Ride Quality
Offering a more direct connection from the driver to the road, the Buddy Club S2000 was one of only two entrants with a full bucket seat. This helped with the ability to 'feel' and pick up all the car's characteristics. The Buddy Club Racing Spec damper system was easily as comfortable as stock on the freeway and over smooth city streets. But, while not as harsh as the CR, the suspension had problems maintaining a smooth ride over sharp bumps and ruts. With little padding in the racing seat, each thud was transferred to our backsides as well. We were very interested in fiddling with the damping adjustments and seeing the range in feel on this suspension, but we didn't, because of the rules we set.
On-Track Behavior/Lap Time
Hope reportedly had a difficult time trying to control this car. The Buddy Club seat was mounted in a high, forward position which, combined with the factory non-adjustable steering column, made it hard for him to drive. The seat also had a noticeable amount of lateral play, which was surprising considering how solid the Buddy Club seat rails are in our Project Evo IX. It was challenging for Hope to place the car exactly where he wanted through the more complicated series of corners. Lateral-g telemetry shows some fairly sharp spikes in sections three and four. But, in the second half of the course where the turns smooth out and speeds come up, the car made up a lot of time.
Damping quality
The impact harshness of the this set-up over sharp bumps was better than the CR, but worse than the stock AP2. The car also exhibited an odd sensation of the wheels crashing noisily into large potholes. On track, the Racing Spec dampers displayed lots of hop and tire shock. The hopping reduced mid-corner grip and made it difficult to put the power down. The suspension felt like it was packing down in the rear and that it had too much damping dialed in for the spring rate. According to our own rules, we didn't make any adjustments, so we don't know if dialing down these Buddy Club shocks would improve matters.
Modifications
Peak Power: 196whp @ 8300rpm
Peak Torque: 134lb-ft @ 6600rpm
Weight: 2721 lbs (50.5/49.5)
Model Year: 2002 (AP1)
Engine Code: F20C
Engine Modifications: Buddy Club Racing Spec race header, Spec III exhaust
Chassis: Carbon fiber front tower bar
Suspension (other): Stock
Brakes: Stock
Wheels: Buddy Club P1 Racing QF, 17x8 +45mm (F), 17x9 +63mm (R)
Tires: Continental ContiSportContact 3, 225/45/17 (F), 255/40/17 (R)
Body: Stock
Interior: Buddy Club P-1 Limited Edition carbon fiber bucket seat