|
The SCCA National Championship Runoffs is coming up, so I decided to install fresh Carbotech brake pads. This time, I also added thermocouples to all the outside pads so I can better understand the temperature range while on the race track. This will help make sure the load compounds I've chosen are correct.
In the gallery above, see the new brake pads before and after installation on the Civic Type R Swap race car. The additional images give more background on the thermocouples themselves:
A few weeks ago, I headed out to California to help Team Honda Research West test out the team's Honda Civic Type R at Buttonwillow Raceway Park. We are preparing for this year's 25 Hours of Thunderhill, one of my favorite endurance races. The Honda Civic Type R loves the fast, winding corners at Buttonwillow and so do I. During this lap, I am testing out some new improvements to the race car. Watch the lap thru a 360° camera, mounted to the passenger side of the vehicle.
I like to tune the engine on track versus using a dyno. It allows me to better control temperatures so I can recreate the conditions I see when racing the car. This improves the robustness of the tune and still allows me to maximize power. Plus, it allows me to collect more accurate data and look for any potential issues before I head to a race.
#TBT: With three Qualifying sessions complete at the 2015 SCCA National Championship Runoffs at Daytona International Speedway, I was sitting in the second position. I was about 0.2 seconds behind the number one qualifier. Did I have a chance to gain the Pole position? My odds did not look good.
Your speed on a straight isn't only determined by your horsepower. It's also influenced by the speed you went through the turn leading onto the straight and how soon you go to full throttle. Here is a perfect example, (illustrated by passing a Porsche), aided with just a little bit of a draft as well. This video was filmed in my Honda Civic Type R Engine Swap at Road America.
 Creating a lightweight headlight for your race car is very easy. Here's how to move out of phase one and into phase two of prepping the new replacement light, using my Type R Swapped Civic Coupe race car's headlight as the example.
STEP 7: Place the first coat of paint on the back side of the lens. This is so the paint doesn't chip from flying rocks or any other moving debris you may encounter while on the race track.  Race tracks are hard on race cars. Case in point: At Road America, a rock punched its way through my headlight. Time to make a new one.
Creating a lightweight headlight is easy.
Road America is one of my favorite tracks. In July, I drove it again for an SCCA racing event, getting two poles and two first-place wins.
Here is a video from one of my fast laps. At this raceway, wide open corner exits are tempting to use, but the curbing is very rough so precision is rewarded with speed. Watch me drive this track in my Type R Swapped Civic Coupe--and also see how I keep control of acceleration and braking via the floor camera.
It's easy to see what's happening outside of a race car--but do you ever wonder what's happening on the inside?
A lot of you have been asking about my new WedsSport #TC105X wheels. In this video, I explain how these wheels do two things: (1) make my car look good and (2) make me faster on track.
You would think that waiting 30-minutes for your fast food order to get filled is a bad thing--but this event led to a serendipitous turn of events.
Fast laps require more than just putting the pedal to the metal. You have to also be smooth, quick, and precise--all while adapting to the surrounding cars as well as any changing weather conditions. It's not easy, but I love the challenge of it. See what it looks like--from inside the car--as I make a lap around Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course at a #GRIDLIFE Time Attack event.
Creating this video was fun. Hang on and ride along with my Civic Type R engine swap as we make a hot lap around Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course at a #GRIDLIFE Time Attack event. Camera is on the roof of the car, so you can "feel" the speed and the wind whipping you in the face the entire time.Hang on and ride along with my Civic Type R engine swap as we make a hot lap around Mid-Ohio. Camera is on the roof of the car -- "feel" the speed and the wind whipping you in the face the entire time.
In April of 2019, I participated in my first #GRIDLIFE event thanks to my sponsor, Acuity Instruments. My Honda Civic K20c1 is mainly an SCCA race car, but for the #GRIDLIFE events, I change the set-up so I can run in Time Attack. We are taking part in #GRIDLIFE this year because we wanted to check out the series and learn more about it--it's wild and fun. Watch the video to get a fast, front-seat view of the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
 After two seasons of never losing a race, the last thing I expected was to have my race car taken away from me. However, that's exactly what happened.
In late 2018, I was very excited to receive a prototype of Acuity Instrument's 10th Gen Civic Fully Adjustable Shifter. Immediately, I put it into my Honda Civic K20C1 race car to test it out.
S3 Magazine was correct: Engine swaps are at the core of the Honda game. That's one reason why my Honda Civic Type R engine ended up in a 2017 Civic Si Chassis.
|
KEVIN BOEHMTips, tricks, wins, and learnings. Go behind-the-scenes at the race shop and the track with Boehm Motorsports. Archives
October 2024
Categories
All
|
RSS Feed