RE: Chris Harris video: BMW M3 DTM

[MikeyBoy2000]

I don't want to piddle on anyone's chips here but a couple of observations:

Firstly - fab vid and a truly FANTASTIC car technically and that inherently is the whole problem with DTM. From a racing point of view, this is (as Chris rightly points out) a single seater with all the positives and negatives that major downforce brings. Compared to any other top formula single seater, the seat is offset to the left a bit and there is the pesky inconvenience of 'production' bodywork getting in the aero guy's way.

Trouble is, seeing that car, I have absolutely NO reference point to any car that I see on the road, can buy or aspire to - this is no doubt the reason why the E30 M3, Sierra Cosworth, Vauxhall Cavaliers and so on were such a rip roaring success. Road cars made from metal, suitably tweeked for racing using a homolgated silhouette and other regulations to suit. Race on Sunday, sell on Monday and all that..

I guess we need more homologation specials and less reliance on aero..........?!?!?!

No doubt I am being far too misty eyed...

[Nurburgsingh]

k-ink said:

Great stuff Chris. Feel free to cover as many DTM cars as you wish! It would be interesting to compare older examples with what we have just seen, so we can appreciate the development over the years.

+1 THIS!!!

It would be amazing to see a line up of old M3 DTM cars. Time to pull in those favours Chris.. Make it happen!!

I'll even help with the shoot if you need a 'stunt double' us brown boys all look the same to the untrained eye!

[simonigrale]

Chris Harris said:

I can left foot brake, but not consistently at those pressures......

Don't know why you even reply to these idiots Chris.

Your living the dream mate, fair play!

[Zumbruk]

fieldmau5 said:

If these are a unique carbon chassis, share nothing with the road going car and drive like single seaters... what's the point in shaping the body to look like an M3?

Surely you jest? The funding for this comes from the advertising budget. It *has* to look like something BMW (and whoever else) sells.

[Zumbruk]

What does the "BOX" pit signal mean?

(Other than it being a comment on Chris's driving, as an abbreviation of "bks"?)

[Guvernator]

Great vid, very interesting insight into these awesome cars, however like a few other posters I can't help but think these GT3 cars are a step too far and I much prefered the older DTM cars which were closer to their road car roots. As commented on by Chris, the new cars are brilliant from a technical viewpoint but they do make for some boring races, I think lots of modern motorsports could actually do with dialing back some of the technolgy and let the driving take the fore.

At any rate it was still great to watch but as for the comments of why he wasn't left foot breaking, FFS??? If someone handed me the keys to a very special, very rare and very expensive DTM car I think I'd have trouble getting it out the paddock from the adrenaline and nerves, let alone getting within 1.5 seconds of a decent lap time. I know CH is a professional journalist but I can't begin to imagine the pressure of being handed the keys to that thing. It's like being given the keys to your mates Ferrari, only 10 times worse. I bet the car was a handful and a little voice in a back of his mind would have been thinking "Please god, don't let me stuff it into the armco", maybe some of the "armchair racers" should consider that.

[Mermaid]

Guvernator said:

At any rate it was still great to watch but as for the comments of why he wasn't left foot breaking, FFS??? If someone handed me the keys to a very special, very rare and very expensive DTM car I think I'd have trouble getting it out the paddock from the adrenaline and nerves, let alone getting within 1.5 seconds of a decent lap time. I know CH is a professional journalist but I can't begin to imagine the pressure of being handed the keys to that thing. It's like being given the keys to your mates Ferrari, only 10 times worse. I bet the car was a handful and a little voice in a back of his mind would have been thinking "Please god, don't let me stuff it into the armco", maybe some of the "armchair racers" should consider that.

Excellent post

[mantecosa]

Is that Monteblanco in Huelva, Spain???

OH COME ON! I live just 25 mins from it! I didn´t know it! I would have shown you a couple of places to enjoy a cold beer and good tapas by the beach! :-)

still down here?

[anonymous-user]

Guvernator said:

At any rate it was still great to watch but as for the comments of why he wasn't left foot breaking, FFS??? If someone handed me the keys to a very special, very rare and very expensive DTM car I think I'd have trouble getting it out the paddock from the adrenaline and nerves, let alone getting within 1.5 seconds of a decent lap time. I know CH is a professional journalist but I can't begin to imagine the pressure of being handed the keys to that thing. It's like being given the keys to your mates Ferrari, only 10 times worse. I bet the car was a handful and a little voice in a back of his mind would have been thinking "Please god, don't let me stuff it into the armco", maybe some of the "armchair racers" should consider that.

But you aren't someone who makes there living out of driving fast cars on video!

That sort of car, like a formula car, is set up to be driven with two feet, and as such, it was simply an observation I made to ask "you weren't left foot braking?" to Chris, not a statement like "YOU WEREN'T LEFT FOOT BRAKING THEREFORE YOU ARE SH*T!!"

CH's reply that the carbon brake system results in high pedal loads, and hence he decided not to LFB is a perfectly good one and simply answered my question. Of course, with more time in the car, i'm sure a driver of CH's experience would learn to LFB very quickly, and hence knock at least 0.5s off his lap time immediately ;-)

[GroundEffect]

Zumbruk said:

What does the "BOX" pit signal mean?

(Other than it being a comment on Chris's driving, as an abbreviation of "bks"?)

Means to pit. I think it comes from some sort of Italian contraction.

[anonymous-user]

GroundEffect said:

Zumbruk said:

What does the "BOX" pit signal mean?

(Other than it being a comment on Chris's driving, as an abbreviation of "bks"?)

Means to pit. I think it comes from some sort of Italian contraction.

Generally speaking the "BOX" is the car sized painted rectangle, marked onto the pit lane tarmac directly outside the teams pit garage. Some teams obviously use "PIT" instead, but that can be confused with actually driving off the pit lane and into the garage itself.

[urquattro]

Great stuff again, who are we to question/comment on his style, braking and the rest of it. Some of us couldnt even get it into bottom gear and off the line.

CH makes my week, hope he continues to be let lose in all sorts of high performance thingies.

Great idea, just take the driver's door for access etc and walk away with it.
V8 screamer is an understatement on the car.

Edited by urquattro on Thursday 5th December 14:07

[mantecosa]

Please just tell me you are still around Monteblanco and will visit you. :-)

[E65Ross]

npf20 said:

bashful said:

foxworth said:

So everyone who sees it thinks "what do i need to sell to drive an M3 to work each day" !!

Photocopiers? "Marketing and Distribution Solutions"?

Yes, although you have to "deliver" the solutions, rather than sell them.

isn't it something to do with the regulations for entry? about being similar in certain senses to road cars they sell.

[dirty_dog]

Great vid, whats with the leaf blower?

[Mermaid]

dirty_dog said:

Great vid, whats with the leaf blower?

F1 type cooling

[Mr_B]

Mermaid said:

The E30 M3 DTM cars & that genre look awesome.

And relevant in providing great road cars. This is little more than a single seater in a saloon shape. Pointless, there's many other racing series if I want to watch.

[oldtimer2]

dirty_dog said:

Great vid, whats with the leaf blower?

Cooling the brakes and/or blowing brake dust away.

[Dr JonboyG]

GroundEffect said:

Means to pit. I think it comes from some sort of Italian contraction.

Comes from pit box, no?

[oldtimer2]

DTM racing sounds dull, as if the law of diminishing returns (on technological development within the rules) has finally struck. A very nice CH vid, as always, but I much preferred the drama of the Goodwood Revival race video.