They say that the anticipation of something is often even better than experiencing it. Well, not for me. I hate waiting, I'm very impatient. And it was nearly four months between the big
Nitron setup and installation
maiden lap of the 'ring
Federals chosen for on-track antics
A lot of this frustrating time was spent mentally reliving my laps of Donington and trying to compare this remembered performance to a theoretical lap of the 'ring. A pointless exercise that resulted in nothing more than further dissatisfaction.
In fact the only useful thing I did do over winter was order my first set of brand-new semi-slicks that I've bought in my life. Working at the 'ring, I've driven on nearly every track tyre available. And I get to see how they last, how they perform in bad conditions and how they cope with things like high kerbs and overly-aggressive driving. In the end I was either going to take the Toyo R888s (great warm-up ability and wet grip) or the Federal FZ-201 (longer lasting, more grip when warm but quite slippy when cold or wet). And when the Toyos were out of stock, I happily put my money down on the table for the FZ-201s in Medium compound. In the end I went for 225/45R17 as it's one of the official tyre sizes printed in the German paperwork for my car. The wider and lower 235/40R17s might have been another option, but those are listed as fitting the M3 and not the 328i - a distinction I felt that most Polizei would surely be able to make.
Wheels colour coded to roll cage - tarty!
So new tyres fitted to freshly painted wheels and after four-days of on-again, off-again snow flurries I'm finally leaving the office and driving over to the track. It's the famous Destination Nurburgring www.destination-nurburgring.com trackday and I have exactly 45 minutes of my lunchbreak left to enjoy my car and return to my post.
As the trackday is on the VLN course (short GP track plus full Nordschleife) I decide to make a couple of 'short' laps first to warm the brand-new tyres, sticking to the three kilometre short GP circuit. But as I come around after just one warm-up lap I see fellow novice VLN pilot Matiss Mezaks hurtling down the straight in a tuned-to-the-tits Subaru BRZ. Both of our cars can be described as about 200hp and 1,250kg of LSD-equipped track-ready machinery. Modern Jap, Ohlins and Toyo versus. three-generation old Bimmer, Nitron and Federal. And both of us know our way around the 'ring...
It's too much to resist, I let him through for a look at how the BRZ's going. The answer is damn well. Matiss is holding great corner speed and the little Subaru is punching out of the bends with all the zest of my own 328i. Despite my own 50 per cent cylinder and capacity advantage. In fact, by the end of my second GP track lap it feels like I've picked a fight I can't possibly win. By the end of Hatzenbach he's barely in sight.
Suspension sorted; engine and aero next
At Adenauer Forst my car is still oversteering a little too much as the Federals struggle to hold heat against the near-frozen surface. But by Breidscheid, nearly 10 minutes and over six miles since I left the pits, they're finally getting warm. Then, half-way up Kesselchen Matiss makes a mistake and lifts off the gas for a moment rounding the fast left. It's nip and tuck, and that's all the 328i needs to begin a slow-motion overtake.
I'll be honest, over the next glorious lap and a half the white BRZ never left my mirrors. Sometimes Matiss was almost out of sight, at other times he was almost ready to overtake.
But just the fact my silver four-door can go toe-to-toe with a genuine, fully-modified, current generation track-car is more than enough to make me grin like an idiot.
And I've not even started on the next steps: power and aero. Right now every part of the engine is stock. From the air filter to the pea-shooter exhaust there's not a single modification made. That will soon change with the addition of a larger M50 intake manifold, ECU remap and a sports exhaust. The car also needs a spoiler, diffuser and a new splitter. I just have to wait a month or two to build up the funds. And I really do hate waiting, as the driving is now so much more fun.
Fact sheet
Car: 1997 BMW 328i SE
Run by: Dale Lomas
Bought: September 2012
Purchase price: £950
This month: Bought new track-focused rubber, painted the wheels a gaudy blue to match the cage, raced a totally-tuned Subaru BRZ on a VLN-style lap of the 'Ring.