Wet… again? Agh. Maybe I need to think about a second set of wheels with road tyres!
On the upside, I think driving on track in the wet is a better learning experience than in the dry. I think I learned more about the car and my driving (lack of..) ability in the last 2 wet trackdays than I would’ve in a dozen dry ones.
I can also see that the fixes and upgrades are paying dividends. I wasn't meant to be spending money on this heap of s*** but it hasn't really worked out that way!!
Suspension:
The ST XA coilovers feel so much better than the lowering springs and (probably knackered) OEM shocks. The previous setup was low, but soft and bouncy, and had a vagueness about it. The car feels much tighter now – the ride is firm but controlled and not crashy, and I can’t perceive much body roll at all. It also dives less under braking. Combined with the cookbots and some other renewed bushes, it handles like a different car to when we bought it. The instructor yesterday commented that the car felt setup nicely.
The rear springs were set to their lowest setting, and fronts adjusted to match. I asked for the dampers to be set ¾ of the way to firmest, and I figured I might have a play from there – but I see no reason at the moment to make it any firmer. Besides, I’d have to get the rear shocks off the car to adjust them. The camber is -2.5 degrees up front, and -1.3 at the back., achieved with camber plates and adjustable rear tie arms. I would’ve liked more up front, but would need to go lower to achieve it as the camber plates are at their max negative position. I like the ride height where it is though, as I can still get over speed humps without scraping anything! My route from work to the track yesterday involved taking every speed hump in south London!
Engine:
The power loss issue that we had on trackday #1 seems to have been cured by a custom remap. The previous map was causing really high exhaust temps, which may have lead to the ECU cutting power. We also changed the TIP, so a collapsing OEM TIP under boost could’ve been the problem. Either way – it hasn’t re-occurred.
Grip:
The haldex is so much nicer with the powertrak insert! It gives 50:50 split rather than something in between 90:10 and 70:30 as it deems fit. You can really feel it helping you out of corners in the wet where the RWD boys were struggling to get their power down. The ESP delete helps massively too – it was cutting in even in the dry out of corners, so I can imagine it being a real pain in the wet. On the downside, I don’t think the nankang semi-slicks are the best thing in the wet!
Misc:
It’s really handy having the LiquidTT gauge (plugs into diagnostic port and gives live data), and tyre temps in the car. The intake temps were getting to 50 degrees on track, which isn’t ideal, coolant 104, but the biggest thing it highlighted was that the oil temps got up to 125ish pretty easily, at which point I’d have to cool off for a lap or come in all together. It was the thing that ended each run. The oil cooler I bought didn’t get fitted (although the oil was at least changed to an ester based 5w40 Fuchs oil) as the garage weren’t happy with the supplied hose fittings in the kit I bought. They want to take the car back in next week and then take the hoses and connectors to someone they know to have them securely fitted.
Brakes felt good throughout with no fade, perhaps the cooler temps and TTRS ducts are helping. Most of all though, the fade was experienced at Bedford where there are a couple of hard braking zones from 120mph-ish, which is always going to be hard on the brakes.
Not to forget... the new OMP steering wheel is ace, and all the rattles are gone after I pulled some random clips and bolts that’d been left in the car.
I really want to paint the red roll cage and swap the seats. I shouldn’t though.
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oh man we got one!! Glad you happy with the car. It was always gonna be a learning curve no mater if you buy stock and modify or ready made "racer" 
2001 black RS4 MRC remap,MRC filter,3" Milltek dp's ,Milltek catback, H&R arbs, Brembo brakes, PSS9`s coilovers, 413 fuel pump, Wagner intercoolers (490bhp. 517 lbs/ft torque ) 
