Track forum general chit chat.

[roastbeef]

damn, our currency is 23% down from the pound... that must have been a smokin deal on the aim solo dl.

[Mantii]

Originally Posted by roastbeef

damn, our currency is 23% down from the pound... that must have been a smokin deal on the aim solo dl.

Yes sir. The DL is $699 in the US. Great time to get it through them if you were on the fence

[NoCarrier]

Originally Posted by roastbeef

tried harry's. hated it. sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't. the times were way too fast. like impossible fast for the track i was at. haven't touched it since.

Weird. I've been using Harry's for years and I find it to usually be within less than one tenth of the time reported by the transponders.

[roastbeef]

Originally Posted by NoCarrier

Weird. I've been using Harry's for years and I find it to usually be within less than one tenth of the time reported by the transponders.

i used it at auto club. i know there are a few different layouts, but i selected the correct variation. half the time it worked just fine, and the other half, the times were bonkers. might be my cell coverage?
i kinda have a personality trait that if something doesn't work the way it is supposed to, i get frustrated and would rather not use it.

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by Mantii

Finally picked up a Solo DL...$200 cheaper from Europe

Let me know if there is anything I absolutely need to do with it as far as configuration before I take it out to the track

I've been using the Solo DL for several years. Most people here know I'm quite happy with it.

A few things come to mind as you get ready to use it at the track.

-The GPS Manager app is your friend: Using the app, I recommend that you clear out all the silly pre-setup track profiles the AIM is jammed full of. They are unnecessary, and make a long cluttered list of tracks and you will never use 99% of them. I cleared them all out and made my own, and now my Track list is manageable with just the tracks I care about. Plus, I found that many of the pre-setup Start/Finish lines were not to my liking. I sat down one day with Google Earth and found the finish lines at all my tracks. But you don't need to bother with Google; just go to the Start/Finish line of your track in the morning before the track goes hot and create a new track with the AIM while standing on the Start/Finish line. It's super simple. And now you have a good Start/Finish. I've given my profiles to my buddies and now we can directly compare laps based on the same GPS markers.

-The GPS Manager app is your friend again: I like setting up segments in the lap profile in the GPS Manager app because as soon as you load the session into the Analysis software, you automatically have a few built-in segments and you can see sector times and a Theoretical Best that actually means something to you. (The pc software can auto-create a lot segments for a track, but I have found that a theoretical best based on 30 track segments is not really useful. The corners are too isolated and don't take into account connected features. Seeing three or four track segments can help you account for the flow through several features. And it's best to put a segment marker on the early-to-middle part of a straight before a braking zones so you can't fake a fast segment by FLYING in and logging a great speed into a corner and then flying off the track after the segment ends.) Creating these segments does have an odd side effect though. While on track, the AIM will usually just show you whatever page you'd like to see. However, with the built-in segments, the AIM flashes up each segment time while driving. So, it is possible that you glance over at the AIM to see Predictive timing or Water Temps or something like that, and it's flashing up your segment time at that moment. So, then you need to glance back at it a few seconds later to see what you wanted to see. If that would bother you, then building segments into the GPS Manager lap profiles may not be for you. Which leads me to my next point......

-I recommend not spending a lot of time admiring the AIM while on track. I suggest just taking a quick glance at the Start/Finish line. Some of my friends seem to stare at the damn thing. I don't know how they drive while staring at it. There's one page on the AIM where you can see a +/- for the current lap versus the previous fastest. My friend can tell me how well a certain lap was going versus previous laps at many different spots on the track....Ugh. Are you driving or staring at a tiny computer screen? I have heard many times that great laps were ruined because someone saw their awesome Predictive Time on the AIM and tried to "live up" to what it was showing......and then they overdrive and mess the lap up. Just drive! Look at the data later.

-I have found over the years that, for some reason, the AIM seems to run more reliably and more accurately when it's session memory is empty. I used to let months and months of tracking sit on the device, and then it seemed to act funky as it got full. When I cleared out the sessions, it seems to work perfectly again. Am i imagining things? I don't know......Anyway, I say run it, download the data, and then Clear the memory. You can always find the DATA folder and copy the sessions elsewhere if necessary. Track Profiles and Session data are two different things and don't get erased the same way, so when the software warns you that all memory is being erased, it's only the session data.

-The AIM Analysis software is SUPER annoying when you first try to use it. It is NOT user friendly or intuitive.....at all. But it is powerful. And as you get used to it, it just gets more and more useful.

-The AIM Sport customer service people are SUPER helpful. if you have questions, they are very knowledgable and friendly. Let me give you an example. I was wondering if you could look at how a car is accelerating. The lateral G's seemed useful, but the longitudinal information wasn't as useful on it's own. I called the AIM people. They said, "oh yeah, we'll get our expert guy to help you." This guy wrote an equation for me that would use the longitudinal data to calculate ft/sec acceleration. You can add that calculation manually to the AIM parameters and it just shows up in the graphs like any other parameter! It's fantastic! Now I can compare how my car accelerates versus my friend's car that also has a supercharger. Like I said, the software is powerful, but it is NOTTTT intuitive.

-I am impressed that the AIM can sit in the hot sun on a hot track day and just keep working. An iPhone overheats in 10 minutes sitting in the sun. The AIM can sit in the car all day and it's fine.

-If you want to make videos with nice data overlays, the AIM pc software easily exports csv files that can drop right into a template inside programs like Race Render. There are pre-done generic templates you can use, but I didn't find those satisfying. I recommend taking the time to make a nice looking template for your overlay videos. To setup a template with custom dash background graphics takes awhile, but once you're done, you have a nice unique look for all your future videos. And making future videos is VERY quick with a template in Race Render. The longest/hardest part is syncing the video and data which has to be done by hand.

-Another thought on videos and GPS data points: If you have a good microphone recording your exhaust, the most important thing to synchronize is the RPM data with the sound of the revving. If those are off, the video looks and sounds ridiculous. As a result of lining those two things up, your data will most likely NOT synchronize perfectly with the visual of crossing the Start/Finish line. I have considered changing my Start/Finish GPS point to see if I could get the data's Start/Finish to sync better with the video, but if I do that, it will be harder to compare old laps with new laps in the AIM software because now you've changed the GPS. hehe this is a bit of a rabbit hole. My advice here: Create a lap profile by standing on the Start/Finish line, and live with that GPS start point forever. Or if it is too far off with the video, then change it right away so that your future sessions can all directly compare with each other.

-Something I did to familiarize myself with the AIM before using it at the track: I made my neighborhood block into an AIM racetrack profile. hehe I GPS-marked a sign on my street as the Start/Finish line. Once that was set, I drove around the block and made that loop a track. It works great! You can put the AIM through all it's paces, including downloading the data into your computer and analyzing your driving-around-the-block performance!! I highly recommend it!

Anyway, enjoy the AIM! I love having access to all the data it provides. I have learned a LOT from it.

[chamba002]

[IMG]Untitled by Chamba, on Flickr[/IMG]

Did my oil change after 3 track weekends with 1,200 miles. The magnetic plug decently clean...and I sent my oil for anylsis for the first time.

[spxxx]

What's everyone's favorite external 10ghz GPS sensor that's iOS compatible?

Are most lightning wired sensors or Bluetooth? I find it hard to believe that any GPS company would gain MFi support from Apple which concerns me.

[Mantii]

Originally Posted by spxxx

What's everyone's favorite external 10ghz GPS sensor that's iOS compatible?

Are most lightning wired sensors or Bluetooth? I find it hard to believe that any GPS company would gain MFi support from Apple which concerns me.

I think most are bluetooth. The only ones I have experience with is the XGPS150a and the XGPS160, one being 5ghz and the other 10ghz.

They worked fine for my needs, though the XGPS150 completely locked up during a firmware upgrade and they had to send a replacement unit. Otherwise it was fine for a decent budget unit.

[Mantii]

Wow what post dogbone, thank you very much. Super helpful for a new Aim use such as myself.

Interestingly enough, I downloaded the GPS Manager software and went on google earth to look up the coordinates for the start finish lines of my local track and will just use that. Will double check once I'm actually there and confirm that everything triggers properly. I will definitely need to take a look at the segments and play around with that a bit.

As you said, the first thing I did was delete all of the tracks that came with the Solo. Since I bought mine from Europe, it had all of the European tracks pre-loaded. Nordschleffe this weekend? Sign me up!

It's so funny that you mention staring at the damn timer. Guilty of that haha. I do a lot of sim racing and always find myself doing that. I've been a bit better though when I'm in my car on an actual circuit.

Race Render is awesome. I first saw the F80 template from M3 Number 86 and kept bombarding his inbox for a copy. Since then, I made an e46 M3 template for myself, but have yet to test it fully to make sure the temp gauges work properly.

[IMG]ee46 m3 temp

Thanks for the sync tips, will need to play around with that as well as I just got an external mic.

The analysis software seems pretty daunting not gonna lie. Watched a couple of videos and oh boy. Do you mind sharing your acceleration parameters and how to add it? Not sure I need another data point right now but I think it would be cool to look at.

Thanks again for the detailed post. Btw, here is my simulator. I dont use the screen anymore as I race in VR now, and its amazing.

[IMG]20170712_025650195_iOS

[///Mobbin]

Originally Posted by chamba002

[IMG]Untitled by Chamba, on Flickr[/IMG]

Did my oil change after 3 track weekends with 1,200 miles. The magnetic plug decently clean...and I sent my oil for anylsis for the first time.

It's so easy to strip our aluminum oil pans with a steel drain plug, be careful! After my pan was destroyed from over tightening (partially prior servicers fault, partially my own) and unfixable on the car, I replaced it and am exclusively commited to OE softie plugs and hand tightening with an allen wrench.

[chamba002]

Originally Posted by ///Mobbin

It's so easy to strip our aluminum oil pans with a steel drain plug, be careful! After my pan was destroyed from over tightening (partially prior servicers fault, partially my own) and unfixable on the car, I replaced it and am exclusively commited to OE softie plugs and hand tightening with an allen wrench.

Thanks for the advice! I just hand tighten mine till it feels snug. So far it been working, no oil leaks or stripped pans.

[ayao]

Originally Posted by Mantii

Yup got it from Demon Tweeks if anyone else is wondering. Took exactly 5 business days to get here from England.
Looks like a lot of the stuff that is manufactured in Europe is much cheaper through them. I recommend you guys with the AP kits look up some of the Ferodo pads on the site, appear to be about $100 cheaper than any vender in the US. Same goes for any of the safety stuff from Sparco, OMP, etc.

The Aim appears to be working great. I also ordered the Plug n Play ECU harness from M-World so I don't have to cut or splice anything which is awesome.

It did come with the UK Power Plug, don't really care for it but hey, I saved a bunch of money haha

This is a -great- tip. DS1.11 pads for the CP5060 are ~$325 shipped vs >$400 anywhere stateside, for example. (Although I share roastbeef's feeling that the bite of 1.11s leave something to be desired.)
Side question: anyone have any experience with Raybestos track pads? Porterfield seems to have pretty good pricing on them...

[okusa]

Originally Posted by Mantii

Thanks again for the detailed post. Btw, here is my simulator. I dont use the screen anymore as I race in VR now, and its amazing.

What's your VR setup?

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by Mantii

Wow what post dogbone, thank you very much. Super helpful for a new Aim use such as myself.

Interestingly enough, I downloaded the GPS Manager software and went on google earth to look up the coordinates for the start finish lines of my local track and will just use that. Will double check once I'm actually there and confirm that everything triggers properly. I will definitely need to take a look at the segments and play around with that a bit.

As you said, the first thing I did was delete all of the tracks that came with the Solo. Since I bought mine from Europe, it had all of the European tracks pre-loaded. Nordschleffe this weekend? Sign me up!

It's so funny that you mention staring at the damn timer. Guilty of that haha. I do a lot of sim racing and always find myself doing that. I've been a bit better though when I'm in my car on an actual circuit.

Race Render is awesome. I first saw the F80 template from M3 Number 86 and kept bombarding his inbox for a copy. Since then, I made an e46 M3 template for myself, but have yet to test it fully to make sure the temp gauges work properly.


Thanks for the sync tips, will need to play around with that as well as I just got an external mic.

The analysis software seems pretty daunting not gonna lie. Watched a couple of videos and oh boy. Do you mind sharing your acceleration parameters and how to add it? Not sure I need another data point right now but I think it would be cool to look at.

Thanks again for the detailed post. Btw, here is my simulator. I dont use the screen anymore as I race in VR now, and its amazing.

Your sim rig looks really nice. I have never tried a VR setup. Sounds cool.

Sounds like you're off to a good start with the AIM. I have found the Google Earth start points to be ok. They're not necessarily spot on when it comes to making videos. (It doesn't really matter.) Again, the audio of the revs matching the overlay data is the most important thing. Otherwise the video looks and sounds wrong with the RPM needle moving and the audio not matching. If you can massage the GPS start marker to where the audio and data match and all that is properly sync'd to the Start line, that would be great. But I would say that the only practical way to do that would be to make test videos with data overlay between every session and see how everything is lining up.

If I was starting over with the AIM, that's how I would do it-----drive on track with the AIM and record video and audio, come back in, download the data, export the csv, import the video, make an overlay video, see if the start line is matching up with the data and sound. If it's not, you gotta adjust the GPS marker in the AIM for the start line. Go drive and repeat. The data from that day will not be super useful since the GPS markers for the start line will be different from each session. But hopefully you could get it sorted out in one day, and then after that, all your data from different track days all line up and can be compared. With all this AIM and video overlay stuff, it's the setup that's really challenging it. Once that's done, using it is pretty easy. You just need to remember to have freshly charged batteries for everything!!

The list of things I have to charge before a track day now is just stupid:

-GoPro 4 - in-car camera
-GoPro 2 - bumper camera
-Spare GoPro 4 batteris
-Spare GoPro 2 batteries
-AIM Solo DL
-iPhone 5s to run Harry's Lap Timer (although I'm coming to the end of the road with Harry's)
-Small pc laptop in case I need to read codes
-MacBook Pro for Race Render, plus downloading AIM sessions (with Fusion/Windows)
-Impact Gun Batteries

It looks like I'm charging up to run Mission Control or something......ridiculous.

(Once you have sessions to work with and you understand the AIM software, PM me and I can send the acceleration file. Unfortunately, it needs to be loaded manually into every session where you want to see it. The information isn't that generically useful by itself. It's potentially most useful as a comparison parameter. But you need data to be able to compare.)

[Mantii]

Originally Posted by okusa

What's your VR setup?

The VR headset itself is the Oculus. Some people may find the resolution a bit off putting vs a traditional monitor, but it is really not bad at all. Sitting inside the cockpit and moving around like you would in a real car is absolutely amazing. The sense of speed and hitting the apexes is so much easier and life like vs looking at a 2d screen with no depth perception. Wheel to wheel racing in VR gets my blood pumping and it's so much fun, and safer. I put on the headset, good headphones, and it's like you have a helmet on.

The entire rig consists of:

-Oculus VR headset
-Fanatec Clubsport Wheel Base
-Fanatec Clubsport V3 Pedals
-Fanatec BMW GT2 Steering Wheel/Formula Wheel
-Fanatec 1.5 Shifter (6 speed and Sequential Modes)
-RSeat RS1 Assetto Corsa Edition Cockpit
-Butt Kicker Gamer 2 combined with SimVibe software to simulate the butt feeling of bumps, rumble strips, etc

Overall, a ton of fun and sometimes I loose track of time once I strap in. Makes the winter months a little easier to bear.

[Richbot]

I am terrified of what might happen if I get a VR driving rig in my house. I could see myself starving to death driving the 'ring in my own basement, yards from my fridge

[Mantii]

Originally Posted by Richbot

I am terrified of what might happen if I get a VR driving rig in my house. I could see myself starving to death driving the 'ring in my own basement, yards from my fridge

You'll be ok. You can ride up to Devil's Dinner when you get hungry. I have yet to find a time they are open haha But then again, you can't eat virtual food either

[ThunderMoose]

Originally Posted by dogbone

I've been using the Solo DL for several years. Most people here know I'm quite happy with it.

A few things come to mind as you get ready to use it at the track.

-The GPS Manager app is your friend: Using the app, I recommend that you clear out all the silly pre-setup track profiles the AIM is jammed full of. They are unnecessary, and make a long cluttered list of tracks and you will never use 99% of them. I cleared them all out and made my own, and now my Track list is manageable with just the tracks I care about. Plus, I found that many of the pre-setup Start/Finish lines were not to my liking. I sat down one day with Google Earth and found the finish lines at all my tracks. But you don't need to bother with Google; just go to the Start/Finish line of your track in the morning before the track goes hot and create a new track with the AIM while standing on the Start/Finish line. It's super simple. And now you have a good Start/Finish. I've given my profiles to my buddies and now we can directly compare laps based on the same GPS markers.

-The GPS Manager app is your friend again: I like setting up segments in the lap profile in the GPS Manager app because as soon as you load the session into the Analysis software, you automatically have a few built-in segments and you can see sector times and a Theoretical Best that actually means something to you. (The pc software can auto-create a lot segments for a track, but I have found that a theoretical best based on 30 track segments is not really useful. The corners are too isolated and don't take into account connected features. Seeing three or four track segments can help you account for the flow through several features. And it's best to put a segment marker on the early-to-middle part of a straight before a braking zones so you can't fake a fast segment by FLYING in and logging a great speed into a corner and then flying off the track after the segment ends.) Creating these segments does have an odd side effect though. While on track, the AIM will usually just show you whatever page you'd like to see. However, with the built-in segments, the AIM flashes up each segment time while driving. So, it is possible that you glance over at the AIM to see Predictive timing or Water Temps or something like that, and it's flashing up your segment time at that moment. So, then you need to glance back at it a few seconds later to see what you wanted to see. If that would bother you, then building segments into the GPS Manager lap profiles may not be for you. Which leads me to my next point......

-I recommend not spending a lot of time admiring the AIM while on track. I suggest just taking a quick glance at the Start/Finish line. Some of my friends seem to stare at the damn thing. I don't know how they drive while staring at it. There's one page on the AIM where you can see a +/- for the current lap versus the previous fastest. My friend can tell me how well a certain lap was going versus previous laps at many different spots on the track....Ugh. Are you driving or staring at a tiny computer screen? I have heard many times that great laps were ruined because someone saw their awesome Predictive Time on the AIM and tried to "live up" to what it was showing......and then they overdrive and mess the lap up. Just drive! Look at the data later.

-I have found over the years that, for some reason, the AIM seems to run more reliably and more accurately when it's session memory is empty. I used to let months and months of tracking sit on the device, and then it seemed to act funky as it got full. When I cleared out the sessions, it seems to work perfectly again. Am i imagining things? I don't know......Anyway, I say run it, download the data, and then Clear the memory. You can always find the DATA folder and copy the sessions elsewhere if necessary. Track Profiles and Session data are two different things and don't get erased the same way, so when the software warns you that all memory is being erased, it's only the session data.

-The AIM Analysis software is SUPER annoying when you first try to use it. It is NOT user friendly or intuitive.....at all. But it is powerful. And as you get used to it, it just gets more and more useful.

-The AIM Sport customer service people are SUPER helpful. if you have questions, they are very knowledgable and friendly. Let me give you an example. I was wondering if you could look at how a car is accelerating. The lateral G's seemed useful, but the longitudinal information wasn't as useful on it's own. I called the AIM people. They said, "oh yeah, we'll get our expert guy to help you." This guy wrote an equation for me that would use the longitudinal data to calculate ft/sec acceleration. You can add that calculation manually to the AIM parameters and it just shows up in the graphs like any other parameter! It's fantastic! Now I can compare how my car accelerates versus my friend's car that also has a supercharger. Like I said, the software is powerful, but it is NOTTTT intuitive.

-I am impressed that the AIM can sit in the hot sun on a hot track day and just keep working. An iPhone overheats in 10 minutes sitting in the sun. The AIM can sit in the car all day and it's fine.

-If you want to make videos with nice data overlays, the AIM pc software easily exports csv files that can drop right into a template inside programs like Race Render. There are pre-done generic templates you can use, but I didn't find those satisfying. I recommend taking the time to make a nice looking template for your overlay videos. To setup a template with custom dash background graphics takes awhile, but once you're done, you have a nice unique look for all your future videos. And making future videos is VERY quick with a template in Race Render. The longest/hardest part is syncing the video and data which has to be done by hand.

-Another thought on videos and GPS data points: If you have a good microphone recording your exhaust, the most important thing to synchronize is the RPM data with the sound of the revving. If those are off, the video looks and sounds ridiculous. As a result of lining those two things up, your data will most likely NOT synchronize perfectly with the visual of crossing the Start/Finish line. I have considered changing my Start/Finish GPS point to see if I could get the data's Start/Finish to sync better with the video, but if I do that, it will be harder to compare old laps with new laps in the AIM software because now you've changed the GPS. hehe this is a bit of a rabbit hole. My advice here: Create a lap profile by standing on the Start/Finish line, and live with that GPS start point forever. Or if it is too far off with the video, then change it right away so that your future sessions can all directly compare with each other.

-Something I did to familiarize myself with the AIM before using it at the track: I made my neighborhood block into an AIM racetrack profile. hehe I GPS-marked a sign on my street as the Start/Finish line. Once that was set, I drove around the block and made that loop a track. It works great! You can put the AIM through all it's paces, including downloading the data into your computer and analyzing your driving-around-the-block performance!! I highly recommend it!

Anyway, enjoy the AIM! I love having access to all the data it provides. I have learned a LOT from it.

Excellent post! I'd add one thing. Pair with Smartycam and you'll save time and improve ability to do at track analysis.

[Mantii]

Good point thundermoose. I just feel like the SmartyCam is a bit too much for my needs right now. I use the GoPros for other things as well and don't need on site analysis. For anyone that does and the ability to save time, it's the perfect but expensive tool.

[ThunderMoose]

Originally Posted by Mantii

Good point thundermoose. I just feel like the SmartyCam is a bit too much for my needs right now. I use the GoPros for other things as well and don't need on site analysis. For anyone that does and the ability to save time, it's the perfect but expensive tool.

I get it. I personally got tired of syncing video and data as well as frequently forgetting to turn camera on. With Solo DL and Smartycam, that never happens. I have 128 GB card in the camera and can do 3-6 months easily without cleaning out card. Camera comes on automatically when I get to a certain speed. I can pull out the sim card right after a session and look at video with data automatically overlayed. I'd say Solo DL was probably the best mod I ever installed with smartycam a close second.

[admranger]

Originally Posted by roastbeef

Any reason why you went with the hybrid over the diesel? I'm a fan of both, but I want to hear opinions for each.

For the diesel to be worth the extra maintenance, etc., you need to do miles. I don't do miles really. Even with a 2400 mile cross country drive I'm just a bit over 10.4k miles with a year under my belt!

Plus, in Vegas I had plenty of solar to use to charge the car. Solar miles were essentially freebies for me in Vegas. Didn't know I'd end up here in DC.

[///Mobbin]

Now that I have a second vehicle, I'm thinking about charging my m3 battery on occasion or leaving it plugged in to a trickle charger. I have the old school BMW "Advanced" 1.25A trickle charger but may grab a CTEK 4-amp charger at some point. Good video here on the charge points and how to orient things and still close the hood: