My E90 M3 Dedicated Track build (with pix!)

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by kpewpew

Yikes. Sorry to hear the BW reservoir didn't eliminate the issue. What PS cooler are you running? I am considering the do88 one, currently have CSF PS cooler and 3D Design PS spacer but have some PS spitting. (still using a MF towel ziptied around)

Still rocking the stock PS cooler. Been thinking about the do88 PS cooler, but haven't moved on it. If you install one, please tell us how it works out.

[slicer]

Originally Posted by dogbone

Yes, I had the insert in the vent hole and a catch can. Didn't work very well for me. I still needed the sweat wristband around the cap. I think the insert that goes into the vent is important. Not sure we nailed that. There's not a lot of room to work with.

I was hoping the extra sizing of the BW reservoir could help prevent the liquid from spewing as much. I'm not ready to give up yet. I want to remove a bit more liquid and see how it goes. I still have hope. Interesting to see a full-on pro racecar with such a primitive little fix......

I have not leaked a drop around the main reservoir cap. The fitting must not have fit correctly or maybe the overflow reservoir was not vented. You need to remove the seal on the overflow reservoir cap.

[rhyary]

Originally Posted by dogbone

Yes, I had the insert in the vent hole and a catch can. Didn't work very well for me. I still needed the sweat wristband around the cap. I think the insert that goes into the vent is important. Not sure we nailed that. There's not a lot of room to work with.

I was hoping the extra sizing of the BW reservoir could help prevent the liquid from spewing as much. I'm not ready to give up yet. I want to remove a bit more liquid and see how it goes. I still have hope. Interesting to see a full-on pro racecar with such a primitive little fix......

Dog,
Try headband

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by rhyary

Dog,
Try headband

I have a wristband on there. It fits nice and tight around the cap. I don’t have a picture of it.

[roastbeef]

Pros use wristbands. Does the job and less weight than a head band. (1/2 joking)

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by roastbeef

Pros use wristbands. Does the job and less weight than a head band. (1/2 joking)

Looks like your reservoir is ready for an arctic expedition!

[OG Shark]

Originally Posted by roastbeef

Pros use wristbands. Does the job and less weight than a head band. (1/2 joking)

I disagree - real pros understand that style and class are just as important as function. Wristbands have no place int the power steering world, only headbands do. Can’t argue with johnny mac now can you

[roastbeef]

my ocd won't allow a folded/twisted headband. so no.

[rhyary]

Originally Posted by roastbeef

Pros use wristbands. Does the job and less weight than a head band. (1/2 joking)

That wristband is so white, how many track days does it have on it? or do you replace it after each trackday?

[roastbeef]

Originally Posted by rhyary

That wristband is so white, how many track days does it have on it? or do you replace it after each trackday?

that was when it was fresh out of the package and new. i was very proud.

[Richbot]

My Spoon Sports genuine-ish reservoir sock is mechanic’s shirt blue and even in normal street use, already turning blackish

[SYT_Shadow]

Originally Posted by dogbone

Still rocking the stock PS cooler. Been thinking about the do88 PS cooler, but haven't moved on it. If you install one, please tell us how it works out.

Works really nicely and is well priced. What are you waiting for?

[dogbone]

My friends from Bimmer Challenge and Caliphotography forwarded me a nice picture from Sunday's event.

I don't recall having a still photograph with two wheels in the air. Check that off the to-do list!

Good 'ol Turn 4 at Auto Club---a surprisingly frustrating turn. If you try to go too fast, you'll get unceremoniously dumped to the outside on exit and you'll have to wait to get on the gas. (For most of 2018, when you got dumped to the outside, there was a big hole in the dirt after the end of the berm that was catching and bending a LOT of wheels. It seemed like a long time before they fixed it.) Your speed perception in this corner is hosed because you were traveling 130-160mph for a very long time on the Oval, so now that you're doing 45mph, it feels wrong---like you're crawling. If your car is heavy, you just have to be patient on the quick weight transfer of Turns 3 and 4. I don't even know if it's worth getting on the berm as I did here because it's tall and throws you. Given the slow speeds, is it worth bouncing off the berm to get the extra track width and cut the corner? I'm not sure that it is. Anyway, as much as you think it's just a throw-away turn as you exit the Oval, it's surprisingly challenging if you're on a hot lap.

[dogbone]

File this one under-----it's all good!!

So, I'm driving my E92 M3 home tonight after watching my daughter's Cross Country meet.

A kid---maybe 18 years old---in a nice Audi pulls up next to me and is checking out my car. I give him the Peace sign. He stays next to me continuing to check out the car, so I roll my window down while we're still rolling down the road.

He shouts over, "That shit is CLEAN bro!"

I think that is the finest compliment I've ever gotten while driving a car! My wife was just gobsmacked as to what was going on! She was like, "did you just get respect from an 18 year-old in an Audi?" hahahaha

Hey, I'm all about the love.

[dogbone]

On Saturday, I visited Pueblo Motorsport Park with my E92 M3. It was my first time ever at Pueblo. And it was my first time ever running with BMW CCA. I wanted to check out both, so I figured this was a good way to do it. CCA events are usually Driving Schools, so I signed up as a student. I haven't had an in-car instructor in a long time. (My E90 doesn't even have a passenger seat.) Was curious how that would go.

The prep for the event was more than I've ever had to do for any event. I was required to get a tech check at an ASE certified shop. And my brake fluid could not be more than 120 days old. So I had to bleed my brakes. The prep was time consuming. (PCA requires tech checks, but they offer them at the track. Pretty much everyone else I've run with allows self-tech. Plus, you have to be a CCA member to do CCA events. PCA does not require that.)

I'm happy to report that the event itself was very pleasant. The CCA people kept the mood relaxed. Everyone---both organizers and drivers---were friendly both on and off the track. (Our Advanced run group was nice with only 11 cars in it.)

The instructor I had was a very seasoned and successful Chump car series racer. He also does some uphill racing in a super tricked-out Nissan GTR. Very nice guy. (He brought a very new GT2 RS to the track. Quite beautiful.) We had a Chatterbox-style communicator, so it was easy to talk throughout the driving session. He provided constant feedback. I believe he sped up my learning of the track. hehe After so many years of learning tracks on my own, I could see my learning process clashed a bit with his instruction. We got along fine, but I'm a bit hard-headed and set in my ways, and he wanted me to do things a bit differently than I'm used to, so we had a lively back-and-forth going on all day. I prefer that over someone who just says "good job". Of course, I also drive a bit differently when I have a passenger---I don't go to the hairy edge or experiment as I might when I'm by myself.

The day was structured with four 25 minute sessions on track. And four 50 minute classroom sessions. Since this was the Advanced group, the classroom sessions largely concentrated on discussing each corner of the track. The chief instructor ran a low-key, mellow classroom and was always open to questions, and encouraged feedback and discussion. I thought it was a nice forum for learning. Often times, my friends and I will sit with a track map and talk about different parts of the track in an impromptu gathering. This was an organized way of discussing different aspects of the track.

After the track day was over, CCA requests you participate in an online evaluation process. I did. The instructor wrote quite a few notes---some complimentary and some critical. His most critical note struck me as a bit odd---"I am not confident a 100mph+ oversteer incident could be caught before a critical yaw moment and/or an off track excursion." First of all, I caught any slide that occurred on Saturday. Second, when I have a passenger, I will catch a slide in the most conservative way possible. And third, of all the tracks I have ever visited, I can only think of three places where a 100+mph oversteer moment is even possible, and none are in Colorado----they are the Riverside turn at Buttonwillow, Turn 9 at Willow Springs and Turn 10 at Sonoma. And I've caught those slides just fine. So, I'm not sure where that comment came from. The main thing that I was disappointed about in my evaluation was that one of the checkboxes he filled in was about whether I was signed off to drive Solo. He checked the "No" box.....So.....I guess I don't have enough track experience to drive Solo with BMW CCA?.....

And what about the track? Well, let's talk logistics and infrastructure first. They don't sell gas at Pueblo. No gas. No 91. No nothing. haha that was a first. I called the track on three different days prior to the event to specifically ask what kind of gas they sold and no one ever answered. And the organizer's notes didn't mention it. I showed up with less than 1/4 tank to hopefully put 100 octane in. I put my Pirellis on and then I finally find out there's no gas. So, I had to go drive to a gas station several miles away on my Pirellis.....blah. Of course, I had no gas cans, so I had to run back out to the gas station in the middle of the day to get gas a second time---again on my slicks.... But wait, there's more! To exit the track facility, the paddock exit road CROSSES the track surface, so you can't just run out to get gas whenever you want. You have to wait until a 25 minute session is over, then they open a gate and you quickly cross the track. And then you have to wait again to get back into the facility..... Let's just say that the infrastructure logistics at Pueblo are not my favorite. I joked with the track employee that controls the gate that they needed a tunnel under the track. She laughed and said, "job security". I laughed, rolled my eyes....and then kept waiting.

So, the track is a quirky track. It's about the same length as Laguna Seca---2.2 miles. I'd say the biggest oddity is the final turn onto the front straight. As you exit the turn, you are on the beginnings of a drag strip. So there's all that normal drag strip rubber laid down on the track surface. I didn't know what to make of it. Is it grippy? Is it slippery? Does the grip on the drag strip rubber change drastically as the day heats up? It started cool in the 50's but the day ended in the 90s. I was hesitant to try to find the grip limit because I had a passenger and there were walls very nearby. Ultimately, I never did have a bad moment there, but I didn't really test it either. My instructor also recommended against testing the limits there. Unfortunately, by not being aggressive there, you lose out at the start of a lonnnnng straight.

I would say the pavement is aging in a similar manner to Willow Springs. It's rough and has lots of flaws. Turn 1 is probably the toughest to get right. There are several ideas out there on how to attack it. I have more to experiment with there. And having a passenger definitely affected the car's behavior in that turn. I wish I could have driven solo at least once during the day, but that will have to wait until a non-CCA day.

As the day wore on, the tight hairpin Turn 7 was getting slippery. I lost the tail several times in the afternoon while exiting that turn. Had no problems in the AM. Was the tar patching getting hot? Did someone drop something there? Don't know. My fast lap suffered some sliding there.

I set my fastest lap during the last session when it was 90ºF and one of my tires was just beginning to cord. Ran a 1:45.2. I'm generally familiar with the track now, but there's more learning to do. Plus, there's more time to pickup just from not having the weight of a passenger, temps less than 90º and tires in better condition.

Anyway, it was interesting to have an instructor critiquing every moment of my driving at a track I've never been to in my E92 that I've only had on track a few times prior. Oh yeah, I also had a slightly odd tire config on the car----I decided to run 285 in the front and 265 in the rear. Worked fine. Didn't mind it at all.

The Rocky Mountain chapter of CCA puts on a Time Trial in the Spring. I was told to do the driving school so that I could do the time trial. With the instructor not signing me off for Solo, I don't know what that means for time trialing. We'll see.

From a social standpoint, I enjoyed the day. Many nice people out there. hehe I got a taste of seeing a supercharged M3 takeoff on the front straight while being in my NA stock powered M3. He definitely was putting some car lengths between us on the straights. In the middle of the afternoon, a guy came up to me and asked, "Are you------dogbone?" hehe yes sir! There were a few E9x M3's out there, and we were chatting on and off all day. Always fun to chat with fellow E9x M3 dudes. That was one of the main reasons I attended. Was curious about the BMW scene. (I could have gone to Pueblo on Friday for a track-hosted open-lapping day, but chose to do the CCA event.)

I definitely plan on visiting Pueblo again, but High Plains is more on my radar. I will have to do some homework on the best way to deal with the Pueblo fuel situation. I already pack the car with quite a bit of stuff, so I don't know how much fuel I can bring with me. hmmmm I wonder if I could get my wife to follow me in the pickup truck.....hahahaha ZERO CHANCE OF THAT!!!!!

[DRLane]

Excellent write up! Very accurate to my experience in the B run group.

I'm conflicted as to HPR vs Pueblo from a routing and line perspective. I think corners 1-3 and 5-7 at Pueblo are perfectly synced and thus super fun while HPRs corners are more disparate sections. That said the conditions, facilities, straights, and safety considerations are undoubtedly better at HPR. So Pueblo will probably be more of an annual pilgrimage while HPR will be 8-10 days a year.

Haha, I was the "are you... dogbone". Was fun chatting and appreciated the suspension tips!

[Richbot]

On berms, hopping curbs, and general hoonage in slow-speed corners -

a) it's worth taking as much curb as is possible to take - don't take a little bit, take a car width minus one wheel on the track surface if you're going to put two in the air anyway. Don't just take a little curb or you're bouncing the car around without getting the benefit of a shorter distance between two points - obviously if this drops the car in a hole mid-corner, don't do that

b) if this breaks stuff on your car, don't do it

c) if this unsettles the car *in transition*, your timing is probably off - you don't want to take the most speed you can *in* to a curb hop, you want to maximize your speed *out*. I see a lot of people try to get the best run at the bump as they can, which means you catch wicked gnarly air, but other than mad props doesn't gain you much (see d) - so slow down to speed up

d) if taking curb on the second ess delays throttle application, your timing is probably off - taking curb should let you get on it *sooner* not force you to wait, when you're exiting the element, or again, probably not worth the banging around

e) curb hopping can work a tire really hard, if you're already on the edge of what the tire can take, ease up on the curbs for a bit

f) get more of those photos!

I've no experience with that track, but in the spec wrecker, a curb that looks kinda like that would be or is "the racing line" at most of my tracks. None of this really applies if you don't have a good diff and very good set of dampers on the car - without one-and-done damping and a diff that works, you're gonna have a bad time - taking a bunch of curb in the SRF only works if you're in 3rd or above, below that it's wheelspin city with the open diff and causes too much delay in power-down in my experience

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by DRLane

Excellent write up! Very accurate to my experience in the B run group.

I'm conflicted as to HPR vs Pueblo from a routing and line perspective. I think corners 1-3 and 5-7 at Pueblo are perfectly synced and thus super fun while HPRs corners are more disparate sections. That said the conditions, facilities, straights, and safety considerations are undoubtedly better at HPR. So Pueblo will probably be more of an annual pilgrimage while HPR will be 8-10 days a year.

Haha, I was the "are you... dogbone". Was fun chatting and appreciated the suspension tips!

Was great meeting ya out there! Glad you popped onto the thread to say hi!

hehe I was just on the HPR calendar looking to see when could be a good time to turn some more laps out there. Would be fun to get out there in September. However, there are 24 hour races the next two weekends at HPR. Something tells me I might not want to do open lapping on the day before those races......I'm guessing it will be a zoo.....

When do you think you'll be out there again?

[DRLane]

Originally Posted by dogbone

Was great meeting ya out there! Glad you popped onto the thread to say hi!

hehe I was just on the HPR calendar looking to see when could be a good time to turn some more laps out there. Would be fun to get out there in September. However, there are 24 hour races the next two weekends at HPR. Something tells me I might not want to do open lapping on the day before those races......I'm guessing it will be a zoo.....

When do you think you'll be out there again?

I'm volunteering in the pit crew this weekend for Big Mission Racing at the 24 hour race. Should be cool experience. I believe they're racing two cars in the event. Agreed, on the open lapping days in September.

I might sign up for NASA's event at HPR Oct 12/13 - Or I might try to find an open Friday instead. Just weary of the # of cars and experience level of the drivers during true open days. I believe Doug from the Pueblo event dcmac mentioned he might attend?

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by Richbot

On berms, hopping curbs, and general hoonage in slow-speed corners -

a) it's worth taking as much curb as is possible to take - don't take a little bit, take a car width minus one wheel on the track surface if you're going to put two in the air anyway. Don't just take a little curb or you're bouncing the car around without getting the benefit of a shorter distance between two points - obviously if this drops the car in a hole mid-corner, don't do that

b) if this breaks stuff on your car, don't do it

c) if this unsettles the car *in transition*, your timing is probably off - you don't want to take the most speed you can *in* to a curb hop, you want to maximize your speed *out*. I see a lot of people try to get the best run at the bump as they can, which means you catch wicked gnarly air, but other than mad props doesn't gain you much (see d) - so slow down to speed up

d) if taking curb on the second ess delays throttle application, your timing is probably off - taking curb should let you get on it *sooner* not force you to wait, when you're exiting the element, or again, probably not worth the banging around

e) curb hopping can work a tire really hard, if you're already on the edge of what the tire can take, ease up on the curbs for a bit

f) get more of those photos!

I've no experience with that track, but in the spec wrecker, a curb that looks kinda like that would be or is "the racing line" at most of my tracks. None of this really applies if you don't have a good diff and very good set of dampers on the car - without one-and-done damping and a diff that works, you're gonna have a bad time - taking a bunch of curb in the SRF only works if you're in 3rd or above, below that it's wheelspin city with the open diff and causes too much delay in power-down in my experience

Good stuff!

Regarding (A): Yeah, a lot of berms at CA tracks can damage wheels if you attack them so deep that you are hitting the back side of the berm on your way back onto the track. The dirt on the back side of the berm has eroded/or been worn off and you have a square raised edge waiting for you. I've done that a few times, and it makes you cringe when you feel the rim slamming onto the back edge of the berm. The main berm in CA where you can really go deep is Bus Stop at Buttonwillow. You can jump all over that berm like a crazy person!

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by DRLane

I'm volunteering in the pit crew this weekend for Big Mission Racing at the 24 hour race. Should be cool experience. I believe they're racing two cars in the event. Agreed, on the open lapping days in September.

I might sign up for NASA's event at HPR Oct 12/13 - Or I might try to find an open Friday instead. Just weary of the # of cars and experience level of the drivers during true open days. I believe Doug from the Pueblo event dcmac mentioned he might attend?

Cool. 24 hour races are fun. I've been pit crew in mountain bike races for that kind of stuff. I was the guy fixing bicycles, cooking food and keeping headlamp batteries charged throughout the night. Haven't done any endurance car racing yet. hehe I'd want to drive if I was at a 24 hour endurance race.

For the Oct 12/13 weekend, I signed up for an event in CA at Chuckwalla with PCA.

[okusa]

Eff that bitch ass instructor. The only question is whether your 1:45.2 put you ahead of his cheater GT2 RS....