One Lap of America - 5/6/2001

  

On May 7, 2001, several Saturn Performance Club members gathered in Chicago and made a road trip to Michigan to witness two events in the famous One Lap of America race.

If you're not familiar with One Lap, it's a race sponsored by Michelin and Car & Driver that is the modern day equivalent of the Cannonball (made famous in the movies).  One Lap takes place over the course of a week and includes racing events held at many tracks throughout the U.S.  The schedule is very demanding on both the drivers and on the cars, as they cover 4000 miles in just 8 days.  If you'd like more details, take a look at the interesting history on the One Lap website.

In 2001, 96 cars participated in eleven classes.  Cars are categorized by their base price without including the cost of modifications.  The week included 15 racing events at tracks across the U.S.   You can see my coverage of last year's race HERE.

Saturn entered two cars in 2001's One Lap of America - a 2001 SC1 and a 2000 LW300.  Team members included:

Ken Wasmer, Assistant Chief Engineer - L-Series, Farmington Hills, MI
Jon Heltman, Vehicle Technician - Milford Proving Grounds, Holly, MI
Chuck Taylor, Ride & Handling Development Engineer - midsize platforms, White Lake, MI
Tom Brandlehner, Field Services Engineer - SE Region, Atlanta, GA
Chris Berube, GM Portfolio Department, Sterling Heights, MI

You can read more information about the cars and the team on Saturn's site HERE.

Yellow coupe (30k)Yellow coupe (26k)

With careful observation and asking a few questions, we were able to compile this list of the yellow 2001 SC1's modifications.  While this list may not be 100% accurate, we feel that it should be pretty darn close.
  
DOHC engine bored to 2.1 liter w/ lowered compression
15w50 Mobil 1 oil
Factory plug wires
Turbonetics turbo
Custom turbo exhaust header
HKS Valve Pressure Controller
Front-mounted air-to-air intercooler
Custom modified engine cradle (to clear turbo/intercooler piping)
Trunk-mounted battery
Relocated coil packs
Custom programmed PCM
Ducted hood for better engine cooling
2-core aluminum radiator
Custom engine cooling fans & shroud
Boxed-off cold-air intake w/ conical filter
Torsen limited-slip differential
Custom 4th & 5th gears
Custom exaust
Luk clutch
3-way 16.5 mm rear sway bar
Ducted brakes
Stock brake rotors
KFP Magnum Gold front brake pads
Stock rear brake pads
Hood & trunk pins
Front strut tower bar
Welded-in rear strut tower bar
H&R Sport springs
Carrera strut housings
Koni adjustable strut cartridges
16x7 Lenso VPD wheels
215/45-16 Michelin Pilot tires
Recaro seats modified for quick removal
Autometer oil press & oil temp gauges
RJS Racing harness
Stripped interior
  
At low boost (7 psi), the Coupe's motor was able to produce 200 - 230 hp on an engine dyno.  At high boost (around 15 psi), the motor was estimated to be in the 280 hp range.  Boost was adjustable from the cockpit.

Click on any of the thumbnails below for a larger version (requires a Javascript-enabled browser).
  

Ducts
Engine cooling duct and air intake (to left)
  
Brake duct
Brake cooling duct
  
Muffler
Exhaust
  
Front end
Front end
  
Low front view
Low front view
  
Intercooler
Intercooler
  
Piping
Intercooler piping, view from driver's side
  
Piping
Intercooler piping, view from passenger side
  
Piping
Intercooler piping, view from top
  
Airbox & filter
Airbox & filter
  
Coil packs
Relocated coil packs
  
Radiator
Radiator
  
Engine
View of engine
  
Throttle body
To throttle body
  
Header & turbo
Header & turbo
  
Turbo
Turbo, coolant piping
  
Turbo & fans
Turbo & radiator fans
  
Cradle
Modified cradle
  
Rear strut bar
Rear strut bar
  
Gauges & controller
Gauges & controller
  
Interior
Interior
  

Wagon (27k)Wagon (20k)

The list of the 2000 LW300 wagon's modifications included:
  
K&N air filter
Custom exhaust w/ Supertrapp muffler
Extrude-honed intake manifold
Mobil 1 synthetic oil & trans fluid
Speed limiter removed from PCM
Koni adjustable struts
Solid cradle & steering mounts
Stiffer suspension bushings
Stiffer front & rear anti-sway bars
Stock brake rotors
Power steering fluid cooler
Hood pins
17 x 7 Opel alloy wheels
225/45-17 Michelin Pilot Sport tires
RJS racing harness
Removal of interior trim, carpet, and soundproofing
Custom red paint
  
Click on any of the thumbnails below for a larger version (requires a Javascript-enabled browser).

  
Engine
Engine compartment
  
Exhaust
Exhaust
  

 

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