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Porsche Club of America
The Northeast Region

Pit Pass

By Bill Chadwick
NOR'EASTER Online - February 2005
Northeast Region Logo

Hi All, after an extended respite I’m back to writing a monthly column for The Nor’easter. When I saw the sharp new format Dave Weber has come up with I was sorry to have missed the January edition. Pit-Pass will focus on racing and performance driving issues with a strong emphasis on the Northeast US. I have established an e-mail list with about thirty of my racing friends and acquaintances throughout the area. I solicit information to go in this column from the list members once a month. I further ask you our reader for help; if you have any pearls on any topic of information that you think would be of interest to NOR’EASTER readers please take a moment to drop me a line via e-mail
  
If you want to get a real feel for what is going on at a race weekend you should always spring for a few bucks extra and get a pit pass. Wandering around the paddock during the lulls of on-track action is the best way to enjoy and learn about what is really happening, and thus the title for my meager literary efforts. PCA Club, SCCA, Vintage and even some local Stock Car circle track action will be heard from here each month. Plus we’ll sprinkle in some technical, safety and maintenance tips from some real experts, and if I can tie them down long enough, some o outrageous stories from some of our home grown racing greats.
  
The last of the air cooled cup cars run in PCA class GTC1 and this class should be hotly contested in the coming year. Bob Scotto, who was super strong last season, will be seeing plenty of competition from the likes of Russ Castagna and Jeff Burger. Note to anyone thinking of getting into club racing or making a class move, this class of cars is great choice with a very high level of performance, a reasonable purchase price and maintenance expense!
   
The top end of the cup car scene is the class called GTC3. These are the current production water cooled models. This is probably the fastest growing class in PCA racing with large fields at most races. A heated rivalry has developed between Connecticut native Paul Orwicz and former New England Patriot Steve Johnson who makes his home in Tennessee. Paul (who runs Mosport in 1:27 flat) gets his race support from Spencer Cox, who besides running a well organized track support business in Connecticut also gets around Lime Rock in 57 seconds in his Cup Car on a damp day! Look for a lot of tight action in with this group in 2005
   
There are some interesting things going on in the turbocharged land of GT1. Steve Savino in his very highly developed 944 continued his winning ways both in PCA and SCCA SPO (super production) classes in 2004. Steve added some fiery excitement at Lime Rock when he threw a rod as he took the checkered flag. Next year he will be back with a bigger 3.2 liter version of John Milledge’s 944 motor skills. Just what a guy who runs Lime Rock in 55 seconds needs - a little more power! I hear that Nyack N.Y. native Rick DeMann (always at or near the front) has sold his GT2(Evo type) and now has a GT3RS. He tells me that he plans to run it lightened and unrestricted in GT-2R. Running that 3.6 liter at around 525HP he should have quite a GT2R package, the latest suspension, light AND power. I fought to a split decision in GT1R with Jim Sullivan from Rochester NY last year at Mosport who had a similar package; a late model cup car with ABS brakes plus twin turbo motor is a tough combination to beat even when he has to run lower boost due to fuel issues! Jim races mostly SCCA up north and unfortunately we don’t see much of him at PCA club races. Word is Jim Newton has a client who is a first rate shoe and they are building a brand new ultra light weight GT-1. Lastly in news for this class, my wrench Bill Pfister at Eurotech is just back from the PRI (Performance & Racing Industry) show in Indianapolis. He took a three day seminar there on race car dynamics. He won’t share too much of what he is doing but says we will be ready hold our own with this quick group as he is working hard on both setup changes and a motor upgrade.
   
Rounding out with some stock class news from our region, John Ktistes in E class, Bruce Hauben in C and Steve Boris in F all had some podium finishes this year. I believe Andy Jenks in F did also but was hampered with some engine tuning and other problems at several races.
  
In the SCCA racing world besides the afore- mentioned SPO Championship for Steve Savino, Laurie Sanborn had a great sophomore season. She set lap records in two different classes (did not get which ones) and won the Northeast and New England Championship for her class. In the coming year Porsche will be further represented in Regional SCCA competition by two Massachusetts natives running 944s in ITS class, Kip Van Steenburg of Acton and Joe Stadelmann of Milton.
    
The owners of 928s are getting enthused about a new American V8 series with rules that are friendly to this Porsche model. If you want some more information visit http://www.av8ss.com/ 
   
I read an interesting article recently on http://www.motorsport.com/ in the magazine section. The title was “No more Porsches, Please”. The point of the whole thing being that GT racing appears to the writer (who it appears is trying to influence North American fans) that our professional races look too much like events in the all Porsche Super Cup series. It went on to extol the Grand Am Series recent move to allow tube frame GT cars, allowing 21 different silhouette bodies. With some of the ugliest and most under powered “prototypes” known to the world there is no doubt Grand Am has hit on a formula to draw competitors to their top class. GT2/GTS with its high horsepower “super production” cars has disappeared entirely from Grand Am and for the last two years it has been a one horse Corvette show in The American Le Mans series. Now it seems production based race cars are on their way out in Grand Am’s GT class. With it’s NASCAR (France family) backing and that groups’ proven record of success in making alliances and driving out competitors, I wonder where Porches will be professionally raced in the US in three or four years? As an example of what is happening, The Racers Group while fielding/supporting six GT3 cups in GT will also be racing a Pontiac powered Riley chassis in the top class. Wow a Porsche factory supported team that won at La Mans two years ago fielding a Pontiac, how the worm turns?
   
On the safety and technical side this month there is some interesting news. The Hutchens Device for head and neck restraint failed a recent SFI test, and now this popular low cost device is banned from NASCAR competition. It seems that organizations that do not require such devices in their rules will probably continue to let them run assuming that ‘something’ is better than ‘nothing’. But those that require a piece of safety equipment usually require SFI or FIA testing/certification, so those racers will be looking for a replacement. On a personal note, this will be my fourth year using the HANS device. I had a bad crash a Mt. Tremblant a couple of years ago. The best estimate was I went from one hundred fifteen miles per hour to zero in about twelve feet. When I can walk away from a side impact like that you will never see me on the track without one! The below photo does not look too bad, as the impact was dead square sideways, but do realize that all suspension components on the right side are snapped and the tub and cage is about 3 inches narrower along its entire length.
   
Valve guides are well known as one of the first things to wear out in Porsche motors. High horsepower and turbo models naturally tend to see this sooner rather than later. This month I want to share a couple of photos with you. The first shows how valve guides mushroom after extended exposure to super hot exhaust gases. To save yourself a lot of trouble drop your exhaust manifold and take a look inside when your motor starts to get up there in hours of service. If you see guides that look like this it is time to refurbish your heads. The next step to the process is pieces of the guide flake off and go out through the turbo turbine (ouch). Next the valve starts to transfer too much heat to the piston instead of out of the exhaust pipe! The jug and piston photo shows what happens next. You roll the dice you takes your chance! 
   
Next month I hope to have some preview news from the Vintage sports car and local short track circles. Also look for an interview with Bugsy Stevens, three times National Champion in the NASCAR Modified series. See you at the track!
    
Pit-Pass 
(admit one, long pants required)
North East Racing News
Bill Chadwick  bill935K3@porschenet.com
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