Competitors running for the title of National Champion at the 2011 Tire Rack® SCCA Solo National Championships at the Lincoln (Neb.) Airpark, Aug. 30 – Sep. 2, will enjoy contingency support from AST Suspension – USA and Moton – USA.
AST Suspension – USA is offering a $750 product credit to qualifying cars who win, with $250 for a runner-up and $100 credit for fifth-place finishers.
Moton Suspension – USA is offering $500 to the class winner who wins by the greatest overall margin.
Solo competitors get ready, we’ll see you in at Lincoln!
With one race remaining in the GRAND AM Continental Tire Challenge, AST Suspension – USA has dominated the finishing positions of teams running AST suspension in the Grand Sport class (GS). AST Suspension could be found at the top of the podium, winning 8 out of 9 races and capturing 24 of the possible 27 podium positions (top 3 finishing positions).
The 8th and 9th rounds of the Continental Tire Challenge were no different. AST Suspension finished high. For the 5th race in a row, AST Suspension – USA took all 3 steps on the podium at the Continental Tire Sports Car Festival, Powered by Mazda race at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. The No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro RS.R from Stevenson Motorsports took the checkered flag in front of the No. 48 Fall-line BMW and the No. 13 Rum Bum BMW to cap the 5th straight 1-2-3 finish for AST Suspension – USA. Two short weeks and 2500 miles east of Laguna Seca, the entire top 10 was packed with AST Suspension, with the No. 61 Roush Performance Mustang back on top and 6 other teams in the top 10 at the B+ Foundation Heroes 200 from New Jersey Motorsports Park.
General Manager of AST Suspension – USA, Brian Hanchey said, “We’re thrilled to see how consistent the teams running our dampers are. Our dampers help to balance a race car, making it easier to drive throughout the two hour plus races.”
Engineer Nick Eddy, from Stevenson Motorsports said, “We wouldn’t be where we are if it wasn’t for AST and their help working out some handling issues we were having. We asked for a valving change and AST delivered! The drivers reported the valving AST did track-side really woke the car up (at Laguna Seca, 1st place finish).”
AST Suspension continues its dominance by sweeping the podium for the third straight GRAND AM Continential Tire Challenge race at the Road America 200. The Stevenson Motorsports No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro RS.R driven by John Edward, rocketed to the point position and eventually slid past Billy Johnson is his No. 61 Roush Performance Mustang Boss 302R before a full course caution and a heavily damaged a retaining wall caused the race to end under yellow flag conditions. Johnson and Edwards traded the lead 4 times in the final 20 laps. Many times throughout the race, the two were running side-by-side and Edwards’ winning pass was made with a daring power slide through Turn 1. The final podium position was taken by the Rum Bum Racing team in their No. 13 BMW M3.
In addition to sweeping the top 3 finishing positions, 9 teams running AST Suspension finished in the top 12. AST Suspension currently holds 8 of the top 9 positions in the 2011 season team standings for the Grand Sport class. Brian Hanchey, General Manager of AST Suspension – USA said, “We’ve worked really hard to create a quality damper package that is attractive to more and more of the teams. It is clear that many of the most successful teams on track have at least one thing in common, AST dampers.”
Check out the GRAND-AM Highlight Video
GRAND-AM Continental Tire Challenge teams utilizing AST dampers include: Turner Motorsport, Roush Performance, Stevenson Motorsports, Fall-Line Motorsports, BimmerWorld Racing, Rum Bum Racing, DeMan Motorsport, CKS Autosport, Subaru Road Racing Team, Finlay Motorsports, A.M. Performance, i-MOTO, Trade Manage Racing, BGB Motorsports, Doran Racing and Compass 360 Racing.
Round 8 of the Continental Tire Challenge will take place at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Salinas, CA on July 9th.
We recently had a conversation with Aaron over at the Winning Formula. He mentioned Nathan’s Evo and the on track success it has had in 2011.
Nathan owns a Mitsubishi Evolution IX (Evo) that has been competing in the National Auto Sport Association’s (NASA) Time Trial A class (TTA) and other Time Attack events throughout the Midwest. Nathan begin tracking his Evo shortly after he purchased it in 2006. After a couple of years of non-timed open track events and driving schools, the urge to buy a transponder and the thrill of competition took over.
For those of you not familiar with NASA’s time trial system, TTA is the second to fastest class with TTU (the “U” is for Unlimited and we do me UNlimited). Now that you know this, you also need to know that Nathan’s Evo is hardly “stock”. In fact, he’s made lots of upgrades to the engine, engine management, drivetrain, wheels/tires, brakes and suspension – he has our AST 4100 damper package. If you’d like to see a full list of upgrades, check out the 2011 setup Nathan’s blog.
Let’s Talk Suspension
Over the winter, Aaron at the Winning Formula and Nathan had several conversations. Nathan said he’s had 4 other suspension setups and each one left him feeling like there was more speed in his Evo with the right setup. Nathan said, “I have constantly been on the lookout for new affordable options for my car to really take it to another level.” Aaron and Nathan talked extensively about his options and finally settled on an AST 4100 series damper package. The reason for this choice was because the NASA TT rules don’t favor remote reservoirs or more than 2 way adjustable shocks and Nathan did not want to get bumped into the unlimited class. Nathan said, “I thought the price was very reasonable for a quality inverted single-adjustable shock.” Aaron helped Nathan pick out the right spring rates and the Winning Formula installed and set up a baseline for testing the new setup once the midwest’s snow melted. The Winning Formula performed the installation, alignment, corner balanced and set the ride height just before the first track day.
On Track Action
Nathan’s first track day with his new AST setup was brrrr COLD – 36 degrees! He ran street tires in favor of his grippy, but heat loving Hoosier R6s. He had several new items on the car in addition to the new AST dampers, so he took it easy, hoping the temperatures would rise. Even with the cold temperatures, street tires and low boost, he was immediately comfortable with how the car handled and was able to push the car to within 2.5 seconds of his personal best! He said, “The new setup was very compliant and predictable from day #1.”
Nathan started off the year with 4 wins in his first 4 events and 2 track records! Since then, he’s gone on to break more track records throughout the Midwest. If you’d like to follow his journey, check out his blog.
If you like videos (who doesn’t), check this out:
Nathan’s immediate goal is to continue development of the car and make a run at the NASA TTA National Championship at Mid Ohio Sports Car Course in September. He would also like to compete in the Grassroots Motorsports Ultimate Track Car Challenge in July. To vote for him, create or login to your Cardomain account and give him a 5 star vote. His profile can be found here
Good luck Nathan!
For more information on AST Suspension, visit www.ast-usa.com
For more information on the Winning Formula, an AST Suspension – USA authorized dealer, call 502.499.7459.
AST Suspension – USA sweeps the podium in the Grand Sport (GS) class for round five of the GRAND AM Continental Tire Challenge 2011 series. AST Suspension continued its dominance in its first year as one of the spec shocks for the series. AST – USA equipped vehicles went on to take 13 out of the top 17 finishing spots in the GS class.
The No. 13 Rum Bum BMW M3 outlasted the field through two late race restarts to win for the first time since winning at Daytona. Second place was taken by the series points co-leaders, Bill Auberlin and Paul Dalla-Lana in the No. 96 Turner Motorsports BMW M3. The final podium spot went to the No. 61 Roush Performance Products Boss 302R entry driven by Jack Roush Jr. and Billy Johnson. This was Roush and Johnson’s fourth straight podium finish after a disappointing 32nd place finish at Daytona.
AST Suspension – USA’s General Manger, Brian Hanchey said, “We are especially proud of our strong showing at Lime Rock. This is the shortest track on the circuit where handling trumps horsepower, so we feel especially proud that teams running our packages placed high.”
Behind the scenes
AST Suspension – USA had a successful weekend on track at Lime Rock Park. Behind the scenes, it was a little more interesting. On any given GRAND AM weekend, the AST trailer is mostly quiet as teams work on getting the cars set up tweaked, qualified, etc. This weekend was different. Several of the teams brought shocks to the AST trailer for service. This kept Brian and Stuart hopping to get service done and get their parts back to the teams before their next practice or qualifying session. What made the situation even more interesting were the intermittent issues with the generator that operates many of the tools in the AST service trailer. Luckily, all services were finished up in time for all teams to be out on track without losing track time.
GRAND AM mandated a random tech inspection of Koni and AST shocks at Lime Rock. As with any pop quiz, the surprise made for some tense moments, but those moments didn’t last long, everything was legal.
All-in-all, it was a great weekend from Lime Rock Park, apparently there was a fight between two of the teams, we missed it (and so will you since there was no TV coverage), bummer.
We’ve got a quick turn around with the Continental Tire 150 at Watkins Glen International on June 3rd.
Plano, TX – AST Suspension is proud to announce the acquisition of all Moton Suspension Technology B.V. assets. AST Suspension and Moton Suspension Technology will continue to be produced as two separate brands using two different design philosophies.
“Combining the strength of AST’s street/track business with Moton’s premium racing business creates a range of products unequaled in the performance shock industry,” says Brian Hanchey, President of AST Suspension – USA.
Since 2000, Moton has been a powerhouse brand for performance dampers in the racing business. “We believe Moton is one of the most recognized brands in professional motorsports and we plan to keep it this way,” said Hanchey. “Moton is, and will continue to be, an exclusive brand for customers that demand the best.”
AST will keep Moton headquarters in Uden, Netherlands. North American service and sales will move from Cumming, GA to AST USA’s headquarters in Plano, TX over the next few weeks. Production will ramp up immediately with Moton inventory coming stateside in six to eight weeks.
Further information about the acquisition of Moton assets will be made available in the near future. Information will be made available on the AST – USA website located at www.ast-usa.com and the soon to be created www.moton-usa.com website.
The No. 61 Roush Performance Mustang Boss 302R and the No. 75 Compass360 Honda Civic Si took the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Grand Sport (GS) and Street Tuner (ST) class victories respectively at the Bosch Engineering 200 on May 14 at Virginia International Raceway.
The GS class was hotly contested with three unofficial lead changes in the final five minutes. Billy Johnson, driving the Roush Performance No. 61 Mustang Boss 302R, held off by the Turner Motorsport BMW M3 driven by Bill Auberlen on the last lap to capture the victory. AST Suspension – USA had a fantastic showing sweeping the top five spots for the race.
AST – USA’s general manager, Brian Hanchey said: “We’ve put a great package together and work closely with the teams and drivers to fine tune their setups. We’re really excited to see the results race after race.”
Ryan Eversley and Karl Thomson brought the No. 75 Compass360 Honda Civic Si to victory lane in the ST class by surviving a wild race. The final lap proved exciting, with Eversley beating Nico Rondet to the line by just .681 seconds. This was the first victory for the Compass360 team this season.
GRAND-AM Continental Tire Challenge teams utilizing AST dampers include: Turner Motorsport, Roush Performance, Stevenson Motorsports, Fall-Line Motorsports, BimmerWorld Racing, Rum Bum Racing, DeMan Motorsport, CKS Autosport, Subaru Road Racing Team, Finlay Motorsports, A.M. Performance, i-MOTO, Trade Manage Racing, BGB Motorsports, Doran Racing and Compass 360 Racing.
The next race in the series is the Memorial Day Weekend Classic on May 28 at Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, Conn.
AST Suspension – USA is the exclusive importer of AST Suspension products in North America. AST Suspension sells high performance adjustable dampers for street cars, autocross cars and road racing cars in North America.
Ann & Andy Hollis’ “One Lap CRX” snared one of the coveted Top-10 Overall trophies at the recent 2011 Tire Rack One Lap of America. The event covers 3651 highway miles with competitions at 11 tracks over the course of an 8-day period. Comprised mostly of salvage parts, the “junkyard dog” stuck it to many of the high-strung, high-dollar efforts that either broke down or just weren’t fast enough to get the job done. With an Acura TSX drivetrain, and Integra brakes bolted to the little CRX HF body, plenty of “stop and go” are on tap. Suspension and wheels/tires are the real magic for quick lap times, though, and the Hollis car sports custom-valved AST 5300 coilovers, Eibach springs, 6UL wheels by 949Racing and Hankook Ventus R-S3 tires (225/45-15). Add in a set of Chicken Hawk electric tire warmers for the rear, and the car hits the track ready for instant time trial action.
“The adjustability of the shocks was a key in adapting the setup to a variety of track and weather conditions, as well as dialing down to a comfy ride for the long highway transits from track-to-track”, said Hollis. “Without the AST’s, we’d either have been slower on track, or in agony on the street.”
More Information on the One Lap of America event for 2011
This year’s route featured tracks in the eastern half of the country, with stops at Summit Point, Carolina Motorsports Park, the BMW Performance Center, Daytona, Circuit Grand Bayou, Barber Motorsports Park, and Autobahn Country Club. In addition, competitors showed their motorsports versatility with an autocross on the expansive concrete at the Grissom Air Force Base and drag racing at the NHRA track in Gainesville, FL. The week’s activities were book-ended by a pair of skid pad competitions, one wet and one dry, at The Tire Rack’s test track in South Bend, IN. Hollis had especially good performances in the autocross, where he finished a close second, and the dry skid pad, narrowly missing the track record to finish third overall.
The Trade Manage Porsche Boxster #109 managed to shatter the Lime Rock track record for the PCA G class, with a 58.747 second lap. Here’s how their weekend went:
Qualifying – On the pole..check
Race Result Saturday – Win…check
Race Result Sunday – Win…check
G class lap record – Broken…check
Not a bad weekend guys, sounds like the custom valved AST 5220s are what Charlie Sheen describes as “Winning!”
Some may have seen the recent article about SportCar magazine’s Toyota Yaris H Production car that raced at the 2010 SCCA Runoffs. I know what you are thinking, why would anyone want to race a car that was built for the sole purpose of getting optimal gas mileage. What’s next? Spec Prius?
Now that you’re over the shock of building and racing a gas sipping Yaris, let’s talk about what they did. Jason Isley built the car and campaigned it regionally to qualify for the Runoffs on less than ideal setups for the engine and suspension packages – but hey, they qualified. Kudos to Jason and the folks working on the project. It’s not easy when you have to develop a new car quickly, especially when there aren’t tons of other Yaris’ racing throughout the country.
Out with the “show” suspension, in with AST Suspension
That’s right, this Yaris started out as a show car. It looked good standing still, but didn’t perform up to the level it needed to in H Production.
We talked to Jason about his set up and wanted to know how the car was behaving and how it would best suit his driving style. After a few conversations, we determined that AST 5100’s with custom valving would be a good fit.
We do suspension packages on everything from Solo II to GRAND AM, how hard could it be to get a Yaris dialed in? Not very…
Once Jason got to the Runoffs, he had a few mishaps, but got the car ready for qualifying. He grabbed 13th place in the qualifying session. Over the course of the race, he moved up through the ranks and finished in a respectable 8th place. Not bad at all for a car that got sorted out at the Runoffs.
We’ll admit, we don’t look at the Toyota Yaris in the same light!
UPDATE: 2011 has ushered in more speed and success! 5 Poles – 4 Wins! – 2 Second place finishes!
