Re: ADT on Sat, 25 June 2005
Leonard (Bogeyfree), Steven (SL2), Nik (Radon39), Daniel (Hymics) and myself took part in the ADT held on 25th June 2005. Alot of people have asked how was it like doing the ADT on the new e90 330s and the following are some of my comments and pics:
Oh well, I should start by saying that those of us who did the ADT on 25th June can proudly say that we were the "pioneer ADT trainees" to use the new e90 330s. We are not the "first trainees" though as those who went for IDT the week before were the first.
But with great anticipation, we all gathered at the pickup point at Raffles Marina for the bus-pickup at 6.45am. Reached Pasir Gudang at around 8.30am. Pasir Gudang is home to PML drivers training. We were greeted by PML banners everywhere and of course a fleet of at least 10 x 330s all in dark blue with sponsors' logos all over. The instructors' cars come with red siren at the top. 3 trainees to a car. No instructor on board. Instructions are given to trainees through walkie talkies which trainees listen to through the speakers in the car's sound system. Quite cool.
I shan't bore u with what we learn. Essentially we found out correct sitting position, what is understeer, oversteer, how to do emeregency lane changing, how to brake and swerve. In between stations located at various parks of the track, we get to take turns driving round the track in convoy style. We were provided with ample food for breakfast, lunch and dinner and the various stations were equipped with water and isotonic drinks.
The whole course ended with a slalom race. Of course, some of us also hopped into the instructor's ride for a quick 2 laps round the track. And that is when we say "WTF, u mean the 330i is capable of doing this speed with DSC off?". Whole affair ended by 6.30m and we were back at Raffles Marina by 7.30pm.
So here are my succint comments on the 330i. Truly powerful, sharp yet forgiving. Powerful coz with 2 other passengers and aircon at full blast, the car is still damn torquey. The 3litre engine is such a joy to listen to. The handling is very sharp. Juz point and shoot. The active drive is a bonus best felt when doing u-turns and parking. Forgiving can be shown by how the instructor lapped the car without DSC. Forgiving is how we got to experience the car with and without DSC switched on during the "Understeer" and "Oversteer" sessions. DSC is an amazing safety technology.
So at the end of the day, is the $500 worth it? My answer is absolutely. U get a designer look dry fit white Tshirt, an ADT cap, an ADT cert recognized worldwide to allow u to move on and do IDT not only in Spore but elsewhere, the free bus svs bringing u to and from Pasir Gudang, the thrashing we gave to the 330s, especially the brakes and the tyres and finally the invaluable experience we gained from the training. We probably hope we dun have to pull any of those stunts we learned but in an emergancy, we can safely say we are now better equipped.
P/s: For those who can't decide whether to do ADT on a Sat or Sun, my advise is to go for the Sat one. Reason being that the brand new Micheline PS2 tyres they use only last 2 ADT sessions. Needless to say, those who go on Sat get to use the new tyres and those who go on Sun get to used the leftovers haha.
