April 12, 2015

As the sun began to rise, we departed the ADV.1 Los Angeles home base and headed north for the Redline Time Attack event being held at Willow Springs International Raceway’s “Big Track”. This would be not only ADV.1’s first race in the 2015 WRX STi but also our driver’s first track driving experience EVER! Now you may be asking yourself, “Why wouldn’t ADV.1 just hire a professional driver that has experience on track…” The answer, because that’s no fun! Per the rules in the Enthusiast All Wheel Drive class that we are running in, the driver of the vehicle must also be the actual owner of the car. The owner of this STi is none other than our very own Business Development Manager, Casey Adamo. Although this was Casey’s first time on track, he’s had plenty of experience working at numerous race tracks across America as a former member of the Always Evolving Race Team.




Casey picked up his 2015 Subaru late last year and, in typical ADV.1 fashion, it didn’t remain stock for long. We designed a first of its kind ADV5|S M.V2 wheel in a standard configuration.The perfect “Rally” style 5 spoke wheel that complements the beastly look of the STi. Paired with a set of Swift Springs and Hankook Ventus R-s3 Tires, we knew the car had the potential to be competitive in a race series.

When we arrived at the track, we unloaded the STi. A total of 4 spare wheels with tires, a full size easy-up, 4 chairs, an ice chest, a jack and jack stands, tools and other supplies all fit in the back of the sports sedan. It’s truly remarkable that this car can hold that much stuff, be driven around the track all day, and easily make it back home without any issues. After unloading, we performed a final inspection on the STi, set the cold tire pressures and torqued the lug nuts. Then, by way of the intercom, it was announced that our run group was up. We fired up the Replay XD cameras and lined up at the staring point.

In his first time out, Casey was able to put down a 1:47, 1:45 and 1:44 respectively. Not bad for his first time ever! Casey quickly learned that some adjustments had to be made with his onboard traction control and differential management systems. Once everything was sorted, Casey went out and ran times ranging from 1:46 all the way down to a 1:39 in his second practice heat.




In qualifying, the STi finished with a his fastest time so far, a few tenths faster then his previous 1:39. This put Casey in 3rd place overall for the Enthusiast All Wheel Drive class. During the first race session, Casey had noticed that his car was losing power after turn 9. This was due to low fuel in the tank sloshing away from the fuel pump causing the car to cut fuel out slowing the car down to a crawl on the front straight. Regardless of the fuel starvation issue, Casey was pleased with the time he had put down and was determined to improve upon it in the final round of racing.




We filled the tank just enough to try to avoid the fuel starvation problem and after a long intermission between race sessions our final time to race was up. The ADV.1 STi started close to the front of the pack in its run group. When the flag was waved Casey went for it! Out there for fun but with a podium finish in the distance Casey gave it his all. Despite fixing the fuel starvation, Casey could only manage to equal his previous best time of 1:39 putting him in 4th place in his class for the event. All in all it was a great learning experience for us with the car and gives us a great direction moving forward! Stay tuned for updates to the car and setup from all of our amazing sponsors! Next up, Round 3 @ Chuckwalla Valley Raceway May 2nd & 3rd…





Sponsors

Hankook Tires, Cobb Tuning, Stoptech Brakes, Always Evolving, Replay XD, Swift Springs, Just Driven, AIM Sports, Paradise Motorwerks, GlossAngeles, Massimo Power

Welcome to Hankook
COBB Tuning - Home page
StopTech
Always Evolving
Replay XD Official Site - Professional POV Action Cameras
High Performance Sport Compact Sprints, Circuit Track Springs, Off Road Springs, Drag Racing Springs, Circle Track Springs by Swift Springs USA
AiM Sports | MyChron â„¢
Gloss Angeles: Automotive Detailing Specialists
MASSIMO POWER

Modifications: ADV.1 2015 Subaru STi

Power:
Cobb Tuning SS 3” Downpipe
Cobb Tuning AccessPort V3 – Stage 1: 91 Octane Map

Brakes:
Porterfield ST-45 Front / R-4 Rear Brake Pads
Stoptech Stainless Steal Brake Lines
Stoptech STR-660 Brake Fluid

Suspension:
Swift Springs Spec-R Sport Springs

Tires:
Hankook Ventus R-s3 Tires
Square: 265/40ZR18

Electronics:
AIM Sports Solo DL
Replay XD PrimeX Camera

Paint Protection:
Quartz Finest applied by Gloss Angeles
SunTek Self Healing Clear Bra installed by Paradise Motorwerks

All Technical Work Performed by:
Adrian and Alex Villabrille with Daryl Alison at justdriven.com

Lifestyle

See more here:
ADV.1 Wheels Media Gallery | Subaru STI ADV5S Redline Time Attack: Round 2 - Big Willow - April 12

 

Round 1 Data Notes:

Fast Lap Speed by Turn:
– My fast lap was actually slower in all sections other braking for turns 3 and 4 then my second fastest lap.
– I was way too late on the brakes on my second fastest lap going into turn 9 slowing me way down on the front straight.

Long Accel / Braking:
– Accomplishing all the braking into turn one before turn in helped me get on throttle much earlier coming out.
– Not enough braking before turn 2 causing me to use the brakes mid turn slowing me down coming out.
– Turn 3 was solid, braking enough to get the car back on throttle early and get up the hill.
– Turn 4 was the worst corner for me, I couldn’t figure it out the entire day.
– Good braking in 5 got me back on power early on the way out.
– No braking into 8, 10-20% throttle coming in and then braking a little bit early for turn 9 to make sure and carry speed through to the front straight.

Gear Selection:
– This being my first event, I kept it to 3rd, 4th and 5th the entire time.
– I was in between 3rd and 4th coming out of one and into 6.
– I bounced the rev limiter a few times out of one, especially since the cat-back is stock and I can’t hear the car.
– Shifting to 4th was a little sketchy into 6, especially taking one hand off the wheel going over the rise there.

Track Speed:
– I felt pretty good with the speeds overall.
– Turn 2 was always a little hard to judge throughout the turn and not getting on the power too late so I could use the whole track.
– If I carried too much speed through turn 3 the car would understeer and kill both turns 4 and 5 which happened a few times.
– Entry speed coming into 8 was usually around 110-115, the car felt planted and other than some bumps in the pavement the car felt planted and not sketchy through here.
– The front straight was obviously the fastest and I usually hit over 120.

Top Speed & Coolant Temp:
– Top speed of the day was 124mph.
– Top speed in my fast lap was 121mph.
– I was a little worried about coolant temps since this was my first event with the car. The weather was into the 80’s at the highest, with limited wind so decent heat but nothing too crazy.
– Coolant temp was usually between 225 & 235, which is high, but not harmful. I will def be doing some cooling mods and then adding monitoring for oil temps as well.