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Trackday newbie


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Got an itch and I think a trackday car may scratch it.

 

Done a couple of novice bike days a few years ago so not totally new to it. I've been browsing a few sites today to try and get some more information.

 

Always fancied a sporty 2nd car but couldn't justify running 2 road cars.

 

Am I nieve in thinkning I can run a track car relativley cheaply?

 

I'm thinking of buying a 'track ready' car that someone else has done all the work to...circa £1500

Will be kept road legal

Will be used as my 'runabout'

2 seats up front.

 

3 or 4 days a year would be a sufficient fix for me. Bar entry fees, pads and tyres is there much else I need to consider?

 

Seems to be coming to the close of the season now so gives me time to research and find the right car. Also want to be sure the Jag electrical fault is sorted before I throw my savings into this.

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What you looking for? A FWD, AWD, RWD? Based on what I have read on various forums the MX5 is an excellent choice for a trackday car. It's light weight too so the consumables tend to last a bit longer than the heavier cars. Though there are plenty here on the forum that know a lot more about trackdays than I do.

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Older bmw's seemed like a popular choice when we where doing track days.

 

We ran a rover 600 ti (2.0 turbo t series engine).

We got the car for sub £500 and spent a few hundred on...

New fmic, harnesses, tyres... we also removed the sunroof and got a plate welded in instead. New discs and pads all around... also we changed the suspension to slower and stiffen the ride.

 

It was FWD so notes much fun as RWD. But with around 230bhp we where no slouch... I remember getting to 121 mph before having to slow for the left hand corner from cadwell parks main straight ;).

 

 

You would be much better doing this with a friend.

This would mean all costs are halved and track days can be expensive!.

 

What we typically paid for a day:

Fuel anywhere between £100 and £250

Tyres lasted around 2 to 3 events so that's £200 for 4 tyres.n

Brake pads and fluid.. well we changed the pads every 2 to 3 events as they took a hammering... especially at Rockingham and cadwell.

Engine and gearbox oil was changed every event to ensure the turbo / gearbox was kept alive.

Then you have the day itself.. if you book ages in advance yup can get most courses for around £99 to £150 and it costs £ 40 to add another driver... so does make it worth while.

 

You should be looking to pay around £400 on your own per track day.. ( fuel, event cost, consumables etc )

So if you persuade a buddy to join it's half the price each ;)

 

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Is it really a neccesity to change engine oil after every event?

 

I know you'll give the engine a good wokout but surely it's overkill?

 

Incidentally I'm quite happy to do the above maintaince on the driveway, should save a few quid.

 

I think I might try an get along to a few days, find a few people in the know. Would be good to get a passenger ride and experience it properly.

Are there any popular forums specifically for trackdays?

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Is it really a neccesity to change engine oil after every event?

 

When you start loading up the engine the oil gets a good workout. In the case of turbo's and superchargers the oil tends to get diluted with fuel pretty quick. N/A cars get the dilution too, but with an N/A car you can run a leaner mixture so it doesn't happen quite as fast. I know some cars that the manufacturer tuned to 10.5AFR at wot!

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Is it really a neccesity to change engine oil after every event?

 

I know you'll give the engine a good wokout but surely it's overkill?

 

Incidentally I'm quite happy to do the above maintaince on the driveway, should save a few quid.

 

I think I might try an get along to a few days, find a few people in the know. Would be good to get a passenger ride and experience it properly.

Are there any popular forums specifically for trackdays?

 

When the engine, turbo and gear box has to warm up quickly it takes a hammering. For the cost of the oil.. around£30 it's not a bank breaker... and you know your helping the engine out!

 

We did all our cars maintenance... if we used a garage it would be near the £1k mark for maintenance!

 

Maintenance of a car being thrashed is so much more important than a car that a granny drives to the shops!.

 

To put it in to perspective .. when we drove the car to cadwell we averaged 42mpg... on the track we averaged 9mpg.... so the car is taking abuse!

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Thaks for the advice.

 

Few forummers have suggested getting a car for between £500-£1000.

 

I'm struggling for this price, have looked on Pistonheads and ebay. Am I missing somewhere obvious?

 

I started looking at all cars, but have reduced my search to road legal track cars.

 

Though I can do the very basics I'm not confident and not rich enough to start buying and fitting numerous mods. I'd much rather something I can get in and take to track with very little work.

 

These two prob piqed my interst more than any others.....

 

2.0 Celica

http://classifieds.pistonheads.com/classifieds/motorsport/track-day-cars/road-legal/toyota-celica-2-0-gt-track-car-turbo-gsi-vxr-st-corsa-vxr/705324

 

944

http://classifieds.pistonheads.com/classifieds/motorsport/track-day-cars/road-legal/porsche-944-track-car/679737

 

I'm in no ruch to buy and intend on doing a bi of research first. There is a day at Elvington which is not far from me in a couple of weeks. Was intending to go and chat some some of the guys there, have a look at the cars, get some advice. You never know, might even find a car for sale there.

 

Although York is a great place to live it doesn't have much motorsport here. Not even any tracks nearby.

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BMW 3 series is very nose heavy and would need some serious persuasion upgrades unless it's an M.

 

?? but they are reknown for their near on 50/50 weight distribution ??

the m3 maintains 50/50 by using a lighter engine which is set back slightly further

:whistle:

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I would not be spending more than 500 on the first car.. you may get in to it and find it to costly.. especially if your doing it on your own.

 

Agreed! But where can I find a £500 car thats even suitable, if not track ready?

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BMW 3 series is very nose heavy and would need some serious persuasion upgrades unless it's an M.

 

?? but they are reknown for their near on 50/50 weight distribution ??

the m3 maintains 50/50 by using a lighter engine which is set back slightly further

:whistle:

 

Agreed but from my side of the fence there are transitional inertia issues when thrust is applied, the car washes out if it's not correctly weighted.

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BMW 3 series is very nose heavy and would need some serious persuasion upgrades unless it's an M.

 

?? but they are reknown for their near on 50/50 weight distribution ??

the m3 maintains 50/50 by using a lighter engine which is set back slightly further

:whistle:

 

Agreed but from my side of the fence there are transitional inertia issues when thrust is applied, the car washes out if it's not correctly weighted.

 

Could that also be read that it drives like a tank? =)

 

I hear of a lot of people using M3's as trackday cars. I think you might find that tire/fuel/brake consumption to be a bit higher than a lighter car, but it will be big enough to fit you in properly =) You can still have tons of fun in FWD, it's all in the driving technique. You won't be out there to set lap records, anything that turns, brakes and makes a lot noise you will probably be happy with.

 

Pistonheads would get you a decent car. Autotrader is another option. Fleabay is hit an miss. Check the local flyers in the newstands, they sometimes have something nice in them. You are going to have to put out a little money on a decent car, if you get a £500 banger you might end up having to put £500+ in parts to get it track worthy. Like Liner did the MG's are a good option, they are hot potatoes and the parts are cheap. The MGs.. they use the K series engine?

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A friend of mine took his bog stock (80db in the noise test :) ) MG ZS on the track at Castle Coombe last weekend , brakes coped with 6 laps just and car did really well , there was a turbo'ed MX5 mk1 behind him for most of the laps and the MG pulled away from it on the corners as well

 

He paid £800 for this car , we plan to upgrade the brakes and fit some better tyres as his stock ones were pretty goosed after the trackday

 

img001.jpg

 

It was his first time ever on track and he had a ball

 

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