Stutopia

Welcome to 2018! Last year the club got together with CAT Driver Training and put forward some options for Driver Training at the superb Millbrook facility. Having attended each of the three days on offer last year, I can honestly say they were all great learning opportunities and tremendous fun. In the unlikely event you don’t believe me, spend a few minutes reading some of the glowing feedback from customers at Trustpilot here and I bet one or two of the other attendees might even chime in with some praise too. Happily, CAT are on-board for 2018 to offer us the same cracking days, as well as something new. For the uninitiated, here’s some background on CAT and the days that are on offer to our club members. CAT Driver Training is run by Colin and Jo Hoad. Colin used to work for a leading motor manufacturer in the UK as a Vehicle Evaluator and Driver Trainer and has gained extensive experience and qualifications in driver instruction (not to mention development work on our very own 350Z for Europe). Colin is also certificated to instruct at Millbrook, his life has been spent working with his passion; motor cars - from racing Minis to the race preparation of performance cars. He has much experience of vehicles on both road and track and brings a very different approach to driver enjoyment. If you don’t know the scale and beauty of the Millbrook site, here's just a part of it, inside the high speed circuit. And the view you will be faced with when lining up the mile straight. Driver Training Days 1) Performance Driver Track Day An action-packed day run by CAT Driver Training Ltd at Millbrook Proving Ground. The day is a fast-moving experience for 6 owners and their cars to introduce the secrets of performance driving. It is designed to be informative, exciting and fun. The group size is purposefully kept small so that the maximum can be obtained from the day in a highly-personalised environment. There is access to the 5 unique circuits at the renowned Millbrook Proving Ground, a venue that is not normally accessible for 'track days' and the general public. Activities designed for the different circuits are: Learn threshold braking from high speed on the Mile Straight High speed driving, potentially to the maximum of your car, on the banked circuit of the High-Speed Circuit Drive the demanding Alpine Route circuit with its hills, and variety of corners from hairpins to long and sweeping Take on the tight, twisty and challenging Handling Circuit Put a car through its paces on the open spaces of the Steering Pad/Mile Straight Apron An instructor will accompany you on all the circuits, and the objective is to teach you how to get the best from your car and develop your performance driving skills in a controlled environment and at a pace you are comfortable with. Short presentations in vehicle dynamics will help you to understand the relationship between driver input and vehicle balance and control. From this comes the appreciation of how to safely drive your vehicle at grip limit within the controlled confines of a track environment. At the end of the day, your new-found skills can be put to the test in a timed shoot out around a gymkhana-style course laid out on the Steering Pad/Mile Straight Apron. Though this is 'Track Day' in name the skills learned and developed during the session will stand you in good stead on the road as well. Drivers looking to improve their all-round ability will benefit as much as those want to shave seconds off lap times. Included in the day are: Professional in car tuition Access to 5 unique circuits at Millbrook Proving Ground Lunch and refreshments during the day Timed end of day shoot-out Full emergency services on hand all day 1 hour 40 minutes driving time with your personal instructor Link to the CAT site here Performance Driver 'Track' Day Schedule 08:30-09:15 Coffee, Introduction, Licence Check, Scrutineering, Safety Briefing & Objectives of the Day 09:30-09:35 Drive to Circuits 09:30-11:00 Mile Straight 11:00-11:50 High Speed Circuit 11:50-13:15 Handling Circuit 13:15-14:00 Lunch 14:00-15:00 Alpine Route 15:00-15:45 Understeer/Oversteer 15:45-16:45 Gymkhana timed Shoot Out on the Steering Pad/Mile Straight Apron 16:55 Presentation & Debrief and any questions Timings & Circuit order may be subject to change on the day depending on circuit activity. Member Prices 3 participating members = £450 pp 4 participating members = £435 pp 6 participating members = £415 pp 2) Cornering Masterclass Day Enjoyed the Performance Driver 'Track' Day and would like to progress to the next stage advancing your skills further? Or perhaps you're not getting the most from your track days, and would like to hone your performance driving skills in a safe and challenging environment? Through presentations and demonstrations in our cars, and nurtured training sessions in your car our instructors will guide you through a structured, fun and exciting training experience, dissecting the cornering process to a professional level. Polarised training designed to galvanise the relationship between minimised driver input and vehicle stability, with presentations in advanced vehicle dynamics and motor industry exercises designed to challenge both you and your car. A full day experience for you and your car: Professional in car tuition Access to your favourite circuits Professional motor industry training exercises Lunch and refreshments throughout the day Full emergency services on hand all day Exclusive facilities 1 hours 40 mins driving time with your personal instructor Member Prices 3 participating members = £450 pp 4 participating members = £435 pp 6 participating members = £415 pp 3) Drifting & Over Grip Limit Handling Learn the secrets of over limit handling using your car and our Caterham 7. A 5 ½ hour experience for 4 owners covering the building blocks of vehicle control at grip limit. A fast-moving sideways experience. Designed to build on the skills learnt on the Performance and Cornering Masterclass club days or as an introduction to the techniques of over grip limit driving for the novice, our instructors will tailor the training to your level of experience. Understand and practice the building blocks of over grip limit driving. It is not just nailing the accelerator and relying on instinct. A drift is the culmination of many core skills polarized into one extreme exercise. All explained and demonstrated by your instructor and practiced by you. Enjoy the challenge of our very sideways Caterham, and experience the dynamic characteristics and capability of your own car as it realises its true potential at grip limit. Invaluable information for those owners wanting to maximise its potential and enjoyment of their car on track. Your training session will include presentations on: Understeer Oversteer Lift Off Oversteer Roll Oversteer Weight Transfer at Turn In Tyre Grip Trade Off Identifying Grip Limit Breaking Traction Your training will include an experience of a wetted as well as a dry surface on the Steering Pad at the Millbrook Proving Ground. There will also be a bottle of Champagne for the best Drifting God on the day. Member Price £430 per person The group size is 4 owners N.B. Caterham 7 Specific - Minimum/maximum height 5ft 0in / 6ft 4in and maximum weight of 18 stones. And for anyone who has already attended, or will have attended during 2018, both the Performance Track Day and the Cornering Masterclass... 4) Group Optimisation – Advanced Circuit Cornering Techniques You honed your core skills on the Performance Driver ‘Track’ Day, and learned to be consistent and at one with your car on the Cornering Masterclass. Now it’s time to get to grips with the tarmac you drive on. The Group Optimisation full day course takes you into the world of professional race driving cornering lines and driving techniques. Helping you to achieve comfort at grip limit and optimised cornering speed and stability, with an inner confidence born from explicit targeted knowledge and learning. “You will be learning cornering lines and techniques set aside for experienced racers and professional evaluators and engineers. On this course you tap into the secret knowledge of performance driving that only CAT clients have the opportunity to explore” - Colin Hoad Your development through the day includes: Galvanising previous learning 
 Optimising cornering speed and safety 
 Optimised tyre grip in all driving scenarios 
 Finessing of brake and throttle modulation 
 The ability to read the road/circuit with confidence for speed and safety 
 “Exceptionally” late trail braking for lap time reduction 
 Corner triangulation for speed and lap time reduction 
 CAT specific advanced driver development exercises A full day experience for you and your car: 
 Professional in car tuition 
 Access to your favourite circuits 
 Professional motor industry training exercises 
 Lunch and refreshments throughout the day 
 Full emergency services on hand all day 
 Exclusive facilities 1 hours 40 mins driving time with your personal instructor Member Prices 3 participating members = £450 pp 4 participating members = £435 pp 6 participating members = £415 pp General Notes The club days described here are to use your own car, not CAT vehicles. with the exception described in the Drift session. Noise Limits ...to quote "there is no limit unless you are a Le Mans Prototype or an F1 car". If anyone thinks they can compete at that level on noise, be sure to mention it when booking! Full CAT Driver Training Event details can be downloaded in PDF by clicking 2018 Group Driver Training Event Options.pdf

Order placed and locked.

I don’t even have a drive yet!

Good shout, it's even got Z heritage!

I should be South Yorkshire based by the time this comes around, so I’m provisionally in. Easy on dates.

It’d be something light, MX5/EP3/Caterham/MR2. Can’t be doing with a heavy track toy at my budget. How’s the Ranger for ride comfort, some pickups I’ve been in are a bit bouncy.

Bit of a speculative Sunday afternoon special this one but... As it gets harder to find quiet stretches of fun road (without getting up at 5am) and the requirement to have something sensible, it's becoming more apparent that instead of having a sporty number as a daily, it makes more sense to have a practical number as a daily and a track pig for spirited driving fun. Now, we've all seen threads on what track pig to get but no one ever asks what sensible car to get to lug it about. I kinda of have a thing for pickups, and can see the attraction of a double cab Navarra or L200 or Hilux. It'd be functional for lugging big stuff around, a good tower, super macho and kinda cool. Modding potential. Then there's oil burning estates, like the Skoda VRS, 530d, E or C class or a petrol such as a Saab 9-3 or dare I say it, a Forrester STi. They feel a bit like a proper car, go relatively fast, loads of practicality and not much in the way of compromise. Might even be open to a few mods. Last but not least are the SUV's like an X3 or Murano, Qashqai, Touareg. Not exactly cool or fun, but comfortable, practical and grunty. £10k limit. Go.

I don't know what it does but it looks

Last chance saloon today gang, please post up if you want in before I order. If you haven't yet paid, please get in touch

That's very kind of you to say so, thanks.

Think the Bosch S4 was what I went for after it died (check the dimensions), worked well for a number of years after that, cranked easy throughout the year.

Thanks to so many of you for making payment so quickly, it really helps.

Order PM's on their way out today - if you have any questions please reply to my PM and not this thread. Thanks!

Good idea, let’s give it a whirl. If it doesn’t go anywhere we can always merge back into “Motorsport”. https://www.350z-uk.com/forum/252-drifting/ If anyone wants any Drift specific threads moved into the new sub-forum, please use the REPORT button and ask. Thanks.

Please follow the rules to save yourself having to type things out multiple times.

SuperStu - one of each Grumpyoldjanner - one of each Veeg33 - one of each Kev T - wall calender Paul K - one of each E11TUf - wall calendar Rob350 - one of each pintopete58 - wall calendar andy james - wall Calendar Andy_Muxlow - wall Calendar Cob1980 - wall Calender MBS - Two wall and one desk Humpy - 1 x wall calendar wvSTUwv - wall calendar eatonm90 - 1 x wall calendar silkygun - Wall calendar jay84 - one of each Lyndzz - 1 x wall calendar Mark123 - 1 x wall calendar Woodzman - 1 wall calendar Mikeyazure - 1x wall calendar please. Rothers2901 - 2 x wall calendars AW11mike - 1x wall slipstream -1 x wall calendar Ebized - 1 x desk calendar please Paddy78 - 1 of each please P15UL T- 1 of each please ColinP - 1 wall KyleR - 2 wall and 1 desk please

I just wanted to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who has submitted photos. I did think for a while we might not be able to put out the desk calendar this year, but a late surge has done the job. Thank you all for chipping in and supporting the club. Entries are now closed and we'll be placing the final order shortly, do get your name down if you want a slice of club history.

If you can find an uneven (cobbled roads work well) surface and trundle over slowly to create the noise on demand, I'd bet money it's the banana bar (it could be either end). It's notoriously difficult to do up in the air as you can't easily exert a comparable force with a pry bar. Even if you replace and it turns out to be something else, you can rest in the knowledge it was going to go anyway! Good luck.

I've updated this thread to reflect that it's gone from feeler to orders. I also have the latest prices based on the bulk discount the printer has offered to us. Pleasingly we have managed to buck inflation and we're offering a small price drop over last year. This is subject to us hitting minimum order levels, so may vary slightly at the till. Walls £15 each (last year £17) Desk £16 each (last year £19) Both for £23 (last year £28)

Group shots are always very welcome. PM for my email.

SuperStu - one of each Grumpyoldjanner - one of each Veeg33 - one of each Kev T wall calender Paul K - one of each E11TUf, wall calendar Rob350. One of each pintopete58 . Wall calendar andy james. Wall Calendar Andy_Muxlow Wall Calendar Cob1980 Wall Calender MBS - Two wall and one desk Humpy - 1 x wall calendar wvSTUwv. Wall calendar eatonm90 1 x wall calendar silkygun - Wall calendar jay84 -one of each Lyndzz - 1 x wall calendar Mark123 - 1 x wall calendar

No, for historic reasons we run Feb to Feb, so there’s time to submit photos and register your interest to buy one.

We still need more pics if there is going to be a desk calendar this year, please get in touch. Thanks.

This may seem harsh, so sorry up front but... If you haven’t already PM’d zmanalex for prices on these parts used, you don’t want to keep your Zed. Which is totally fine. Lots of us have sold them. A house buy is a sensible reason. But don’t pretend you do want to keep it, whilst doing nothing about it.

Big thank you to the new volunteers, not to mention the grizzled veterans, who give up their time to put together club meets. It’s what the place is all about.