Give it a try... It's a "bucket list" experience. And as long as you use just a little common sense, your car will be (almost) no worse for the wear.

 

that's awesome! great pictures! glad you had fun...and happy belated birthday! lol

 

Tracking your car is addictive. So even if we are doing just for fun. We should approach with careful study and do as pros. Some basics on tracking and maintenance for the racing track are.....

1. Check your tire pressure set them to 30psi all way around. Deflate the rear by 1.5psi if you get oversteer. Front by 1.5psi if understeer. Most track will have air hoses so you can add air by end of day.

Note. Cold tire @ 30psi when they heat up during session will increase as much as 8psi.

2. Re-torque all your lug nuts in between sessions.

3. Check engine oil level, once prior to first session. During mid session. And finally before heading home. It is also recommended to take some spare engine oil.

4. Check all fluid levels. Brake fluids, coolant, power steering fluids.

5. Check your car battery, make sure they are solidly mounted. You are putting a lot of G force at the racing track. I have seen numerous cases with cars being towed off the track for not securing their battery.

6. Never wash your car at racing track. I have seen a lot of people wash their car with provided water hose. By putting cold water on hot brake rotors they may warp.

 

I am getting my G37S ready for the same track next year. I am putting two 25 row oil coolers in the front, one for the oil and one for the tranny. Putting stainless brake lines on the car and changing the fluid to ATE blue brake fluid. I got adjustable upper control arms to adjust camber and the same for the rear. I also bought a NISMO rear end diff cover to help in cooling the oil back there as well.

I already autocross the car but I figured the extra stuff wouldn't hurt to keep the car running safe. I have to drive it back home 2 hrs away LOL. I race with the SCCA so I am also working on getting my license.

Maybe I will see you out there some day and we can play around LOL.

 

Decreasing your tire pressure to 30 PSI is incorrect.

In general when you track or Autocross your car you should increase your tire pressures not decrease them. SCCA Solo, Solo II, Porsche Sport Driving School, and Skip Barber All have recommendations to increase tire pressures by 2-4 PSI. Tire rack has the following recommendation on their web site:

Driving at high speeds certainly helps make a trip go faster; just ask any driver who has gone "flat out" on the German Autobahn. However with the exception of events like the Silver State Classic's Open Road Rally or a driver's school on a racetrack, it's difficult to find a place that allows unlimited speeds! Remember, the tires on the vehicle should be properly sized, inflated and inspected if you plan to drive fast because the tires will be subjected to tremendous stresses.

Because of the weight they bear, pneumatic tires' sidewalls bulge and their treads flatten as they roll into contact with the road. This results in dimensional difference between the tire's "unloaded" radius (i.e., between the center of the axle and the top of the tire) and its "loaded" radius (between the center of the axle and the road). The engineer's call the difference between the two radii "deflection." Increasing vehicle speed will cause the tires to deflect quicker and increasing vehicle load will cause the tires to deflect farther (if tire pressure isn't increased).

The track will definitely cause your tire pressures to increase so you have to check pressures between each session.

Glad to see some dads getting their kids interested I've got 2 that autocross and have done racing schools, adn a 13 year old chomping at the bit.

Contrary to popular opinion it doesn't make them drive faster on the streets. It makes them better drivers.

 

Anyone with actual track time will tell you the same thing: drop pressures. Why? Because pressures go up as you drive.

I typically end up with 26-28 psi cold temps when I bleed to achieve the hot temps I want.

You increase pressure for street driving (driving fast) to combat deflection. This isn't an issue at the track where you have the tire load to get higher pressures without adding air.

 

I have to agree with mike.

On my recent track session I started with 33psi cold and my tires seemed to gain grip and then lose it as they got hot. I lowered my psi to 30 for all tires and they felt a lot better on the next session. Immediately after that session I jumped out of my car and got all 4 tires' pressures. The front two were up to 37 and the rears were at 35 ( I tend to understeer to bleed off extra speed for better or worse) that's a gain of 7psi in the front and 5 in the rear, meaning that I was up in the 40's the first time, which is probably why I was losing grip, they became over-inflated.

I've never had that drastic of a change ever no matter how hard I ran the car in the canyons.

 

DO NOT increase your tire pressure from street cold spec and go out on the track. Your tires will heat up and be over pressure and you will lose grip! Not a good feeling going around a turn with a rear wheel drive car that breaks loose without warning from over inflated tires (ask me how I know...)

It is not uncommon to see as much as a 10 psi rise in your tire pressure at a track day (especially in TX heat we see here).

If you really want to dial the right tire pressure in, get a needle type thermometer designed for tires and take readings of the inner, middle, outer of tire IMMEDIATELY after you get off the track. If middle of tire is lower temp then outside edges, add pressure. If middle is higher temp, lower pressure to get all 3 tire zones as close as possible in temp.

 

I've never tracked either and this thread def. makes me want to go next summer...anything I need to do in the winter/spring before I head out when it's warmer? I'm running on a stock 08 6MT.

 

Yea get a good helmet, flush your brake system with some good hi-temp fluid and some good brake pads. I read that our cars go into safe mode if the oil gets tooo hot but up in Wisconsin I don't think you will have that problem. If you do its time for some oil coolers.

 

Even novices will limp mode the car. All it takes is time sitting at high RPM. You don't even need to be accelerating.

 

i too am building my G to be track ready but for only a few times a year because it still is my DD. first--suspension(coils, sways,camber kits) second--strut bar...third...brake updates...fourth wheels...

With our cars overheating so fast I am reconsidering the start of my track time to in the fall (live in SouthEast) so that its not as hot. I went to one of my dads track events last year during the summer......burning inferno 100+degrees. I certainly look to start my experience at CMP.

Great thread. Certainly a memorable experience.

USRSLD, Any modifications to your G?or just bone stock?

 

All you need is an oil cooler. You don't need camber kits, coils sways, wheels, tires, etc. You won't be any faster than someone in a Civic or Corolla your first time out.

 

+1, oil cooler is essential for track duty, a spacer for an extra quart wouldn't hurt either.