ELISE IN SUZUKA 1000
Elise GT car takes to the track in Japan
Last weekend saw the The 31st annual International Pokka 1000 km race held at Suzuka circuit in Japan. The race attracts many GT entries the most prominent of which is the ex Le Mans 2002 Audi R8 which took pole position against a field of cars including Honda NSX, Nissan Skline GTR (Nismo), Vemac, Toyota Supra, Integra Type R and an unlikely contender in endurance racing - an Elise.
The Lotus Elise was entered in the "open" category by the Japanese independent Lotus specialist Wing Auto/Taste Cars of Nagoya. It's a car previously campaigned in the Italian Vallelunga 6 hour race and was originally designed by Lotus Motorsport for endurance racing events.
The specification of the car was different to cars built for the Elise one make race series in key areas. Power was still from the Rover K series producing 220PS (~215bhp) designated by Lotus as "EVO 4" and in this case injected by Weber Alpha (Japan) systems. Maximum RPM by design was reduced by 700 rpm (7300) to improve reliability over long distances and camshaft profiles were softer, again to improve reliability. The cylinder block benefited from strengthened walling.
Also unique was a Lotus designed oil-to-water gearbox oil cooling system. Braking was 4 pot AP front and Brembo 4 pot rear on ventilated disks. The driving position was central, the same as the original one make race series cars. The Endurance Elise was also fitted with a fast fill fuelling system and additional fuel tanks to extend duration up to two hours and even benefited from built in compressed air jacks.
In a field of cars dominated by 6 cylinders and turbo chargers the 4 cylinder normally aspirated Elise was an unlikely contender, however in usual Lotus style it was compensated for by the lightweight alloy chassis. Signs of wheel bearing wear and possible failure during qualifying dictated replacement with larger diameter Mitsubishi Evolution bearings and purpose machined hubs carried out by ex Spice Engineering staff at Black Box Racing.
Driven by Kenjiro Katagiri, Hiroshi Hashizawa and Takahiko Hara the car was forced to finish on lap 51 due to a timing belt failure, but nevertheless showed the capability of what might other wise be considered a wildcard entry.
The car was supplied and supported in Japan by Elise specialist Brooke Kensington Ltd.
Links:
www.suzuka1000km.com, www.wingauto.co.jp, www.brooke-kensington.co.uk
And how about that paint Job...:cubist:
