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Balls of Steel ! Caterham R500 VS Porsche GT2

PostPosted: Tue May 01, 2012 11:02 am
by Spyder fan
This kept me on the edge of my seat.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxwRgSZiKTk


An edited version with in car footage of both cars here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKVPlA0V4Jw I must say that the GT2 cabin seems a lot calmer than the Caerhams :wink:

Re: Balls of Steel ! Caterham R500 VS Porsche GT2

PostPosted: Tue May 01, 2012 12:00 pm
by jimj
Given it`s a PR clip from Caterham a sceptic might think.............
Shame I wasn`t there in the Elan, last year I passed three 458s on the autobahn so the Elan must be faster.
Jim

Re: Balls of Steel ! Caterham R500 VS Porsche GT2

PostPosted: Tue May 01, 2012 1:39 pm
by Spyder fan
Jim,
Sorry, it was the driving of the R500 that had me on the edge of my seat peeking through the cracks of my fingers when I held my hands in front of my face, the fact that the video portrays it apparently besting a Porsche 996 GT2 is another discussion.

This is the fastest GT2 lap recorded according to Wikipaedia, so the R500 has a way to go to beat that.

7:18

Porsche 911 GT2 RS

Timo Kluck

April 2010

[13] [12] Manufacturer claim. Michelin Pilot Sport Cup Plus N2 tires.

Re: Balls of Steel ! Caterham R500 VS Porsche GT2

PostPosted: Tue May 01, 2012 4:01 pm
by Chancer
Yes I too was aghast at his antics, having balls of steel and a surfeit of power does not make up for an absence of driving skills and and/or connection with the vehicle.

The car did not seem at all well set up either especially in terms of rebound steer, I suspect the rear having more influence than the front.

Re: Balls of Steel ! Caterham R500 VS Porsche GT2

PostPosted: Tue May 01, 2012 8:49 pm
by rmd24
Hmm, balls of steel that's for sure, but I don't quite understand the comment about an absence of driving skill and lack of connection with the car. I thought he had the measure of the car and brilliantly quick reactions. Perhaps I have misunderstood.
Having had three Caterhams (Cosworth BDR, Fireblade and Superlight R) they tend to be somewhat "loose" but in my experience good tempered and quite forgiving especially the Fireblade.
Roger.

Re: Balls of Steel ! Caterham R500 VS Porsche GT2

PostPosted: Wed May 02, 2012 12:48 pm
by elj221c
Chancer wrote: I too was aghast at his antics,


?????

Chancer wrote: The car did not seem at all well set up either especially in terms of rebound steer, I suspect the rear having more influence than the front.


You can tell all that from this vid? Have you actually driven the Nurbergring in a 'quick' car?

I found entertaining. I always enjoy my rides around the circuit, on video and the real thing. I also looked at the vid from the Porshe. That was fun too and much more stable although I was suprised how often it bottomed out. One or two 'antics' in that, too!

It was posted on here before but this is one of my favourites.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7E91r_iim0

Plenty more 'antics' in that........ :D

Re: Balls of Steel ! Caterham R500 VS Porsche GT2

PostPosted: Wed May 02, 2012 2:54 pm
by Chancer
Yes and yes.

And to anticipate your next question, was it a Caterham?

Yes! :lol:

Re: Balls of Steel ! Caterham R500 VS Porsche GT2

PostPosted: Wed May 02, 2012 3:14 pm
by Chancer
Just watched the video :D :D :D

Superb! I would bow to that guys feet, it was a masterclass in smoothness and connection with the vehicle.

Try watching it and the Caterham one from the drivers perspective, dont watch the steering wheel or the front wheels, dont turn your head or swivel your eyes just concentrate 100% ahead of the camera at least 30 yards away to where you the driver next want the vehicle to be, the turn in, apex or exit points, you will see that even in the rare times its out of shape it is drifting directly to where he wants/needs to be.

Perhaps another way to explain the perspective, the camera is just slightly behind his head, close to the yaw axis of the vehicle and to where his brain takes its major sensory input during a slide or tank slapper (the seat of his pants), imagine you are in minature, you are strapped to the lens of the camera and can only look straight ahead, your other senses may be telling you that you are going all over the place but your eyes will reassure that you are going where you need to be next, compare the 2 videos.

Thanks again for posting it!

Re: Balls of Steel ! Caterham R500 VS Porsche GT2

PostPosted: Wed May 02, 2012 8:55 pm
by Spyder fan
elj221c wrote:
I found entertaining. I always enjoy my rides around the circuit, on video and the real thing. I also looked at the vid from the Porshe. That was fun too and much more stable although I was suprised how often it bottomed out. One or two 'antics' in that, too!

It was posted on here before but this is one of my favourites.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7E91r_iim0

Plenty more 'antics' in that........ :D


Yes I remember seeing that one before, but well worth another look.

The problem with so many in car camera videos is that they are poorly shot or set up and you get little or no sense of speed or can't gauge whether the driver is actually trying. The Caterham video is fun and gives a sense of thrill from a sort of pseudo passenger perspective, he's a talented driver who knows the ring well, at no point was the car being over driven.

Perhaps we can all have a search and see what else is worth a look, there's so much uninteresting stuff that it's a pleasure to find a few gems.

Regards

Alan