Britcar 24 Hours - Hours 10-12
Half Way Sad news from Sean McInerney: “We’ve damaged a traction control sensor so the car keeps pulling back on the engine. I think it’s time to say goodnight.” The team is less than impressed at the antics of the Top Gear crew, the accident with Michael Vergers could have been far, far worse and the damage to the team’s brand new Mosler is reckoned at c.£8-10,000 The Top Gear BMW now rejoins after its very lengthy delay. On a considerably lighter note Michael Mallock relates the tale of his last refuelling stop when he found that he’d accidentally activated the #57 car’s central locking system as he stepped out of the car. “Luckily a window was open enough to allow a hand to reach the release button on the key fob or I’d have had some explaining to do!” The #57 car is having a great run, 14th overall and fourth in a class which they felt was too rich for them before the start of proceedings 11 hours ago. “It’s busy out there, the track has got crap everywhere but most of all it’s very, very dark.” The Eclipse Mosler rejoins after a quick repair to the right hand driveshaft, 8-9 laps lost in the process, Martin Rich though was enjoying the run “The car felt great but then the drive went with no warning. There is still an awfully long way to go though and we can push.” The Eclipse Mosler may well have been a n unwitting part in the latest woes for the #41 Team Scandal Lotus, Simon Scuffham relating a lurid tale involving the end of the last Safety Car period and allowing the faster cars through but still being collected from behind, resulting in a spin across the front of a white fronted Mosler before being hit twice again and impacting the wall, all four corners of the Exige damaged - but the team busying themselves with repairs with the assistance of some of the Xero crew, whose BMW is long retired. Having decided to retire the #10 Mosler the Chad team has now decided…. not to retire the #10 Mosler, but the traction control is still proving problematic, after rejoining at the end of a further brief Safety Car period. Rob Barff reports that the #55 Torquespeed BMW is still in some diff. trouble, a second replacement item now having been fitted, whilst next door Piers Masarati reports that the GP Motorsport accident included a not inconsiderable fire after the car had rolled. Jamie Campbell-Walter pitted on schedule to hand the leading car over to Johannes Stuck, the Duller crew performing a very rapid rear pad change on the #1 car: “There’s a lot of oil down out there. I’ve got diff oil all over the front of the car, gearbox oil all over the front of the car, but the car has been superb. I think people underestimated the car this year perhaps forgetting that last year the car was brand new, just a week old with perhaps 12 laps of shakedown at Spa under it. Of course it’s faster and more consistent this year. The Moslers have the pace to run with us without a doubt, particularly the Rollcentre car, but they’ve all had problems and we haven’t. I keep asking whether they want us to lift off a little but they keep telling me to push but to take care in traffic.” Just after 02:30 and it’s a Duller 1-2 again, the #32 M3 powering by the Paragon Porsche. Not at the sharp end of the race but still a good battle, for 20th place between the #62 ESL Honda Civic and the #29 Richard Thorne Morgan. Tom Shrimpton, just out of the Morgan after a fine double stint reports that the car is still running very well indeed: “Its consistent but we’re running at a pretty conservative pace to get around some front suspension issues. My first stint was hard work, an hour and 40 minutes properly on it and it’s quite busy out there. I almost poured myself out of the car after that. “As for the traffic it’s usually quite easy to deal with, the quicker cars are usually around in clusters so you just let them by and then push on with the track, having quite long periods of reasonable calm.” “The suspension problem can be quite bad if we press hard but eases off if we take it a little easier. It’s frustrating because we know exactly what’s wrong and exactly how to fix it but we just can’t do it here.” The Morgan is due a pad change and a general check over imminently, a stop which could be 20 minutes to half an hour as the team push on to get a strong race finish. The incredible run from the #65 TJH Civic continues, the car in fifth overall as the pit stops wind out. It will lose that place to the Eclipse Mosler but on pace is running in a true seventh place overall before half distance. Fan favourite catch-up time. The Chad and Simply Racing Porsches are ninth and tenth respectively with the GTS Motorsport BMW and the 911virgin Porsche running just behind this pair. The #57 EVO crewed Nissan is 14th overall with the Apex Jaguar still running well, 18th overall, a reliable 12 hour run in its very first competitive outing. A couple of Marcos moments –the Chesterton Holdings car is currently having both of its previously broken gearboxes merged into one full functioning unit, whilst over at ISL Motorsport Alun Edwards reports that “the car hasn’t had third since about 6pm but apart from a few other little niggles and a bit of contact here and there we’re in good shape.” Half distance and the leading car has completed 326 laps. The SC is on stand-by because of poor visibility.
GG Hour 12 Positions | 
