Just signed up for my first HPDE event!

[spooni]

Long time driving enthusiast here, and finally signed up for a real track day. I'll be running Thunderhill East with Ongrid. i'm very excited!

I bought my M3 in Feb of this year for this exact reason.. Car is all stock besides Enkei NT03s 18x10 square with Conti ECS, and a Meisterschaft catback.

Brakes are fairly new. I've been told conflicting things about going with pads or not. I don't mind having to run a dedicated track set. Car is daily driven for now. Recommendations are welcome! i'm doing SS lines and Motul RBF600 next week.

Cheers!

EDIT: Since this has kind of turned into a build thread..

As of 5/6

JRZ RStwo
GAS monoball thrust arms
Apex EC7 18x10 square
Falken RT615k+ 275 square
Stoptech SS brake lines
Hawk DTC70 F+R - Stock calipers
AFE X pipe
Eisenmann Sport muffler
Alpine MSS stage 2
Do88 OC

[WhiteM3EMC]

Most here will tell you to keep everything besides brake fluid stock for your very first time. While there are MANY more qualified opinions than mine, and I'm sure they'll weigh in, here's mine: You won't be asking a whole lot of the brakes as the speeds won't be crazy for your first ever session. You definitely don't NEED track pads, but they won't hurt. Keep it cheap and just go enjoy your first track day! You'll learn alot, and will naturally start to identify the things that you may want to change in order for you to achieve your goals the next time out.

I will say, modding the car is an extremely slippery slope, that involves lots of money along the way. I'd certainly recommend taking it out stock (with the mods you've already planned) and enjoying yourself.

[SYT_Shadow]

For the first time you're likely fine with your oem pads. I would buy another set of pads just in case and take them to the track.

The less you mod the more you learn. After a few days I'd move to RE71 tires, track pads like pfc08/12/11 and camber plates

[MaximusB]

I did my very first track day early last year (then subsequent several more). Stock brakes are totally fine for first timer. You won't be going very fast the first time. In fact I wouldn't even bother doing videos or lap timing on your first track day, per my Instructor's advice. There are just lots to learn and to take in for the first time, so less distraction the better. Just go have fun.

As for brakes, stock setup is fine. I did my first track day with everything stock. I soon upgraded to BBK though. But that was because my stock rotors and pads weren't in the greatest shape to begin with. After pricing out oem replacement it wasn't that much more to get BBK. Having said that, I would suggest you do your first track day with what you have. Decide whether you want to upgrade when things are starting to wear out/need replacement.

[tsk94]

All the above is good advice. If you're doing SS lines and fluid already, that will be more then enough for your first/first few times out.

Go in with an open mind, ready to learn and have fun!

[spooni]

Originally Posted by WhiteM3EMC

Most here will tell you to keep everything besides brake fluid stock for your very first time. While there are MANY more qualified opinions than mine, and I'm sure they'll weigh in, here's mine: You won't be asking a whole lot of the brakes as the speeds won't be crazy for your first ever session. You definitely don't NEED track pads, but they won't hurt. Keep it cheap and just go enjoy your first track day! You'll learn alot, and will naturally start to identify the things that you may want to change in order for you to achieve your goals the next time out.

I will say, modding the car is an extremely slippery slope, that involves lots of money along the way. I'd certainly recommend taking it out stock (with the mods you've already planned) and enjoying yourself.

Thank you! Yeah I definitely agree with that statement- it's easy to spend money on worthless mods, as it adds up fast. The wheels are tires were a no-brainer. But I want to tread lightly on my next steps with the car. Need to figure out a goal.. as of now, I would like to keep it streetable but very track friendly with minimal changes needed on those weekends.

Originally Posted by SYT_Shadow

For the first time you're likely fine with your oem pads. I would buy another set of pads just in case and take them to the track.

The less you mod the more you learn. After a few days I'd move to RE71 tires, track pads like pfc08/12/11 and camber plates

Thanks! I was thinking about making my NT03s dedicated track set and going with a stickier tire anyhow.

Originally Posted by MaximusB

I did my very first track day early last year (then subsequent several more). Stock brakes are totally fine for first timer. You won't be going very fast the first time. In fact I wouldn't even bother doing videos or lap timing on your first track day, per my Instructor's advice. There are just lots to learn and to take in for the first time, so less distraction the better. Just go have fun.

As for brakes, stock setup is fine. I did my first track day with everything stock. I soon upgraded to BBK though. But that was because my stock rotors and pads weren't in the greatest shape to begin with. After pricing out oem replacement it wasn't that much more to get BBK. Having said that, I would suggest you do your first track day with what you have. Decide whether you want to upgrade when things are starting to wear out/need replacement.

I plan to bring my gopro just for fun! Just for the 'gram maybe

Originally Posted by tsk94

All the above is good advice. If you're doing SS lines and fluid already, that will be more then enough for your first/first few times out.

Go in with an open mind, ready to learn and have fun!

Sounds good! thx!

[MaximusB]

Originally Posted by spooni

I plan to bring my gopro just for fun! Just for the 'gram maybe

Video footage is also a great learning tool. I now use track addict and race render to overlay data onto the video. You can retrace your steps to see where you made mistakes and etc. However, being it your first time, I would suggest to at least leave out the gopro for your first few sessions. If anything, setup the gopro in the afternoon sessions after you get familiar with the track first.

Have fun, the car is a blast to track!

[WhiteM3EMC]

Originally Posted by MaximusB

Video footage is also a great learning tool. I now use track addict and race render to overlay data onto the video. You can retrace your steps to see where you made mistakes and etc. However, being it your first time, I would suggest to at least leave out the gopro for your first few sessions. If anything, setup the gopro in the afternoon sessions after you get familiar with the track first.

Have fun, the car is a blast to track!

Definitely a great learning tool, if you're looking at it critically and not just to pat yourself on the back.

Side note to the OP, ask your instructor if he's cool with you filming. Some might get the wrong message if they see a camera setup; they may think you're trying to prove to your buddies how fast you are and think you're gonna be reckless.

[m13s]

Forget the camera and data first time out. Waste of time, concentrate on the fundamentals and learn to master them. Worrying about data, video and other analytical tools when you have a zero experience on track fills your head with needless items. Use your instructor to your advantage, ask questions. Vision, hands and feet, smooth on the wheel and building speed at a comfortable pace should be your goals.

Good luck.

[Bartledoo]

Originally Posted by m13s

Forget the camera and data first time out. Waste of time, concentrate on the fundamentals and learn to master them. Worrying about data, video and other analytical tools when you have a zero experience on track fills your head with needless items. Use your instructor to your advantage, ask questions. Vision, hands and feet, smooth on the wheel and building speed at a comfortable pace should be your goals.

Good luck.

+1 forget the cam. In a few more events you'll just regret having filmed yourself crawling around the track anyways. Just enjoy the amazing first time experience because it only happens once. Focus on being smooth and feeling what the car is doing underneath you.

Also, congrats. Welcome to the best money pit.

[roastbeef]

i'd do fluid and pads and give it a go. tracking on oem suspension will force you to be smoother if you want to be quick. my build has been slow and sort of backwards, i'm on oem suspension and seats, and those are the two things people tend to swap out immediately. while my reason has been financial limitations, my learning and understanding of the car still grows.

[_paolo]

Have fun! Thunderhill East is a fast track.

[kyippee]

Soo... how was it?

[spooni]

Originally Posted by kyippee

Soo... how was it?

Fun! Except for a corvette ran off track and caused a fire. Lost two whole sessions because of this. The last two of the day I was getting fairly comfortable with the car.

Now because I'm hooked, I've been non-stop thinking of what to do next. I slid around that seat like a mofo, and looking at some schroth harnesses. Brakes and tires help up pretty good, but thinking of going with some PFC11s before my next run on 7/11(west)

Car has 112k miles, and daily driven ATM. What kind of oil change schedule should I be on with say, a track day every other month or so?

Also, should I just go straight to coilovers? The factory suspension(EDC) is original. I'd love to be able to customize the alignment a bit more. Any other next step mods I should go for?

[spooni]

Originally Posted by Bartledoo

+1 forget the cam. In a few more events you'll just regret having filmed yourself crawling around the track anyways. Just enjoy the amazing first time experience because it only happens once. Focus on being smooth and feeling what the car is doing underneath you.

Also, congrats. Welcome to the best money pit.

As chance would have it by gopro was dead when I arrived, ha!

Originally Posted by roastbeef

i'd do fluid and pads and give it a go. tracking on oem suspension will force you to be smoother if you want to be quick. my build has been slow and sort of backwards, i'm on oem suspension and seats, and those are the two things people tend to swap out immediately. while my reason has been financial limitations, my learning and understanding of the car still grows.

What has been your mod path mike? I've been spending all my free time planning a build.. I'm a bit OCD which doesn't help. I'm not rich so I'm trying to figure out what's best given reasonable cost

Originally Posted by _paolo

Have fun! Thunderhill East is a fast track.

It was a blast! loved turn 7-8. Carried some good speed though there!

[dparm]

Originally Posted by spooni

Fun! Except for a corvette ran off track and caused a fire. Lost two whole sessions because of this. The last two of the day I was getting fairly comfortable with the car.

Now because I'm hooked, I've been non-stop thinking of what to do next. I slid around that seat like a mofo, and looking at some schroth harnesses. Brakes and tires help up pretty good, but thinking of going with some PFC11s before my next run on 7/11(west)

Car has 112k miles, and daily driven ATM. What kind of oil change schedule should I be on with say, a track day every other month or so?

Also, should I just go straight to coilovers? The factory suspension(EDC) is original. I'd love to be able to customize the alignment a bit more. Any other next step mods I should go for?

I'd do an oil change every 7,500ish. If your daily drive is mostly highway, you can probably push it longer. The car has a huge sump and 10w60 is very stout.

Resist the urge to throw money at mods right away. Just get yourself reliable brake pads/fluid and harnesses, and put your money into driving as much as possible. Once you are being held back by the factory suspension, THEN you can upgrade it.

Consider a private coach if you really want to focus on building good habits and learning how to extract the most from your car. I'm sure local guys can recommend credible coaches.

Pic related.

[spooni]

Originally Posted by dparm

I'd do an oil change every 7,500ish. If your daily drive is mostly highway, you can probably push it longer. The car has a huge sump and 10w60 is very stout.

Resist the urge to throw money at mods right away. Just get yourself reliable brake pads/fluid and harnesses, and put your money into driving as much as possible. Once you are being held back by the factory suspension, THEN you can upgrade it.

Consider a private coach if you really want to focus on building good habits and learning how to extract the most from your car. I'm sure local guys can recommend credible coaches.

Pic related.

So, even given semi-frequent HPDE 7500 is still safe?

Yes I know.... I'm an overthinker. So once I get it in my head, it's hard to get it out. Even with the mileage, you think the stock suspension is still worth running into the ground?

My boss happens to be an instructor and currently competing in a race series. So one of these days he will coach me

Oh and, funny guy over here

[dparm]

Originally Posted by spooni

So, even given semi-frequent HPDE 7500 is still safe?

Yes I know.... I'm an overthinker. So once I get it in my head, it's hard to get it out. Even with the mileage, you think the stock suspension is still worth running into the ground?

My boss happens to be an instructor and currently competing in a race series. So one of these days he will coach me

Oh and, funny guy over here

You can do 5,000 if it helps you sleep better at night...it's your car and your money. Maybe do 5,000 on the next one and send a sample to Blackstone Labs and see if you can push it to 7,500. Everyone's motor and driving habits are different. Even if you're getting oil for $8/qt, why pour out $80 worth of oil that's still serviceable?

I'm not saying run the suspension into the ground, I'm saying focus on the fundamentals and learning how to push the car to its limits. You'll get much more utility from hiring a coach for two weekends and doing four days of HPDE than you will from upgrading the suspension. Don't be that guy with a crazy track car who is getting passed by Spec Miatas.

Just as an example, my coach got 2+ seconds off my time in a single weekend on a 1.7 mile course just by making small adjustments to my technique -- and I was not an HPDE noob. On that track, 2 seconds is what an $1800 set of Hoosiers would've gotten me with my same medicore trailbraking technique. The next time I went to that track, I got another 2 seconds off by continuing to refine what we worked on. So yeah, 4 seconds in total, and now I can apply that to any other track I drive on any other car.

[kyippee]

For oil change, I've been keeping to no more than 3-4 track days or no more than 7,500 miles, whichever comes sooner. Might be a simple way to sort it out!

[dparm]

Originally Posted by kyippee

For oil change, I've been keeping to no more than 3-4 track days or no more than 7,500 miles, whichever comes sooner. Might be a simple way to sort it out!

I'll bet you a beer that you're pouring perfectly useable oil out if you change every 3-4 track days.

[spooni]

Originally Posted by dparm

You can do 5,000 if it helps you sleep better at night...it's your car and your money. Maybe do 5,000 on the next one and send a sample to Blackstone Labs and see if you can push it to 7,500. Everyone's motor and driving habits are different. Even if you're getting oil for $8/qt, why pour out $80 worth of oil that's still serviceable?

I'm not saying run the suspension into the ground, I'm saying focus on the fundamentals and learning how to push the car to its limits. You'll get much more utility from hiring a coach for two weekends and doing four days of HPDE than you will from upgrading the suspension. Don't be that guy with a crazy track car who is getting passed by Spec Miatas.

Just as an example, my coach got 2+ seconds off my time in a single weekend on a 1.7 mile course just by making small adjustments to my technique -- and I was not an HPDE noob. On that track, 2 seconds is what an $1800 set of Hoosiers would've gotten me with my same medicore trailbraking technique. The next time I went to that track, I got another 2 seconds off by continuing to refine what we worked on. So yeah, 4 seconds in total, and now I can apply that to any other track I drive on any other car.

Good plan - I actually have a blackstone test that's unused.

Yeah that is a good plan. I just figured the original suspension is pretty tired anyhow - and it would nice to get some better alignment specs. That is great to hear! My next day is 7/11 and hopefully my boss is coming out so he can give me pointers! better yet, it'll be free!!

Originally Posted by kyippee

For oil change, I've been keeping to no more than 3-4 track days or no more than 7,500 miles, whichever comes sooner. Might be a simple way to sort it out!

Hmm. Got ya! These damn things don't exactly have the cheapest oil or smallest capacity

[ThunderMoose]

Originally Posted by dparm

You can do 5,000 if it helps you sleep better at night...it's your car and your money. Maybe do 5,000 on the next one and send a sample to Blackstone Labs and see if you can push it to 7,500. Everyone's motor and driving habits are different. Even if you're getting oil for $8/qt, why pour out $80 worth of oil that's still serviceable?

I'm not saying run the suspension into the ground, I'm saying focus on the fundamentals and learning how to push the car to its limits. You'll get much more utility from hiring a coach for two weekends and doing four days of HPDE than you will from upgrading the suspension. Don't be that guy with a crazy track car who is getting passed by Spec Miatas.

Just as an example, my coach got 2+ seconds off my time in a single weekend on a 1.7 mile course just by making small adjustments to my technique -- and I was not an HPDE noob. On that track, 2 seconds is what an $1800 set of Hoosiers would've gotten me with my same medicore trailbraking technique. The next time I went to that track, I got another 2 seconds off by continuing to refine what we worked on. So yeah, 4 seconds in total, and now I can apply that to any other track I drive on any other car.

Good points. I see a lot of folks talking about spring and suspension upgrades but every good coach tackles braking and keeping weight on nose first before recommending hardware.