Litchfield - Newsletter - May 2006 update
Search Products
Contact Us
+44 (0)1684 850999 +44 (0)7887 622177 +44 (0)1684 850700 info@litchfieldmotors.com like us on facebook subscribe on youtubeOpening Hours
| Mon - Fri: | 8:30am - 5:30pm |
| Saturday: | 9:00am - 3:00pm |
This page has been archived and will no longer be updated. It is presented here for informational purposes only.
What a weekend!
Saturday saw Litchfield Imports attend 2 shows and travel over 1,000 miles; Japfest at Castle Coombe Wiltshire and Scoobynet Live (Scooby Shootout) in Elvington York. Despite the incredibly early starts they both proved a huge success.
Japfest 2006
This year's event saw Litchfield Imports team up technical partners Milltek Sport on a joint stand.
JapFest is one of the UK's leading Japanese performance car shows and once again returned to Castle Combe. JapFest 2006 featured all day track action, massive Car Club display areas, all the best tuning and styling companies, including Powerstation and Milltek Sport.
Last years record attendance of over 9,000 Japanese car fans was quickly surpassed by mid-morning with over 10,000 people entering the Wiltshire Circuit.
On diplay were the latest 2006 Subaru Impreza Spec C, 2006 Subaru Forester STI (as featured on Channel 5's Fifth Gear) and our 2006 Subaru Impreza Type-25 race car. PowerStation (www.powerstation.org.uk) showed off tuning parts from EcuTek, AST Suspension, and, of course, the Milltek Sport exhaust systems. Many customers visited the stand throughout the day to view the cars, discuss our products and take advantage of the show offers.
The available track time also gave plenty of chances to stretch our race cars legs ahead of the opening round of the new Time Attack series next weekend. The race car performed superbly all day and gave valuable feed back on recent changes. The new Motec M800 ECU and AIM Dash enabled Powerstation to analysis every aspect of the cars performance on a circuit map drawn by the Motec's powerful software.
Milltek (www.millteksport.com) brought along their range of Mitsubishi Evo and Subaru Impreza exhaust systems that we have helped develop over the years. Milltek also displayed their new exhaust bungs which generated a lot of interest from the regular track day users. However the race car's 3" Milltek exhaust system did not require this with its impressively quiet 96db reading during the static noise test. In fact the race car was probably one of the most civilized cars out on track. It did however produce some spectacular flames on gear changes. Also on display were Milltek's new prototype twinscroll headers which are currently undergoing testing on a range of different powered Imprezas.
Sharing a trade stand enabled the 3 busy companies to find plenty of time to reaffirming their joint commitment to a continuous improvement policy with lots of exciting development to come during 2006.
The Race car's turbo suppliers, Turbo Dynamics (www.turbodynamics.co.uk), provided a new Garrett GT35 82R ball-bearing turbo earlier in the week which also worked really well. This new turbo is fitted to a bespoke housing and features a ported shroud compressor cover to eliminate surge. With the Japfest doubling up as shakedown for the up coming Time Attack event it was decided to run the car on normal optimax and low boost while we set-up the suspension and brakes. Despite running on low power for the day the new turbo comes onto boost much earlier with the car charging ahead from 3,600 rpm all the way to our reduced 6,800 rpm rev limit (8,000rpm usual).
A big thank you to Milltek for their support on the day and roll on Japfest 2007!
Scoobynet Live
A 4:45am start saw a long drive up to Elvington Airfield just outside York. This event was billed as the biggest Subaru specific day in the UK and it did not disappoint. The airfield was packed with every type of Subaru and owners there to watch and take part in the ΒΌ mile event, tear round the handling circuit or simply chat with other enthusiasts and trade exhibitors. Many of the UK's Subaru tuning scene brought along there heavily modified demonstrators to showcase their skills.
Dirk Hale, one of the owners of Powerstation, was invited to drive the Scoobynet Spec C on the handling circuit. This 2003 Spec C was one of the very first into the country was supplied new by Litchfield Imports to a successful musician who had ordered it in a very high specification. With our help the car later found its way into Scoobynet owner Shaun Fenning's hands who asked Powerstation to perform their latest round of modifications to the car.
Specification includes:- K&N Panel Filter
- 3" exhaust system
- Turbo Dynamic's high response hybrid turbo upgrade
- AST 3-way adjustable suspension
- AP Racing brakes
- Bucket seats
- Toyo T1R tyres
Turbo Dynamics provided a new hybrid turbo for this car specifically to improve mid range response with out sacrificing low down torque. Turbo Dynamics used the latest 5 blade high response compressor wheel with a modified cover (instead of the standard 6 blade design) to improve the lowdown spool. They then modified the turbo shaft with cut-back blades to allow the turbo to breathe more easily at higher RPM. It worked superbly and allowed a smaller gain in peak horse power but dramatically lengthen the engines power delivery. The engine now pulls hard to its' 8,000rpm limiter were before power would start to drop off around 6,800rpm and has lost non of its' low down urgency.
The Spec C's forte was the seamless way its engine produced its power with no lag and the perfect chassis for the treacherous conditions. Where others struggled with understeer Dirk was able to maintain a controlled 4 wheel drift around the final bend before rocketing over the timing line.
The Spec C's proved that although it is devastatingly quick it's forgiving and easy to learn. Despite never driving the car before and only having only 5 single laps to learn the circuit (including the sighting lap) in extremely wet conditions Dirk was able to qualify 3rd overall and secured a place in the grand final. The final saw Dirk again improve his time and comfortably win the final.
Congratulations Shaun and Dirk!
Vette does the rounds
)
)
With all the current Subaru focus its easy to forget about the many other cars we regularly supply. Over the years we been privileged to drive some of the very best sports cars available, whether owning them ourselves, importing them for customers or taking part in magazine features we've driven most of the current models. However few have left such a massive impression as the new 2006 Chevrolet Corvette Z06. It's simply brilliant fun with an engine that makes you feel like you are connected to a massive elastic band. Stunning!
Time Attack Round 1
Round one takes place this Sunday 28th at Rockingham with the best UK Time Attack and D1GB Drifters ready to start the new season off in style.
Channel 5's '5th Gear ' is set to join the D1GB this Sunday as well with the presenter and former F1 driver Tiff Needell taking to the wheel of a 590bhp Toyota Soarer.
More information can be found at www.timeattack.co.uk
Wish us luck!
If you have any questions about our Subaru product range please feel free to contact us at anytime.
Kind Regards
Everyone at Litchfield Imports