Leaving work this week I spotted a very large parking fail. Essentially the Audi TT is for lack of better words, screwed. The Pontiac Grand Prix and Dodge Stratus boxed him in really good. The Grand Prix is actually touching the rear bumper while the Stratus at least is not touching though is very close. Talk about a huge parking fail. I would be irate if I owned this TT. I have yet to figure out how some people can be so bad at parking.
Recently I had the pleasure of meeting the great folks of Evolution Motorsports. The crew, led by fearless founder and owner Todd Zuccone, came into town to tune a monster Porsche GT2 for a customer. They got to work quickly and set up shop at Imola Motorsports with Kevin and his crew for the week.
You know the saying all work and no play makes a something something something? Well, to avoid that scenario Todd and the crew brought along their latest creation, which they call the “PDK Car.” This is a 2010 Porsche 997.2 Twin Turbo equipped with the new PDK (Porsche Doppelkupplungsgetriebe, good luck saying that if you aren’t German) dual clutch transmission, which since this is a 201o model, has the proper paddle shifters, not those dumb buttons on the steering wheel.
After spending some time talking with Todd, it became very clear why they are one of the leaders in this industry. When I asked about his company versus the competition, he was very professional. His responses consisted of statements like “the work speaks for itself” and “really it is about experience”. After a nice chat, he tossed me the keys to the PDK car. Of course I had a big stupid grin on my face – because someone just tossed me keys to a 650 hp Porsche.
Below was the set up on the 997.2 TT I drove-
Evolution MotorSports EVT.2 650 HP Performance System
EVOMSit SDI3 ECU Calibration (www.evomsit.com)
EVOMS 65mm Billet VTG Turbochargers
EVOMS ClubSport Headers
EVOMS / Fabspeed 70mm Sport Exhaust w/ GT2 Style Tips
HJS Motorsport 200 Cell Catalysts
EVOMS Billet Boost Diverter Valves
Alright, so I know the real question is what was it like? Well two things, one I was in the middle of the city and did not have a long time with the car. Thus I did not have track access. Secondly, it was rush hour (note to self, plan better for these things). Regardless the car takes off like a you are being shot out of a rocket. Keep in mind the turbo 911′s have all wheel drive. Thus this car was clawing at the pavement from all four corners. This really made a huge impression with me when launching or even just hitting the gas. Todd had warned me that the tuning in the software for the PDK downshifts was not 100%. He was right, it is a little slow on the downshift. If you pull the left paddle (for a downshift) it has a slight delay and then drops down a gear. Upshifts are lightning fast and you can feel the shift under hard acceleration. When I say feel, it feels like a hard fast thud. Not a sound that makes you cringe however, because it does not sound like it is breaking. The sound is more of a clean quick shift made at lightning fast speed. The steering was terrific just like any other Porsche 997.2 TT. The exhaust sounded great with a strong braaap braaap noise coming with each shift.
The interior was mostly stock, though the seats were not stock – rather they were thin and covered in leather with center inserts to keep you from moving. They were very tight and you were not going to be moving during an aggressive track session. The seats also had a harnesses for track days and a fire extinguisher was bolted to the floor directly in front of the passenger seat. The particular car I was in had a factory navigation and sound system, along with automatic climate control. That was all fine and dandy, but I turned off the radio and the air conditioning, rolled down the windows and listened to the sweet sound of the tuned 3.8 liter pumping out 650 hp to all four wheels.
They took the car to this past months local Cars & Café , and after that headed over to the track to run some quarter mile figures. It ran consistent mid 10′s pushing 130 mph. This was achieved by someone that had never even been in the car. That in itself is a testament to the ease in which someone who has never gotten into the car can drive it consistently and pull great numbers.
Overall the “PDK car” was a beast. It was not twitchy or hard to drive, yet it had terrific power delivery. This is a car that could be tracked on Saturday and still drive to work on Monday. I already know they are working on a R8 Twin Turbo among other things. I can only expect to see greater things to come from EVOMS in the near future, and I for one look forward to that.
Full Disclosure- The review vehicle was provided by Evolution Motorsports
Episode 32 features many different dreams either coming to realization or turning into nightmares. Tony Pimpo, from GMInsideNews, is this Episode’s guest along with Joel Feder and Justin Loyear.
