2013 Season End

This post has been a bit overdue, but rest assured STI Guys are still around. The last two events of the season at MAM and HPT came up pretty fast and were only a couple weeks apart. 

The aero upgrades we did over the summer break worked out amazingly! Our qualifying laptime at Mid America Motorplex was almost 2.5 seconds faster than last time we were there. We spent a good amount of time dialing in the damper and camber settings to account for the increased downforce but the car was running great. Unfortunately we cooked the brakes during Saturday's race and had to retire about midway through. Sunday we threw in a new set of pads and made a few more small adjustments and rolled out for the race. This time everything kept together and we crossed the checkered flag for the win.

Heartland Park Topeka was a similar story. Saturday during qualifying we encountered some electrical issues that sent the car sliding sideways into corner ten and coming to a stop off track completely dead. After troubleshooting for a while we finally resolved the issue, however by that time we had missed the start of the race. With everything back together again we pulled out a dominating race on Sunday and finished with an 18 second gap to second place.

For 2014 we already have a list of projects to develop the car further. As usual we will update as things progress.

Summer Break

STI Guys have been having a bit of a summer break these past couple months. With another month until our next event (finally!) we're feeling the need for speed. This break hasn't been all about relaxing though as team STI Guys have been hard at work improving the car. Here are a couple pictures of some of what we've been up to.

Memorial Day Weekend @ HPT

What an awesome Memorial Day weekend it was down at Heartland Park Topeka. Great weather all weekend long with a good amount of sun, low humidity, and temps hanging around in the 70s. It was also an excellent turnout for the NASA Central & Rocky Mountain regions crossover with around 90 cars registered.

Saturday morning’s practice session went off pretty smoothly. The car was running great and it didn’t take long to drop our times into the low 1:33’s around the 2.2 mile track layout. This put us near the top of the time sheet, only behind a few ST1 cars. After about an hour break, it was time for qualifying. 2 hot laps later we rolled back into the pits with a very fast 1:32.9, placing us 4th on grid for the afternoon race.

At 3PM we rolled down to grid and staged up behind the pace car. After a quick lap around the track behind the pace car the green flag was dropped. By the end of the first lap we were sitting 5th overall after a ST2 S2000 passed us going into corner 3. While that group of 4 cars kept slowly pulling away, we kept building the gap to everyone else behind us. Included in that group was our ST3 competitor who lost a couple positions at the start and was now stuck in traffic. The rest of the race continued on without issue and saw two of the cars ahead of us retire, bumping us to 3rd overall.

Sunday unfortunately didn’t go quite as well as Saturday. The whole day we were faced with a intercooler hose coupling that decided to start shredding apart. This obviously created a major boost leak putting us way down on power. We carried on however and did the best we could for Sunday’s race to get as many points as possible.

Now its onto summer break for Team STI Guys as our next event won’t be until August at Motorsport Park Hastings. Over this period of time we will be working to finish some aero developments for the car. We will update as things progress.

Mid America Motorplex

This past weekend saw us just outside Omaha, Nebraska at Mid America Motorplex. With the weather forecast looking much more optimistic this time around we were set for a good weekend.

Since the last event our STI has been under the knife being rebuilt stronger than ever. After some fresh new internals and a dyno tune the car was making way more power than it was previously. So we decided to go with it and bump up to a higher class. The STI Guys will now be running in NASA's new Super Touring 3 class.

Saturday was all about getting STI Guy Ron through comp school and shaking down the car after its rebuild. With temps rising into the mid 70's and sunshine breaking through the clouds, Saturday was turning into a perfect day for racing. The car ran without issue all Saturday long and was much faster than last year. Lap times were 2+ seconds lower and we were hitting 131 MPH on the back straight, 9 MPH higher than last summer! Saturday finished with Ron successfully completing comp school and obtaining his provisional license!

STI Guy Ron pictured center

Sunday was race day. We ended up qualifying 4th overall out of a 18 car field. The race went without issue and we climbed our way up to finished 2nd overall! The car ran extremely strong and we were able to keep up a very good pace throughout the entire race. We were also very happy with the new Hankook Ventus Z214 race tires we were running. They were fast and very consistent, definitely a tire we will continue to use. We were very happy with the race and can't wait for the next one.

The next event we should be making it to will be down by Kansas City, Kansas at Heartland Park Topeka. It's a top notch track and we had a lot of fun there last year, and so far the number registered is looking good. For this next event we may have time to develop some further upgrades to the car. Now that we are running ST3 we have more freedom to modify the car. One of the first items on our list is to fabricate a front splitter. We will see...

Racing in the winter

This last weekend found us in St. Louis, Missouri for the first event of the year. We arrived early in the afternoon to unload the car and then attend the Friday night racing comp school classroom session. That's right, team STI Guys is moving into wheel-to-wheel racing from time trials. We felt this was the next step and are very excited to start racing for position rather than time.

Saturday was all about running race school exercises such as running side-by-side, offline, practice starts, and a mock race. The first session of the day went by without issue, just running the track to learn the layout and executing some passes. The second session we ran side-by-side practicing situational awareness and  running offline with another car next to you. The session ran fine until the end when our car started to overheat and threw a CEL. Further diagnostic pointed to a blown head gasket. Quite unfortunate being that we there to complete the comp school. With a bit of negotiation we were able to find another car to rent for the last sessions of the day to complete the school.

Finishing Saturday we were awarded a certificate of completion for the comp school along with a provisional race license. 

STI Guy Spencer 3rd from left

Sunday's event actually ended up being canceled due to a late season incoming snow storm. Our car was down for repair anyway so that didn't change much for us as we headed home Saturday night. Next event will be in Omaha at Mid America Motorplex last weekend of April. Weather should be better this time around....

Winter Upgrades - Part 2

Even though the we're still in the winter months, work never stops on the car. With the start of the 2013 season still a little over a month away we've added a couple more upgrades to the car. First we decided to remove the rear door windows and replace them with a pair of custom Lexan windows. Overall wasn't too difficult to pull this one together, just some time figuring out how to properly secure the Lexan to the car. The second upgrade comes in the form of a new steering wheel and quick release setup. It may not exactly be a performance gainer, but the new Momo wheel is a big improvement over the massive stock steering wheel. Along with the quick release, this upgrade will also make entry and exit from the car much easier. On a final note we finished up the brake ducts, running the brake ducting and fabricating an inlet. Check out the pictures below!

Winter Upgrade

As we wait for the next racing season to roll around, we constantly think of ways in which to improve the car. Of course we must constrain our ideas to those that will not add any modification points so we are not bumped up into the next class. That brings us to the modification of the day..... brake ducts! With our ever increasing speeds going into every corner, we rely more and more on our brakes. In the past we've seen our brakes get so hot they burst in flames (nothing serious but still very very hot). One of the consequences of repeatedly heating of the brakes this high is that the rotors start to form pretty serious stress cracks. So the idea here is these new ducts will both improve our current braking performance by keeping rotor temps down, and increase the lifespan of our rotors.

Season Finale

This past weekend found us down in Kansas at Heartland Park Topeka for the final race of the season. To start, this was an amazing track, definitely one our top favorite tracks. It's a fairly highspeed track with a couple good straights combined with a good variety of corners and elevation changes. It took a few laps to figure out that layout and come up to speed, but after that our pace was great. Even though we were the only ones to show for TTB we were enjoying running laptimes within those in the TTU ranks. Since this was the first time NASA has been to HPT our best laptime of 1:52.110 set the benchmark in TTB for next year. On top of all that, we claimed the Championship for NASA Central Region Time Trials B!

It was a great way to end the season and we really look forward to returning next year even stronger.

Check out the video below to see a few hot laps around Heartland Park Topeka as we chase a TTU Corvette and pass at TTU Lotus Exige. 

MPH - Round Two

We found ourselves at Motorsport Park Hastings again this past Labor day weekend. It was another hot one will temps dipping into the 90s. Thankfully our new oil cooler was up to the task and did a great job keeping the car running cool all weekend long. The weekend finished out with us taking another two 1st place finishes and we even reset our lap record set back in May to a new blistering 1:37.002. Check out the video below, lap 3 is our record setting lap. Otherwise we will be back at it in October for the last race of the season down in Kansas City.

Mid-Season Upgrade

After the sweltering heat we endured during our last event at MAM back in July, we decided the car could still use some improvements in the cooling department. During that event we saw oil and water temps constantly hovering around 220 and 250 degree respectively. Since we already upgraded to an aluminum core radiator at the start of the season the next step is to improve cooling of the oil. From the factory the STi lacks a oil-to-air cooled setup. There is however a small oil-to-water cooler right above the oil filter that in race situation is more than likely acting as a oil/water heater more than anything. This is where our new oil cooler setup steps in.

This setup, consisting of a Setrab oil cooler, should help keep our operating temps in check 

Video from MPH

A little bit behind, but better late then never. Check out our latest clip of a couple laps around Motorsport Park Hastings back in May! I'll work on getting out some footage from MAM within the next few days

Mid Season & Mid America Motorplex

What a HOT weekend! Literally though it was extremely hot this past weekend at MAM. Most of Saturday was well into the 90s and I do believe it got up slightly over 100. Sunday was a little better starting off with a cooler morning the low 80s but quickly rose after lunch. It was brutal.

The weekend was a fun one though (when isn’t time on track fun?) even with it being as hot as it was. It was nice to return to MAM since it had been 2 years since we were last here. Nothing has really changed, it’s still the same extremely flat, wide, and fast track it was before. From the grandstand you can see the entire track, actually you can see straight across the track even when you’re driving on it. The overall showing for this event was lighter than normal, I would contribute that to it being the first time NASA Central has run at this track and probably more so because of the extreme heat. Even with our upgraded aluminum core radiator our STi was struggling to keep water and oil temps in check. We will be looking into an external oil cooler setup for the future.

Both Saturday and Sunday followed along similarly, winning both with a best of 1:44.5 and 1:44.25 respectively. Also since this was the first time NASA Central has been at the track our 1:44.25 set the mark as the TTB track record for MAM. These two wins put us into the lead for the TTB season championship. Here’s a quote from a recent NASA Central news letter:

TTB has been all about Team STi Guys in their well prepared Subaru WRX. With a 200 point lead they can wrap up the championship with two more events. Region Director Matt Rivard has been threatening to run his Mazda RX8 in TTB as well as PTB but teething problems keep getting in the way. Will Rivard make Team STi Guys work for their next win?

Our next event will be over Labor Day weekend back at MPH as we’ll have to miss the August event at MAM.  Hopefully we’ll be bringing along our good friend Rex in his ultra modified Acura TL.

MPH in Nebraska

It was a fun weekend in Nebraska. Was our first time visiting the Motorsport Park Hastings track, and it was a fun challenge to learn a new course. The track is pretty flat with a few slight elevation changes, fairly high speed straights, and number of challenging corners. Overall a good weekend with a couple 1st place finishes and a new track record! 

Next event will be at the end of June at MAM. It's been a couple years since we've last been there but it's a fun track and we're really looking forward to visiting it again. Until then, watch for pictures and video from this past weekend. 

New Season - Autobahn

The season opening event at Autobahn a couple weeks ago was a blast! Always great to get back on track from a long winter break. The weather was slightly cool and very windy, but it was sunny and dry so we absolutely couldn't complain. Jumping back into the pace of things we took 3rd both days. Check out video below to get a glimpse of the weekends action!

Master Transfer

We'd like thank our newest sponsor, Master Transfer, for supporting us going into the 2012 season! 

Master Transfer was started by George & Jack Master and has been in operation since the late 1940’s. We started as a small local cartage company with 5 trucks and it stayed that way until 1998 when Chad and Mark Master took over the business.  With their vision and drive, they have grown Master Transfer into a full service On Demand & logistics company servicing twelve Midwestern states with over 120 trucks and 250 trailers.  As we continue to grow with the help of our valued customers, you can be assured that Master Transfer will continue to stay on top of industry trends and lead the way.  Whether you need one pallet across town or a truck load across state lines, MASTER TRANSFER IS YOUR ON DEMAND SPECIALIST!

Check out their site at www.mastertransfer.com

Road America - End of Season

The last event of the season couldn't have gone any better! Two first place finishes and a new track record!

This was our first time at Road America, and it was quite the track. First, there is the scale of the track, 4 miles track on almost 650 acres of land. Then there is the intensity and speed of the course. Three main straights which we were reaching 140mph or more followed by tight 60-80mph corners. 

Friday was a test and tune day. So, we just spent the day learning the track and building up speed. The car felt great. The power band was amazing with our smoothed out tune from last time, the rebuilt transmission was shifting buttery smooth, and the Hoosier tires were sticking like glue.

Saturday, we started off first thing in the morning with Time Trials being the first run group out at 8am for a warm-up session. Four laps later, we set a 2:33.716 lap time, almost 3 seconds faster than the rest of the TTB group. We were shocked by how fast the car was running, as was everyone else. After a quick post-session meeting and a short break, we were back on the track. This time we were even faster, we posted a 2:32.894 and setting a new TTB track record! The next session of the day was a hot one, nobody was able to beat their previously posted lap time. Now since this was the last event of the season, and the championship banquet was that night, NASA split Saturday into two events. Saturday morning being the first event and the afternoon being the second event. This was so the final championship points could be earned and added to decide the winners before the banquet. So, the first session of the afternoon event, we posted a 2:34.748. Not quite as fast as we were in the morning, but still enough to put us at the top. At this point, the track was hotter, the car was hotter, and the tires had taken quite the beating. Road America is very tough on the cars. The second session of the afternoon, last of the day, we pushed as it as fast as we could. We put down a 2:34.350 and squeezed out first for the second event, with second place putting down an almost identical 2:34.354. 

Check out the pictures and videos pages as they have been updated with stuff from Road America

Transmission Rebuild - Update

It's been a while since the last update to the blog. That would be due to the fact that the car has been in the shop this whole time without any real updates, until now. The good news is that the transmission is finally repaired and working better than ever. The bad news is that due to unforeseen engine problems, we missed this past weekends event at Autobahn.

After the transmission was rebuilt and put back in the car mid last week, we strapped it to the dyno to check things out. We found that the car was running really low on power, about 50whp and 70tq lower. Diagnostics and troubleshooting ensued. Unfortunately we didn't find the problem in time, but believe the source of the problem has been found and should be resolved tomorrow. For now though, we are all set on making it to the last even of the season at Road America.

Transmission Rebuild

Yesterday we brought the car over to RS Motors to start tearing out the transmission and begin the rebuild. This will probably take a few weeks however as transmission is taken apart and inspected before we order any replacement parts. The next event is not until mid September though, so we should have enough time to get everything worked out in time to make it there.

We're looking forward to getting back out on the track and really putting the new Hoosiers and BC Racing Suspension coilovers to the test. For the brief time on the track at the last event though the car felt terrific with tons of grip and amazing handling. Once the car is back together we have no doubt the car is going to run very strongly.

Weekend at Autobahn Raceway

The weekend started with a bang. We arrived at Autobahn around 5pm and found a nice grassy spot of paddock to setup on. We quickly walked over the the HAVOC Motorsport trailer to find our two new sets of Hoosiers waiting for us. Luckily we were able to get our new tires mounted up Friday evening rather than having to rush to get them done Saturday morning. After that we setup our tent and did some last minute camber adjustments to the car.

Saturday began as any other race weekend. An all-hands meeting followed by a quick TT group meeting before heading out onto the track. We rolled onto the pre-grid at 9am with our new tires, suspension, and new tune on 110 octane excited to start the day. While going full-throttle down the back straight on the first hot lap, the car briefly hesitated and threw up a CEL while instantly jumping into limp mode. Obviously that session's lap times were shot. We come in and reset the ECU after the session and check on everything trying to figure out what happened. The second session followed the same course as the first. After that session we decided to try and get a hold of our tuner at RS Motors in MN. Thankfully we were able to get him directly on the phone and started troubleshooting the car. Pulling the codes we found our car was hitting the overboost threshold for some odd reason. He quickly retuned our map and emailed it over so we could do a reflash on the fly at the track. Big kudos to Ron at RS Motors for working with us over the phone to figure out our problem, reflash the car, and get us back on the track! Unfortunately we missed our third session while getting the issue of the morning worked out, but were plenty ready to hit the 4th session and put down some good lap times. The 1st hot lap into the session went great. Our tune problems from the morning all gone, and the car running with full power again, we were pushing it hard! As we rounded corner 9 in 4th gear and got back on the gas, it suddenly popped out of gear. Quickly slamming the gear back in place 4th gear popped out again. Trying again once more carefully ensuring it was fully in gear only resulted in the same. 4th gear was dead. With 4th being a primary gear at Autobahn, our weekend was shot and our lap time from our 1 hot lap of the day just wasn't enough to hold up against our toughest competitors.

A transmission rebuild is now in order and we're not sure yet which path we will take to accomplish that, or how long that will be. The next event on the schedule is at Autobahn the weekend of September 17-18, which we will try to make happen. So in the  mean time, we will continue to post any updates as they happen. Also, there are more pictures from this weekend posted over on the Pictures page.

Suspension Install

Old strut (top) vs new strut (bottom)

Well, our new suspension arrived just in time for the holiday weekend. Thankfully just in time for next weekends event at Autobahn too. All the pieces were safely packed inside one big box, with each piece being individually labeled. We jacked up the car and started to get to work Saturday afternoon. The old coilovers came out without giving us any trouble. Disassembly went just as easily, but took some time as we had to screw each of the three locking rings off the threaded body of the shock. Then we carefully pulled out the new shocks and springs and proceeded to rebuild the coilovers with the new components. The rebuild was without any surprises, and extra time being taken to make sure we set the ride height the same. Now we just get to wait for next weekend to test these bad boys out!

A few more pics over on the pictures page