After 10 years of racing 700hp UMP Dirt Late Models the birth of our second girl required that I "slow down" a little bit. The time spent preparing and campaigning a full on race car wasn't going to mix with being a good father and husband.

So with that in mind and a friend in the local BMW Club a new mission was found - high speed driver education events at local road courses.

So what to drive? I needed a four door - no more two seaters.
Rear drive, five speed, independent rear suspension. Hmmm. The IS300 fit me well - like a pair of well worn boots. It drove great and was the perfect choice. Sporty enough to be fun, practical enough to drive to work every day.

These pictures are from Blackhawk Farms Raceway in South Beloit Wisconsin. This was a BMW Club Drivers Education Event. Great way to get one on one performance driving instruction.

In the pits under the shade of the old oak tree. Over time I have upgraded various suspension pieces. First was stainless brake lines, Motul 600 and new Carbotech Pads. I was happy with this stock configuration for many events as I explored the car and learned about the limits.

With a number of evets under my belt it was time to make some improvements. I loved the firm supple ride of the stock IS, but didn't like the rolling over in the corner. So I went with the Hotchkis Performance Adustable Sway Bars front and rear. I like these in that they have two mounting holes for changing the lever ratio and the effective rate. Eventually through some on track testing I found I liked both the front and rear bars on the firm setting.

Of Course tires and wheels are always important. I love tires. I have run through many sets on this car. The stock Bridgestones, a set of BF Goodrich Sports, a set of Falken Azenis RT615s - but my far and away favorites have been the Toyo RA1s. These are not every day driving to work tires, but full on racing rubber. On a second set of stock wheels - these have been a wonderful step up.

Trying to hear my smooth purring IS over the roar of other cars I modded a stock tailpipe muffler aseembly by cutting out the muffler entirely and creating a straight through tailpipe assembly.

Of course I still couldn't leave it alone. I eventually added Tokico five way adjustable shocks with H&R lowering springs. Coupled with full synthetic lubricants in all systems and a B&M Short Shifter I have had numerous track events on this car and continue to enjoy the fit, finish and performance of this car.