Eastern Creek - Car Setup Tips

[kristafa]

Hi guys,

we'll be competing at world time attack, eastern creek later this year and would like to ask a few of the frequenter's to EC what we could expect from the track..

I've only ever raced up here at QR on the sprint and clubman tracks which i've found asks alot from the tyres and brakes (which are likely to be the biggest factors at any track mind you), i've watched alot of youtube onboard vid's of guys tracking EC just to get an idea of the way to attack it and perhaps gets a feel how my car might respond to some of the conditions.

Has someone done an article on EC before that might be worth reading?

currently my car is setup fairly soft (6/8kg, soft swaybars, mild dampening) which seems to feel good at QR since the track surface is full of 'character'..

Its a E36 bmw with rb26 so not much like anything else out there which is going to be hard to get an idea of the setup we should bring, so that's why my question is more aimed at the track and not how to setup a skyline, etc for EC

thanks guys any info on how to drive this track would be great! evo nats was at EC on the weekend and i heard a couple of them came to grief, just hoping to stay away from any nasties during my visit..

cheers,

Chris

[evil_weevil]

please post more info on your car! sounds like its a good thing!

I guess my expereince and set up will be different as Im non turbo, 75rwkw..I need corner speed more than anything.

what tyres will you be running?

[hrd-hr30]

without wanting to sound rude, looking at the times in your sig: a 13.2 sec qtr mile car should be capable of a fair bit faster than 65 at QR Sprint. Just get more seat time and worry about setup later, unless the car handles like a complete dog.

[Beer Baron]

my experience with cars we've rune elsewhere and then at eastern creek is that you will need to go a little stiffer in bars/springs/dampers than you have at QR (nothing crazy though). EC is not particularly bumpy and how quick you can get it through turn 1 is pretty important. 2 reasons, it's at the end of a long straight, and the beginning of another fairly long one (from T1 to T2 is a long way). The more speed you can carry through T1 will get you down to T2 that much quicker. there is another long straight bit after the T9 hairpin which sends you into the T10/11/12 complex and it's an odd entry with the track curving right (T10) in the braking zone for T11 (left hander). need good change of direction here to be able to get on the power nicely for the double left hander which is T11/12 which brings you back onto the front straight.

the rest of the track is mostly 3rd/4th gear stuff and again fairly smooth, no big bumps in braking zones or corner exit zones so you won't need as much compliance as you may do at QR.

although as harry said I wouldn't throw the baby out with the bath water and make wholesale changes to your car just for EC. you may make it harder to drive. if you are comfortable with how it handles now perhaps some small incremental change is the best bet and just try and maximise seat time to get a handle on the track. I would say it's one of those tracks that's very easy to learn, tough to master. you should be able to get up to 8 or 9/10ths pretty quick but getting that last bit of time can be tough at EC.

car sounds awesome. can't wait to see it. good luck.

[kristafa]

harry, seat time is always an issue being so busy and driver improvement is always in the crosshair. I really should update my sig since thats the old rb20 setup which has been gone a few years now :|

Richard I was hoping you would comment here your knowledge on different tracks and setups (in other sau threads) hasn't gone unnoticed! I'll digest what you've said, but I just wanted to know what to expect really which you've covered nicely, will you be at WTAC for consultation.. or perhaps racing..?

sounds like more than anything i'll have to make sure i have ample courage pills for the event..!

cheers

[Beer Baron]

lol, sure mate I will be there as usual and happy to offer any advice I can. I've turned lots of laps and watched many thousands from pit lane as crew there. but I would still consider myself in the 8-9/10ths range so you'll have to find that last bit on your own.

It's a good track. nothing too mysterious about it so most drivers can get a good starting point fairly quickly and then work at small improvements from there. it does tend to go off a bit through the day on most days so setting good times in the morning is important.

most corners really only have one approach or line that works best for 90% of cars/drivers so no real mystery there either unlike other tracks where there can be 2 or 3 equally good approaches/lines to a given corner and it means doing some experimenting to see what really works for you (oran park was a bit like that and wakefield is a bit too).

[Beer Baron]

oh yeah brave pills for T1 is a good idea. there's definitely time made up there by just holding your breath and squeezing the loud pedal a bit harder than you think is wise.

[benm]

horsepower.....and lots of it!

[Duncan]

EC is pretty boring and simple as tracks go. The big trick is judging turn 1 correctly and getting through there as quick as you can as it leads to another straight.

Turns 2 and 9 require patience, they are long, constant radius. Very late apex.

As for the car...keep weight off the front right tyre if you can, it gets smashed in turn 1 and 2

[kristafa]

thanks for the tips Duncan, i'm also hoping to bring a spare set of semi's down with me.. are r888's really as bad as *some* of the reports? what happens do they just heat up too much and become useless or what?

pretty excited only 10 weeks left!

[hrd-hr30]

depends on your definition of "bad". They do a perfectly adequate job as a track tyre. Come on pretty quickly, last 5 hot laps no worries, heat cycle well, are long lasting, and are pretty much as fast when worn right down as they are out of the box. Its just they lack outright pace compared to other semis. If you're planning on winning, I'd suggest getting something else. If you're just in it for the sake of competing anf having fun, they'll do the job.

That's for the GG compound. If you're using a softer compound more suited to Superlap, disregard the above.

[evil_weevil]

r888 seem a good tyre for the price.

mine are 800 for a set of 15's

Im going for my second set on the MX5, my last set lasted about 10 events? I think I still have 1 meet left in them.

Richard - when was the last time you raced at EC? you still got the s13 for track duites or the GTR still?

[Beer Baron]

I think GG is the softest? or is it GGG? I forget.

anyway, yeah they are ok. but for outright pace they don't hang with RE55, DZ01G, A050. especially noticeable on heavier and more powerful cars. on small light stuff (talking sub 1000kg and less than 220hp) they seem to be good. like little alfas, really light civics etc.

not sure what your E30 weighs but you may be better off buying one of the big 3 mentioned above if you haven't bought tyres yet. depends how serious you want to get really.

[Beer Baron]

r888 seem a good tyre for the price.

mine are 800 for a set of 15's

Im going for my second set on the MX5, my last set lasted about 10 events? I think I still have 1 meet left in them.

Richard - when was the last time you raced at EC? you still got the s13 for track duites or the GTR still?

not driven at EC since last year. still got the S13 but now also got another GTR and the evo VI RS for track stuff. going to sell S13 shortly. I just want one track car really. been playing with bikes a bit again and want to buy another bike, maybe a ducati 848 or even just a R6 or something.

[kristafa]

thanks for the help guys.. Harry, plan isn't to win, plan is to stay on the track and have a great time! Secured a local sponsor yesterday for tyres, so cost shouldn't be a problem anymore, big weight lifted off my shoulders there! Hoping to see a set of dz03g's or hankook z221 which apparently are also a great tyre - but at the end of the day i'll be very grateful for anything..

Edited May 25, 2011 by kristafa