If you happened to drive by Filinvest Corporate City last November 13 or 14 and heard what you think were Formula car engines ripping through the hot afternoon air, don’t think that you were hallucinating. For that weekend, the streets of the Corporate City were turned into a temporary racetrack, for a wide variety of competing vehicles-from motorbikes to Japanese sedans to single-seat formula cars. It’s not quite Sepang or Goodwood (as we imagine), but the racing did add up to a weekend of entertainment for petrolheads.
Even when the cars were standing still, the Festival was a feast for the eyes. Mazda MX-5 Miatas lining a whole street! Vintage Volkswagens (but no New Beetles or Golfs in sight.) In the pit lane, race-prepared Honda Civic SiRs and Type Rs rubbed shoulders with Formula Toyotas.
The weekend had the three categories of car racing as the main events: Corolla Cup, Supercar and Formula Toyota. Spicing things up further were the scheduled motorcycle race and exhibition races by the Volkswagen and Miata car clubs. We spent Sunday with the Soundbase team which fielded cars in the Corolla cup and Supercar categories.
The Corolla Cup series focuses on the driver. His skill is the winning factor here because all the cars are identical: 1992-1998 model Toyota Corolla 1.6 GLis. The only modifications allowed are the rollcage, stripped down interior, stiffened and lowered suspension, brake pads and exhaust. All the rest, from the familiar 1.6 liter 16V EFI engine to the rear drum brakes remain showroom stock. If you think this means ho-hum racing then think again! The lack of modifications make the car significantly more challenging to drive than if, say, brake modifications were allowed.
In fact, there were several major accidents during the first Corolla Cup race. One car went through a barrier at the end of a straight. We stood at the sidewalk right beside the course when a front wheel on Mike Tuason’s car touched the inside of a corner then slid sideways at full speed onto an island. Island and car were severely damaged. Luckily, the trees on the island didn’t block the flying car’s path or it would have bounced back onto the road. Shaken but thankfully not seriously injured, the drivers were able to climb out on their own. Soundbase Team’s Joby Oreta started from 10th but outbraked and sped past the others to finish 2nd.
After the first race, the cars were examined by race officials. The culprits in the accidents were indeed the brakes. Except for Oreta’s car, the brake pads in all Corollas were all but worn out completely, despite the competition pads fitted. Given this situation and the track’s unforgiving nature, the second Corolla cup race was cancelled. The teams agreed with a mixture of relief and disappointment.
Soundbase’s weapon of choice is a Honda Civic hatchback. Not a modified SiR, mind you, but a genuine Type R straight from Japan. This means of course a DOHC VTEC engine, at a higher state of tune than the SiR’s. The engine is managed by a Mugen ECU, and together with exhaust modifications, the engine output is a meaty 185 bhp. The suspension is also by Mugen, and it’s stiff enough that the car can stand on three wheels when cornering. Brakes are the same as a Honda NSXs. Clearly there wasn’t much risk of a brake failure here. If you tune in to Star TV for the Southeast Asian Touring Car races, this is the very same car that you’ll see blasting its way around Subic and other courses.
Soundbase driver Angelo Barretto explained that their Civic Type R was at a power disadvantage compared to the aforementioned Civic SiRs and “Corolla Atlantic”, by perhaps 20 and 65 bhp respectively. However, the Type R exhibited a better balance due to its racing suspension and brakes. Also, its chassis was reinforced at just the right places to ensure that cornering was optimized. He hoped that this superior handling combined with his driving would be enough to win that day.
As he predicted, that was how his Supercar race turned out. Starting from 6th, Angelo was able to outbrake two cars and climbed to 4th position. The Corolla Atlantic was in the lead, followed by the two SiRs. The three lead cars were clearly much more powerful, as the Type R was left behind in the long straights. However, Angelo was able to gain back some ground in the corners, where he was able to cut a cleaner and faster racing line. The Corolla Atlantic engine seemed to prove too much for the drivetrain to handle, and it retired. Angelo was able to decisively overtake the second of the SiRs to finish second.
The centerpiece event of the weekend was the Formula Toyota races, part of the ongoing series at the Batangas Racing Circuit (BRC). Indeed, this weekend was also organized by the BRC. Graduates from the country’s karting series such as Norman Arteficio and Pepon Marave were the drivers tapped to pilot these cars. The Formula Toyotas looked quite odd racing along the narrow straights and corners of the Corporate City, but no more so than 800-bhp F1 cars blasting past Monaco’s St-Devote Church. Mike Tuason shrugged off his earlier accident to win the Formula race, followed by drivers Silverio and Jele.
Despite the roar and the power of the Formula cars, the most exciting racing of the afternoon in our view belonged to the Corolla Cup and Supercar series. The Corolla cup in particular was a close battle with any of the competitors a potential winner. One thing is for certain: we’ll never look at Corollas and Civics the same way again!
Special thanks to : Angelo Barretto, Kiko Oreta and Joby Oreta of Soundbase.
By Redline | Photos courtesy of Redline
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