5439cc

Amigo's
On October 4, 2002 I was invited to tag along to race against various stock and modified M5's at Englishtown Raceway Park. It's a private gathering of the M5 Forum guys, My brother got a pass for me to attend and race against some of the quickest cars to grace this planet. Some of the M5 guys are eager to see what the CLK55 //AMG can do against them. I ran a 1/4 mile last weekend and got a 13.9 and a 13.7 not bad, considering my tires were not gripping and the weather wasn't the best for testing. I recently changed my tires and put in a K&N filter. The weather here in northern NJ is perfect for this event. I'm going to take the advise of some local racers and remove my spare from the trunk and anything else, only keep 2 gallons of gas to travel to the track and then put 2 gallons of 100 octane (should mix in quickly) - I also replaced the exiting wheels to a lighter set of AMG 5 star which are 11lbs less per wheels - Hey everything counts when representing the AMG clan - Remember we are the DARK SIDE - I will post pics and videos. Wish Me Luck Amigos

CLKfanatic

whats the site for the M5 forum and is there a site for the M3 forum also?? Thanks

Chappy

5439cc,

You have my respect and best wishes for a fun and safe event.

Englishtown is a 1/4 track, right?

Your CLK55 won't even break a sweat, no matter how many runs you do!

Have a great time and enjoy the day with the M's.

Steve

Aus

Beautiful car,
Good luck buddy

Remember, if the unlikley event of you losing occurs- at least you look better

Gustav

Good luck

tommy.roks

good luck and have fun..

Improviz

try doing some GTECH runs with your gas at various levels, 1/4, 1/2, 3/4, full: I've found that with the gas at 1/4 or below, there's too much spin off the line. Having a bit more weight back there helps with traction, and in fact you might be able to gain enough of a traction benefit from doing this to more than offset the weight penalty. Do a few pre-track runs and see what you think, but I've definitely noticed a difference. 1/2 tank might be a bit better.

5439cc

Thanks For The Advise - This Morning I Performed A Couple Of Runs With 1/2 tank - I ran a 5.17 and 5.23 - Not bad
But I need to be consist If I am going to hang with the M5 guys

Improviz

Man, it's tough to get out of the hole without spinning those things to death...the gas thing helps, but even with a full tank, if the surface is halfway uneven it just cuts loose!

Actually, if you can run consistant 5's or 5.1's, you should be fine against the M5's. I ran a guy last week in one who's done some mods; he claimed his car dynos at around 30 more hp than other M5's, and that he'd recently run two back to back 12.9's in the car (which a guy I know who frequents the same track and has seen him in action verified). He got me, but only by a length or so, and he's the only M5 or M3 I've lost to yet. I've been pretty consistent in beating the others, usually by three or four carlengths.

I think I'll take mine to the strip here soon, because I think that it's either a fast example, or else the car mags got some really slow ones (or else these guys are all liars!! ). I raced a guy in a Saleen with a Rentech supercharger (puts out significantly more HP than the Saleen supercharger), and got him by a few lengths; he said he's run 13.1's in that thing! So, I'm very anxious to see how it does at the strip; based upon him and the M3, I'm pining for a 13.0. Stay tuned!

5439cc

Did you put in a K&N filter yet ? I picked up one from http://www.performanceproducts.com - I saw a dyno chart with and without the K&N there was a 8hp increase with the K&N.

Improviz

No, I haven't...I'm a bit leery of them, because I've heard that in some cases, they've been known to be a bit *too* free-flowing, letting dirt particles into the motor. This might just be Internet rumors, but I figured I'd keep it stock in that regard just to stay on the safe side...but it is tempting!

I'm considering an aftermarket exhaust, although my main concern there is noise: I don't want anything louder than the stock one. And a lower gear in the rear axle would be nice, although there I'm concerned about wear and tear on the motor...

One thing which really irks me about the gearing they use is that it's quite odd to have a car which is limited to 155 or so set up so that it doesn't shift to 5th gear until 150!! That really costs us in higher-up acceleration (although this is really nitpicking, as it's not like I'm up in the 120+ range on a regular basis!! ). Still, I suspect that the Autobahn runners would enjoy it, and the bragging rights would be nice!

ima55r2

Are you talking about a 6-speed manual or automatic in your 55? My slushbox is a 5-speed.

Improviz

Regime|Life

Good luck! Show them a Benz can do a thing or two

5439cc

Amigo's - Due To Today's Weather (Rain) The Englishtown Raceway Meet Has Been Rescheduled - (Frankly I Think The M5 Boyz Were Praying To The Rain Gods, They Knew The //AMG Would Give Them A Run For The MONEY) I Will Advise Of The New Scheduled Date.

JustinTRW

Wow, 13.9 is not very good for a CLK55! I have heard of CLK55s and C32s running fairly close, so you should be in the low 13's man! Good luck.