Tuned In

We've got an absolute banger for this week's episode of the High Performance Academy Tuned In podcast, as the legendary Ben Collins sits down for some quality chats with Andre about all things driving and, of course, being the Stig. You may not know the name, but you'll definitely recognise the white overalls and helmet.

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Andre first leans in on Ben's wealth of experience when it comes to professional motorsport and driver training to talk about honing your skills behind the wheel. Ben's insight into common mistakes to avoid, how to get the most out of your car, and things he wishes all drivers knew are valuable ones.

The pair then move on to the real meat and potatoes of the whole thing — how does someone even become the Stig? Ben charts his unexpected rise from an inexperienced driver who'd never even been in race car before 18, to becoming one of the most famous drivers in the world — if not by name. This is a man that has driven and raced almost every type of race and street car, from open-wheelers, to NASCAR, to V8 Supercars, to the 24 Hours of Le Mans and countless roadgoing exoticas — and that means there's just a huge amount of gold worth diving into.

Interested in learning how to do your own wheel alignment for the track or street? Start with a free alignment & suspension 101 lesson now: hpcdmy.co/alignmentf

What was life like as the Stig? How did he keep his identity secret for so long? How much pressure was there for manufacturers to turn in a good lap? What was the best car he ever drove? Andre was bursting full of questions for Ben in this fascinating podcast — so if you want answers to any of the above and much, much more, this is going to be a great podcast for you.

Running 80 PSI of boost and in excess of 2500HP Croyden Racing Developments 'JUN II' is one of the quickest GT-R Skylines in the world with a 6.86 1/4 mile pass at 204mph at the time of recording, most impressively with a street-legal chassis and the weight that comes with that!

This interview with Con from CRD was filmed at Sydney Jamboree where unfortunately race day was rained off but we're excited to see what the car and bigger turbo setup can do in the future.

Want to develop your own skills further? Start with a free live lesson! Claim your spot now: https://www.hpacademy.com/free 

On this week's episode of High Performance Academy's Tuned In podcast, Andre is joined by a legend of the Australian tuning scene, Micks Motorsport's Michael Baghdadi.

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Mick has been a long time friend of Andre and of HPA, and comes into the conversation ready to lay down a wealth of knowledge when it comes to all things engine building, dyno tuning, and drag racing. 

With a common shared interest in both Mitsubishi's 4G63 and Nissan's SR20 engine platforms, Andre and Mick go way off the deep end in this one. We couldn't quite tell if this conversation evolved into a 'who knows more about these engines' contest, or it was simply – to put it crassly – just a couple of very knowledgable pigs in sh*t, talking shop. Either way, it's a great listen for anyone who wants to get way into the finer details on what makes these two Japanese performance engine staples great, and not so great.

Want to learn how to EFI tune? Start with some free lessons right here: hpcdmy.co/efilesson

Mick also drops a surprising amount of trade secrets into the mix over the hour-long conversation, and there are some great discussions on the differences between pump fuel, E85, race gas, and methanol – not just the price and the numbers, but what they all actually mean for a tuner sitting on a dyno.

Do you enjoy listening to two experts go full geek on their chosen field? If so, this is the episode for you.

Mick's Evo VIII tech tour: https://youtu.be/VUUx7AICy_c

More and more late-model vehicles are using CAN bus to help control almost every function in a car from engine-related functions to touch-sensitive door handles. While on the surface this technology is great, when we want to start modifying a vehicle for track use it can cause complications.

Want to develop your own skills further? Start with a free live lesson! Claim your spot now: https://www.hpacademy.com/free 

In this week's episode of High Performance Academy's Tuned In podcast, Andre reaches out to Finland to talk billet, big horsepower, and engine building with Elmer Racing's Oskar Elmgren.

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Elmer Racing is best known for its incredible bespoke billet engines and its success with the PR Tech Racing Porsche 968 at World Time Attack Challenge. The 'RP968' runs one of Elmer Racing's monster four-litre, four-cylinder Thor engines. It holds the time attack record at Sydney's Eastern Creek circuit and is shockingly close to the outright record, held by Nico Hülkenberg in an A1GP car.

With Thor engines dominating out in the wild and a new five-litre 'Hell' engine based on the Nissan VR38 nearly ready to hit the market, we thought this would be the perfect time to sit Oskar down and talk about how someone even goes about building an exquisite piece of tech like this. Where do you start? Is it all trial and error? What are the limitations? Is a billet engine for anyone that can afford it?

Learn more about Performance Engine Building by coming along to the next FREE lesson: hpcdmy.co/enginebuildingf

Thankfully, Oskar is a fairly open book, and his insights into the very pointy end of the industry is a fascinating one. This episode dives deep into the weeds of the performance engine building world, and there's plenty in here that'll surprise even the most seasoned performance enthusiast. 

Jett Racing recently reset the world record with a 6.20 at 229 mph with their 2200HP, 110 PSI compound turbocharged 4g63 monster.

Want to develop your own skills further? Start with a free live lesson! Claim your spot now: https://www.hpacademy.com/free 

After a week off for the new year's break, we're back and starting off 2022 strong with an interesting and very informative chat with HPA's wiring and motorsport electronics tutor, Zac Perston. 

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Although Zac currently spends most of his time working for a prestigious university here in New Zealand, he's also the brains behind all our motorsport wiring courses, and any time not spent at the university is used up working on fresh HPA lessons and helping out our members in the forums.

Unlike many in the industry, Zac received a tertiary education before getting involved in motorsport, and his perspective on education and whether you need a degree to work at a high level is an interesting one. It's perhaps this qualification that also got him the tick when going to work for Rodin Cars, a fascinating high-end hypercar and racecar facility in the South Island of New Zealand. Zac discusses the ups and downs of working in such an intense and demanding environment.

Want to learn more about motorsport wiring? Claim your spot to the next FREE lesson: hpcdmy.co/wiringlessonf

Andre and Zac also talk all things motorsport wiring — that means everything from PMUs,  to the dreaded 'MILspec' term that's so often thrown about these days,  and how much knowledge you actually need to start creating your own high-end, super reliable motorsport wiring systems. 

There's a lot here for anyone remotely interested in motorsport wiring here, and Zac, as always, is a fountain of knowledge and interesting insight in the field. 

Ever wondered what it would take to build a 10,500RPM, 500HP V8 motorcycle-based engine? Wonder no more as the RPE RP-V8 is just that.

Want to develop your own skills further? Start with a free live lesson! Claim your spot now: https://www.hpacademy.com/free  

The 2.3L 4G63 in this EVO 6 can produce up to 590HP, but why is that not necessarily a good thing?

Benjamin Perry of Benchmark Solutions runs us through the Evolution Racing Spares EVO 6 which took out first place honours in the Clubsprint Class at the last World Time Attack Challenge. Running up to 590HP from 37 PSI (440KW at 2.5 Bar) the team actually turned down the boost from the Garrett GTX3576R GEN II in order to make suspension and driver changes in order to get a PB out of both around Sydney Motorsports Park.

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

On this week's episode of High Performance Academy's Tuned In podcast, Andre is joined by race car fabricator extraordinaire Cody Loveland. Cody's name is probably best known for its association with the famous Pikes Peak hill climb race, held annually in Colorado, where he has campaigned various extremely quick vehicles over the last decade.

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Cody and Andre spend some time talking about the race itself, as well as Cody's best known machine, the incredible Enviate Hypercar. This 1000kg, twin-turbo LS-powered monster is bristling with extreme carbon fibre aero and runs in the unlimited class at Pikes Peak. The single-seater weapon benefits from some seriously cool engineering and input from Formula 1 engineers and aerodynamicists out of Europe.   

Interested in learning how to do your own wheel alignment for the track or street? Start with a free alignment & suspension 101 lesson now: hpcdmy.co/alignmentf

Cody talks us through the inevitable ups and downs that come with running such an extreme vehicle in one of the most demanding races on the planet, as well as how he got to where he is today and what it takes to stay there. While your own involvement in motorsport might be as grassroots as it gets, there are plenty of lessons to be learnt by listening to Cody discuss the challenges and downright disasters he's faced, and how he and his team eventually overcame them. 

If you like to build your racecars instead of buying them, this is going to be an unmissable episode for you.