Castle Combe Driver of the Day

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Karen was surprised and delighted to find out she'd been awarded the Driver of the Day award for the Castle Combe event!

Karen would like to thank Steve Vince, organiser of the Red Dragon Race and Track Club and Nippon Challenge for selecting her for the award. Karen is also very grateful to Nippon Challenge sponsors Scalextric for their fantastic prize of a "Turbo Flyers" Scalextric set.

Most importantly, Karen would like to thank her own sponsors TenguDo Motorsport. Not only did they lend Karen their own car for the event, but following the under bonnet fire they worked extremely hard and pulled out all the stops to get the car repaired for the second race of the day. It was during that race that Karen drove from 24th and last to finish 12th overall.


Felling Cranky...

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Karen was re-united with her own car at a recent shakedown session at Keevil airfield. The morning was very wet and immediately the car was running roughly and within a few laps of the circuit layout a Check Engine Light (CEL) was showing. This was quickly diagnosed as a problem with the Mass Airflow Sensor (MAF). The air-filter had become sodden and water was getting onto the MAF element causing the car to run roughly and go into limp home mode.

TenguDo Motorsport mechanic Mike installed some tubing to prevent water ingress into the induction system. However, this was still allowing in water, as the circuit was just so wet. A quick re-think saw the tubing within the engine bay. This meant hot air was being breathed in, but at least it was dry!

This saw the car running perfectly and Karen was extremely happy. After lunch things began to dry up and Karen got some decent running in her own car for a change. Power was good and torque was strong. Everyone was enthused and the plan was to enter the upcoming Silverstone races upon the return home.

Having returned home, it soon became apparent that when trying to remove the car from the trailer it wouldn't start. We feared the cambelt had slipped again! Various checks were performed but it all pointed to the timing. Mike came to the rescue again on the following weekend and proved the cambelt was fine. The brand new crank sensor was replaced with a 2nd hand item and the car started without trouble. After less than a day of running the new part had failed, which was very surprising, especially as it had no moving parts and was just a glorified magnet!

Following this, a Silverstone entry was duly sent. Richard then spent some time on the Sunday fitting a larger bonnet scoop and an intercooler spray system. Here's hoping these improvements help Karen get the best out of the car at Silverstone and she enjoys a couple of trouble free races -It's about time!


Japfest 2 - 8th July

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Karen attended the Japfest 2 event and spent the day giving paying passengers thrill rides around the circuit. Unfortunately, Karen's own car was still being worked on and so TenguDo Motorsport provided their #29 car for her to use.



The weather forecast was for heavy rain and so the car had been prepared with a soft suspension setup and Federal 595 RS-R tyres. the day had started dull, but then the sun came out and the weather was glorious! A fantastic time was had by all members of the Red Dragon Race and Track Club who had brought their cars for static display or for passenger drives on the circuit.


About Karen Phillips

  • Karen races her Impreza WRX in the Classic and Sports Car Club (CSCC) Modern Classics series, with her husband Richard as a 2nd Driver. The races are mini-endurance events involving a driver-swap. Karen has previously raced in the Nippon Challenge, a race series for Japanese and Asian cars. Karen has been racing since 2006, having started in the MR2 Challenge.
  • Please check this site regularly for updates on Karen's progress through the season and developments with her race car.

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