

Nice job. The tips look great.

On a side note, if you ever want to sell the removed pigs snout (if its still usable and you will ship to the US) please PM me as I'm interested in one...

[NANO]

Nice, well done, congratulations ... 👍

You have not thought about doing it / painting it in mat black (special paint for hot heat) ?

[BatMobile]

10 minutes ago, NANO said:

Nice, well done, congratulations ... 👍

You have not thought about doing it / painting it in mat black (special paint for hot heat) ?

Thanks - you mean the tips? They are double walled so are quite good with dissipating heat.

Also I prefer the tips to be silver. I had debated carbon tips but went against it. 

[Colin67]

I must say Alastair that looks a lot better, much more purposeful than the originals. Searching for a proper craftsman has paid dividends, may see a few more of these conversions then. Congratulations.

[BatMobile]

Will put up some better pics tomorrow when it’s forecast to be sunny.

new bc forged wheels went on today at backontrack - jez explained lotus set the cars up to understeer from factory as they believe that’s easier to deal with than oversteer. He did a geo for me giving 1 degree of negative camber and also realigning the front wheels from pointing in to pointing out.

first drive home, the car felt much better on turn in and the wheels feel so light. Whatever your taste of design get rid of the cast wheels ASAP. Night and day difference.

 

[CocoPops]

Was a bit wet Saturday at Bedford!!

[Colin67]

It certainly was @CocoPops. Initially I thought that was me on your left in this shot, orange Cup, but I think its actually a similarly coloured 250 Cup. I have silvered mirrors, not black.

Must say i learnt a lot about the handling of 888R's in †he wet! Much better than I thought actually, however very pleased when it dried up later on. 

I also had my first ever ride in a Caterham, courtesy of @LF1. Visceral about sums it up and this was one of the lower powered derivatives!! Thank you Tom. 

[BatMobile]

Wow that's a wet day. I need to learn to enjoy wet days but currently they always leave me disappointed I couldn't really push like you can in the dry. Maybe I need to use it as a chance to explore oversteer and controlling that....

Finally got my GoPro/mic set up - need to move the mic to a better location but overall very happy. Bought an Olympus ME51S. 

This clip shows the burbles with the new tips - much more than stock and a slightly deeper tone without much increase in DB which is good. 

So far still very happy with losing the pig snout.....

 

[Bibs]

That sounds lush

 

[BatMobile]

If anyone is needing custom badges I can’t speak highly enough of this eBay seller.

i bought two different sizes, four as my wheel centres and one for the front of the car - all for £16 delivered.

quality is excellent and he was beyond simple to deal with unlike firms such as stickers international which made me want to head butt my desk.

 

[BatMobile]

If you are in the market for a custom decal, I can’t recommend dan at divinehandcraft enough. So simple to work with, great communication and as we couldn’t decide which yellow was best for my car he sent me two options! How it should be but rarely is. 

 

[electro_boy]

Oh looks nice. Presumably the badge on the front nose is just a decal stuck over the enamel badge?  Otherwise that's a ridiculous price!

Also how did you do the black "LOTUS" lettering on the rear of the car?  I have an burnt orange Evora with black highlights (sports racer wrap and black wheels).  I think the rear lettering in black might look better than the chrome lettering at the moment.

[BatMobile]

On 08/07/2019 at 16:15, electro_boy said:

Oh looks nice. Presumably the badge on the front nose is just a decal stuck over the enamel badge?  Otherwise that's a ridiculous price!

Also how did you do the black "LOTUS" lettering on the rear of the car?  I have an burnt orange Evora with black highlights (sports racer wrap and black wheels).  I think the rear lettering in black might look better than the chrome lettering at the moment.

Nope the enamel badge was taken off. They are domed gel badges.

I bought them from Bell and Colvill after seeing them (in gold) on @RRSSS's black/gold 430 cup.

they are 3d letters

[BatMobile]

https://www.demon-tweeks.com/circuit-guide/

great little guide with lots of info from nearest petrol stations to noise restrictions to accommodation etc.

[Ekku]

I had my first track day with a car Last saturday. I have done few dozen before, but with motorcycle. 

The stock Esprit V8 is not the Best possible tiil for the Job, but I had very enjoyable day. The car run as good As expected with no mechanical problems whatsoever. Tyres are not the best possible (Kumho ecsta sport) and the stock brake with brembo pads felt wooden. The track itself was familiar to me but the driving lines of the car and motorcycle are bit different.

I was beaten by all the Porsche at present, four of them, 2 Caymans and 2 911 which one was Gt3. 2 porkers had roll cage In them so I was not really disappointed. 

Top speed at the end of the longest straight was about 120mph and I did not do late braking to the corner. 3rd and 4th gear was all needed and 5th at the long straight. 

I will  make minor brake upgrade by changing the brake pads. I allready had the braided brake lines installed. 

I had so much fun that I will do it again at the next year. 

[Colin67]

Hi @Ekku. Sounds like your hooked now and did well against the porkers, just surprised you can wait for a full year to repeat the experience!! I presume you have a much shorter season than we do here in the UK, but perhaps you have opportunities for ice driving?

[Ekku]

Yes Colin67, 

Our season is shorter. I usually pit the Lotus to winter storage at late October and start the season late April or 1st of May. 

I am not planning to have winter tyres for Esprit. There are tracks plowed to the frozen lakes during the winter, but it is getting more difficult As the enviromentalists keep much noise about the polluting. It was fun to drive on ice when I was younger, but these modern cars are too heavy and do not stand well the contact to the snow and ice walls surrounding the tracks. 

The previous track day hobby with bikes started with regular road bike and at the end I had unregistered classic racing Moto guzzi with racing tyres and my street ride bike  was updated too. 

I have to be very carefull not to end up the same with Esprit... 

I have 3 race track within 200 kilometers, so there will be good opportunities to practice this vice. 

[Colin67]

Hi Esa. Sounds to me as if you know exactly where you are going with this, so I'm expecting to see some reports in the near future of your race spec Esprit spanking all the local porkers.

All the very best 

[BatMobile]

Thought I would have a little update. 

My car is going in to be detailed this week so it will be in A1 condition for the new owner........

I have a few people coming to see the car but if you are after an Exige, please check out my advert here

https://www.lotusforsale.com/ads/exige-350-6k-of-extras/

Massive thanks to @GFWilliams for taking some superb photos of the car.

 

[Mattmahope]

Good luck with the sale. Looking forward to seeing the replacement already!

[Colin67]

Hi Alastair. So, are you moving on from Lotus or changing models?

[BatMobile]

2 hours ago, Colin67 said:

Hi Alastair. So, are you moving on from Lotus or changing models?

Moving to a cup430, otherwise this exige would never be sold. Just love the car. Talking to ppl about mine makes me actually debate sticking as I’m so happy with it but then I remember the upgrade! 

[alias23]

19 hours ago, BatMobile said:

Moving to a cup430, otherwise this exige would never be sold. Just love the car. Talking to ppl about mine makes me actually debate sticking as I’m so happy with it but then I remember the upgrade! 

Or take the great car you have and go visit Komotec in Germany