Focus play day....... - Mustangsandmore Forums

Brought to you in part by:

.

Mustangsandmore Forums

Ford Front Wheel Drivers

Focus play day.......

profile | register | preferences | faq | search

UBBFriend: Email This Page to Someone!

next newest topic | next oldest topic

Author	Topic: Focus play day.......
rm302 boss Moderator Posts: 569 From: Austin Texas Registered: Dec 2002	posted 03-09-2003 10:06 PM In Austin today the Focus boys hosted a small road rally. I was a blast they were kind enough to let me tag along in the SHO. It all started at THE Oasis in the hill country and ran out to Marble Falls. then proceeded up U.S. 281 north to Fm 260 back to at Oasis for lunch.. The entire trip took somewhere in the 2.5-3.0 hour range and consisted of lots of small twisty roads very narrow and very technical particularly at the speeds we were traveling at. I was very impressed with the Foci's ability to handle and transition in such narrow conditions.... Most of the young men out there did not have any race experience and few had even been to an auto-x.. I was forced to use all of my driving experience and the hp of my SHO just to stay up with the pack.. I thought that it was just the size of my car that was hurting me until a Honda SI joined for a while and could not hack it Ford ruled the day much later a Supra joined in and was a little embarrassed when he could not shake a bunch of 4 banger Ford's and one 4 dr Taurus.. To his credit i do not believe that the Supra was a turbo so he only had 200 hp at beat to use against up. The SI on the other hand should of had the right combination to put up a much better fight.... But failed miserably... An SI is a very formidable auto x car and pulls 170 hp stock very light and has a lot more stock advantages to a Focus. A young man even brought out a Dodge Avenger while this a good looking car it was a little under powered all though the young man handled it very smartly.... I earned a great respect for the focus today i can see why this is such a hard car to beat even in stock form.... I was most impressed by a 4 dr foci out there who did a great deal of leading, i do know that he had done mod's to the car but i do not know what. My hat is off to the Ford Foci boys we had a blast and i am sure that there are still some people out there right now who do not care much for us and probably talking (not in a positive way) about our driving... Good run boys.. Rene ------------------ 1970 Boss 302 1990 Taurus SHO 1985 Mustang GT 351W 1995 Land rover Disco 1980 Triumph Spitfire (auto-X car) IP: Logged
SHOsiris Journeyman Posts: 26 From: San Antonio, TX Registered: Feb 2003	posted 03-09-2003 10:16 PM Thank you Rene! I appreciate the kind words, we all had a great time. And believe me, the SHO was the topic of conversation for a while, all of those guys are very impressed with that beast. I had fun getting to know my car. Though I didn't push the envelope that much I was able to wring some tense moments from it although I never felt the car get nervous and I spent far too much time in 5th and 6th gear. I'm seriously wore out from the trip so I'll go over the period after we split up at the Oasis later. Thanks again for joining us and I hope we can get another run together soon! ------------------ 1996 Taurus SHO 55K mi-Rose Mist-minor mods 2002 SVT Focus #4,074 of 4,788-minor cosmetic and performance mods 1997 Thunderbird LX 42K mi-stock-needs a new home! IP: Logged
rm302 boss Moderator Posts: 569 From: Austin Texas Registered: Dec 2002	posted 03-09-2003 10:57 PM If you do not mind i may use your Rally for SASCA and by all means bring your boys out... Rene ------------------ 1970 Boss 302 1990 Taurus SHO 1985 Mustang GT 351W 1995 Land rover Disco 1980 Triumph Spitfire (auto-X car) IP: Logged
SHOsiris Journeyman Posts: 26 From: San Antonio, TX Registered: Feb 2003	posted 03-10-2003 01:02 AM It's actually courtesy of the LSSHOC. I'm sure those guys won't mind if you use it, either. We plan on doing it again. As far as your observations go I think you are right. The stock tires really do suck for this kind of thing. As far as the brakes I suffered no ill effects due to fade or anything like that. I never felt the ABS kick in and to be honest, I don't think I was on them that hard. I think in terms of my performance it all came down to inexperience. Something I hope to change by doing this more often! There are alot of tricky curves on that road and the blind corners sure didn't help our comfort level either, I remember being just as tense the first time I've run that course. The red sedan with the Enkei rims that ran out front most of the time has H&R racing springs and I was pretty amazed by how much they helped that car, especially since it was a virtually stock automatic! Unless I change jobs to a place where I don't drive on dirt each day and sometimes navigate 6" deep puddles of water I think I'd slap a set of those springs on my car complete with the Konis. I think what we need to do is get you behind the wheel of mine someday there is an autocross. That might help you formulate an opinion on what might be needed. At any rate, I really appreciate your comments, I know they'll help me improve! ------------------ 1996 Taurus SHO 55K mi-Rose Mist-minor mods 2002 SVT Focus #4,074 of 4,788-minor cosmetic and performance mods 1997 Thunderbird LX 42K mi-stock-needs a new home! IP: Logged
SteveLaRiviere Administrator Posts: 32067 From: Saco, Maine Registered: May 99	posted 03-10-2003 11:51 AM Do you mean you were blasting down public roads? ------------------ '70 Mustang Mach 1 - '72 Mustang Sprint - '94 F-150 Please remember our sponsors, Mustangs Plus, NPD, Osborn Reproductions, MyFordPerformance.com, and FordRamAir.com IP: Logged
rm302 boss Moderator Posts: 569 From: Austin Texas Registered: Dec 2002	posted 03-10-2003 12:40 PM Do you really want an answer? Yes, I know it is very dangerous and very, very illegal...Its Not some thing i am very proud of but we have no road race tracks down here. The closest thing is Texas world speed way it is a oval track that has an infield but street car's are seldom allowed unless you can pay big bucks.. We do not have a Sears point like you guys so we plot out a route of technical roads as far away from housing and traffic as possible and run them..... It may come as a surprise but this does go on a whole lot more than any one will admit. This is an issue of public safety with no place to turn most people are turning to street racing.... Auto x is not widely supported and has had to carry a bad rap from previous generations... I used to race with SASCA ( San Antonio sports car association) But, we have not had a place to host an auto x in two months... We (SASCA) carry 1 mil of ins and follow all of the SCCA guild lines on safety and will pay up to $800.00 per event just to use a parking lot and on one will let us run... We have gone so far as to incorporate the local police depts for support no one cares so all these hot car end up on the street... Which is the last place any one wants them..... Rene ------------------ 1970 Boss 302 1990 Taurus SHO 1985 Mustang GT 351W 1995 Land rover Disco 1980 Triumph Spitfire (auto-X car) IP: Logged
rm302 boss Moderator Posts: 569 From: Austin Texas Registered: Dec 2002	posted 03-10-2003 12:50 PM I wanted to add something.. There are no winner and no looser.. Except public safety a road rally wether high speed or a Sunday drive is just an opportunity to use your car... There is no money in it or prestige.. You go from point a to point b wait for the slower ones to catch up then the group will set out again point b to point c and so on it is not a race. Please do not confuse it with the kids racing down your street at 4 am. it is no better but at least it is removed from as much as possible.... Rene IP: Logged

All times are ET (US)	next newest topic \| next oldest topic
Administrative Options: Close Topic \| Archive/Move \| Delete Topic
	Hop to:

Contact Us | Mustangsandmore Front Page

Copyright 2003, Steve LaRiviere. All Rights Reserved.

Ultimate Bulletin Board 5.47d

Amazon Honor System

[Acronyms][Calendar][Chat][Classifieds] [Links] [Members' Pics] [Tech] [ Mustangsandmore.com Bookstore] [Advertise on Mustangsandmore.com] [Mustangsandmore.com T-Shirts]