June 13, 2011
Le Mans 24 Hours Recap and Reults
There were scary moments, there were funny moments, there was the 24 hours. An amazing race with amazing drivers. It was the day that counted, it was perform or go home, it was race day at Le Mans. Nothing is final until Sunday afternoon at 3:00 PM in Le Mans, France when the car crosses the finish line. Not my picture, forgot where I got it from, but it is a good shot.
June 10, 2011
Le Mans 24 hours Night Qualifying Final
The race this weekend seems to be full of drama and amazing racing. A lot happened in the final session, and this weekend promises to be full of awesome racing. The picture comes from Wikipedia.
June 9, 2011
Le Mans 24 hours Day Qualifying
There was never an uninteresting moment for today's afternoon qualifying session. The cat and mouse games continued between Audi and Peugeot, but that isn't all the drama that happened.
June 8, 2011
Le Mans 24 hours Night Qualifying
I will jump straight to the point. Nothing is final until Sunday when the top three stand on the podium. I have added a track map, thanks to Wikipedia.
P1 was just as interesting as I thought. Though not as quick as I was planning, but there is still time for them to go quicker unless it rains. Sarrazin pulled out a 3:27.033, a lap that is roughly nine tenths quicker than the Audi's. The number two Audi is followed by the number one Audi. Both have lap times just hundredths off each other, in fourth right now is the number three Audi. The next car that is not a diesel is the Pescarolo Judd in 8th.
In P2, it was more underwhelming than I thought. The cars did 3:40's in the session, and at the end, the provisional pole car from Strakka Racing crashed at the Dunlop curves. No word yet on if the car is a write off, or is repairable. I seem to remember a P2 car crashing there abouts in qualifying in recent history.
For GTE-Pro, the BMW's were quickest early on, jumping out early by a second. The number 56 BMW currently has provisional pole for the class. Trailling by half a second is the Ferrari 458 from AF Corse, followed by the number 55 BMW. I honestly expected the BMW's to be quicker based upon their straight line speed at Sebring earlier in the year. In the next couple of days there should be some speed trap information published to compare the top GTE-Pro cars with. Following them is the duet of Corvettes from Pratt and Miller, the 74 and 73 respectively.
In the amateur category, the Porsche 997 from Labre Competition is out in front, over another 997 from the Flying Lizards. The Aston Martin provisionally in third was involved in an incident with the number 1 Audi at Mulsanne corner so the car will have to be repaired. Though based off of the images shown, it seemed to be in decent shape, and got the better end of the incident. The Doran Ford GT, an American Le Mans Series regular, is struggling as well citing engine or electrical issues.
Other Notes
The number 1 Audi in the hands of Romain Dumas, had a pretty significant impact with the Aston Martin Vantage from Gulf AMR Middle East. Qualifying was temporarily red flagged while crews worked to move both of the stricken cars from the racing surface. The Aston seemed to have the better end, but both cars went into parc ferme directly after the incident. Neither team said much more than that they will try to fix the car. I hope the mechanics, especially the Audi mechanics, prepared for a long night because they will definitely be working overtime to get both of these cars back into shape. Video below from 780 Motorsports.
There were a few cars that spun, and one of the Felbamayr cars was towed off the track at Mulsanne Corner. The factory P1 Aston Martins spent more time in the garage than on track. The JMB reportedly had gearbox issues and limped back to the pits. At one point Adrian Fernandez, driving the 009 Aston Martin AMR-ONE, stopped on the Mulsanne and had trouble restarting the engine forcing the Mexican to return to the pits for inpsection. Both cars still reported some type of oil circulation issue. This just proves that the car should not have come out of development after eight months.
In the final minutes of the session the Strakka Racing ARX-01 HPD, crashed heavily in the first turn and the remaining time in the session was red flagged.
There is a hybrid being fielded by a Swiss team by the name of Hope Racing. I think it is worthy to note that a hybrid, is having less issues right now than the Aston Martin P1 cars.
See the entire provisional qualifying list here for today's session.
Still lots of time for cars to get faster, and weather could play a large part in qualifying tomorrow. If it rains for tomorrows qualifying session, the order should stay roughly the same.
P1 was just as interesting as I thought. Though not as quick as I was planning, but there is still time for them to go quicker unless it rains. Sarrazin pulled out a 3:27.033, a lap that is roughly nine tenths quicker than the Audi's. The number two Audi is followed by the number one Audi. Both have lap times just hundredths off each other, in fourth right now is the number three Audi. The next car that is not a diesel is the Pescarolo Judd in 8th.
In P2, it was more underwhelming than I thought. The cars did 3:40's in the session, and at the end, the provisional pole car from Strakka Racing crashed at the Dunlop curves. No word yet on if the car is a write off, or is repairable. I seem to remember a P2 car crashing there abouts in qualifying in recent history.
For GTE-Pro, the BMW's were quickest early on, jumping out early by a second. The number 56 BMW currently has provisional pole for the class. Trailling by half a second is the Ferrari 458 from AF Corse, followed by the number 55 BMW. I honestly expected the BMW's to be quicker based upon their straight line speed at Sebring earlier in the year. In the next couple of days there should be some speed trap information published to compare the top GTE-Pro cars with. Following them is the duet of Corvettes from Pratt and Miller, the 74 and 73 respectively.
In the amateur category, the Porsche 997 from Labre Competition is out in front, over another 997 from the Flying Lizards. The Aston Martin provisionally in third was involved in an incident with the number 1 Audi at Mulsanne corner so the car will have to be repaired. Though based off of the images shown, it seemed to be in decent shape, and got the better end of the incident. The Doran Ford GT, an American Le Mans Series regular, is struggling as well citing engine or electrical issues.
Other Notes
The number 1 Audi in the hands of Romain Dumas, had a pretty significant impact with the Aston Martin Vantage from Gulf AMR Middle East. Qualifying was temporarily red flagged while crews worked to move both of the stricken cars from the racing surface. The Aston seemed to have the better end, but both cars went into parc ferme directly after the incident. Neither team said much more than that they will try to fix the car. I hope the mechanics, especially the Audi mechanics, prepared for a long night because they will definitely be working overtime to get both of these cars back into shape. Video below from 780 Motorsports.
There were a few cars that spun, and one of the Felbamayr cars was towed off the track at Mulsanne Corner. The factory P1 Aston Martins spent more time in the garage than on track. The JMB reportedly had gearbox issues and limped back to the pits. At one point Adrian Fernandez, driving the 009 Aston Martin AMR-ONE, stopped on the Mulsanne and had trouble restarting the engine forcing the Mexican to return to the pits for inpsection. Both cars still reported some type of oil circulation issue. This just proves that the car should not have come out of development after eight months.
In the final minutes of the session the Strakka Racing ARX-01 HPD, crashed heavily in the first turn and the remaining time in the session was red flagged.
There is a hybrid being fielded by a Swiss team by the name of Hope Racing. I think it is worthy to note that a hybrid, is having less issues right now than the Aston Martin P1 cars.
See the entire provisional qualifying list here for today's session.
Still lots of time for cars to get faster, and weather could play a large part in qualifying tomorrow. If it rains for tomorrows qualifying session, the order should stay roughly the same.
Le Mans 24 hours practice day thoughts, so far
Well today marks the beginning of what I consider to be the crown jewel of sportscar racing.
Updated at 18:43 6/8/11
Updated at 18:43 6/8/11
May 31, 2011
The 24 Hours of Le Mans
The main sports car event for the year is almost here, the 24 hours of Le Mans. A points paying round for participants in the International Le Mans Cup, it is important to perform well. Look forward to seeing a grand total of 56 prototypes, and GT cars on the grid this June.
Will Peugeot make it to the end or will there be another disaster ahead for them? Will Audi complete the race without major time lost in the pits? Will Corvette return to the top podium spot after dual engine failures took both of the cars out last year? The race will start on Saturday June 11th and finish on Sunday the 12th.
Will Peugeot make it to the end or will there be another disaster ahead for them? Will Audi complete the race without major time lost in the pits? Will Corvette return to the top podium spot after dual engine failures took both of the cars out last year? The race will start on Saturday June 11th and finish on Sunday the 12th.
May 19, 2011
Not Forgotten!
I have not forgotten about this blog. I have just been very busy as of late, and have also though about switching to a different blogging site. For now though, I will be staying on this site! Look for my thoughts on the feasibility of electric cars later this week.
The tip for the month is to check your tire pressure monthly. On average tires lose between one to two psi (pounds per square inch) a month. If not check this can lead to excessive tire wear or at the most tire blow out. It will help your fuel economy as under inflated tires cause the vehicle to have to work harder as there is more rolling resistance.
The tip for the month is to check your tire pressure monthly. On average tires lose between one to two psi (pounds per square inch) a month. If not check this can lead to excessive tire wear or at the most tire blow out. It will help your fuel economy as under inflated tires cause the vehicle to have to work harder as there is more rolling resistance.
April 25, 2011
The Nissan Leaf, Driven
Great things are happening in the automotive world. Cars are becoming more sophisticated each year with more technology being crammed into the car. To put this into perspective, look at the smart phones that are on the market today. Now, take a look at the laptops that were being sold around five to seven years ago. Pretty comparable performance wouldn’t you say? Ask any automotive enthusiast today and I doubt they would have thought 10 years ago that today’s cars and trucks would be as technologically dependent as they are now. Servos, wires, and micro processors galore, gone are the simple days of carburetors and mechanical throttle linkages. Now we move to the next revolution: the electric car.
April 22, 2011
Welcome post!
Howdy and welcome to Nothing but Automotive Thoughts! Together we will take a look at the automotive world, both motorsports and the consumer market. Some of the topics that will be written about in this blog will deal with not only the idea of being green through alternative vehicles, but also what you can do maintenance wise to prolong the life of your current vehicle, what you can do to prepare your street car for an autocross or high performance driving events, and a tip every now and again to keep your vehicle in tip top shape! I will also write about any special events I may go to, events that manufacturers put on to show case their products such as driving the new BMW X3 on the same day, back to back with some of its main competitors like the Audi Q5.
Here is a little bit about where I am coming from. I have been watching years of various disciplines of motorsports, personal experience, from working on my cars, friend’s cars, and from friends who I have learned from. I also do my own research so I can make a more informed opinion on newer technologies that have not been around previously.
Cars are my passion. I hope that this will provide an opening for everyone to find that inner car geek in themselves and enjoy motoring!
Finally feel free to post and ask any questions you would like to!
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