GolfGTIforum.co.uk
Model specific boards => Golf mk7 => Topic started by: Jackie Treehorn on 20 September 2016, 14:37
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Went to Bedford to try out the Golf and it worked out well considering the weather. Got a surprisingly good 43mpg on the journey to the circuit and surprisingly bad 11mpg during the day. :whistle: Used my Hero 4 session and headrest mount along with Race Chrono which is a great app for split times, sectors, mph and lap times(but I wasn't timing obviously)
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8272/29179706744_50c573cfcc_k.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/LsvCd9)XSP_0087 (https://flic.kr/p/LsvCd9) by Emmber (https://www.flickr.com/photos/emmber/), on Flickr
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/9/8255/29179706404_e24cddda25_k.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/LsvC7h)XSP_0345 (https://flic.kr/p/LsvC7h) by Emmber (https://www.flickr.com/photos/emmber/), on Flickr
Hero 4 Session and Hague head rest mount
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/9/8027/29771356286_954cba4f50_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/MmMZ1j)P1020899 (https://flic.kr/p/MmMZ1j) by Emmber (https://www.flickr.com/photos/emmber/), on Flickr
Good MPG for the journey to the track
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/9/8040/29724440891_debf96495f_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/MhDwGc)P1020898 (https://flic.kr/p/MhDwGc) by Emmber (https://www.flickr.com/photos/emmber/), on Flickr
Had to fill up during the day as i was getting low, never knew filling up could be so worth while, normally its the part of driving i hate. this was at the end of the day after putting another 40quid in at lunch time!
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/9/8410/29771355316_014742bd1a_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/MmMYHA)P1020949 (https://flic.kr/p/MmMYHA) by Emmber (https://www.flickr.com/photos/emmber/), on Flickr
It's very quiet on the videos below, but I will have some modifications next time to improve this hopefully, as it was much louder in the car than you can hear.
Good mix of cars on the day as you can see, and everyone was friendly as always at these days. The Golf GTi mk2 with the R32 engine sounded fantastic on track along with the Nobles and Mclaren. But also the Clios and Saxos were giving it plenty. There is something about the sound and smells of cars friction material and consumables being pushed to the limit on a trackday. The Subaru next to us looked like it was going fast when parked up. Every time i looked at it i saw another bit of carbon or bodywork to help airflow.
Mk2
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8221/29771382056_d1795f0ed3_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/MmN7EC)P1020933 (https://flic.kr/p/MmN7EC) by Emmber (https://www.flickr.com/photos/emmber/), on Flickr
(https://c8.staticflickr.com/9/8322/29724490551_9a1ffeba67_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/MhDMsp)P1020932 (https://flic.kr/p/MhDMsp) by Emmber (https://www.flickr.com/photos/emmber/), on Flickr
Noble with sound reducers fitted
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/9/8074/29771355436_4d7d2c1395_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/MmMYKE)P1020934 (https://flic.kr/p/MmMYKE) by Emmber (https://www.flickr.com/photos/emmber/), on Flickr
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/9/8143/29694335322_76289e00b0_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/MeZemE)P1020927 (https://flic.kr/p/MeZemE) by Emmber (https://www.flickr.com/photos/emmber/), on Flickr
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/9/8009/29179587604_faeda2a564_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Lsv1N1)P1020931 (https://flic.kr/p/Lsv1N1) by Emmber (https://www.flickr.com/photos/emmber/), on Flickr
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/9/8344/29694335842_bd9c770faf_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/MeZevC)P1020916 (https://flic.kr/p/MeZevC) by Emmber (https://www.flickr.com/photos/emmber/), on Flickr
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/9/8408/29771355396_48be98bf8a_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/MmMYJY)P1020938 (https://flic.kr/p/MmMYJY) by Emmber (https://www.flickr.com/photos/emmber/), on Flickr
Great mix of HP and cars
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/9/8376/29807102325_4e4243c45e_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/MpXc4k)P1020911 (https://flic.kr/p/MpXc4k) by Emmber (https://www.flickr.com/photos/emmber/), on Flickr
Trackdays.
Overtaking is by consent, only on the straights and not under braking, apart from that you just have fun!
Full Version warm up 1/2 lap, then a couple of quick ones and coming back in.
https://youtu.be/k2IFiJmSKCE
Short Video 2 laps following (briefly) an M3 on track tyres and catching an Integra Type R.
https://youtu.be/ETMB7s0aUfw
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Love the action shots :cool:
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Thanks, I don't normally buy photos that often but he got the pic with the wheel in the air so I though what the hell, and got all 10 images!
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Disappointed you didn't go "full Stig" and have some sort of cheezy disco tunes playing or a teach yourself Bulgarian CD or something :)
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:grin:
That would have been funny, next time :wink:
While it was fun i found some limitations
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/9/8050/29771356156_6896efce47_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/MmMYY5)P1020908 (https://flic.kr/p/MmMYY5) by Emmber (https://www.flickr.com/photos/emmber/), on Flickr
Tyres
Used the Michelin tyre guide and set them at 30psi for ambient temp when cold, after the 1st run they were at 35-36psi they felt really good so left them all day. I mainly did 20min runs and the tyres hold on really well for road tyres before starting to show signs of temp overload. Some say to pump them up to protect the sidewalls but i have found this counterproductive and although you protect the tyre from rolling over, you reduce grip and induce understeer, I have used Michelin PS2 in the past and found them to be very good with progressive warning when getting too hot, but these PS4 I feel perform even better and as long as you are clean and only a little aggressive they last, but with the ABS cutting in the tyres were the limiting factor.
PP Brakes - Bedford GT circuit has some big stops and can be hard on brakes, I opted to stay with the standard road pads. I wanted to have a bench mark before looking to change the type of pads i want for the future. if the road pads hold up, i don't need anything more. I was shocked that the pads didn't give a strange pedal feel even when i came into the pits with the pads smoking near the end of the day. Again ambient temp is important but very impressed considering the circuit, I think i will keep the std TRW pads.
Throttle/Sport Diff - This was the best part of the car/day and the only reason I switched from RWD to FWD (ok not the only reason but one of them). You have the confidence to apply power early and this helped on the back straight at Bedford. but it was also frustrating in that it appears the throttle is regulated by steering angle. So on some corners i was unwinding the steering and progressively applying the throttle but it seemed to not be linear to my foot pressure. it appeared to be matched to steering input, so when I reach a level of unwinding with the steering the power came in quite aggressively. All in my head? Watch the videos.. The Diff system works out of medium and high speed corners really well and pulls back in line even though you are applying throttle, but the very slow 2nd gear corners it held back a little...
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/9/8849/29807104235_a22bd6f1c3_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/MpXcCg)P1020905 (https://flic.kr/p/MpXcCg) by Emmber (https://www.flickr.com/photos/emmber/), on Flickr
Stability system - With the Stability on and TC off the car is very clever, many a time in the first few runs I could feel it pulling me into the corner on trailing throttle it simply matched the steering angle and said "ok no problem" it never felt like it was over compensating but you knew it was doing it. This was fine up to 7/10ths I guess. After lunch I had the afternoon with TC and Stability off, it was raining as you can see in the video, but it was only enough to remove confidence not grip. As you can't fully switch stability off it is constantly keeping the car quick and very tidy, but almost too tidy when you are pushing to 9/10ths, sometimes you want to control some oversteer and occasionally i did, but it wasn't edgy if that makes sense. But i would rather be clean and have a car in 1 piece at the end of the day...
Steering feel: The steering is consistent and enjoyable on track it doesn't hunt the dips and cambers of a 964 or a HH like a good old 205 Gti with manual steering, but it is informative. Other car enthusiasts will scoff and assume that many owners are unlikely to even get the car to a track day car park as a spectator let alone on track, and this may be true, but this doesn't reflect on this FWD MQB platform. It also doesn't feel left behind compared to the everyday track car with only 230bhp, at 1370-ish kg with the same brakes calipers as the higher models and the VAQ diff this is great fun
Not so good?
Stability system keeping you on the black stuff, is that really a bad thing?
throttle input to steering angle unless i was imagining it?
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Bedford is a good place to stretch your legs, the TT-RS and Grey Clio look familiar from when i was there earlier in the year.
Funnily enough my first few laps threw an error code there (all programmes off on there R) and its seemed I had not fully turned to the ACC sensor so I think it thought I was going to have a monster off
How did your brakes get on, I fullered a set of fast road pads there on the VWR BBK an
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Clio was really nice and the only car i would swap for in the hatch range. I thought the brakes were fine Tbh, but could be a colder day? Or i'm not an animal on the brakes like you :grin:
I had the ABS cut in under heavy braking so the limiting factor wasn't the brakes for me, but the tyres.
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Nice to see someone using their car properly :cool:
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:wink:
Thinking of going to Snetterton again, but for the life of me I can't get on with the circuit, anyone been recently and know if they have change Coram? IMO its the most pointless corner of any circuit i have been to, its just like driving a corner on an A road as it seems to have no start, middle or apex. Perhaps its just me, but after being a couple of times i just find it 2 big stops in a straight line and Coram at the end of the lap...
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Have you driven the 300 - Layout?
I'm a big fan of Coram, 100mph in most things.
Confidence lift or dab of left foot on the brake pedal as you are building up speed.
Nice smooth turn in just before you run out of road, keep a constant lock on the wheel and aim to keep the car 3 or 4ft off the kerb.
Here comes the fun part.... As you wind the lock smoothly get on the brakes around the 2nd from last set of marker posts, use the weight on the nose to flick into Russel (or what ever its called now) and jump on the thottle to keep the back of the car in check.
This is a full lap of the 300: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWTfWJN4-ZY (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWTfWJN4-ZY)
This is a cock up in spitting rain and a bit of oil down: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1T4Tvbxvnw (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1T4Tvbxvnw)
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Yeah i have, i had high hopes when they decided to develop it, but while i found some of the corners quite technical (although they look simple) i still didn't get on with the new 300 layout. Everyone raves about it, perhaps I just need to give it another go. Great lap BTW and I noticed your 2nd from last marker braking, the start finish straights starts the minute you get of the brakes there i guess.
The 2nd video was interesting, good catch! :smiley:
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Thanks very much. Yeah the sooner you can get on the throttle the better, the approach to Riches is quicker than it used to be than it was with the old bus-stop type chicane that was there before.
Throw the pics up if you go for a ride round!
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Will do :wink:
But as always i have an inevitable thought of spending money on the car without reducing the comfort on very long road trip abroad. A tall order, but I would like a little more rotation and possibly a little flatter car in the corners to keep some of the geo inline on track days. I am thinking about anti roll bars but these increase spring rate when only 1 wheel is tension-ed so on B roads it could become jittery? A rear ARB from the CS or other may help, as i'm not keen on removing the sub frame to change the front, but understand that this will not help front geo or make is flatter at the front.
http://www.revotechnik.com/product-details/suspension/mqb-revo-anti-roll-bar-upgrade
Or fit bilstein B6 dampers to the standard springs, to keep it flatter but I don't want to have the typical over dampened VAG car as the car rides very well on the std setup. Perhaps i should leave well alone and not think I know more than Karsten Schebsdat :)
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Sorry for the incredibly delayed response. I'm on dial up.
What did you set your tyre pressures too and can you remember what they built up to hot after a session?
The best way to dial in a bit of rotation is to up the rear pressures a bit and to trail the brakes when turning in.
The Eibach/Revo roll bars look the business to me. Would be nice to have some rod-end links with them so you can take out any pre-load when the drivers onboard.
I'll measure Mrs LRW's Clubsport bars (if VW ever build it) but I think the Eibach jobbies will be the way forward.
I'm going to make a typical know-it-all forum comment based on 0 experience of the bars of driving a MK7 on the road let alone the track but..... I'm not sure if they will be a little too much in the wet. Guess there is only one way to find out.
I'd go ARB over dampers unless the damping is adjustable. Then again if damping is adjustable and it was me I'd drive myself barmy by ever tweeking the thing on the road. "Its raining today I'll just nip outside and soften it up"
Herr Schebsdat has has to cater for the masses and make something that works when driven by a nutter on a b-road in dry perfect conditions and something that will lug 5 people and suitcase back from the airport on a wet winters night, its possible to tip this compromise is either direction (Herr Schebsdat probably does still know better though).....
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It’s like corresponding by letter. :grin:
Tyres were 30 psi cold and 35-36 hot. I guess I could have pumped up the rear a bit to make it more loose.
If you can measure the rear bar on the CS it would be great, I will measure my GTi tonight to see what the difference is. The Revo one may not be subtle if its 5mm bigger that standard Gti and I don’t need my mods to be too obvious and throw things out.
Out with the verniers tonight and front bar is 24mm, rear bar is 22mm