How I spent my weekend...
I spent Thursday, Friday and Saturday in Dallas for the end of the Hot Rod Power Tours and the OPTIMA Challenge Qualifying Event. The first event was the autocross and speed stop challenge. Due to a change in the location of these events they were very different from the setups the last few years out at Spring Mountain. The AC was so tight it was miserable for high power cars and favored smaller lighter less powerful cars. The parking lots for both events have just been sealed making the surfaces slick. The LPE L/28 did well in both, but did not place. That isn't what she was built for. On the road course, we finished second to a highly modified ZR1 Corvette. The Vette had functional front and rear aero creating hundreds of pounds of down force. It had more RWHP and of course was a minimum of 700 pounds lighter.
We are still dialing in the L/28 as a TEAM. The suspension has been tweaked to include the new Z style rear bars and bushes. We adjusted the alignment and corner weighted the car. The difference front Left to Right is 4 pounds with the driver, fuel and track ready. The cross weights almost perfect. The gurus at LPE tweaked the tune, clutch and swapped out the rubber using the new ZL1 rear tires at all four corners. Our driver Dave Mikels got his first real seat time in the car. You can see how his confidence in growing in the L/28. As an engineer, Dave knows that a 4,100 car can't do certain things, but he is learning that LPE and Pedders can do more than most think possible
In the video you'll see the L/28 running the track at the same time as the highly modified ZR1. It was hot and the ZR1 was running too hot after about three laps. The ZR1 is FI and the L/28 is NA. The L/28 can run a bit loger and that is why you see Dave passing the ZR1. The track told us that 2:15 lap would be really fast. The ZR1 ran consistent 1:59s. Dave wqas not consistent in the L/28. He kept turning faster laps
: His best was a 2:01 before we retired with a nickel and dime issue (the oil pressure sending unit was leaking oil at the fitting :(
We had issues with our data logging equipment
The next time I am track side with the L/28 we'll have a new OBDII can bus cable and HD camera to provide better data and video.
This is only the second time the L/28 has run hot laps. We have less than 20 total hot laps on her. Dave is getting to know her better and is faster with every lap he runs. We'll run her three or four more times before we hit the track in Vegas. I want to thank all the people at LPE staring with Mr. Lingenfelter for allowing me to be part of the
LPE L/28 TEAM!