Hitting The Track This Weekend For The First Time

[mr_rbman]

I'm heading out to my first circuit practice this weekend and i'm after a bit of advice.

I have an r32gtst with an rb30 twin cam making 254rwkw's @ 14psi.

The important things to note for the track is:

i have an aftermarket radiator

no oil cooler (purchasing one soon)

good street tires (getting semi slicks soon)

catch can made by myself (fully sealed with a little filter on top and x4 1/8th holes)

standard 4 spot brakes (am upgrading discs, fluid and pads after the track day) will do 1 hard and 1 cool down lap

i have a helmet, fire extinguisher and appropriate clothing

the car is being towed, not driven

A few bits of info i'm after is:

-i sometimes get oil leakage around my catch can, is this because the catch can is under so much pressure that its venting (note that i'm not getting heaps of oil in my catch can, 100ml max) should i drill some more holes to stop this?

-what tire pressure is recommended?

-due to the fact that i don't have an oil cooler or an oil temp guage is there a stock

-i have heaps of tools, what are the things i should make sure i take?

-i've heard you should put more oil in than normal but how much more?

Cheers!

[Simon-S14]

Oil catch cans should have an inlet, and an outlet, the putlet either goes back to the intake air pipe or vents to atmo... without the outlet, the can will pressurise

tyre press for street tyres.. start with 34 psi and see how the car feels

oil temps - assuming your going to mallala, do 1 warm up lap, 2 flying laps, 1 cool down lap, then two flying laps, cool down, etc etc duntil the session is over.

tools - cable ties, race tape, socket set, side cutters, 1/4 drive socket set, hammer, plyars and some stainless steel cable ties, this is what i usually take. along with spare hoseclamps and assorted consumables, pays to take water and oil too.

you can overfil the sump by an extra half a L.

have fun!

Edited January 8, 2008 by Simon-R32

[gotRICE?]

Why would you upgrade your brakes AFTER the track day?

[salad]

The track day is this Ssaturday, so I assume it's because he's run out of time.

Ash: What brake pads have you got? You really should go get something decent before going out there, or at least take a spare set, Mallala does go through pads a fair bit. Try get some Lucas pads, they're pretty decent and only cost around the $50 mark.

Take plenty of water to drink for yourself too, it's very draining...

Edited January 8, 2008 by salad

[Hawker180]

I wouldnt be going on the track untill i had the oil cooler installed - the weather is far too hot to risk it at the moment!

Also get your braking sorted before going to the track!

maybe give this one a miss and be all ready for the next one!

have fun!

[BHDave]

Bleed the brakes, get some motul rbf600 fluid. check your pads have a reasonable amount of meat left. If they are a pure street pad you will chew through them pretty quickly. I go through a set of rears every 2 track days as i haven't gotten around to buying good ones yet. The fronts are still fine after 5 days as they are a better pad (project mu HC+).

I also run an extra .5L oil in my rb25. No oil surge issues to date.

Otherwise, just go out and have fun. see what the car is doing, then build from there if you are serious about chasing times.

[MBS206]

Go out there, and take a few slow laps to learn the track.

Basically, use the first session to suss the track out, don't try and break the lap record, you'll just end in the kitty litter. So don't go flat out, nice and easy first session.

Come back in, think over what you know of the track now.

Go out. Rip it up.

Each time you come in, think over what you've learnt about the corners.

[sl33py]

Take a whole container of spare premixed coolant! Saved me. And newspaper just in case your engine overheats and spits boiling coolant all down the side of your car

[Krishy]

i would love to take my car on the track....purely for circuit....does anyone know the dates of practicing and shit?

[mr_rbman]

Cheers for all the replies guys.

I do hear what people are saying about the brakes and oil cooler but here is my reasoning for not doing it yet.

First and foremost i ran out of time as its this saturday. My brake pads still have plenty of meat and i figure seeing as its only practice sessions i don't have to be going flat out the whole time and therefore if i start to get brake fade i can just slow down. the oil cooler is really the same, i said to myself if it was going to be mid 30's or higher i wouldn't go out but its predicting 30 at the moment which i figure isn't too bad and my car should be able to stand up.

i've got a car trailer incase it doesn't and i figure that by not having my oil cooler, better brakes, better tires and camber arms that by the time the next track day comes around i will have all my mods done and will be used to the track/corners and the next one i will be able to go harder and see improvement from the mods done to my car.

This track day for me is basically just a suck it and see.

Cheers!

[mr_rbman]

The track day is this Ssaturday, so I assume it's because he's run out of time.

Ash: What brake pads have you got? You really should go get something decent before going out there, or at least take a spare set, Mallala does go through pads a fair bit. Try get some Lucas pads, they're pretty decent and only cost around the $50 mark.

Take plenty of water to drink for yourself too, it's very draining...

where you get these pads from and have u got a part number?

Cheers Showza!