You have read the book, heard the radio play, read all the reviews, now you can see the feature movie. Sorry it's shaky, it was recorded from about 100 metres from the start line with big zoom. New improved video And another video
This is at a club level. At this level it's old grannys with flanelette shirts with a button missing.
I have never done that type of event. Are the roads always that narrow for Aussie type hill climbs? That looks like the British type of hill climb. Are they the same? Whatever it is it looks like fun.
Yes. Gas spent on education and research should not be included in one's mileage figures, since it has a multiplier effect. Unfortunately, no one else thinks that way.
I really don't know the answer to this as this is the only hillclimb I have been in and the only hillclimb track I have been to. Yes it was fun and it felt good to shave a little off my time each run. This is a closed purpose built track, not a closed section of public road.
See this post http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-prius-main-forum/84055-hillclimb-prius.html#post1173933
Next time: force charge traction battery - prior to run, hold brake and floor accelerator until engine comes to a stop. higher octane fuel - next grade up as the 5,000 rpm limit of the NHW20 should do a little better and trim in a higher octane fuel max tire pressure - use the tire gauge that reads 10% under and inflate to maximum sidewall clean air filter verify oil level is under "F" change transaxle oil stiffening plate . . . hummmm Bob Wilson
I did that Bob. Force charge, tick High octane fuel, No High tyre pressures, always Clean air filter, tick Trans axle oil changed, at 100,000 km Stiffening plate, fitted.
Excellent! I saw evidence in my gasoline study that the 4,500 rpm limited 1.5L engine can self-tune to handle higher octane fuel effectively. The 5000 rpm limited NHW20 should do even better. However, we're talkin' in the difficult to measure regions. The advantage of higher octane fuel is preserving the traction battery energy on the way up. Now if we can just find an electric air compressor that we can drive from the A/C power circuit that provides the volume of air needed at a slightly higher pressure. The A/C compressor circuit should have the right rating to make a dandy electric supercharger. Perhaps gut one and a reworked scroll. (You might contact Julian Edgar, hand him a salvage A/C compressor and ask him, "Can you make this into a blower?") Next, fit a 2010 muffler and rig up a circuit to activate the by-pass valve under high power settings. A combination of electric boost and improved exhaust . . . whoo boy, you'll be burnin' up the streets huntin' down the traffic scofflaws. ("Did you really catch me in a PRIUS?") Stop me now, master Yoda! I'm headed to the 'dark side.' Bob Wilson
Another cheap trick to improve grip on the front end is to dial in as much negative camber as possible (many will use special camber bolts that allow more adjustment) and a slight amount of toe-out. An IR gun that lets you measure tire temps across the inside/middle/outside will help you dial in tire pressures and camber. If you have to drive a ways to get to the event you might not want the toe-out as it will increase tire wear on the insides of the tires, but it's not hard to adjust this at the event once you practice. Don't forget the TRD rear sway bar - that should reduce body roll significantly and reduce understeer. Finally - there's always drivers training - the nut behind the wheel is usually the biggest factor in how fast you go. Next time you'll be in the 30s.
Electric water pump! Get a salvage, cabin heater pump. Remove the thermostat and water pump belt and install a second cabin heater, water pump to move the coolant. Use a temperature proportional controller to energize the pump. With the ICE cold, the pump doesn't run until coolant temperature reaches 70-80C (depends upon how warm you want it to go.) It draws less than 2 A. in a closed water loop and has a strong flow. Without a thermostat, it won't have an obstruction to work against. Hillbilly electric pump controller: tie the water pump in parallel to the radiator fan. When the fan comes on, the pump does too. <GRINS> If you want to keep the thermostat to preserve block heat when the ICE is off, buy two pumps and put them in series. Then 'stage' enable them as needed for just the amount of coolant needed to handle a 35C day. On a normal day, one pump. On a hill climb in 35C weather, both. If still too hot, set the cabin controls to max temp and max fan . . . roll down the windows. Bob Wilson
Going fast in a slow car is like wearing a dark suit and wetting your pants. It gives you a warm feeling and no one notices. It would be fun to do a couple of 20 minutes sessions on a many turn road race course in a Prius.:rockon:
Your thread recalls some good memories...... I was in QLD and NSW for about 3 weeks in July (1st time in 32 years). Great time! Your country (and mine too - I'm a dual) has done extremely well since '78. Drove from Noosa to Hervey Bay and then south all the way to Sydney (got no closer to Adelaide than the Warrumbungles, I'm afraid) - and I was impressed with the amount of road improvement going on - pretty soon Aus will have better roads than the US - not much of a standard, but they USED to be the worst in the Western world. But you need to get more Prii..........maybe 1/4th as many on the roads there as here - except in Sydney, which is full of them....... No hillclimbing for me, though - just happy to stay on the left side of the road in all those roundabouts........
