GaryT said:
wilbo said:
Looks good fun. I just signed up to a day at Abingdon in a couple of weeks, can't wait. Did you lose much tread on the tyres as heard that airfield surfaces can be quite abrasive?
I can only comment on Hullavington as i haven't been to Abingdon yet hoping to very soon though, and tyre wear was absolutely minimal, my only advice is to keep and eye on brakewear
Abingdon is more open and flowing, tending to follow the perimeter road and runways more without relying on cones so much. That means quite a few much faster corners than at Hullavington, so watch the offside front tyre for excess outer shoulder wear. Dialing in more negative camber before you go will reduce the problem but not solve it. You'll also find that the rears wear more on their inner edge with repeated hard acceleration, so check your tyres every time you've been out. Generally, I found road tyres on OEM suspension lasted 2-3 track days per set regardless of the type of track. With the coilovers and uprated ARBs I'm running at present, I've managed at least four or five track days on the same set of soft compound semislicks and they've plenty of life left in them. Hullavington and Abingdon aren't especially hard on tyres but in places the tarmac can be a bit broken.
Gary's comment on brakes is very valid. Standard road pads and fluid don't tolerate the high temperatures reached on the track terribly well. If you have time, change the pads and fluid in advance - I recommend ATE Superblue and EBC Bluestuff pads, but my Zed is mainly used on the track these days and doesn't see much road use. From my own experience, running out of brakes approaching a corner at 100mph isn't much fun, so slow down if your brakes get spongy or the pedal feel becomes inconsistent! If you leave DSC switched on, your car will rapidly overheat the brakes as it tries to rein in your exuberance. I had smoking pads on all four wheels after three gentle sighting laps with the DSC on, so switch it off every time and build speed as you build confidence. Also, make sure you do at least one cooling down lap at the end of each session on track - go round at a reasonable speed but back off early for corners rather than using the brakes. When you come into the pits, leave the car in gear or use chocks rather than the handbrake.
I'll upload some of my Abingdon and Hullavington videos too when I have a moment - I have a great one chasing a stripped out Clio Cup in my Westy......until he runs out of talent 8)
