Friday, December 17, 2010

OS Giken Drivetrain Tech Seminar

Earlier in December, we had two OS Giken engineers, Sean & Mark, come to our shop for a technical presentation on drivetrains. OS Giken is a leading clutch, flywheel & limited-slip differential (LSD) manufacturer for both street and track cars. Their knowledge shed some light on a very important but often overlooked portion of what makes a car "go."

The 40+ Lotus & Ariel enthusiasts who attended enjoyed demonstrations, examples & practical explanations of clutches, flywheels & all types of LSDs. Lotus-specific examples, like OE clutch failures, were also discussed.

Thanks to Sean & Mark from OS Giken for a great presentation and thanks to everyone that came out to join us! Like always, we will be posting a video of the tech seminar for everyone to enjoy!

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Sector111 Track Weekend @ Monticello Motor Club, NY

This past weekend (Sept 11-12), we held a 2-day track event at Monticello Motor Club in Monticello, NY. This country-club track is located about 90-min outside of New York City in the Catskills. The 20+ Lotus owners that attended were treated to a nearly-wide-open, 4.1 mile world-class track where they enjoyed a ton of track time.



Saturday was nicer than we could have ever hoped. It was in the mid-70°s with hardly a cloud in sight. Each car was fitted with a transponder to start logging times to grid them for the proposed time trial (more on that later). The first few sessions were dedicated to lead/follow laps to help everyone learn the track. In the late morning, the lap times started coming down!


During lunch, a track-position lesson from a member helped some drivers really shave off even more time. One of our dealers, Bill Thomas of WT Roadsters in Frenchtown, NJ, ended up with the fastest lap of the weekend with a 2:40.7 lap in his Katana2 Elise. That was almost 4 seconds faster than the next fastest car!



Sunday, however, took a turn. The forecast initially called for light showers in the late morning. That quickly changed into showers all day starting at 7am. Unfortunately, the slick surface on the track forced us to cancel the time trial. This was a unanimous decision that, due to the difficulty of this track, was the right one. The track stayed green all day for a brave few who got lap after lap of wide open, empty track time!

Our first Sector111 Track Event on the East Coast was a huge success. Everyone had a great time experiencing a world-class track with a volume of Lotus cars far greater than they ever had in the past. We are already planning a few more events on the East-Coast for next year. A special thanks to the Monticello Motor Club and all of the participants for making this event so much fun and so successful!

Monday, August 9, 2010

Lotus Exos & Evora Cup GT4 @ Laguna Seca

This past Saturday we attended the North America debut of the Lotus Evora Cup GT4 & the World premier of the Lotus Type 125/Exos ultimate track/race car. This event took place at Laguna Seca during the Monterey Motorsports Pre-Reunion. Lotus really put on a fantastic show. Their display area was extremely well done and really showed how much Lotus has stepped up their game.



When we arrived at the garages where the cars were being displayed, we were pleasantly surprised to see that the Exos was a ground-up, purpose-built formula car based on somewhat on Lotus's current F1 car, the T127. The full carbon-fiber-bodied Exos is equipped with a 3.5 Cosworth V8 producing 650hp that revs past 10,000rmps. It features a starter motor and 2,400-mile tear-down interval making it relatively easy for customers of this $1 million car to get the Formula1 experience. The car absolutely stunning and will be a sure hit for all 25 lucky owners.

The Evora Cup GT4 was an equally impressive machine. This is a full-on, proper race car. As Lotus test driver, Johnny Mowlem, exclaimed at the end of the day, "It looks the business!" That it did. This car was fitted with what Lotus calls the "low downforce" package yet still looked very aggressive. Lotus Challenge Series racers Jack F. & Andy K. and LCS organizer, Jim Navarro, were given rides around Laguna Seca and all came out amazed at the capabilities of the car. We're very excited for the possibilities and potential of this car.


We are very excited for the new direction Lotus is going. These two cars and the manner in which they were presented were really top-notch. We're feeling very bullish about Lotus future prospects!

Friday, August 6, 2010

Type125 & Evora Cup GT4 Reveal @ Laguna











Bill and I are attending the reveal of Lotus's newest track weapons. Some speculation on the web suggests that it might be a rebadged Caparo T1.

I had the pleasure of getting a ride in one late last year. It is awesomely fast! This picture of the T1 is an owners car that was painted Lotus colors and not necessarily the Type125.

We will be posting pix and details from the event tomorrow.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Targa Trophy Rally Stage 1: San Diego














Stacy and I participated in the first stage of Targa Trophy Rally with our new Evora. This rally started in Hollywood and ran through various roads in the city & country and ended in San Diego. About 70 cars started the event and amazingly most finished! The organizers did a superb job of arranging a fun event that I fully recommend to all sportscar enthusiasts.

The event started with a kick off party at the W Hotel in Hollywood Friday night. We placed sponsors stickers onto our car that eve. Our Evora was staged at the entrance of the W and held it's ground next to a Ferrari & Lambo. We had HRE build us some special wheels for the Evora with a special finish - gold. We had also added a new Larini exhaust to improve the ultra-quiet stock system. It sounds superb.

Saturday morning the organizers had an excellent breakfast ready for us - so we fueled up. We then staged our car at the Car Show they arranged. After the Driver's Meeting we went out and checked out the show before lining up for the rally. No specifics were given at the meeting so we were quite anxious to see what this rally would entail. They informed us that there would be a Navigation Stage and a Driving Stage but that was it. It was the first rally I had participated in so I was very curious.

As we approached the start line, the organizers presented us with the instructions. We were first told to go buy a map of Southern CA and keep
the receipt. We then need to find specific shops in certain cities and buy items from each one. The receipts from each place would be the proof that we had actually made it there. We ran through some city streets, freeways and coastal roads.

We met everyone for lunch at Ferrari of Newport. Then the Drivers Stage started which took us to the desert. In fact, we ended going through some canyon roads that I know - including Mt. Palomar. The Evora cruised serenely through the freeways and then ate up the canyons. I surprised a 997, M3 & M5 with its rapid pace in the canyons. This car may not be as good as the Elise in the canyons but it sure felt awfully close. We were required to get some pie in Julian and then blast through the desert. Stacy got a bit car sick in the canyons so I ended slowing down to keep her lunch intact. But even at 6/10s this car is a blast to drive.

Ultimately we ended up at the W Hotel in San Diego. After 7 hrs of driving we were both in much better shape than if we had attempted it in the Elise or Atom. Frankly I could have gone on for many more hours. The Evora is a proper sportscar that covers plenty of miles with gentleman-like pace and composure.

We had a great time that evening at the awards banquet. We learned that we finished 17/70. The organizers basically keep tabs on your mileage and time and then compare it to their own mileage/time. The contestants who came the closest win. So the fastest team is not necessarily the winner. Luck surely plays a role in this rally but frankly that makes it plenty of fun. You don't needed a massively powerful car to win. The next stage is in late August and will be held in San Francisco. I highly recommend this event - and yes, I paid to run it and will do so again!

Monday, March 15, 2010

Sector 111 Ariel Atom 2 @ Cars & Coffee

I got a chance further test our Ariel Atom 2's numerous upgrades this weekend while taking it to the huge weekly car gathering in Irvine, CA, Cars & Coffee. As C
alifornia's only Ariel Atom dealer, this also gave me a chance to meet some local Atom owners.

The trip over the famous Ortega freeway gave me a chance to feel the full effect of the front and rear aero. Ortega is a near-15-mile road twisting through the mountains in a series of long sweepers. The car felt extremely planted and just ate up the curves.


Once over the mountains, I was able to experience Steve from Secant Vehicle's amazing engine calibration. The car was very easy to drive at low speed around town AND through the very crowded Cars & Coffee parking lot! Our power upgrade and new intercooler allowed the engine to stay strong even as the air heated up throughout the day.

The performance of this Atom 2 is unquestionable along with the attention it gets. There was constantly a crowd around the Atom even in a parking lot filled with Ford GTs, Mercedes Gullwings, a Ferrari Enzo and a Lamborghini Reventon. It even drew the attention of an upcoming car show that will 'air' on AOL.com. Look for our appearance on the show when it airs.


After spending the morning with the Atom, it is a sportscar that continues to thrill me unlike anything I've ever driven! It is a showstopper no matter where you are at - even Cars & Coffee.

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Sector111 Spring Track Day - NEW DATE!



Location: The Streets of Willow @ Willow Springs Raceway, Rosamond, CA

Date: April 15, 2010

Price: $300

Contact Bill Forelli to reserve your spot on the grid! Bill@Sector111.com or (951)296-6762 x206

This track day includes in-car instruction, a catered lunch at the track and lots of track time! Enjoy taking your car to the limit in a controlled environment on one of Southern California's best road courses.

For those of you living outside of California and Southern Nevada, contact us for a R3-Motorsport-prepared Lotus racecar rental for both our Sector111 Track Day on April 14th AND the Lotus Challenge Series races the following day, April 15th. You can now experience a Sector111 Track Day and the Lotus Challenge Series first hand! Escape the snow or rain and enjoy the bright Southern California sun in a fully prepared Lotus racecar. This service is available for all LCS events and Sector111 Track Days.