The real joy of watching this car move was knowing that, for the most part, it was stock. That's right - the only modifications were the StopTech brakes and a custom AMS chip. The best part of it all was that the car placed second in the track event - the RS4 is a capable car, but it didn't hurt that Gary Sheehan, with a resume boasting a NASA US Touring Car Championship and a BRS F2000 Championship, was behind the wheel. The car did incredibly well in all the etGP's categories and proved itself to be a formidable competitor even in stock form.
'01 Audi RS4Driver: Gary SheehanLap Time: 1:29.528Contact Info: Achtuning, 877/7-ACHTUNING, www.achtuning.comEngine: 2.8L twin-turbo V6, AMS ECUDriveline: six-speed manualInterior: OEM Audi RecaroSuspension/Brakes: Audi GmBH quattro sport suspension, Neuspeed 22mm rear sway bar, StopTech 355mm front brakes and stainless steel brake lines, Performance Friction FRC97 pads, quattro sport rear brakesWheels: 18-inch OEM wheels
Avalon Motorsports'02 Audi S4Driver: Paul LambertLap Time: 1:30.739Contact Info: Avalon Motorsports, 303/400-3001, www.avalonmotorsports.comEngine: 2.7L twin-turbo V-6, K04 turbos, Bosch RS4 injectors, Evolution Motorsports S4 cold air intake, UUC Motorwerks, Velocimax 3 exhaust, Forge 007 diverter valves, GIAC chip, AWE Tuning MAF, Autospeed 3-inch downpipesDriveline: six-speed manual, Tanoga short-shift kit, RS4 clutch, RS4 shift leverInterior: OEMSuspension/Brakes: Stasis Engineering coilovers, Intrax 27mm front sway bar, 22mm rear sway bar, Stasis Big Blue 355mm front brakes, RS4 310mm rear brakes, SBS X25 pads, Goodridge stainless steel brake linesWheels: 19x8.5 iForged Aero wheels
There was no overall winner of this event. But if we really wanted to do the math, the Avalon car came up as the best overall, while outright it only won the drag race. Avalon had a respectable finish on the road course, with Paul Lambert from Stasis driving the car and lapping the course just a second behind the Achtuning RS4. Zev Barnett, owner of Avalon Motorsports, had dreams of crushing a real RS4, but that only came true on the dragstrip.
The car did exceptionally well and ran strong throughout the day. In case you were wondering, it's quite an accomplishment to get an S4 to run hard all day in 105 degree temps; for some reason S4s like to get hot. It could be those pesky twin turbos, but who knows. The car showed very consistent lap times and proved to have a dialed in suspen-sion. Did we mention that Zev drove the car home later that night, bumping his system? That's what we call a pimp.
Bahn Brenner MotorsportAfter last year's etGP, John Betz from Bahn Brenner Motorsport was bound and determined to make a better showing this year, and it was a gallant effort. However, the race car gods were not on his side, and despite all the efforts of him and his dedicated crew over the course of the three days, the Corrado didn't finish the event. Now, before anyone gets all crazy, let us explain what this team did to get as far as they did.
On the first day of the etGP, they had zero problems; the car ran flawlessly. On the second day, the proverbial "poop" started to hit the fan. During the drag runs, in an effort to get the car into the 12s, the tranny let go. After a grueling night of Red Bull and greasy hands, BBM had installed a new tranny but left the original clutch. Oops. During the road course practice, John and Ty Smyth were clocking off respectable 1:35.910 lap times. Then it happened - a slight jerk and all of a sudden all you could hear was what sounded like thousands of BBs rattling around in the bell housing. Upon further inspection, BBM realized the throwout bearing had let go - game over. With a new relationship between Kraftswerk and BBM, we don't expect they will be having these problems again.