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It’s been exactly a week and 850kms have passed. I have 150kms before the much-anticipated 1,000kms mark. I can’t wait for the first service to get all the metal gunk out from the engine block with a fresh supply of engine oil.
My Satria R3. It’s here. Finally. After more than a month’s wait. Was it worth the wait?
Here it is guys. Collected my car with much butterflies in the stomach and excitement a 3-year old would demonstrate when given an ice-cream. Really cannot explain how a car can have such an effect on the full grown men. But then again, many at ZTH would probably react the same way 🙂 Faisal, of R3 Marketing, was there to ensure everything went to plan (that’s customer service for ya, folks!) and of course my SA – Affandy was present to assist me with checking before official handing-over. No major issues except that the carbon fibre spoiler has been temporarily replaced with a PU GTi version. Faisal explained that there was a quality issue and a new, better vendor has been assigned to develop the replacements. An official letter from R3 was issued to inform buyers of the situation. A replacement would be available sometime in January. And oh, nice R3 cap Faisal, thanks!
First impressions? It’s quite preliminary, since I’ve only deflowered it for 100km. Actually I don’t think I’ve officially deflowered it yet. Here goes nothing:
Referring to the previous post “Breaking A Virgin : Gentle or Hard + Fast?”, I am posting some comments by fellow ‘experienced’ reader Eric, which I think readers will find useful in the process of deflowering a virgin and ensuring smooth, well-oiled performance throughout.
There seems a dearth of literature on proper ways to break-in or run-in a new engine, whether for a virgin car or motorbike. Car manufacturers recommend a gentle break-in, especially from 0km – 3,000kms. Motoman, a tuner based in the States, however, seems to think otherwise.
The controversial MotoMan wrote “Break-in Secrets” after applying his methods on over 300 new engines. He claims that by using his methods, engines would experience a dramatic increase in power over all RPMs, internals remaining cleaner and more efficient overall. His principles and examples apply to all 4-stroke engines – motorbikes, cars, airplanes, snow mobiles, lawn mowers!
So really, how true is this?
The popular drift and time attack challenge organised by Proton is making a comeback at Sepang on the 4th-5th December 2004. Held in conjuction with the Proton Track Carnival Sepang 2004, the 4th SSO in the series will be the last for the year.
The Time Attack challenge will see the Pre-Viagra class (below 1300cc) reintroduced into the series along with Eat Me (below 1600cc), Hung (below 2000cc) and Rocco (above 2000cc or Sports Cars). Sub-categories would include BSD Team Trophy, Old Skool and Honeyz (for the racer babes!).
Entry fees will be RM80.00 for either the Drift Challenge or Time Attack.
So what are you waiting for? Sign up! Click here for details. To register, click here.
I will be attempting to improve my previous 14th-15th position (driving my the only 1.8 Wira in my class). Hopefully I will get my Satria R3 by then. Would be nice to see what times I can set at Sepang!
I’ve never been this excited or nervous about a car. Seriously wierd. It was much anticipated. In fact, I grew so impatient I was logging on to the ProtonEdar site at 2.00pm. Kiasu! Bookings for the race-bred Satria R3 began at 3.00pm sharp today. When the official R3 booking page came up at 3.00pm, I was number 2.
But much as I expected it, the credit card transaction did not go through. Fuck. This cannot be happening, I whined. After multiple attempts, the online transactions were still timing out. I gave Adian (Head of the R3 project a call), telling him about the problem. He checked with the credit card transaction provider and called me back later. 3.15pm and still no confirmation of the car.
The announcement and release of the Satria R3 by Proton Motorsports has aroused plenty of interest amongst the local autoscene, judging by postings in popular forums such as Zerotohundred, Team Matrix Motorsports and Race Rally Research.
Proton Motorsports soft-launched the much-anticipated Limited Edition Proton Satria R3 over the weekend at Pasir Gudang, Johor. The Satria R3 is set to be in the market on October 17 at 3 selected Proton Edar offices in the Northern, Southern and Central regions of the country.
This exclusive road-legal track car will only see 150 units in production, and I am sure will be snapped up in no time! A claimed 0-100km/h time of 8.6 secs and a top speed of 205kmh is plenty fast, although some may have anticipated better specs.
One car, two drivers, a combined racing distance of 300km, three big races and prize money amounting to RM56,000 – that is the drama, excitement and rewards the PROTON Track Carnival at the Johor Circuit in Pasir Gudang from October 1-3, 2004 promises both competitors and spectators.
The main event at the carnival will be the Enduro Battle, a 42-lap or two-hour semi endurance race for Proton cars divided into two categories; Class A for normally-aspirated cars 1601cc to 1800cc, and Class B for cars up to 1600cc.
Unlike the normal Proton car race, this event allows competitors to carry out modifications to the engine, chassis and bodywork of the car as well as to explore the use of aerodynamics. This is in line with efforts to uplift the standards of racing, promoting technical research and development in automotive performance, and in providing greater and more exciting spectator action.
Close racing action however, will be the order of the weekend. Each team will comprise of two drivers, each required to compete in an 18-lap Sprint Battle with the combined results deciding the car’s position on the grid for the Enduro Battle. To level the field and competition, one of the drivers must be the holder of a novice competition licence and has never won any event in the past. The biggest element of fair play will be the installation of a restrictor in the induction system, a deliberate move to keep the cost of going racing at a minimum and in providing a ceiling to the outright power output that the machine can achieve.
“Our primary objective is to attract newcomers to the sport and as you know, cost is always a major factor in going motor-racing. What we’re doing is lowering the cost required to go racing. The race format has also been designed to produce competitive and talented drivers. We want them to concentrate on the driving more than worrying about not being able to do too much to their cars,” said PROTON Motorsports’ Head of Marketing Khaidi Kamaruddin.
“The race format has also been designed to give competitors maximum time on the track. What this means is that they’re looking at a full weekend of racing, from the time they go out for practice and qualifying on Friday. It is also an event that emphasizes on team tactics and team work and to win, they will have to perform consistently throughout the weekend.””
The prize money offered to those in Class A are as follows; 1st (RM10,000), 2nd (RM8,000), 3rd (RM5,000), 4th (RM4,000), 5th (RM3,000) and 6th (RM2,000). Class B will offer the following prizes; 1st (RM8,000), 2nd (RM6,000), 3rd (RM4,000), 4th (RM4,000), 5th (RM2,000) and 6th (RM1,000).
The entry fee for the event is RM1,500 for Class A and RM1,000 for Class B, and to register, kindly contact PROTON Motorsports at 03-5191 1055 or e-mail to asria@proton.com or adiank@proton.com.
My take:
After the successful Street Shootout (SSO) series, Proton is seriously doing their bit in promoting local motorsports. I’m all for it. Now where do I get that extra dosh from? Anyone interested in sponsoring? The entry fee is attractive and reasonable, and prizes are good as well. It is my ambition to participate in the Malaysian Super Series and/or the Merdeka Race or a local Proton Production race series. Hope to do that before I am 32, if that is realistic. Now, where did I put the keys to my track car again?
Race Rally Research or R3 for short — Proton’s official motorsports division, has given supporters something to look forward to in the coming months. The R3 marketing head has released a scoop on what’s to come from R3, very soon.