25/02/2009 Update: I’ve added Adrian’s gallery to the article, track shots are still to come.

Scottish VAG Meet

ScottishVAG had a huge turnout presenting us with loads of great photo opportunities. But of course the meet had a more well meaning purpose, the meet was in aid of the Children’s Hospice Association Scotland with the proceeds of a raffle being donated to Rachel House in Kinross. As we wandered round the paddock area I was eager to test out my CHDK card in my Canon IXUS 860IS, the CHDK firmware patch enables a whole host of extra features, greatly extending the functionality of the point & shoot camera. However all I used it for was its ability for taking macro HDR shots. I used this, a tweaked script and a gorilla pod to take shots with 1EV either way. When merged and tweaked in Photoshop the results were pretty impressive:

My brother was looking forward to using his Sony A200 digital SLR a little more and trying out some of the filters he’s collected. Its a bit of a learning curve in comparison to his previous Fujifilm FinePix S5600 but once mastered it should give excellent results. He’s yet to upload his photo’s but I’ll post them here when he’s done. My brother has begun uploading his shots, they’re trickling in tho as he hasn’t much time for processing. This gallery will continue to update as they’re added.

Our pal Scott casually took snaps with his Sony Ericsson mobile, I’ve never used my mobile camera for anything other than small MMS photo’s but was pretty impressed with the quality of his photos. At full resolution with no processing there’s a fair amount of noise, but they’re probably good enough to make decent regular sized prints.

Speed Sunday

Action on the track was pretty good, but as per usual we were almost always at the wrong end of the track when something good happened. I made an attempt to get some decent shot of the on-track action with the panning technique but even then only a 3rd of my shots came out ok. All I can say is thank god for digital cameras and the delete button!

I’ll update this section with our photo’s once my brother’s uploaded his and I’ve whittled out all my duffers.

Further Information

Knockhill Racing Circuit
ScottishVAG
Adrian’s Flickr Page
Scott’s Flickr Page
My Flickr Page

“The Audi TT clubsport quattro is a driving purist’s machine that’s still a TT, but shows just what can be done if you know how. A small-series production of this model is now being considered.”

Lower & Wider

The Audi TT Clubsport Quattro is more than just a chopped Audi TT, it is wider, lower, and more powerful than the standard TT with a lot of new and clever innovations. The body of the TT has been revised in the Clubsport and is now more aggressive with wider wheel arches to accommodate the new 80mm wider track. Perhaps the most obvious aesthetic change is the complete lack of a roof, not even a soft. The Clubsport has a short wrap-around windscreen with no supporting A pillars emphasising the concept of a purists driving machine. There are also small visual changes, like the symbolic four rings of the Audi badge. These are not found on the grille like you would see on most Audi’s, but instead are located on the bonnet. There are also no door handles; the car is opened by remote instead. Painted in Daytona Grey the bodywork is in sharp contrast with the bright orange of the brake callipers and interior design.

Power to Spare

The Clubsport is fitted with the same 260bhp 2.0l TFSI engine found in the Audi S3 (Seat Leon Cupra etc.), but in this application the Audi engineers have massaged the turbocharged engine to produce in excess of 300bhp with the power being transferred to the Quattro permanent four-wheel drive. The Clubsport also makes use of a dual clutch and six speed S tronic direct-shift gearbox, the gearbox can be shifted manually with changes taking just a fraction of a second.

Under the bonnet (see the picture below) there is a noticeable lack of ancillaries in the sparse looking engine bay. Clever technical touches like housing the expansion tank within the strut brace help to keep the body rigid whilst removing the need for a dedicated tank. Examples of other components that you might not see would be the ABS, air con and charcoal filter which have been moved into the cabin to keep the engine bay clutter free. This has the practical benefit of removing obstructions to aid air-flow; important as the Clubsport has a racing air filter and restricted air-flow would result in increased air temperatures and starve the engine of the cold dense air it needs. In addition to the filter the car also has an adapted dual-branch exhaust system and modified intake manifold to help the engine produce over 300bhp. To help it stop the Clubsport has been fitted with non-fading ceramic brake to ensure constant stopping power.

Further Reading

You can find more information on the Audi TT Clubsport at Audi UK and in the specific press release here.

Gallery