To track, or not to track?

[Tommo]

Hi guys, had my Z about 2 weeks now.

Ive always wanted to go on a trackday in my own car but the only thing thats put me off is the costs of it. Ive heard Bedford is probably the best track for novices like myself (plenty of run off).

Its not he cost of the trackday that im worried about its the wear and tear on my car.
Will I tear through a half worn set of tyres? Need new brake pads/disc by the end of it? etc etc

My cars done 50,000 miles if that makes any difference at all.

 

[ovrkll]

Most of what you are asking is going to be dependent on how hard you want to push your car. Most likely you will not need anything new afterwards if this your first time to track the car. It will take a few laps till your are comfortable enough with the feel, to really start pushing, and at that point may start wearing some bits. Anyways,,,,go for it, you won't regret it! :driving:

 

[Crusoe]

if it's to get a feel for the car on the limit i'd recomend a airfield driver training day, can push as hard as you want but budget for some new tyres or leave it till they are half worn.

something like this, http://www.carlimits.com/ or have a look at some of the larger forums like pistonheads where some of the better instructors will come to your local track/airfield if you get enough people together.

 

[Curtis]

I would go for it! You don't need to thrash the car within an inch of it's life but of course things will wear quicker if you drive hard. Nothing too dramatic though. Having said that, the last time I was at Silverstone I completely destroyed a brand new set of PS Cups, cracked a brake disc, ( £500 pair ), damaged my clutch, had to replace a front hub bearing and used three tanks of fuel. That was on top of the £320 fees, food, etc. The difference is that I budget for that kind of thing because I know I'll spend most of the day on the track and drive very hard and it's all part of developing the car as I see it. If something breaks it wasn't up to the job so I improve it. Anyway, drive sensibly and check the car over before you go, tyres, brakes, oil etc and you shouldn't have any issues.

I use these guys.

http://www.motorsport-events.co.uk/

http://www.goldtrack.co.uk/

 

[ovrkll]

Geez, Curtis,,,,,gonna scare him off a track-day with telling him all that, without explaining what you do for a living/hobby!

 

[spokey]

Go for it!

 

[mikedav]

DO IT!

Bedford is a perfect start (the pic below is Bedford ) - it's so wide and open there is just nothing to hit. I've been to the 'Ring twice and by comparison Bedford felt incredibly safe. As for wear and tear, I was warned I would need new tyres, maybe brakes etc...but it depends how you drive. I wasn't exactly going slow, and it does feel very tough on the car but I have not had to replace anything since, and it's been 5 months. I need new front tyres shortly but they've done 21,000 miles...brakes are fine, etc.

Basically the car is much more up to it than we realise so enjoy. I did a tank of fuel in 20 laps though so make sure you fill her up before you get there!

 

[mmm-five]

if it's to get a feel for the car on the limit i'd recomend a airfield driver training day, can push as hard as you want but budget for some new tyres or leave it till they are half worn.

something like this, http://www.carlimits.com/ or have a look at some of the larger forums like pistonheads where some of the better instructors will come to your local track/airfield if you get enough people together.

My preferred tracks are Oulton, Anglesey, Donington, Brands, Cadwell, Mallory & Croft, but unless you're going to take a half day instruction session I wouldn't recommend them for your first time.

However, I'd recommend Bedford for a first timer - it's simply an old airfield that they've covered in tarmac. You get the best of both worlds - non-abrasive surface and lots of run-off. Although it is featureless though and the fog/rain can roll in quite quickly.

Half-worn tyres 'should' last the whole day and you don't really want to start an event on brand new road tyres as they'll just fall apart. Make sure your discs & pads have plenty of life left in them too.

Track days WILL accelerate the wear & tear on components on your car - although if you're only doing 1 a year you probably won't notice it.

Fuel consumption will go into single MPG figures if you're really pushing

Take your time to learn the track and don't get het up about not keeping up with 'slower' cars or about being in the way of someone. If you check your mirrors and see someone behind you who wasn't there the last time you looked, then at a convenient time/place for you simply indicate that you're moving over (indicate whichever direction you're moving too - some tracks/organisers use left, some right) and lift off the throttle to let them get past.

Finally, have fun!

 

[Curtis]

Geez, Curtis,,,,,gonna scare him off a track-day with telling him all that, without explaining what you do for a living/hobby!

Oops! I build and develop race cars and I use the Alpina as a testbed. Hope that gets your blood pressure back to normal!

 

[bras0782]

What do you guys do for insurance on track days? Most policies won't cover right?

 

[Curtis]

Usually you have to take out a one day policy specifically for that event. There are specialist company's that I'm sure some people on this forum have used but I've never bothered. I've found that if you go to a cheap airfield day you tend to get a lot of to**ers in £500 ricers who couldn't care less if they T bone your car but if you go to the more expensive days such as Silverstone you get a lot of people who are in the same boat as you. Nice cars, want to have fun but don't want any damage. As long as everyones in the same frame of mind and they all stick to the track rules there's very rarely a problem.

 

[mmm-five]

I only ever get insurance if it's my first event with a TDO that I don't know/trust, or if I do one of the 'magazine' 'run what yer brung' days.

I use Moris http://www.moris.co.uk

Never had to claim though.

 

[mikedav]

What do you guys do for insurance on track days? Most policies won't cover right?

Got a quote from http://www.moris.co.uk/ and it wasn't too bad from Bedford, about £80 IIRC? but didn't bother and glad I didn't. It would be foolish for me to tell you 'you don't need it' but I felt very comfortable not having it at Bedford...anywhere else I would probably buy cover. I did an Easytrack.co.uk day and although I felt the tuition was a bit basic (none stop monologue all the way round) there were no sheds - mainly 911s, Elises and Atoms...

 

[Tommo]

Sorry Ive been so long to reply, only just come round from reading Curtis' first reply

Think Im going to go for it at bedford in the new year. Ive just had 2 new rear discs, the pads all round are about a month old and Im actually looking forward to changing the tyres because the fronts were a brand Ive never even heard of. Will get my holiday out of the way and then look to go around feb/march time. Im hoping for a wet track too because I think it will be more beneficial to me with regards to car control. (?)

 

[mmm-five]

I'm hoping for a wet track too because I think it will be more beneficial to me with regards to car control. (?)

Wet weather rules - only 2nd to snow & ice for learning car control

 

[MdV]

Go for it!

Did a few laps on the Nurburgring a couple of months ago, loved every second of it. If only for a few laps, pushing the car to the fullest is amazing. Made me appreciate the car even more, simply by getting a feel for what it is capable of. Wont take it on the track too often, since Im not looking for excessive wear & tear either.. but will never forget that sunny afternoon in The Eifel... :driving:

 

[moodhead]

Go for it, when I was living in the UK and had my Boxster S I took it to a track day with friend of mine who had a Carrera 2. If I remember correctly I notified my insurance company (Privilege) and they increased the excess for the track day and provided cover. I really enjoyed the day, the track was on an airfield and a circuit was made using cones and there were all sorts of cars, a Ferrari F355, loads of TVRs, Audi TT's etc. I am quite cautious by nature and didn't want to wreck my year old Boxster so I got used to the track and gradually increased the speed. My car was perfectly fine, people were well behaved and there were marshals in place who would remove any car if they didn't obey the rules. It was good to get a proper feel of the cars capabilities. If you go on the track day you should pay a little extra and go out with one of the pro drivers, it's quite an experience.

I am thinking of attending a track day in Spain, here there is the option to either pay 270.00 euros for the day with your own car or if you get four people together each pays 250.00 euros and that includes entrance plus the use of a Lotus Elise for the day, fuel, insurance etc. I am leaning more towards that option as it means I don't need to risk my car and give it excessive wear.

 

[Dreamer]

Wheres that track day thread?? I thought we were all thinking of going next year? :driving:

 

[dario]

its not always the wear and tear that will be costly, its where it all might lead to!

i started in my 2004 3.0 Z4 did about 18-20 months of track days and then decided that the Z4 was a reasonable road car, but no track meister. eventually if you become a reasonable driver you might wish to progress to a full on track car.

this is what i did instead of upgrading to a Z4M.

A Radical SR3 is what i chose because i knew of nothing faster for the money.

buying the car was only the start in the pound notes department!

whilst theres nothing like it for outright grip / braking and acceleration its not an inch of fun in the wet or cold.

you have been warned.... JUST SAY NO (but do it any way )

Dario

 

[Aebous]

Tracks are awesome. I think I'm hooked on em. Like others have said, get an instructor to teach you the finer points of going around a track and if possible get them to ride with you and perhaps (dare I say it) let them drive your car around the track so you can get a feel for a new track and what to do on a given turn without the stress of driving. First track run ever for me was intimidating, glad my instructor did that.