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... and absolute power corrupts absolutely. With apologies for the slight misquote to the right honorable John Dahlberg-Acton (1st Baron Acton).
Or perhaps the Baron was not honorable? I am momentarily unsure.
But this tale is not about the Baron - but rather about power. It is a reprise of the opening act of the trilogy of Gollum the Mini.
For the original Gollum was a Works car - a R53 which was then hand upgraded at the old location on Route 1 by a nice gentleman who left somewhat later to work on Indy Cars. When I finally broke down and let Bren tune it, it was making 208 with a torque curve fatter than yo mama! The original Gollum wound up in STX, and as I am not Craig Wilcox I grew frustrated over time. We did take a Regional title in ASP (go figger) and then STX, but then the fast lads showed up!
But then I zigged and dropped down to the H Street Gollum - an R56 with great moves but no discernible appendages. As intended we had great fun, and went to Lincoln for the Solo finals for the 2nd time. Paul and I were hammer and tongs in H Street for a couple of wonderful seasons.
There is, I told myself, no greater task than driving a slow car fast.
But of course I never listen, and I have never seen a tide which receded never to return.
The first indication was the considerably quicker Gollum III, with the B38 triple and almost as fat a torque curve as my original R53. My favorite Mini thus far, this sleeper of a little beast upset half the field of Focus ST and Golf GTI assembled during a 3rd trip to the Solo Nationals. David against 100 more horsepower Goliaths in the G Street class. Another Regional Class title came in our first full year, but I'm not certain we could do it again as Barbara's Focus ST has gotten quick enough to win a National Tour trophy.
But all of this is neither here nor there, because I am now counting down to early September, at which time Gollum IV will hopefully appear.
Nothing fancy, just a stripped Works Hardtop with about 230 HP and enough rim for some tires a bit wider than the 205s I have been running.
Beware the Dark Side my son...
Cheers,
Charlie
Last edited by cmt52663; Jul 10, 2017 at 05:11 PM.
Eddie I dunno. The build sheet claims "Sport Suspension" is "STND". What does that mean? Hell I dunno. At some point the spring rates, the bar diameters, and the resulting roll angles will all hove into view, but such practical details elude me thus far.
It may be the case that there's an argument to throw another few thousand at it to polish it up, but I'm not fool enough to do that without having at least tasted the wine on offer..
Here's hoping, 'cause Gollum III is a stiff beast with the big bar and the Bilsteins, and I am accustomed to its habits.
I accept at least that I shall have to do another set of wheels and tires, but not until next Spring.
I haven't even read the 2018 Solo rulebook, which is also an odd echo of the beginning of this story, and how Gollum I wound up in ASP.
Not sure if the rules allow it since I am well past my autocross days (maybe), but the NM 25 mm rear bar and end links really wake up the handling. Even on the softest setting, it definitely balances the handling and responsiveness. The Craven Speed big pair doesn't hurt either ... some say it makes more difference than the sway bar.
BTW ... the auto may be a good option. It's very quick at lower speeds and the manual mode is very quick. It was not my choice, but I've become a convert ... it really is quick.
Not sure if the rules allow it since I am well past my autocross days (maybe), but the NM 25 mm rear bar and end links really wake up the handling. Even on the softest setting, it definitely balances the handling and responsiveness. The Craven Speed big pair doesn't hurt either ... some say it makes more difference than the sway bar.
BTW ... the auto may be a good option. It's very quick at lower speeds and the manual mode is very quick. It was not my choice, but I've become a convert ... it really is quick.
+1 on the NM sway bar, end links, and the big pair. If you check my Mod list you'll see how I optimized my OEM Sport Suspension. Don't know how it'll affect classifications competition-wise though.
Ah-hah! There's a 215 RE-71R out there that looks appropriate.
The bad news is that apparently there's no OEM wheel with a width greater than 7".
SCCA D Street compliance therefore prevents me from going wider either.
I am mindful of the lessons learned with the original Gollum, which never liked a 225 on a 7" rim, and ultimately wound up in STX with a staggered 8" (225/45-16) in front and a 7" (205/45-16) out back. It took that much tire to really balance the car, which was also sporting a Quaife at the time.
Racing this car is obviously going to involve a nice smooth approach to the throttle, at least in D Street trim.
One thing I might do, is to keep the current 16x7 OZ wheels from Gollum III, which would drop the car a bit (good), lower the top speed in 2nd (not good), increase the effective final drive ratio (good), and also be D Street legal (good).
I thought that the JCW comes with those really big, 6 piston caliper brakes that they had on the R56 GP. Won't you need the 17" Wheels to clear those?
I know what you mean about the 225 tires on a 7" wheel. I have that with a set of R888s and it was a waste of money.
Yep, you're right Eddie. Bad idea.
I just ran the gear ratios for Cooper (B38) and the S, from 2014 through 2017, and the S 2nd gear is 13% shorter than the one I am used to, so even apart from the brakes the need for a decent speed at red-line in 2nd is a concern.
