[M3to335]

I woke 2 hours before the sun came up and headed out to Virginia International Raceway to attend the Porsche Club of Americas HPDE. The goal was to get a couple 30min sessions in without a tune, then a few with the tune set to a mild user torque setting.

First and second session went great with just the DP's and intake. Since the first session was in green group, passing everyone wasn't really an issue. On the straights I was seeing a pretty typical 130 or so. After pulling back in, I noticed something hanging out of my I.C. Low-and-behold it was a fricken bird. Apparently I demolished the little sucker on the track. Amazingly enough it didn't hurt anything





For the remaining sessions in intermediate group, I quickly installed the latest 2.1 beta map. Since it is not advisable to run a tune at the track with less than a 50/50 mix of race gas....I attempted to play it safe and put the settings to 85%. My buddy (instructor) was my eyes for the gauge. We ran two 30min sessions with boost holding very steady at 13+psi. No spikes, no hurky jerky, no nasty taper and definately no limp. This was running through 2-3-4 repeatedly up to 142mph. The torque was great, and the extra top speed was a nice addition as well.

Also, since 2.1 now taps the throttle position sensor, the way power comes on out of corner is very predictable. It was very easy to keep the back end where it needed to be. Even at 13psi, we had the opportunity to pass just about everything we could get our hands on. C5 Z06, Lotus Exige, SC 350z, M3s, handfulls of random Porches and even had a 997 Turbo. Later he caught up and I let him by. Obviously, at only 13psi he could pull in the straights. That's a quick car, no doubt.

I don't think you can put your car into a more harsh aggressive environment then back to back track driving. This was truly a testament to the type of reliable power we have all be looking for. Also it was a really good feeling to get so many thumbs up from other drivers as well as comments like "Jesus, that's a quick Bimmer".

Be patient folks, its worth the wait.
Scott

Here are some random shots of the other cars attending...
http://www.extremespeedonline.com/ga...2_itemId=90860

[e90AW335i]

Very cool Scott. Be safe out there....

[jpsimon]

Nice job! thanks for the update

[Lshaw]

Poor Bird, hahaha

[tek818]

glad to hear you represented us well and the bird didn't hurt anything

[NYCGarbagePrince]

Great write up... I hit a seagull before.. and many a pigeon in the garbage trucks =)

Just re-purchased Procede.. we are gonna see if what you say is true..

[normtrum]

This is the first time (that I know of) that somebody has done a test like this. Very cool read....thanks!

That bird looks like Randy Johnson got a hold of it!

[1clean335i]

sounds like fun... good to hear your car was running strong

[Ruff Rider]

"Also, since 2.1 now taps the throttle position sensor, the way power comes on out of corner is very predictable. It was very easy to keep the back end where it needed to be"


This statement is what I wanted to hear. Running the cars in a straight line is fun but to really enjoy our cars you have to run it on a road course. Living in Utah we have one of the top road courses in the country and I can't wait to put my four wheels on it.

[bmwzimmer]

Poor Bird....

Oh yea, Great Job!!

[M&M]

Originally Posted by normtrum

This is the first time (that I know of) that somebody has done a test like this!

I also did do a track session a couple of weeks ago. But, of course, it was with 2.02. The one-wheel peel coming out of the tight turns is annoying and the oil does get a bit hot after a few hot laps. Not excessively hot, but pretty hot. But then again it was a really hot day on a high speed circuit. There was no limp even in this heat, with pump fuel. I was faster than all the RS4's & even the R8.

[M3to335]

Thanks for the positive comments guys. Oh, and about the bird......at least it was just a bird, and not the damn 100lb black lab that came running at me at 5am!!! I just missed that sucker.

Originally Posted by NYCGarbagePrince

Great write up... I hit a seagull before.. and many a pigeon in the garbage trucks =)

Just re-purchased Procede.. we are gonna see if what you say is true..

Its true, no one is paying me to give this review

Originally Posted by M&M

I also did do a track session a couple of weeks ago. But, of course, it was with 2.02. The one-wheel peel coming out of the tight turns is annoying and the oil does get a bit hot after a few hot laps. Not excessively hot, but pretty hot. But then again it was a really hot day on a high speed circuit. There was no limp even in this heat, with pump fuel. I was faster than all the RS4's & even the R8.

Im glad to hear someone else has had the chance to run a tune at the track.

[turbotko]

Yes, I have been running 2.1 for 2 days now, it's an amazing tune. Leaps and bounds better than the older versions, and I can back M3to335 up with the smooth power.

It actually took me a second to relearn how to drive the car casually in my daily driver routine. I"m used to stabbing 1/4 throttle and getting a whole load of boost and that smack in the rear from the torque. This map doesn't do this, small throttle inputs equal small changes in boost and power. But stand on it and the boost responds faster and harder, and there is no doubt about it, it makes more power than the 2-26 map.

Can you tell I'm in love? Thanks Shiv!!

[cn555ic]

If good feedback continues like this with the new V2.1 map an firmware, it should be released to the public very soon i would imagine!!! Thanks for the reviews!

[sajakh]

Originally Posted by M&M

I also did do a track session a couple of weeks ago. But, of course, it was with 2.02. The one-wheel peel coming out of the tight turns is annoying and the oil does get a bit hot after a few hot laps. Not excessively hot, but pretty hot. But then again it was a really hot day on a high speed circuit. There was no limp even in this heat, with pump fuel. I was faster than all the RS4's & even the R8.

[/IMG]

What was your temp and was it with an oil cooler (stock or dinan)?

[S4to335]

I have been asked to contact you on behalf of the family of the bird.
"Sqeeaky" as her name use to be, was a very nice bird..that did volunteering down at the lake to teach all the other finches how to fly. Now, those baby finches have no one to turn to. I am hereby authorized to offer you a settlement deal or we will be forced to take you to court in a wrongful death case. We are authorized to start discussions on settlement amounts, but make sure you understand that the family of this bird has been traumatically affected by the manner in which Squeeaky met her demise, and they are not happy and want to see justice served. I am sure that any settlement arrangements will include setting aside some funds in a trust for finches that meet this same fate on the racetrack. The trust will be called " Birds Who Got Smashed at the Racetrack Fund". Donations can be accepted at any Bank of America branch.

Sincerely,

John Q
Esquire

P.S. I have already established precedence in a similiar case involving a tortoise that got smashed at the apex of turn 2 at Spring Mountain Raceway in Pahrump NV back in 2000. I am well versed in matters such as this.

[SteelTorque]

RS4 is weaksauce...please remove from this thread...

[Vince@ V K Motorwerks]

Dude,

I dont know what it is with my car but i have killed about 4 birds in one year. its like they dive bomb strait into my car.

I cant wait to test my V2.1 on the dragstrip on the 6th of april. I love it so far, very powerful and smooth.

[Mr. 5]

Great results man!
It's nice to see people taking advantage of a real track instead of just a straight line.
I need to get my butt out there soon.

Originally Posted by M3to335

I woke 2 hours before the sun came up and headed out to Virginia International Raceway to attend the Porsche Club of Americas HPDE. The goal was to get a couple 30min sessions in without a tune, then a few with the tune set to a mild user torque setting.

First and second session went great with just the DP's and intake. Since the first session was in green group, passing everyone wasn't really an issue. On the straights I was seeing a pretty typical 130 or so. After pulling back in, I noticed something hanging out of my I.C. Low-and-behold it was a fricken bird. Apparently I demolished the little sucker on the track. Amazingly enough it didn't hurt anything





For the remaining sessions in intermediate group, I quickly installed the latest 2.1 beta map. Since it is not advisable to run a tune at the track with less than a 50/50 mix of race gas....I attempted to play it safe and put the settings to 85%. My buddy (instructor) was my eyes for the gauge. We ran two 30min sessions with boost holding very steady at 13+psi. No spikes, no hurky jerky, no nasty taper and definately no limp. This was running through 2-3-4 repeatedly up to 142mph. The torque was great, and the extra top speed was a nice addition as well.

Also, since 2.1 now taps the throttle position sensor, the way power comes on out of corner is very predictable. It was very easy to keep the back end where it needed to be. Even at 13psi, we had the opportunity to pass just about everything we could get our hands on. C5 Z06, Lotus Exige, SC 350z, M3s, handfulls of random Porches and even had a 997 Turbo. Later he caught up and I let him by. Obviously, at only 13psi he could pull in the straights. That's a quick car, no doubt.

I don't think you can put your car into a more harsh aggressive environment then back to back track driving. This was truly a testament to the type of reliable power we have all be looking for. Also it was a really good feeling to get so many thumbs up from other drivers as well as comments like "Jesus, that's a quick Bimmer".

Be patient folks, its worth the wait.
Scott

Here are some random shots of the other cars attending...
http://www.extremespeedonline.com/ga...2_itemId=90860

[j28s]

This is odd...since I've had my 335 I have hit two birds...prior to that I've only hit one other bird in my life. Granted I dodged a deer racing at 140mph at Road Atlanta (that pissed me off...I'm sure his friends were in the woods laughing there ass off...damn thing just looked at me like..."what the PHUCK are you doing in that thing and you best slow down"...least I didn't lose any track position, dodged a turtle at CMP for 4 laps in a race...poor thing would only move about a foot each lap and the corner workers didn't see it, suicide rabbit at a hillclimb met it's fate, crow also met it's fate at VIR, hit the car in front of me and bounced off my windshield...I do need to donate some funds into the "Birds Who Got Smashed at the Racetrack Fund" he helped me gain a position before the yellow flag came out. I did have a friend that hit a deer at RA...did a lot more damage than a thought.

[Soni]

nice review!!

[Sniz]

nice review!! I need to get my hands on this tune......