Throttle Commander, any good?

[humfrz]

Originally Posted by Qwimby1

Well if you guys want to get into a geriatrics contest, my first serious ride was in a Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser midget in 1958. When I was 21.

DAMD you're old - and they haven't taken your driver's license away from you yet? Have they tried? Oh, wait one ....... Florida -

[Qwimby1]

Originally Posted by humfrz

DAMD you're old - and they haven't taken your driver's license away from you yet? Have they tried? Oh, wait one ....... Florida -

They'd have to catch me first, and while I haven't done any track for a while, I'd be surprised if my lap times would be much different.

[humfrz]

Originally Posted by Qwimby1

They'd have to catch me first, and while I haven't done any track for a while, I'd be surprised if my lap times would be much different.

Yep, I got the picture -

[BRX]

The throttle response on the twins is pretty good, on a manual anyway.

On something else like an automatic SUV, it makes a big difference. On my 8-speed base model LC200 for example, it would need more than 70% throttle pedal input to downshift or even sometimes to stay in gear. I used a pedal commander for almost 2 years to make it drive how I wanted it to.

On higher trims, you could select a sport mode to solve this issue but my base trim didn't have that option and it pretty much felt like I was in ECO the whole time, not even normal mode.

I took the commander off eventually when I was able to calibrate the throttle through the stock ECU.

[Qwimby1]

Originally Posted by humfrz

Yep, I got the picture -

that looks like a Sprint car to me. Never drove one of those, but I did once drive a figure stocker in a moment of lunacy. We had two ovals in the Denver area then. Lakeside Speedway was a 1/5 mile asphalt oval. And there was a 1/4 mile dirt track in Englewood. It was owned by Charlie Codner and the dirt was so hard we named it Carter's Concrete Speedway


I always thought the Kurtis Kraft midget was a gorgeous car. Back then they had a small roll bar behind the head, and one guy did get a broken neck when he hit the wall backwards and died. The big cages that were later built over the cars were obviously sensible but they sure are ugly compared to the originals. for a short time, Kurtis Kraft built what they a called a roadster, which was lower and wider and the driver sat toward the left side of the cockpit. I only saw one of them and the guy who drove it wasn't much of a competitor so it didn't last long.

[humfrz]

Originally Posted by Qwimby1

that looks like a Sprint car to me. Never drove one of those, but I did once drive a figure stocker in a moment of lunacy. We had two ovals in the Denver area then. Lakeside Speedway was a 1/5 mile asphalt oval. And there was a 1/4 mile dirt track in Englewood. It was owned by Charlie Codner and the dirt was so hard we named it Carter's Concrete Speedway


I always thought the Kurtis Kraft midget was a gorgeous car. Back then they had a small roll bar behind the head, and one guy did get a broken neck when he hit the wall backwards and died. The big cages that were later built over the cars were obviously sensible but they sure are ugly compared to the originals. for a short time, Kurtis Kraft built what they a called a roadster, which was lower and wider and the driver sat toward the left side of the cockpit. I only saw one of them and the guy who drove it wasn't much of a competitor so it didn't last long.

Interesting story, thanks for sharing -

Your long term memory is kicking in real good -

[Qwimby1]

Continental Divide Raceway was built in 59 at Castle Rock south of Denver. It was a 2.8 mile road course. Later got an oval and drag strip. For the first couple years it was dirt. I never drove cars there but I raced my motorcycle there many times. About the only motorcycles around then were Triumphs, BSA's and Harleys. I guess a few Indians. Your dirt bike then was when you took the front fender off and put knobby tires on. I remember how amazed we all were when we saw the first purpose-built dirt bike. I don't remember the make. I had a Triumph Thunderbird. 650ccs. The governing body American Motorcycle Association board was made up mostly of Harley dealers. So the hogs got all kinds of preference in the rules. We had to run against the 55 inch Harley Sportster's and it wasn't much of a contest.

I once saw a Ferrari 212 Vignali there. I think they only made three of them. I recently saw one on Bring a Trailer and I wouldn't be surprised if that's the one I saw that day. I met Stirling Moss there


I think what was the track is a housing development now. I guess I shouldn't be hijacking a thread like this.

[WNDSRFR]

You realize that you're hijacking your own thread, right?

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by WNDSRFR

You realize that you're hijacking your own thread, right?

[Qwimby1]

Originally Posted by WNDSRFR

You realize that you're hijacking your own thread, right?

Yeah. I'll be contrite henceforth.

[WNDSRFR]

Please don't be. Everyone loves your stories.
I was just trying to point out that you were only hijacking yourself.

[Ultramaroon]

Thread etiquette allows us to take our own wherever the hell we wish. All yours, Quimby.

[Qwimby1]

Well I can think of one... We probably all had students who stick in our memory. I was with the Northern New Jersey Porsche Club chapter then. It was the biggest in the country, with more than 2000 members. We ran the Glen three or four times a year as I recall. Always three-day events. .

I had a young woman student who had a 944 Turbo and was already a very good driver. We had six run groups based on ability. Green, blue, white, black and red. She and her husband both drove the car. She in blue and him in white. I thought she should be in the white group for sure and didn't know how they going to deal with that because I didn't know if he was ready for black.


She told me she wasn't planning on driving for a while and I didn't think much of it. I took her out with me in the red group, which I didn't do very often unless I thought a student could benefit from it but still have sense enough to stay within their limits.

Later her mechanic, of all people, told me she was pregnant! That explained her planned absence. I think I may be the only instructor who ever took two passengers out at once. In one seat!

[Aaron Reed]

Internet says "the Pedal Commander can greatly improve your driving experience. By enhancing the throttle response of your vehicle, the Pedal Commander can make your acceleration smoother and more responsive, allowing you to navigate traffic more easily and pass other vehicles on the road with greater ease." But I still don't believe its lies