Datsun Roadster Forum-311s.org

SLOroadster wrote:I'm glad you had fun. Catching an Elise is not easy. Those things are stupid fast straight out of the box. Vettes can be fast, but I think with a set of race tires on your car you should be able to up and run away from it. The S2000 can be fast, but again with a set of race tires, you would be as fast if not faster. I'd bet with a few small changes, and some more experience, you could be right there.

Looking at the car, it looks pretty good. How was it from the drivers seat?

Will

The car did great, the driver, not so good. I had tunnel vision the whole time. Not watching my lines (not a racer, so I don't really know the lines to take). I got beat by a Ford Focus! (Modded of course) In retrospect, I would try to drive better instead of faster. The guy that drove my car was impressed. He said it cornered very well, and had more than enough power. He said he felt like it had a lot more poop than his S2000. All the top cars had race rubber.

There was a Ariel Atom parked next to me. That thing was crazy fast. I had a lot more people looking at my car vs. the Atom right next to me. I actually had a guy tell me that he thought the Datsun Roadster was the best looking sports car ever built.

I was just happy it all stayed together. Apart from the engine, transmission, rear end, I've built everything. After a 5 1/2 year project, I was hoping I didn't forget to tighten something!

It looks like you had a great time. The car looked great. You are a beter man than I, I wouldn't have let an instructor drive(beat) my 67. I nearly had a breakdown at my first track event with my 95 300zxtt when they told me that I HAD TO let an instructor drive my car with me in it for the first couple laps.

Check the engine torque specs between an S2000 and a U20 with solex's, then check the weight difference, and that is why the guy thought the roadster had more go. It was your first time racing, and it takes practice. To be in the top runners on street tires says you aren't doing all that bad. Keep at it and things will start to come together. I was not fast when I started, but I had a lot of fun doing it. Its also cool to see a roadster run and put down a decent time. I have more supporters of the roadster at the AutoXs than I do with the Alfa.

One of the hardest things to learn is to look down the course to see where you are going, not right ahead to see where you are.

Will

SLOroadster wrote:Check the engine torque specs between an S2000 and a U20 with solex's, then check the weight difference, and that is why the guy thought the roadster had more go. It was your first time racing, and it takes practice. To be in the top runners on street tires says you aren't doing all that bad. Keep at it and things will start to come together. I was not fast when I started, but I had a lot of fun doing it. Its also cool to see a roadster run and put down a decent time. I have more supporters of the roadster at the AutoXs than I do with the Alfa.

One of the hardest things to learn is to look down the course to see where you are going, not right ahead to see where you are.

Will

I hope I didn't imply that I was one of the top runners. I was way behind the Lotus, Vette, and S2000, and most of the pack. The top time was 61.9 seconds. My best time was like 75 or something. I sucked. I actually thought my Falken RT-215's performed pretty well. I was a little overinflated. I did drop the pressure down to 35 and still had some room on the upper sidewall. I probably was not cornering hard enough.

Now I want to run at Miller Sports Park http://www.millermotorsportspark.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Do some more autoXs before you go play on the track. AutoX is a very good place to learn how to both toss and catch the car without worrying about hitting anything or anyone. The track is fun, and I really enjoy running my car at track events, however I get a lot of autoXs for the cost of one track day.

It really doesn't matter where you finished in the field, all that matters is that you were out there, and you had fun.

Will