RichieRichZ06

I had the opportunity to drive the new NP01 race car on the 2 mile Thunderhill track. A friend of mine just picked his NP01 up and wanted me to try a few laps in the car. I have never driven anything like this car and I was a little nervous at first. The car is a spec prototype that weighs 1,500 pounds and has a 2.0 Mazda 4 cylinder that makes ~190 HP and a 6 speed sequential Sadev gear box. The car produces a significant amount of grip, which is something I am not that used to when driving Corvettes.

I hope to get more seat time and am thankful for the opportunity Mark gave me to drive this thing. I am sure that a few more sessions and I would pick up significant time.

The first few laps were getting used to the car so the more comfortable laps start around the 16 minute mark. Best lap was a 1:19.95 on the 2 mile configuration, which isn't bad for my first time in the car.

Is2scooby

Wow!!!

bullitt4110

Beyond awesome!! I'm sure grip and downforce are amazing in that thing.

redtopz

Damn, I didn't get a call! Glad to hear you had a chance to drive it. The tires are only Toyos so they aren't even a racing slick. Imagine what it would be like on a full slick? How did you do with the sequential and left foot braking? I guess you've done a bunch of karting so the braking probably wasn't too tough. Would be fun to get it on the 3 mile and see what kind of high speed grip it has. Any video?

DUMAN

Very cool Rich!

RichieRichZ06

It was a totally different car than anything I've ever driven. It's a very "raw" experience and nothing like a street car. Quick steering with no assist, no power brakes, left foot braking, sequential trans, brutally loud, tons of feedback and lot's of grip is like 180* off from a Corvette.

It did take a few laps to get used to left foot braking and the sequential trans. You have to be very deliberate with the shifter and stabbing the throttle on the downshifts. The car is so solid that looking at the dash is almost worthless so all you do is glance at the shift lights and get used to how the engine sounds when it's time to shift.

There is a ton of off-throttle grip at corner entry which is also different than my car. I found that it would start to push the front a little when you matted the throttle so setting up the entry and carrying lot's of mid-corner speed will be the secret to going fast. It just doesn't have enough power to make up a bad corner in the straights.

I honestly think that after watching the video and getting a couple more sessions, the car would be down in the 1:17's if not faster. It's impossible to learn a car like this in 15 short laps. I think the car would do a 1:52-1:53 on the 3 mile course.

It honestly took about 5-6 laps to even sort the car out so skip to about the 16 minute mark on the video to get a better idea. I was a little more comfortable towards the end of the session and then it was over.

folsomlarry

Sounds like a lot of fun

redtopz

Looked like you were getting the hang of it. Another guy I raced with bought one this year and he described his first test day as drinking water out of a firehose. Information overload. Do you think it would be a fun car to race in a series? Nasa had 6 of them at Buttonwillow and they will have their own race group next month at Laguna Seca. Is your friend Mark going to be at that event?

napacruzerc5

Thanks for sharing

RichieRichZ06

That is a great way to explain the car.

I think it would be a really fun car to race. I think they've delivered 25 so far and building more as orders come in. I think there will be a lot of these around once people start seeing them and wanting to race them.

Mark will be at Laguna for the next race and he's got a couple others on the schedule. I think he mentioned Thunderhill, Sonoma and another Buttonwillow race this year.

I really need to get my NASA license so I can race it.

Paul 68

Awesome !!!

Robert R1

Looks fun! Nice turn in oversteer at 20:30.

Boomer111

Looks like fun to me.

Nice opportunity Rich, thanks for sharing.

Racechick

20:30 is where I thought it looked like fun! That's how I drive though.

Good job keeping it on the track Willhoff