I'm faster than a Hellcat

and a Redeye Widebody, at that. Not that pedestrian 707hp version.

So, I signed up for the mini-track day/time attack at Pineview Run Auto & Country Club with the BMWCCA with my Miata. I ended up 9th out of 36 (there are 4 more cars that didn't make this list), only 1 of 2 non-BMWs in the top 10, and the only Japanese car in the Top 10. My 78.443 is also my fastest lap there of all time, something I'll attribute to cool ambient air temps and having the Party Pulley on my Rotrex blower. And sitting there in 14th, at about 1.4 seconds slower is a Hellcat Redeye. So, now I can officially brag about the time I beat a Hellcat. In all honestly, with someone who knew the track better (this guy had never been there before) that car likely could have beat me, and if I had the choice, I would rather own the Dodge than my Miata.

Also, gratuitous photo of my car in black and white, courtesy of my friend Mark (who ended up 24th in a bone-stock MR-S)

And he outweighed you by 3x!

Still awesome though!

In reply to NickD :

You look bigger than your car! Congrats though! 

ebonyandivory said:

And he outweighed you by 3x!

Still awesome though!

I actually think the power-to-weight ratio is in his favor. I make ~245-255whp and weigh 2250lbs. He made 797bhp and weighs ~4400lbs

In reply to yupididit :

I'm 6'3", 250lbs, so I'm definitely on the high end of the Miata driver spectrum. 

Also, some photos of said Hellcat. I like that the guy ordered it in B5 Blue, which has always been my favorite Mopar color. And good lord, the noises that thing made as it went up the front straight, 8-speed clicking through the gears, mmmmm. I wish my Rotrex blower sounded as cool as the big twin-screw blowers.

In reply to NickD :

I absolutely was not trying to antagonize or discount your achievement,  just the perennial “new cars are so heavy” joke. 

NickD said:

In reply to yupididit :

I'm 6'3", 250lbs, so I'm definitely on the high end of the Miata driver spectrum. 

At 6'4" (36" inseam), 265 lbs, I'm curious about what it takes to actually fit into an NA Miata. I test drove one, once, but it was obviously stock, so my knees were wedged between the door, shifter, and steering wheel. Clutching was only accomplished by flexing my ankle. 

RealMiniNoMore said:

NickD said:

In reply to yupididit :

I'm 6'3", 250lbs, so I'm definitely on the high end of the Miata driver spectrum. 

At 6'4" (36" inseam), 265 lbs, I'm curious about what it takes to actually fit into an NA Miata. I test drove one, once, but it was obviously stock, so my knees were wedged between the door, shifter, and steering wheel. Clutching was only accomplished by flexing my ankle. 

When I bought mine, it was stock. But 30 years of aging has turned the seat foam to dust (every time you sit in it, it puffs yellow/orange foam dust onto the floor) and has settled the seating position a good bit. Think of it as a time-induced foamectomy. I could drive it like that, but my clutch knee did have to slip just right between the stock door pull and the stock steering wheel. I have since swapped to a 330mm Nardi steering, which was a big game changer in terms of room. Last year I also dumped the stock door cards for the LRB Speed flat aluminum door cards with a cloth pull strap, which has opened things up even further (that step wasn't necessary but my stock door cards were falling apart and I had them custom vinyl wrapped for style points) Still, if I have the top up and a helmet on, my helmet has to rest between the top bows, and I still have to kind of peer under (or over, if the top is down) the windshield header at stop lights.

ebonyandivory said:

In reply to NickD :

I absolutely was not trying to antagonize or discount your achievement,  just the perennial “new cars are so heavy” joke. 

I didn't think you were. I was just saying that even as hefty as the Hellcat is, 797hp and 305 width tires tends to overcome a lot of heft. Pineview is a tough track to drive fresh, because there are a lot of turns just past the crest of a hill, so most people who haven't driven there tend to give up a lot of time by slowing down for the elevation change. I've driven there a ton, so I just send the hell out of my car over the hills. Put me in the Hellcat and give me some laps to acclimate to the power and I'm sure I could have gone at least a second faster. Put better tires on than the stock Pirelli and that thing could turn some solid laps. And it's likely much nicer to live with than my loud, buzzy, stiff-riding Miata.

yupididit said:

In reply to NickD :

You look bigger than your car! Congrats though! 

That's what I was thinking! I'm sure it's just the angle that makes it look like he wouldn't pass the broomstick test?

z31maniac said:

yupididit said:

In reply to NickD :

You look bigger than your car! Congrats though! 

That's what I was thinking! I'm sure it's just the angle that makes it look like he wouldn't pass the broomstick test?

Uhhh, no, I would never pass a broomstick test, unless maybe I put in some aftermarket seats and bolt them to the floor. Because this a small-ish (1.1 miles) private racetrack, they don't have broomstick tests. This is the only track I run at though, this is primarily a street and autocross car.

That’s a very understated color on the Hellcat. I’m sure there’s no missing it by sound alone, but unless I noticed the scoops and or flares I’d probably never give it a second thought in a parking lot somewhere. 

In reply to Pete Gossett :

The exhaust note is pretty understated too. At idle and mid-throttle, it's not any louder than an SRT 392. Its only when it's full bore that it makes noise that stands out, and that's more the blower whine than anything.

Also, the 69.876 lap by Panagiotis Skaltis (Takis, to anyone who knows him) in his balls-out E92 M3 was a new track record, and smashed the old record (set by his wife Aleks in the same car) by about 3 seconds, which is absolutely bonkers 

This thing is fully gutted, has a tuned engine with headers, no cats or mufflers (loudest car on sight) and 305 square Pirelli slicks. Plus aero.

In reply to NickD :

That M3, aside from the obvious, actually looks pretty understated. Quite a piece of engineering I’d say!

RealMiniNoMore said:

NickD said:

In reply to yupididit :

I'm 6'3", 250lbs, so I'm definitely on the high end of the Miata driver spectrum. 

At 6'4" (36" inseam), 265 lbs, I'm curious about what it takes to actually fit into an NA Miata. I test drove one, once, but it was obviously stock, so my knees were wedged between the door, shifter, and steering wheel. Clutching was only accomplished by flexing my ankle. 

At 5'10 280lbs with a 30"inseam, getting rid of the arm rests on the doors for pull straps was a day one modification on both my miata. 

Congratulations Nick though, I still remember the day I beat an F type very fondly.

In reply to ebonyandivory :

Doesn't hurt that the driver was a European tarmac rally driver. That man has no fear

I beat an R35 GTR and an Evo 9 at my last autocross

(The R35 driver...didn't drive it quickly enough, and the Evo 9 driver dropped many thousands of dollars in diffs into the car since the last event...and they were all set too tight)

Also, forgot to mention that this entire day was kind of a dumpster fire for me, so its amazing that I even got a run in, let alone my fastest ever. I woke up to go racing, ate breakfast, loaded up the car, hit the road and got 15 minutes into my drive there and realized I left my helmet at home. Turn around, go back to get my helmet, head back and got there later than I'd like. Getting ready for my first run, I realize I also forgot my magnetic numbers, so I had to make tape numbers. I borrowed tape from a guy running an Alfa Giulia and I think that was what set me down a path of mechanical troubles. I had the bad Alfa Romeo juju on me. I go to set the tire pressures and notice that the LR is lower than the other three, but thought maybe I forgot to air that tire up at the last autocross.  Went out, made my first run and come back in to check tire pressures and its lower than when I went out. I bummed a jack and a tire plug kit off someone and put a plug in the tire. Wait around, get ready to make my second run and there is a weird flapping noise under the hood, like a belt coming apart, which has been an issue I've had lately. Pop the hood and the belt looks fine, but I better make sure, so I miss my second run as I tear down the blower drive and find...NOTHING. Put it back together and the sound is gone. I go out and make my third run, pop the hood to cool it down and notice that there is oil weeping out from under the fill cap. Apparently the gasket on the underside of the cap went MIA at some point, so it was weeping oil out from under it at high RPM. Finish the day, head to my friend's house to hang out, pick up a 6-pack of Shock Top, get to his house, open the passenger door and the entire 6-pack falls out onto his driveway and shatters.

RealMiniNoMore said:

NickD said:

In reply to yupididit :

I'm 6'3", 250lbs, so I'm definitely on the high end of the Miata driver spectrum. 

At 6'4" (36" inseam), 265 lbs, I'm curious about what it takes to actually fit into an NA Miata. I test drove one, once, but it was obviously stock, so my knees were wedged between the door, shifter, and steering wheel. Clutching was only accomplished by flexing my ankle. 

Elise seats mounted on the floor dropped 2 inches and no door cards and you would fit. Its not fun though. I had the sparco sprints in mine mounted to the floor and less padding in the seats and I still had issues with the hardtop with helmet at 6'0 and 190bs. Though I do have a 34 waist so I could keep the door cards. 

"Think of it as a time-induced foamectomy." A true GRM hall of fame quote......wait, is there such a thing?

In reply to NickD :

Oooof (as my teenage daughter would say) !  Despite all that, probably still a better day than spending it doing nothing but yardwork though.  

"I had the bad Alfa Romeo juju on me. " hmmm...must one consume mass quantities of cheap Chianti to rid this juju you speak of???

NickD said:

So, looking at the photos and some other ones, I'm almost lifting the inside front tire

I'm already running a ton of camber (-3.5 degrees up front) and the biggest front sway bar I can get. What do I do to keep that tire on the ground? More spring rate? Or does it not even matter?