Westfield World, Issue 4 2009 – SBD Motorsport
Steve Broughton started SBD Motorsport in 1992, after working for British Aerospace and rallying in his spare time. At first it was a struggle. However, as the performance of his engines on the rally circuit impressed, SBD began to take off becoming one of the leading specialists in Club motorsport.
Originally Steve built and tuned Vauxhall engines, but recently he has expanded to include the Ford Duratec and Suzuki Hayabusa. The engines are used for all types of motorsport, including sprinting, hillclimbs. and circuit racing.
With only five members of staff, there's still the close-knit workshop feel that belies the scale on which SBD operates. Customers include both retail and trade, and over the years the export side has expanded worldwide.
Steve's favourite part of the job is developing new areas, such as superchargers, new taper throttle kits, electronics. Although the development costs have to be controlled, so it doesn't become too expensive for the customer. "The main aim is to make everything affordable for the customer," says Steve. "I'm not into making everything bespoke as I want the customer to be able to buy off the shelf. However, reliability has to be first. "
SBD is heavily involved in club motorsport, both as sponsors and competitors. All of their development work – both electronics and hardware – is tested in race conditions. This continuous testing filters down into every kit SBD sell, meaning that the customer can be sure they're getting race-tested kits, suitable for racing or the often harsher demands of regular track days. Another benefit of club racing involvement is that all of their claims are on show for people to see, along with the results. The downside is the 'oops' factor, which happens occasionally, but then it's back to the drawing board! Of course, getting to race frequently is a bonus that the whole team enjoy.
The electronic brain behind SBD engines is the MBE Management systems, which SBD has developed alongside MBE to include such features as traction control, launch control, and closed loop programming. The MBE systems can be used on any engines and over the years Steve has programmed engines ranging from Ferrari F40 to Porsche Turbo, have even supplied a system for a rotary engine microlight that flew over Mount Everest!
Steve's long association with Westfield began in 1992, when he built an engine for Christian Silk's Westfield to be used on the hillclimbs. This market proved very interesting, leading to SBD's first Westfield in 1995. There have been various Westfields over the years, competing in both hillclimbs and sprints. All have been used to develop both electronics and engine kits, although the supercharger kit is being tested on the SBD OMS, the drives have been produced for a Westfield.
Next year, the intention is to use the same electronics from the OMS on to the current Westfield including the paddle gear change. Matt Hillam is driving the S2000 SBD Westfield in the 2009 Westfield Speed Series and we wish him every success.
