Track day questions and advice

[CT4-Venom]

I want to do some track days next season. However, this would be my first time doing an actual track session outside of Spring Mountain. My question are:

1. What are the things that must be done?
2, What things are optional?
3. What things are if you got the time and the money??

I want to do at least 3-5 different tracks on the west coast, but I really want to do Laguna Seca. Any tips for that track?

 

[nordique14]

Nice to see you use the car as GM engineered the BW to be track capable.
The must/optional/wants change depending on your skill level. Since you will be in novice, my list applies to cars running at slower speeds on track.

1A. Some people will argue that high temp brake fluid is required. But with the slower top speeds and less aggressive braking events in the novice group, I generally think it is not necessary.
1B. That said, make sure you install all of the GM provided brake duct deflectors. That will help keep brake temps down and mitigate the need for high temp brake fluid.
1C. Change fluids more often. GM provides a guide for how often to change fluids of your track the car. See attached.
1D. Learn what PTM setting to use. Since you took the class at SM, you know what settings should be.
1E. Check tire presses often at the track. Keep hot tires pressures between 35-38PSI.
1F. Run with a good group that focuses on safety and instruction. Avoid groups with high car counts and ones that seem more concerned about your Instagram than they are with car inspections.

2A. A track alignment with more camber will help keep the outside edges of the tires from getting excess wear. However, more camber on a mostly street car will wear the inside edges faster. So it is a balance/trade-off. If the car is mostly track, then lots of camber. If street/track, then somewhere in between a track and street alignment would be a compromise.
2B. Bedding in the brakes might be a good idea. If the pads have lots of mileage or several hard stops in a row already then it might not be needed. Again, the novice group will have less aggressive braking events so it is not as important as when you start brake harder from higher speeds.
2C. Learn the track ahead of time. Sims or watch in car YouTube videos from drivers who know what they are doing. Try to watch similar cars as a momentum car like a Miata may drive a different line then you will.

3. Tires are the most important item on a car. Make sure to have good quality summer tires that will not fall apart. If you are running in the rain, make sure you have enough tread depth so you will not hydroplane at high speeds.

I find Laguna Seca to be a great track for beginners. I know some people will push back on that, but there are no connected corners so if you screw up one corner, there is usually time to get set up correctly for the next corner. Just learn where (and how much) to turn in for the corkscrew. Don’t lift or brake over turn 1. And if you go two wheels off, breathe and slow down to a crawl before getting the wheels back on track. If you try to come back on track at speed you will spin and hit a wall. And listen to your instructor. There will be a lot going on so focus on what they are asking you to do.

And, most of all, have fun! Talk to the other participants. They are all car guys/gals so it is easy to find people to talk to and make friends. Enjoy yourself and keep the shiny side up!

 

[Mike Martz]

I agree with everything with the possible exception of track alignment. It can be expensive if you can't do it yourself and it needs to be undone after each event. I know some people run it all the time but they track their cars a lot and that evens the wear. i did some back-to-back testing and it only made a few tenths difference on a relatively short track (Putnum Park).
My main point is that getting this done can be a major deterrent for a beginner and will make little or no difference. Don't let that be the stumbling block to getting some track time and enjoying the car in its best environment!
I might say the same about the rear brake ducts and front deflectors. Frankly it is easier and cheaper to have the dealer flush the system with Castrol SRF brake fluid that it is to mess with the brake ducts which requires removal of the disk hats.
Of course that depends upon have a great dealer like Lockhart that have Blackwing trained techs that have no issue doing this for you at a reasonable price.
Track Alignment and brake ducts don't need to stop you from a few novice track days. Enjoy! Get more serious and then go down that road.

 

[nordique14]

I did not know the iron brakes require removal of the hats. That is a lot of work for something you are supposed to do only for the track. For the 5BW carbon ceramic brakes, I only needed to remove the front tire air deflectors. That was 3 screws per side. Less than 5min and no jacking of the car required.

For additional camber, I do not do it for better lap times. I do it to try to get even tire wear across the tread. If the car is racking up a lot of street miles and only gets a couple of track days per year then street alignment is fine. The more tracking days you do, the more additional camber makes sense to get the most life out of the tires.

The Blackwings are track capable in stock form. So only think about making changes if you start really getting into doing track days.

 

[CT4-Venom]

Nice to see you use the car as GM engineered the BW to be track capable.
The must/optional/wants change depending on your skill level. Since you will be in novice, my list applies to cars running at slower speeds on track.

1A. Some people will argue that high temp brake fluid is required. But with the slower top speeds and less aggressive braking events in the novice group, I generally think it is not necessary.
1B. That said, make sure you install all of the GM provided brake duct deflectors. That will help keep brake temps down and mitigate the need for high temp brake fluid.
1C. Change fluids more often. GM provides a guide for how often to change fluids of your track the car. See attached.
1D. Learn what PTM setting to use. Since you took the class at SM, you know what settings should be.
1E. Check tire presses often at the track. Keep hot tires pressures between 35-38PSI.
1F. Run with a good group that focuses on safety and instruction. Avoid groups with high car counts and ones that seem more concerned about your Instagram than they are with car inspections.

2A. A track alignment with more camber will help keep the outside edges of the tires from getting excess wear. However, more camber on a mostly street car will wear the inside edges faster. So it is a balance/trade-off. If the car is mostly track, then lots of camber. If street/track, then somewhere in between a track and street alignment would be a compromise.
2B. Bedding in the brakes might be a good idea. If the pads have lots of mileage or several hard stops in a row already then it might not be needed. Again, the novice group will have less aggressive braking events so it is not as important as when you start brake harder from higher speeds.
2C. Learn the track ahead of time. Sims or watch in car YouTube videos from drivers who know what they are doing. Try to watch similar cars as a momentum car like a Miata may drive a different line then you will.

3. Tires are the most important item on a car. Make sure to have good quality summer tires that will not fall apart. If you are running in the rain, make sure you have enough tread depth so you will not hydroplane at high speeds.

I find Laguna Seca to be a great track for beginners. I know some people will push back on that, but there are no connected corners so if you screw up one corner, there is usually time to get set up correctly for the next corner. Just learn where (and how much) to turn in for the corkscrew. Don’t lift or brake over turn 1. And if you go two wheels off, breathe and slow down to a crawl before getting the wheels back on track. If you try to come back on track at speed you will spin and hit a wall. And listen to your instructor. There will be a lot going on so focus on what they are asking you to do.

And, most of all, have fun! Talk to the other participants. They are all car guys/gals so it is easy to find people to talk to and make friends. Enjoy yourself and keep the shiny side up!

Thanks for the info. Is there any specific safety equipment that you would recommend?
How do get your car to the track day, take is as is on the day and then change it back for DD duty after.

 

[nordique14]

I have my own helmet but most clubs have rentals. If you do buy your own helmet, get a SA2025 certified model. It will be good for at least 10 years. If you start getting to higher speeds, you can add a HANS hybrid like they had at SM. I consider a good set of tires safety equipment. The stock 4S tires are great on track.

I drive to the track and do the following:
- install tow hook in the front bumper (requirement for some clubs)
- put on numbers if required by the club. Painters tape makes great temporary numbers
- remove anything loose in the car (water bottles, radar detectors, etc)
- set cold tires pressures to 28-30PSI (depending on ambient temp)
- turn off all collision avoidance systems (AEB, I-AEB, IAB). In my car it is under Settings>Vehicle>Collision/Detection Systems
- turn off lane keep assist (button)
- turn on rev match (if manual)
- set HUD to track (if not linked to drive mode)
- click V-Mode twice to get into PTM. Check you have PTM in Dry or Sport (recommend Dry and no higher than Sport for novice). Obviously use Wet on a wet day.
- set PDR overlay to Track. Get PDR ready to learn the track. When on track you will click Learn button when crossing the Start/Finish line

When done for the day, just reverse the above and enjoy the drive home. Tricky part will be not to speed as you will be used to higher speeds and your usual highway speed will seem slow.

 

[Kawman]

Here's my advice for you -

If you're going into this wanting to do 3-5 different tracks, sounds like you're thinking at least 5-7 days or more, right? Is this to be done this season? If so, there's more to do but this can get you started for the first 2-3 days.

1 - Change brake fluid to Castrol SRF. We are supposed to change brake fluid periodically anyway, so it's both maintenance and track prepping.
2 - Skip the removal of dust covers and installation of brake ducting until you have a better idea of how hard you're going to be pushing it and frequency of track use. You're either going to end up tracking without them, or street driving with them.
3 - About -1.6 front and -1.3 rear camber and zero toe in the front only, . The zero toe with help mitigate wear from the camber. If you don't like the feel of the zero toe on the street, it should be a quick no charge adjustment to your alignment to go to toe in. I'm now at .12 total toe out.
4 - Change engine oil after each 2 track days.
5 - Remove plastic engine cover for the track for engine cooling.
6 - DO NOT set your parking brake after coming in from the track. Doing so creates carbon deposits on the rotors that then feels like the rotors are warped.
7 - DO NOT turn off engine after returning to your spot in the pits. There is too much heat in the turbos. Let idle for 3-5 minutes for turbos to cool so oil doesn't cook in the extreme heat.
8 - Lift hood to release heat from engine bay while idling for turbos to cool a bit before turning off engine.
9 - Check tire pressure before and after each session. I go out around 26psi cold to be at 34psi when hot.
10 - Do Not use less than 93 octane gas.

Stage 2

1 - Get a second set of wheels 9.5 and 10.5".
2 - Get second set of wider tires with something like a 200TW. Probably 275/30 and 295/30.
3 - Get Vorshlag camber plates. Allows you to make a 2.5 degree camber adjustment from under the hood. After installation align for -1.2 for the street. Then at the track you run -3.7 camber.
4 - Somebody's cradle bushing lock out kit. Easier both to install and remove than urethane or solid aluminum bushings.
5 - Switch to a "track" brake pad for the front. I'd heard that track pads don't work well on the street until they get heated up, but I've not found that to be true. I haven't noticed any difference on the street, but I do feel it on the track. I'm using Porterfield AP 2444 R-4 brake pads.
6 - Install brake cooling ducting front and rear.
7 - Add octane booster or 100 octane race gas to get to around 95 octane. More important on really hot days than cool ones.

 

[CT4-Venom]

Thank you all for the advice. After reading though the posts in the Track thread I was thinking I had to do more. This will make things a lot easier and I feel a little better about doing the tracks days now.