Milltek Sport Latest Updates

Tom Onslow-Cole: Round 3 Race Report from Thruxton

info@millteksport.com (Milltek Sport) — Tue, 07 May 2013 15:26:04 GMT

We were delighted to catch up with an elated Tom Onslow-Cole following a simply sublime display of driving at one of his favourite tracks; Thruxton. With a double podium to show for his efforts and a 4th in Race 3, it�s fair to say that our man had a decent weekend at the office!

Tom, first of all, well done from everybody at Milltek. Safe to say the car is where you need it to be now, then?

Thank you! For sure, the car feels much better now. There was big jump from Brands to Donington, so the jump needed to get competitive at Thruxton was much smaller. Looking at the data from Dono, and talking to the other drivers, it was clear that we were one of the few cars that could go flat through the Craner Curves there. The Passat CC seems to be very good through the high speed, loose radius turns, due to its longer wheelbase. You have to exploit it when the track conditions are right. The Hondas, for instance, are much nimbler through tighter, more complex corners. Luckily, Thruxton is a fast track, and it really plays to the technical advantages of the car.

Talk us through each of the races...

Qually felt quite good from the outset. We knew from FP2 that we were 6th fastest overall, but as always, it was a case of seeing just how far people would move forward from practise. We don�t really have a full on �qually trim� for the CC yet, as many other teams do, but I was able to find another 7/10ths from the practise sessions. It was our first time in the top ten, which made the team happy, but, I have to admit, I came into the pits with a bit of a long face though.. I felt as if I had over-driven a little and lost some time in the first complex. It�s a hard track, and you only really get one lap, so I was cross with myself. I was sure we could have had a top 5 place, there!

Race 1 yielded a great start from the line with a productive first lap. I managed to make quite a few opportunistic moves in the complex and then got past Turkington at Church. I then set my sights on catching and passing Tordoff before moving on to get Plato right in front of me. It was a real �ying and yang� situation, with his car being strong where mine was weak � and vice versa. Try as I might, I simply couldn�t get past him, however. At this point I was running 4th � right up until the last lap where Jordan got a puncture, moving us up to the podium.

How did it feel to get the car into the top three on just the third meeting?

It felt great � obviously, but the weird thing is, the second of elation you get is followed immediately afterwards by a self-imposed expectation that you want more of the same. You set a bar for yourself. Believe it or not, my first thought immediately afterwards was �Now I need to keep pushing and make sure I catch the Hondas!�

Race 2 transpired to be the most satisfying � and from the off I wanted to achieve a result on my own merits, rather than being gifted a podium from someone else�s misfortune. During the race I could see Shedden and Jordan literally scything through the pack at a rate of knots. I was third behind Jason at this point, and I knew that I would need to get them behind me to keep the pressure off a little. This meant getting past Jason, so I made sure I got my nose alongside him at Goodwood and made the place. He then become the perfect unwilling rear gunner for me as he was suddenly about five cars wide for the Hondas, giving me the breathing space I needed to try and catch Matt. Ultimately the Hondas broke through though, and we were soon sliding and bumping through the faster parts of the circuit as I did everything I could to keep them behind me. To me though, that�s when BTCC is at its best. It was great fun, and it felt good to be back in the room, defending on merit. It was easily the most fun I�ve had in racecar so far this season! It also felt good to be in contention with the Hondas. When you think of the development time they�ve had, I think it reflects well on Team HARD that we were up there with them.

Race 3 proved to be a little quieter.. which let�s face it, wasn�t hard! I got a reasonable start from our reverse grid slot of 8th. I simply got my head down and worked up getting past people. By the end of Lap 1, I was 6th. By Lap 2, I was 5th and by Lap 3 I was up to 4th behind Smith�s Honda and the two MGs. Shedden, Neal and Jordan were begin and pushing me hard and I was able to hold them back for a little while, but finally dropped back to 7th as I was really having to push the car and fight the power steering. I tried to make up ground on Tordoff ahead, but it wasn�t happening. Then luckily, another puncture, this time for Jason, meant that I was able to reel Sam in and get up to 5th.. and then capitalising on a tiny mistake from Smith meant I was able to nip through at the chicane and up to 4th. All good clean fun!

All in all, it was a great weekend for the team. Second overall on points, winning the first two Indy results and we�re now 9th overall and 5th in the Independents.. and a pole for Jack on Race 3! A good day to be in Team HARD. Now, I just need to deliver you all more of the same for Oulton Park!

Catch Tom and Team HARD at Oulton Park on the 8th/9th June.

UPDATED: BMW 328i M Sport F30: now in testing...

info@millteksport.com (Milltek Sport) — Fri, 03 May 2013 17:05:44 GMT

Milltek's latest addition to their own Fast Fleet, the F30 BMW 328i M Sport, has undergone copious amounts of research and development in their UK-based factory/engineering centre and has emerged with an extremely promising performance exhaust system.

It's undergoing final testing at this very moment and we'll have more information here in the coming days...

Milltek Sport and SKN at Tuning World Bodensee 2013

info@millteksport.com (Milltek Sport) — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 12:24:17 GMT

Milltek Sport will have a presence at the Tuning World Bodensee show in Germany on the 9-12th May and will be joining their German importer, SKN Tuning's, stand. SKN and Milltek will be in Hallen B5 Stand-Nr 202.

Milltek will be displaying a number of their greatest EC-homologated products and are taking their BMW 328i F30 development car complete with performance exhaust system.

The Bodensee show is staged in a wonderful multi-hall building on an airfield which used to house and build the Zeppelin airships and is surrounded by the beautiful Alps which borders Germany, Italy and Switzerland on the Rhine at Lake Constance.

We'd love to see you there...

Tom Onslow-Cole: Round 2 Race Report from Donington

info@millteksport.com (Milltek Sport) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 15:32:05 GMT

Tom, the car looked much more competitive this time around. You�ve obviously been making some changes!

Oh yes! We have all been working very hard to get things right for Donington. We still have a few wrinkles to iron out, but the car came to the circuit very much improved from its �launch spec� at Brands.

Free practise started well.. It felt like we had all made good steps forward. When my dash pinged up that the car had run quicker than the best time on media day, I have to say that I did break into a smile.. Problem was, everyone else was much quicker too! We were around eight tenths off the pace, but I hoped we could use FP2 to tweak that. It wasn�t to be sadly. Everything we tried in that session made the car slower! It was suffering big oscillations in the corners and as I went onto the power and it looked and felt very unsettled. We tried everything, but ultimately, we returned to the set-up we had in FP1 for the Qually. We couldn�t fix the problem with the time we had, so it was a case of working � and driving � around it. I managed to get 11th in the end, so I was hopeful I could battle forward and get into the top ten.

The forecast suggested rain for Race 3, so that was at the back of our minds for set-up and tyre choice. We really need to get more data on the soft tyre, so we knew we would need to get as much test information as we could over the course of the meeting. The soft tyre went on for Race 1, but on the set-up we have now, it wasn�t getting anywhere near hot enough, and I was struggling for grip. The result is that I ended up falling back through the field to 13th. The upside of this was that I ended up in a superb, clean scrap with Collard, which got us loads of airtime! All good, and very enjoyable, particularly because I came out on top!
Race 2 started much better and I got away and managed to make a good few places and into the top 10. Tyres were still a little sketchy and I managed a big drift at the old hairpin, up the inside of Rob Austin and right across the middle of the pack. Weirdly, the car got comparatively quicker as the race went on. Our damper setting aren�t quite right yet, and are a little soft, meaning that the tyres aren�t getting too stressed and come back to you near the end of the race. It meant I was able to finish in 10th, which was all good. It felt like we were progressing.

Race 3 saw the reverse grid giving me pole after my friend David Brabham managed to pick it for me! I have to say, I had mixed feelings about this, as it still feels very early on in the cars life. She�s only four weeks old! But, we were one of only two cars in the top ten on the hard tyre, so I felt we could do something. As I said before, the other teams clearly have the softer tyre sussed, so I was having to defend from the outset. I dropped to 7th, but was able to claw back to 6th and get some great points and the tyres came back. Had a superb battle with Aron Smith � with a few battle scars to really christen the CC properly. I lost a sill in the end, but you can�t beat a good old fashioned dog fight! Knowing how well Motorbase has got that car to work, and the fact we were living with it, made me realise that we had turned a corner from a development point of view.

Going forward, what else will you be doing to the car?

We�re still running a little bit overweight, which needs to be sorted. Areas like the battery will address that, as will looking again at the bodywork, some of which is quite thick, and streamlining and optimising there. There�s plenty of development left to do. The dampers will be re-valved for the next round, for sure. The car is starting to feel competitive now, and we�ll soon be able to contend. At Brands we were just part of the traffic, but at Dono, I was able to attack and defend...so now we�re able to get in the mix. Roll on Thruxton!

Catch Tom at Thruxton � the UK�s fastest circuit - on the 4th and 5th of May.

UPDATED: New Mk6 Vauxhall Astra VXR performance exhaust system

info@millteksport.com (Milltek Sport) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 11:37:53 GMT

Vauxhall�s latest Astra VXR is a true return to hot-hatch form for the GM outfit, offering stunning good looks, superb handling and sparkling performance in an affordable wrapper. For those owners wanting to make their hatch even hotter still, British exhaust specialists, Milltek has served up a range of high-performance exhaust options to enhance the car further.

Based around a 76mm mandrel-bent construction, this latest system is hand-finished entirely from non-magnetic stainless steel. Milltek�s designers and engineers have undertaken many hundreds of road and development miles to ensure that this new exhaust offers exceptional power gains combined with the perfect exhaust note, both under load and whilst cruising at speed.

Those looking for a fully-legal high-output solution can opt for the EC-compliant system which includes a �Euro 5� spec 200-cell sports catalyst as part of the standard specification. Replacing the factory downpipe this maintains full OBD compliance, meaning no annoying or worrying warning lights on the dash � and an extra 10bhp, with commensurate torque gains throughout the rev range. Interesting to note to that the turbo spools up some 200rpm quicker with this system on, offering a much peppier throttle response with improved acceleration across the board.

A choice of either resonated or non-resonated centre sections then mates to a hand-finished transverse backbox, which has been fitted with a rather clever internal structure and tailpipe design to eliminate the possibility of unwanted �gas rush� spoiling the otherwise peerless soundtrack. Offering a sporty tone, with a delightful growl when pressing on, Milltek�s engineers have worked hard to ensure that at motorway speeds, off boost, the interior noise levels are just a touch above those of the OEM system. As a perfect �Jekyll and Hyde� set-up, offering the best of both worlds, it�s very hard to beat. Cat back options are also available for those wishing to leave the factory downpipe in place and the system terminates cleverly using the OEM outlets to ensure a perfect �factory fit�.

For pricing and further information please see your nearest Milltek Sport stockist.

2013 Volkswagen Golf GTi review - Autocar.co.uk

info@millteksport.com (Milltek Sport) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 09:23:37 GMT

A great review of the new VW Golf GTI Mk7 over on Autocar's YouTube channel, we can't wait for our development car to arrive and start working on the ultimate stainless steel performance exhaust system.

F20 BMW M 135i Performance Exhaust System

info@millteksport.com (Milltek Sport) — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 08:11:15 GMT

Milltek Sport has completed development of a stainless steel performance exhaust system for BMW's latest incarnation of their high-performance hatchback, the F20 M 135i.

Milltek's engineers initially set about assessing the characteristics of the car, its engine and its performance data. This gives them feedback they need to develop an exhaust system that provides optimal levels of gas-flow, back pressure, acoustic enhancement and weight-reduction.

The first prototype exhaust system has been fitted to the development car and is undergoing testing right now. Initial results look very promising indeed and we'll have more information here very shortly so be sure to bookmark this page or sign up for Milltek's M 135i email below (don't worry, we'll only use your email address to keep you updated on the progress of the M135i exhaust).

Auto Express tests Marangoni's Toyota GT86-R complete with Milltek exhaust system

info@millteksport.com (Milltek Sport) — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 15:48:18 GMT

Tuners have been itching to get their hands on the Toyota GT86 since it was launched, and now Italian tyre brand Marangoni has beaten its rivals to the punch. The GT86-R Eco Explorer was first seen at the Geneva Motor Show last month, and is an intriguing (and brightly coloured) one-off special. Auto Express was offered an exclusive first test drive.

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The car is currently on display at the Gadget Show Live exhibition at Birmingham's NEC arena and is going down a storm there too!

Milltek Sport GT86 / BRZ / FR-S Performance Exhaust Now Fully E-Marked

info@millteksport.com (Milltek Sport) — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 11:19:01 GMT

Already proving to be a popular seller in its performance car line-up, Milltek Sport has augmented the appeal of its Toyota GT86, Subaru BRZ and Scion FR-S exhaust system further by becoming the first UK manufacturer to have the system homologated and 'E-marked' by leading German testing house, T�V S�d.

The move not only allows the system to be sold in markets where 'E'-marking is an essential, but, just as importantly, acts as a quality-assurance for buyers, tuners and even main dealers looking to fit a part of the highest quality and one which has been proven to surpass all homologation requirements - along with the potential insurance and warranty benefits that this may bring.

The Milltek system is constructed from a bore some 15% larger than OE, at 63.5mm. This reduces back-pressure and improves performance. Mass was also a consideration from the outset, with the design team seeking to trim excess weight from the OEM set-up - despite the desire to run a larger diameter bore throughout. The results have been astounding, with this secondary cat-back design also being some 4.75kg (23%) lighter than the parts they replace.

The homologated parts feature a pair of stunning 4.5" GT115 single-skin tailpipes which beautifully follow the lines of the rear diffuser and offer the ideal finishing touch. Combining a more aggressive demeanour with an 'OEM+' attitude, they offer the perfect visual balance and provide a unique sporting tone.

Now in its 30th consecutive year of trading, Milltek Sport also has plans to unveil other E-marked applications for a whole range of vehicles throughout 2013, confirming its place in the market as a quality manufacturer of both original equipment and aftermarket systems.

Mercedes C63 AMG development completed

info@millteksport.com (Milltek Sport) — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 09:14:50 GMT

With it's massive 6.2 V8 engine, the C63 AMG delivers big power and plenty of aggression, however, it does have a rather muted exhaust note in standard form...something Milltek Sport are ideally placed to fix with their 30 years experience producing some of the World's finest and most memorable performance exhaust systems.

First dyno run showed gains for 14 bhp and 30 Nm

One of the technical challenges when engineering exhaust systems for normally aspirated cars is creating a free-flowing system which increases power and torque throughout the rev-range (not just at the top-end) but also ensuring that the sound it produces doesn't become intrusive into the cabin when cruising around. It took all of Milltek's extensive experience and knowledge to produce something very special for the C63 and we can confirm they've managed it with spectacular results.

First dyno run showed gains for 14 bhp and 30 Nm for the secondary catalyst replacement pipes and uprated high flow primary sport cats!

We'll have more details here shortly...

BMW M 135i 5-door - Photo