My E90 M3 Dedicated Track build (with pix!)

[leo95se]

Congrats! Nice work!

What .org is this with and how are the classes set up?

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by admranger

Congrats, dogbone!

Why does the trophy have a welders helmet on it?

Thanks!

hehe I think it looks like an astronaut helmet!!

[kyippee]

Congrats, you beast!

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by leo95se

Congrats! Nice work!

What .org is this with and how are the classes set up?

Thanks!

Speed Ventures is a Southern California-based track day organizer that has various challenges within their HPDE days. They offer Bimmer, S2k, Cadillac, Corvette Challenges. Bimmer Challenge was pretty mellow until a group of passionate BMW guys volunteered to organize it a couple years ago. Ever since then, they've brought nice sponsors on board with some nice discounts. And these days, participants seem to take the competition much more seriously and dedicate more resources to the competition.

As far as how the classes are setup, you start with the Base Points for your specific model/year BMW. Then, you check boxes for all the mods. Each mod adds points. You add the base and mod points together to get a point total for your car. The Classes are delineated by point ranges. Whatever your point total, you end up in that class. I don't have a Bimmer Challenge form to show you. Maybe someone who has a copy can chime in here to show you.

[dogbone]

Alright, I have the final Bimmer Challenge results in-hand, and I've gone through and made my own unofficial version of the Final Standings.

It was a great day. The weather was very nice, if not a bit foggy in the AM. Lots of hard driving and close competition. Some unexpected turn of events and some unexpected results.

For me, the two biggest stories of the day were in B3 and B4.

In B3, on Friday, Brian Namniek put out a message on Facebook saying that his clutch is fried and he was looking for a car he could rent or borrow. Brian was a contender for overall 1st place. If he didn't show up, Alex Goodrich would automatically win the B3 series. I showed up to the track on Saturday morning early, and I saw Alex in the paddock. We started chatting. I told him I saw Brian's predicament on Facebook. Alex tells me that HE AGREED TO LET BRIAN DRIVE HIS CAR!!!!! That is quite simply the biggest example of sportsmanship I have seen in a long time!!!! His stipulations were that Brian had to buy track insurance and provide the tires for both of them to drive on. How did that turn out with both guys driving the same car? We'll look at it below.

The other drama that had a bunch of people talking involved Steve Lee in B4. See below.

Ok, let's look at the whole day in each Class.

B5: Not much to report here. The podium was locked before Saturday's event and none of the podium guys attended.

Final B5 Standing:
1st: Michael Favuzzi - 50 points
2nd - Tie: Tony Gosorn and Robert Choo - 36 points


B4: A couple weeks ago, I wrote that Steve Lee had sort of come out of nowhere and was looking like a threat. Well, that was an understatement. A couple sessions into the day, he ran a 1:55.8 which is a stupid fast time to run in B4. Mike Clark, who dominated B4 all year long did a 1:57.6. Clearly, it didn't sit well with people, and not long after, the event organizers came over and said that his car was not a B4 car. They were bumping him to B3 (where he would have still won the day). So, Steve asked for a full clarification of the point total of his car----he asked them to go through his car mod by mod, point by point to do a full assessment of his points. Basically, he wanted to clear the air. So, the organizers came over and looked at his car quite closely. I was able to watch some of the proceedings firsthand because Steve's car was pitted near me. After looking over his car, they went away without a conclusion because it was looking like his car was in fact a B4 car.......It took until the end of the event to decide what to do with his car. Saturday's event classification wasn't important to Steve because he wasn't an overall contender in the series. But whatever they decided could set a precedent for next year. (Steve mentioned Saturday that he's interested in the series next year.) Ultimately, they decided to leave his car in B4 which did have some ripple effects on the overall standings. If Steve does run in Bimmer Challenge next year, I'll be curious to see where his car ends up.

Aside from that, there was a big shootout for the 2nd and 3rd podium slots. With Steve and Mike getting 1st and 2nd, Matt needed 3rd to get onto the podium. He got 5th on the day. Tim Pedone's Best-of-7 point total didn't change with his 6th place, and he hung on for 2nd overall.

Final B4 Standings:
1st: Mike Clark - 68 points
2nd: Tim Pedone - 49 points
3rd: John Lee - 47 points


B3: Ok-----how did the Alex-and-Brian-driving-the-same-car-matchup work out? Well, let's just say, it COULDN'T GET ANY FRICKING CLOSER!!!! Their fast laps were 0.005 sec (yes, that's 5/1000th) apart!!! Brian won the day with that razor thin margin along with the B3 series. Amazing. I have to say again, Alex Goodrich gets the good sportsmanship award in my book.

Final B3 Standings:
1st: Brian Namniek - 58 points
2nd: Alex Goodrich - 54 points
3rd: Simon Chiu - 52 points


B2: Again, Charbel Elian had the B2 series in the bag and did not drive Saturday. But there was some stiff competition between Serhan Emre and Sam Kim for the day's win. They were 0.021 sec apart with Sam taking the win. Good stuff.

Final B2 Standings:
1st: Charbel Elian - 70 points
2nd: Serhan Emre - 50 points
3rd: Elie Mansour - 34 points


B1: I'm happy to report that B1 didn't have any drama. I only needed 4th place on Saturday to win the series, and looking at the final results, I accomplished that in the first session of the day on my scrubs. Then, I went out with some good tires hoping for a new personal best but could not pull it off. My personal best is a 1:47.21; I drove a 1:47.90 and that was good enough to win the day in B1. Elie Mansour was guest driving an E46 M3 and took 2nd. And Alex Chang took 3rd. With that 3rd place, Alex's Best-of-7 point total of 60 points didn't change.

I'm happy that I was able to win each event I attended this year. Between Joe Yang (Trinity Autosport), Alex Chang and myself, there was some good competition in B1. Interestingly, at the end of the day, Trinity Autosport's head tech TJ (who was pitted near me and was there providing tech support for a client) told me that they had some big stuff planned for 2019 and that I needed to come out next year so they could beat on me.....hehe ok.....I don't know what that means---hopefully it doesn't involve baseball bats ---but I'd guess that the two most likely scenarios are that they're either building a new secret monster shop car, or they'll put more power in the current E92 M3 that Joe has been driving. I think I've demonstrated this season consistently at a wide variety of tracks that you can't simply beat my car with just lightness. It requires a combination of power and lightness. Trinity builds very light cars. Are they willing to sacrifice some lightness with a heavy blower? Or will they really dig in and put together some kind of stroker? I'm curious!!

Final B1 Standings:
1st: Gabe Shadid - 70 points
2nd: Alex Chang - 60 points
3rd: James Paick - 41 points

So, there ya go----the 2018 Bimmer Challenge is done and it was an exciting end to a fun year!

(My involvement in this series next year is unclear. With the first event happening in Feb at Chuckwalla, I have some time to decide what my plans are. Being out of state now, obviously the commitment is quite high to attend a whole season of events. We'll see.)

[roastbeef]

redpriest is a classy guy and i admire that sportsmanship and generosity more than i admire a 1st place finish. what a guy.

what car was steve in and what were his questionable mods? you can sort of mod a car specific to the bimmer challenge rules and be pretty competitive- but the rules also state they can deem any car to be in any class. maybe that car is just dialed in?

i'm going to try to make chuckwalla. i've never been and need to get in on this.

congrats on the win, gabe.

[donut_boi]

Thanks for the detailed update and congratulations dogbone

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by roastbeef

redpriest is a classy guy and i admire that sportsmanship and generosity more than i admire a 1st place finish. what a guy.

what car was steve in and what were his questionable mods? you can sort of mod a car specific to the bimmer challenge rules and be pretty competitive- but the rules also state they can deem any car to be in any class. maybe that car is just dialed in?

i'm going to try to make chuckwalla. i've never been and need to get in on this.

congrats on the win, gabe.

Yup, that was very unexpected from Alex.

Elie Mansour, one of the organizers (and all around good guy!!) clarified today on Facebook that the weight of Steve’s car was unknown and would ultimately affect its final placement in the future.

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by donut_boi

Thanks for the detailed update and congratulations dogbone

Thanks!

I had fun documenting the end of the season. There were some interesting moments. Hopefully people will read it and get inspired to participate! It’s way more interesting when a large group gets involved and everyone is throwing down their best.

[dogbone]

Here's the [unofficial] 2018 Bimmer Challenge Standings I put together. I made this sheet when I was doing my final recap.

I added a column that specifically shows the Best-of-7 points challenge results. I figured that's important to see.

Enjoy! And Happy Holidays!

[dogbone]

For the last 5 years, I've been driving Cobalt Friction's XR2 brake pads in my front calipers. I've always liked them and had good luck.

XR2 was not available when I needed pads after Chuckwalla, so I decided to try XR1, which is Cobalt's highest torque offering.

I tried the XR1 pads on Saturday. Wow, XR1 has NOTICEABLY more torque than the XR2 pads I'm used to. The brake pedal is more sensitive and the bite was very solid. I like it. I'm gonna keep running these pads and see how I adapt to them. I didn't drive them a ton because I put them on with only 2 sessions left. But the AIM is showing a bit more G's. I'm sure that with a bit of time, I can get more braking G's out of them.

Years ago, my friend experimented with XR1 with Hankook RS3 on an E90 M3. The ABS was kicking in all the time. The pads were simply too much for the street oriented tires. (No surprises there.) I drove his car and experienced it. But with slicks on the car, it's a completely different matter. The tires hold up against the braking power very nicely.

Anyway, it's always interesting when something goes on the car that gives it a different feel. And these pads definitely gave the car a new feel. I have a feeling XR1 will be my new standard pad.

[roastbeef]

The xr1 is what Andie recommended when I told him what I liked about the dsuno pads. I loved them.
I'll be back with them soon... they only lasted a few days with my mdm use though.

[dogbone]

Had a fun and interesting day today----ICE DRIVING ON A FROZEN LAKE!

Audi Club Rocky Mountain Chapter puts on a series of ice driving clinics for adults and teens on Georgetown lake in the Colorado mountains. Really nice, friendly, mellow event. I went with my Toyota Tundra. My daughter, who just turned 16 a week ago, was in a 2018 X5 with Blizzak tires. She learned SO MUCH! This kid, who is a fearful novice driver and still on a learner's permit, was throwing around the steering wheel, counter-steering, staying on the gas, sliding around and having a GREAT time. She walked away with so much knowledge and confidence. I didn't learn this stuff until I was in my 40's. I'm jealous!

The ice depth was more than 16", so it didn't have any problems with my truck. I think they said they needed 12-15" thickness for a 1/2-ton truck. The lake had a mixture of snow covered spots and bare ice spots. This made it even more challenging to drive with any consistency since the grip level would instantly change. (The bare ice was more slippery than the snow-covered spots.)

Anyway, talk about slippery. Just standing on the ice was challenging. The vehicles were sliding ALL OVER the place. If a vehicle had any speed at all and it tried to turn.....they were in for a sorry understeer that would seemingly go on forever. And the conditions kept changing because the weather was so warm--57ºF. By the afternoon, there was a layer of slush on parts of the ice. But before the slush appeared, there was a layer of water on the ice that made things SUPER slick---like an ice skating rink right after a Zamboni has just finished with the surface.

The 4x4 Tundra did really well. I'm not particularly great on the ice. I'm so used to high grip. And a pickup truck is not a well-balanced beast. When you have virtually zero grip, it's an adventure, and I was spinning the truck at first. By the end of the day, I was doing ok.

The drills were fine--skid pad, slalom and a lane change drill in the AM, and more skid pad and a cone course in the PM, but some of the most fun moments were after I finished a drill and was driving back to get in line-----I had a huge open empty lake in front of me. They didn't mind if I messed around a bit on my way back. Had quite a bit of fun just taking the truck sideways. Someone at lunch remarked I looked like some kind of Toyota commercial with the truck sideways.....hehe

Ultimately, it was a nice event. Everyone who attended learned some great skills. Definitely worth the time spent. Thanks again to Audi Club.


When it looks like this, you know it's gonna get crazy!


We saw a pretty interesting cloud after we left the event. Ummm are aliens coming?

[roastbeef]

thats really cool. were some of the principles the same? did being very smooth help, or was it a total understeer above a certain speed?

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by roastbeef

thats really cool. were some of the principles the same? did being very smooth help, or was it a total understeer above a certain speed?

The concept of a countersteer is fairly universal. However, being in a super low grip environment has it's own unique challenges.

-For initial turn-in, you MUST go slow. Going above a certain speed---like 12mph---led to complete and total understeer. No way around it. I experimented going into a turn with more speed. I was punished every single time----just slid and slid and slid before I could get it back. My truck has M+S rated tires. They were ok. The Blizzaks felt better. (We switched vehicles for awhile.)

-The brakes feel like they do nothing when you first get on them. The ABS goes crazy. The vehicle keeps going......barely slows at all. You have to be REALLY disciplined to straighten the front wheels, otherwise the brakes REALLLLLY do nothing.

-On the ice, once you're into some sliding situation, it feels like time slows down. The slide just goes on FOREVERRRRRRRrrrrrr-rr-rr-r---r----------r............r.........r You have to be patient. Sometimes you slide to the point that the car is simply sliding backwards while you're full on the gas. One of the instructors took his car out and slid too far. The car was going backwards. He didn't give up. He stayed solidly on the gas. All the wheels were spinning like crazy.....the car was still going backwards.....he stayed full on the gas.......ever so slowly, the car stopped going backwards and finally it started creeping forward. This took like 30 seconds to get back going. I'm sure the speedometer showed him doing 50mph. Anyway, if you're not used to that, you usually give up and hit the brakes.....not that they do much..... In the "real world" on a track, a countersteer is usually a quick and subtle movement to keep you going.

-You have to start your turning earlier on the ice. If you wait until the last second, forget it.

-Your initial movements need to be less than on the pavement. On the ice, once a tire is too far from straight, it's effectiveness in braking and turning is severely reduced. I know that sounds obvious, but when you're out there, you are eager to turn the steering wheel.

Of course, being out there in a 19' long truck with a high center of gravity didn't do me any favors in the handling department. I had the largest vehicle out there by far. It was fun sliding it around though!!!

I don't think anyone at the event had studded tires. Those things are magic. They change all the rules.

[Ximian]

After a lifetime of living in Minnesota, it's my time to shine.

The latest Nokian (Hak<ChokingInFinnishSound>ta) tire compounds are generally the best when it comes to a combination of snow and ice surfaces. The colder (well below 0), the better. The Blizzaks are best on clean ice. Studded tires are great for traction on pure ice in low speeds, but add some snow and they could be less effective than the non-studded version of the same compound tire.

Don't activate ABS while braking on ice. It's far more effective braking to the point just before activating ABS as you'll slow down quicker.

They say 4WD doesn't help handling in snow, which is true on the roads. However, turn traction control off, use 4WD, and the throttle to guide your power slides and drifts. Your steering wheel will mostly useless for steering after the initial turn and lock and above 10 MPH.

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by Ximian

After a lifetime of living in Minnesota, it's my time to shine.

The latest Nokian (Hak<ChokingInFinnishSound>ta) tire compounds are generally the best when it comes to a combination of snow and ice surfaces. The colder (well below 0), the better. The Blizzaks are best on clean ice. Studded tires are great for traction on pure ice in low speeds, but add some snow and they could be less effective than the non-studded version of the same compound tire.

Don't activate ABS while braking on ice. It's far more effective braking to the point just before activating ABS as you'll slow down quicker.

They say 4WD doesn't help handling in snow, which is true on the roads. However, turn traction control off, use 4WD, and the throttle to guide your power slides and drifts. Your steering wheel will mostly useless for steering after the initial turn and lock and above 10 MPH.

Thanks for your insights!

[SYT_Shadow]

Originally Posted by dogbone

Had a fun and interesting day today----ICE DRIVING ON A FROZEN LAKE!

Audi Club Rocky Mountain Chapter puts on a series of ice driving clinics for adults and teens on Georgetown lake in the Colorado mountains. Really nice, friendly, mellow event. I went with my Toyota Tundra. My daughter, who just turned 16 a week ago, was in a 2018 X5 with Blizzak tires. She learned SO MUCH! This kid, who is a fearful novice driver and still on a learner's permit, was throwing around the steering wheel, counter-steering, staying on the gas, sliding around and having a GREAT time. She walked away with so much knowledge and confidence. I didn't learn this stuff until I was in my 40's. I'm jealous!

Audi here in the NY area also does an event like this and it's fantastic. I attend pretty much every year in the M3s!

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by SYT_Shadow

Audi here in the NY area also does an event like this and it's fantastic. I attend pretty much every year in the M3s!

Ah, very cool. How does the M3 do? I was really curious about bringing my E92 M3, but I never drive it in the snow/ice---the Tundra gets those duties, so it seemed like a better decision to bring the truck.

Ultimately, the main purpose was to get my daughter going on the ice. In the future, she'll be out in the snow/ice with a 4x4 so I figured the Tundra and X5 would be more educational for her. She ain't never going out in the snow/ice with my M3.

There was a dude out there with a RWD Lexus. He was sliding that thing around quite a bit. I'm going to assume he was having fun. Maybe on a future trip, I'll try taking the M3 out there----WITH STUDDED TIRES!

[dogbone]

Or maybe I do this to the M3 before I go out there!

[SYT_Shadow]

Originally Posted by dogbone

Ah, very cool. How does the M3 do? I was really curious about bringing my E92 M3, but I never drive it in the snow/ice---the Tundra gets those duties, so it seemed like a better decision to bring the truck.

Ultimately, the main purpose was to get my daughter going on the ice. In the future, she'll be out in the snow/ice with a 4x4 so I figured the Tundra and X5 would be more educational for her. She ain't never going out in the snow/ice with my M3.

There was a dude out there with a RWD Lexus. He was sliding that thing around quite a bit. I'm going to assume he was having fun. Maybe on a future trip, I'll try taking the M3 out there----WITH STUDDED TIRES!

It does very well as long as it has winter tires. I find single-drive cars telegraph available grip very well so they do not create a false sense of confidence, which I think is the #1 reason for crashes when it's snowy/icy.

When we got there the first year people were laughing at our choice of the M3 to screw around on a frozen lake. It is Audi club of America after all hehe. But they weren't laughing afterwards because cars all have the same cornering capability on ice and as long as you don't lose momentum you can slide around like the best of them.

I'm not sure I'd run a frozen HDPE again with the E92 though... too risky.

[e92BMW///M3]

Ice driving event seems like it could be a lot of fun, very interesting comparing driving technique between high and low grip scenarios. Might have to check out those Audi club events in upstate NY.