Track Day :( ?

[djr81]

what about if he's running over 400rwkw and traction is an issue at the best of times?

i wouldnt be surprised if he shread a full good set of street tyres in one outing... pretty expensive

The problem is you are a bit stuffed either way.

If you run a road tyre then they will quickly be ruined by an R32 - the fronts because unless you run large amounts of -ve camber the tread blocks get chamfered really quickly & the rears because they will just get bagged up.

If you run an R compound you wont get anything like the full benefit simply because you are learning. Perhaps worse you will heat cycle them a little to take the edge of their perfornamce at a later stage. What I would be worried about for someone lacking experience is making sure they get properly warmed on the outlap such the one end doesn't some in quicker than the other. Then you start worrying about pressures.....

Given the hp & the circuit I would prbably lean towards the RE55's. No you wont get the full benefit from them but then again it takes more than one set of tyres to learn how to drive a car.

On the other hand if people start out on skid pans/kharnas or generally more restricted stuff road tyres would be the go.

Maybe the solution is to get half pregnant - or in other words go for some Falken or Federals. Atleast then you get the predictability of a stiff sidewall without the extra grip of a proper R compound.

[Belsil80]

Semis for first time track goers are a no no! I will argue until i am blue in the face.

Why? A brand new set of 55's is over the top, but when you can throw a set of ao48's on with a heap of rubber left for $200-$300 why not have something more progressive.

Take your car for example. 260kw atrw with a lightswitch turbo, ideally it is not wise to have this straight up at a track day, but say you did, would you really like to be learning that on streets? Mick and tim run streets on a very similar car and they are still sideways near the start finish at sandown.

[R31Nismoid]

The problem is you are a bit stuffed either way.

If you run a road tyre then they will quickly be ruined by an R32 - the fronts because unless you run large amounts of -ve camber the tread blocks get chamfered really quickly & the rears because they will just get bagged up.

If you run an R compound you wont get anything like the full benefit simply because you are learning. Perhaps worse you will heat cycle them a little to take the edge of their perfornamce at a later stage. What I would be worried about for someone lacking experience is making sure they get properly warmed on the outlap such the one end doesn't some in quicker than the other. Then you start worrying about pressures.....

Given the hp & the circuit I would prbably lean towards the RE55's. No you wont get the full benefit from them but then again it takes more than one set of tyres to learn how to drive a car.

On the other hand if people start out on skid pans/kharnas or generally more restricted stuff road tyres would be the go.

Maybe the solution is to get half pregnant - or in other words go for some Falken or Federals. Atleast then you get the predictability of a stiff sidewall without the extra grip of a proper R compound.

Ye thats what i mean... your kinda in no mans land as a beginner, but with a punt load of power thats peaky street tyres maybe not the best idea

And certainly not full benefit, far from it. Would take a number of track days to even get close wringing every bit from the tyres for a year or two for your average club level motorsport punter!

[NickR33]

that car has A LOT of power, it will be a handful even on ao48's never mind the Azenis or Federals... you will just have to be careful on the throttle out of corners... just wait til she's straightened up before you pin it and work in the higher gears... do some laps, get a feel for the circuit as far as braking and racing lines go... then when you get more confident (and some really decent semis) you can work on getting on the power earlier and harder out of corners etc

[GTR 94]

ok guys once again all input is great and very much appreciated, so thank you.

just want to clear some things up. im not going out to set records or compete like a mad man, i just wanna see what its like to actually have my car on the track that is all.

anyway i have just noticed that phillip island on the 4th has a driver training session option, does anyone think this would be a good idea? its half the price of sandown, which makes it more appealing and im not big note ting but i feel confident in my car and driver ability, that i dont feel like a complete novice but certainly not cocky, if you still think sandown with Driver dynamics is a better option then ill definitely look more in to that.

also back to the tyre thing, i know this may sound absolutely ridiculous but would it be possible to run the RE55's on the front and a street tyre on the rear? im not so concerned about over steer and powering out of corners but more about the car under steering as im coming in to corners

once again thank you kindly

[djr81]

ok guys once again all input is great and very much appreciated, so thank you.

just want to clear some things up. im not going out to set records or compete like a mad man, i just wanna see what its like to actually have my car on the track that is all.

anyway i have just noticed that phillip island on the 4th has a driver training session option, does anyone think this would be a good idea? its half the price of sandown, which makes it more appealing and im not big note ting but i feel confident in my car and driver ability, that i dont feel like a complete novice but certainly not cocky, if you still think sandown with Driver dynamics is a better option then ill definitely look more in to that.

also back to the tyre thing, i know this may sound absolutely ridiculous but would it be possible to run the RE55's on the front and a street tyre on the rear? im not so concerned about over steer and powering out of corners but more about the car under steering as im coming in to corners

once again thank you kindly

The concern is not that you will set any records but that you will bin the car. PI is not a good place in the sense that you can have monumental offs.

Driver trainings worth relies on the quality of the instructer & the ability of the student to understand/implement the instructions.

As for your last idea. No. Look, the car will understeer but it mostly affects the point at which you can begin to apply power. It really has little affect on cornering speed. It is not that much of an issue on corner entry.

Oh and make sure the brakes are up to scratch too.

[Do-Luck]

Definately do DT. Best thing you can do for a first track day IMO, especially with PI, it is a bit of an intimidating track.

I learnt the hard way, I binned my car there

[NickR33]

yeah much easier to learn the lines at Sandown... PI is a track you need to visit a few times before you get a handle on it... I swear I got completely lost in a few corners at PI... where's the damn apex! lol

The Driver Dynamics days are good because they aren't timed and you get plenty of track time... that means you won't have to worry that your holding people up etc and the others on the circuit won't be getting frustrated that they can't get past... nothing more annoying than someone holding you up through the corners then blasting away on the straight as they are packing 1 billion KW but then holding you up again at the next corner

[some_cs_student]

I recommend the Driver's Dynamic's days as well

If not, you don't strictly need a CAMS license, often the other licensing standard (AASA?) is fine for most club events.

The driver's dynamics days do not require fire extinguisher or license.

Club days will also be great, take it easy and you'll be fine, avoid the Winton fun days (there cheap track time but they are not the safest in my opinion).

Oh, I've never really determined what the "correct" tyre pressures are for a track day, everyone talks about them but I've never found a clear reference on what to run for a street tyres, 235/45/17 stock R33 GTR rims, normally I run 38psi on the street...

[clip14]

turn down the boost, run less power.

then you can learn on street tyres. then slowly crank up the power as you get more comfortable until you find the need for more traction.

[LotusGTR]

Sorry if this has already been posted, but I'm thinking more of mechanical preservation. Oil change, over-fill by 1litre, ideally oil cooler, lots of pads, good quality pads, fluid change, under car inspection to make sure everything is right. Might be overkill, but I've blown an engine, found my brakes to be useless and ruined many a track day not to mention blown a king's ransom.......Pay now, or pay more later......Consider oil temps too. Do hot laps and cool laps. I'd short shift too if it's an all day thing...I ran semis on my first track day and would recommend. I've never run street tyres on a track but my guess is they would become very frustrating to drive on and you'll start scrubbing them to buggery.

Hope that's of some use. Maybe talk to your mechanic as he'll know what's up with your car. Or maybe you know what you're doing yourself and don't ring the mechanic when you need to do anything (like me)

[Roy]

Forget power down traction etc. If you have done as much driver training as me you will realise that generally first timers are way too slow with opposite lock and have regular tank slappers. The grip that semis afford masks bad driving habits. Street tyres with their lower grip thresholds teach people control .... and as they cpome to grips with how cars react at lower speeds on street tyres they will be ready for how cars react with semis.

My opinion only...

PS this is not considering the cost of tyres, or the wear of tyres etc. Simply the learning curve of people doing scary speeds on the track

[Sheriff Wan]

I think your on the right track, your not trying to set lap records or anything so just ensure the car is up to scratch as has been said check pads fluid etc etc and don't go over board.

Get out there wether it's a driver training day or just a club day and have a blast!

Drive within the cars limits and more improtantly your limits and you'll be fine.

It's not like the track is going to force you to understeer or chew your tryes.... you do that yourself...

[GTR 94]

I learnt the hard way, I binned my car there

ouch comment like this "no offense" but not what i need to hear but thank you for the honesty. i guess it is a risk we take.

I think your on the right track, your not trying to set lap records or anything so just ensure the car is up to scratch as has been said check pads fluid etc etc and don't go over board.

Get out there wether it's a driver training day or just a club day and have a blast!

Drive within the cars limits and more importantly your limits and you'll be fine.

It's not like the track is going to force you to under steer or chew your tryes.... you do that yourself...

Sheriff thank you very much your comment is much appreciated, i think you understand where im coming from cheers.

ok so car is A1 as far as fluids brakes etc etc, i have been reading the cams booklet and as for the fire extinguisher that i have purchased, the book only menchens that it must be accessible by the driver at all times. does this mean i can put it in my glove box? its not going anywhere in there and is still easily accessible, i know it sounds stupid but im not looking to drill any holes at the moment into my interior, and i cant find any brackets to direct bolt it in to the car.

cheers

[Rekin]

ouch comment like this "no offense" but not what i need to hear but thank you for the honesty. i guess it is a risk we take.

Sheriff thank you very much your comment is much appreciated, i think you understand where im coming from cheers.

ok so car is A1 as far as fluids brakes etc etc, i have been reading the cams booklet and as for the fire extinguisher that i have purchased, the book only menchens that it must be accessible by the driver at all times. does this mean i can put it in my glove box? its not going anywhere in there and is still easily accessible, i know it sounds stupid but im not looking to drill any holes at the moment into my interior, and i cant find any brackets to direct bolt it in to the car.

cheers

Get a peice of metal, drill holes on each end and mount it to the bolts holding the seat rail. Then attach the fire exting bracket to the metal. and done

[GTR 94]

ok so ive been bored and thought maybe ill have a look at mounting this fire extinguisher inn, tell me if you think it will be ok, its mounted on the passenger side, just in front of the back seat. its very sturdy and is still accessible from the driver seat with the passenger seat in the full back position.

[Rekin]

ok so ive been bored and thought maybe ill have a look at mounting this fire extinguisher inn, tell me if you think it will be ok, its mounted on the passenger side, just in front of the back seat. its very sturdy and is still accessible from the driver seat with the passenger seat in the full back position.

seems quite a stretch? Can you reach that from your drivers seat with seatbelt on?

Would you be able to reach it whilst upside-down with smoke filling the car ?

[GTR 94]

ok so ive been bored and thought maybe ill have a look at mounting this fire extinguisher inn, tell me if you think it will be ok, its mounted on the passenger side, just in front of the back seat. its very sturdy and is still accessible from the driver seat with the passenger seat in the

[llama_au]

You should really have it mounted in the front of the car, in an accident where you're trapped in your seatbelt I doubt you could reach that. Mines mounted in front of my front passenger seat.

[some_cs_student]

In regard to brake fluid, look at RBF600 from bike shops or similar, its DOT 4 and not compatible with all other DOT 4's so flush it out completely when you put it in

But its not DOT 5 so I recommend it as it has less chance of getting moisture in it and it doesn't contain the same chemicals that DOT 5 does.

The 1 litre oil overfill is not required, but some people do it....

The fire extinguisher, my one is in the rear, its a stretch but if I did flip the car and there was smoke coming out, the fire extinguisher wouldn't be the first thing on my mind anyway, and I never plan on doing that

I'd more likely expect my engine bay to catch on fire or something.

If it goes in the front that is the better way to do it but I wanted to avoid drilling any new holes in the car, so its upto the individual