Slay the DRAGON!!!!!

Been looking at Tail of the Dragon site again so who thinks they might wanna take her on sometime after we get back?


http://www.tailofthedragon.com/index.html

Man def think ill be taking the Corolla lol def dont wanna kill myself in a high power RWD car on one of the curviest Highways in the country.

Been there in the Tercel and got respect from the bikers! If the Paseo is up I'm sure I can get the wife to go again. She loved it.




LINK

How was it? How heavy was the traffic did you get to actually get into alot of the curves like you wanted?

We made about 10 passes and got stuck behind slow traffic 3 of the ten, then caught up with traffic that thought they were fast on 3 more passes. We got passed by 1 bike out of all the trips and then hung on his tail so close he thought I was going to run over him in a few turns. One turn going uphill we left the ground with 3 of 4 tires. Thankfully it was one going the good direction instead of slinging us toward the edge. We did lose traction in the rear going around another similar turn.
All in all it was a great day. To our knowledge only 1 biker had a bad wreck and left his stuff on the tree of shame.


The red boot at bottom was his.

Lol now I can plague you with questions lol

What do you think was your average speed?

Impressions of the road condition and shoulder?

What kinda suspension and performance setup were you running?

What tires (size etc etc) were you using and what time of year was it (like est. OAT (outside air temp))?

What would you of changed on your setup if you went again from your previous setup there?

If you cant tell i really wanna hit this road hard I love a good twisty road lol

get on chatbox!

Kurai Lol now I can plague you with questions lol
hahaha

What do you think was your average speed?
the gps said 46mph on one pass with minimal traffic
that's down to 15mph in some turns and up to 90 in other spots

Impressions of the road condition and shoulder?
at least the pavement wasn't cracked up but guard rails would be an inexpensive safety device
shoulder? what shoulder? There are about 4 places to pull over and let traffic pass. Those 4 will hold 3 cars max each.

What kinda suspension and performance setup were you running?
Tein struts and coilovers, 4efte with 3" exhaust, poly bushings on Paseo swaybar, Starlet strutbar.

What tires (size etc etc) were you using and what time of year was it (like est. OAT (outside air temp))?
195/50 15 cheapos on Miata rims Early fall around 75 when we got there, about 65 when leaving. max 80

What would you of changed on your setup if you went again from your previous setup there?
posi would be a blessing, 205/40 16's would hook harder but may give too much confidence

If you cant tell i really wanna hit this road hard I love a good twisty road lol


It was a lot of fun. When we left the bikers at the resort were giving us "thumbs up" and that was a compliment to a car. If you go and see a bike with the TN lic plate that says 'death' try to hang with him. He knows the road well. Be carefull and make a couple passes before you try it hardcore. Those drop off turns are no joke. Know your vehicle well!

Hmmm ic...what were your impressions of the suspension geometry throughout the harder corners and during cornering w/drastic elevation changes with your setup?

How did the suspension react?

What was the estimated car weight...and front rear ratio if you have a guess?

How did your brakes hold up and were you running any kinda brake upgrades?

Kurai- Hmmm ic...what were your impressions of the suspension geometry throughout the harder corners and during cornering w/drastic elevation changes with your setup?
They didn't intend on Tercels to go that fast pparently as I could feel flex in the whole car. Elevation really didn't change anything, the fuel mapping on the factory ecu is amazing.

How did the suspension react?
The teins did their job as did the other parts mentioned earlier.

What was the estimated car weight...and front rear ratio if you have a guess?
As loaded with two people, fuel and spare tire with tools.. 2400lbs curb weight 1950
trans gearing with diff - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_C_transmission#C52

How did your brakes hold up and were you running any kinda brake upgrades?
I had stock brakes up front and a hybrid disc brake setup I made in rear. I had plenty of power to lock up the tires at any moment but I used gearing more than braking. The 4efte turns up 7300 rpm so second gear is good from 20-70mph. First is good to 40 mph and you can downshift to first at any speed, even over 100 just don't let off the clutch! Third is good from 40 to 105 and fourth will take you up to 125. Horsepower is the limiter in fifth. The Tercel with a basically stock 4efte could swing the needle past 140 and if following a larger vehicle it'd go much faster.

Oh I meant by front/rear ratio weight distribution....but it seems like The rollie will scream on there.

I don't have the 4efte in the car any longer so I can't get the weight ratio. I know the smaller 4efte is heavier than the 3ee setup though. The steering lets you know quickly, feels like power steering now. The car is balanced well for a fwd car. With practice I've learned how to drift it and before you say it I'll tell you there are no cables hooked to my parking brakes. The brake setup on rear weighs a good bit more than original drum setup and that's unsprung weight. Let off the throttle for a second and snatch the wheel makes the rear let go. From there I can point and throttle to keep it where I want it.
SCCA teaches some cool stuff like that.
The worst thing about the road itself is how tight most of the curves are. Some places you'll swear they used my car to measure the lane because the suburban you're following is touching both white and yellow stripes at same time. Keep the radio off so you can hear other traffic and possibly big trucks. Some areas you can't see more than 100' ahead of your car and it'll seem like 20' at speed. Follow a biker that knows the area to learn it. They go a LOT and several know all the bad spots. Read the website about the LEO's. Didn't see any the day I went.
Keep in mind if the car in front of you overheats it's going to make one really slick spot and it may be in the wrong place. Keep the rubber on the pavement. Make a slow pass and sight see first trip through. Take a gps and set waypoints at bad areas so a passenger can tell you they are coming. 318 curves in an 11 mile stretch is a lot to learn. Smile for the two picture locations.

Yeah i cant wait to get more active on the track with the SCCA gonna be fun and ima have alot of fun driving the Corolla and the Z.

I'll definately be following someone with alot of experiance and am really looking forward to tackling the Dragon and getting some good experiance outta the trip lol def gonna be fun lol.
Have to see who all is down to roll there.

get in chatbox on main page

Did you get to hit the other Hwy up there?

Just past the resort coming this way there's a highway to the left, 29 I think it was. The Dragon I believe is 129. The other highway is actually more fun than the Dragon and less dangerous as far as drop offs go. However I don't think it has a 'safety safari' that cruises the course looking for accidents like the Dragon does. We did hit much higher speeds on 29 though. One spot we got to see the speedo swing past the 130 mark and I know it kept climbing but I had to watch the road. The 4efte has incredible pull from 40 to 120mph to only be a 1.3L engine.

Yeah i have heard of it have to hit all of them up there lol def gonna be worth the trip lol, hope they get the landslide cleaned-up soon I hear the dragon is closed till like July or something.

http://tailofthedragon.com/calendar.html

They had nothing listed for feb and march but after april the calendar has many events lined up.

Is the rock slide gonna be cleaned up by then? A friend I know who lives up there was saying june/july time frame.