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USRRC: A Roar is Muffled at the Glen

22 August 1998

Today's practice sessions mark the debut of exhaust silencers in the U.S. for the #4 Visteon Panoz GTR-1. The #4 Visteon Panoz GTR-1, driven by David Brabham and Andy Wallace, was considerably quieter in the pits and on the race track, while the #5 Visteon Panoz GTR-1 remained unchanged. The Visteon Panoz Racing Team has been developing silencers since the beginning of the season, but had never used them in a race setting.

David Brabham, #4 Visteon Panoz GTR-1:
"It's a lot quieter than normal and a lot easier on my ears. The side exhaust on the Visteon Panoz GTR-1 exits below the driver's ear, and it can be difficult to hear without the silencers. This is just the starting point of the silencer program, so we're going to have to see just how good they are under full race conditions."

Andy Wallace, #4 Visteon Panoz GTR-1:
"The silencers take the sharp bark out of the exhaust note, which makes it a lot more pleasant.

"The Visteon Panoz GTR-1 is an incredible car for this circuit. Our race engineers changed the suspension settings between the morning and afternoon sessions, and the car is the best over bumps than it ever has been. Through turn 2 and up the hill, it was a bit scary before, but now I can take it flat out. The car is very driveable."

The #5 Visteon Panoz GTR-1, piloted by Eric Bernard and Raul Boesel, ran strong throughout both practice sessions.

Eric Bernard, #5 Visteon Panoz GTR-1:
"The Visteon Panoz Racing Team has made some changes to the car since yesterday's test sessions, and the car has gotten a lot better. We're still working on setting the car up for Watkins Glen, with its many high speed turns, but it's getting better and better."

Raul Boesel, #5 Visteon Panoz GTR-1:
"We've improved a lot since yesterday's test session. Watkins Glen International is a fun circuit. It's very fast with some blind corners -- especially turn three. The combination of the blind corners and the speed differences between the Can-Am, GT1, GT2, and GT3 cars means you have to be careful or else you'll get into trouble."