One of the issues that was preventing us from going quicker in the ISF build (aside from my driving) were the soft spring rates of the KW V3 coilovers. Much of it had to do with the softer, more comfortable nature that is inherent in the V3, but we at least needed to try and alleviate some of the negative side effects of that on track.
Between the amount of traveling I’ve done early this Summer (Japan’s record temps in June), our new focus on growth, and the recent heatwave here in the West, this years off-season has developed a sense of eternity to it. Even now in September, as people are gearing up to race again, the idea of heading out to the track for testing alludes me.
Before I take off for Japan for the Summer, I was lucky enough to have one more opportunity to take the ISF to the track with all the tire issues finally sorted out. I wasn’t able to get the stiffer springs on in time, however that may have actually worked out better for the baseline testing.
Before we headed out to Buttonwillow Raceway for the Club Racer event back on the 25th, I needed to address the issue with the new iCode exhaust we installed on the ISF; specifically, how it was melting my rear bumper.
After an arduous and rather busy off season, we’re finally back behind the wheel of the ISF for more testing. Scaling up the company this past year had unfortunately pushed this project down on the list of priorities, but we’re excited to be able to post some updates again.
We last updated the Koyorad x NDF ISF project in late January after some testing at Chuckwalla Raceway. In the past 2 months, the car has undergone some pretty drastic, albeit, unseen modifications in our quest to tweak the ISF into the car it should have been from the factory.
This past Friday, the team headed out to Chuckwalla Valley Raceway to drive the Club Racer open test day that took place over the whole of the weekend. Two days of open track was great for dialing in the ISF and I was able to collect more baseline data before the next round of modifications.
Back in June, after several months of owning the car, I introduced the new ISF project and sort of explained the direction I’d be taking the car. After a short Summer hiatus, I’ve accumulated a little more data, or what I’d think is at least is enough, to post an update.
Despite it’s pivotal role in guiding Lexus towards an evolutionary trajectory of car design, the ISF was a project that was often forsaken in favor of it’s European competitors. However, with over a decade since its initial release, many enthusiasts are finally realizing just how special this car really is.
Over the past few months, while we’ve all been confined to our immediate places of residence, I’ve had the unique opportunity to devote some time to this new (sort of) project of mine; the NDF ISF.
