My E90 M3 Dedicated Track build (with pix!)

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by Shmelgy

dogbone you going to Laguna Seca with speeddistrict December 8-9?

It's not on my schedule at the moment. I love that track and also really enjoy Speed District events, but I have some other commitments to attend to right now.

I'll keep eyeing it though!

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by M3 Number 86

Too much for me. Enough headaches already lol

I really love the term "set it and forget it"

Yeah, I hear ya. I'm working towards the day when it is set and forget.

It looks like tomorrow, I'll have power wired into the CAN cable. That will go a long way to making it more set and forget. All the other setup stuff is done. So, maybe it will be easier to use at Buttonwillow on Sat. oops...dang, I haven't "fixed" my RaceRender templates to work out-the-box with the Solo 2 DL yet. Argh! Maybe I can do those fixes on the plane tomorrow morning. hahaha

[rhyary]

I selected to go with the EVO5 and the GS display. Arriving tomorrow and being installed next week. I chose the gps that would be bolted (not the magnetic) to either the roof using the shark fin hole, or new hole in the trunk for clear sky all the time.

I will report on that in a separate thread. Don't mean to hijack yours.

Alas, Race 3 software issues will be the same

[M3 Number 86]

Originally Posted by dogbone

Yeah, I hear ya. I'm working towards the day when it is set and forget.

It looks like tomorrow, I'll have power wired into the CAN cable. That will go a long way to making it more set and forget. All the other setup stuff is done. So, maybe it will be easier to use at Buttonwillow on Sat. oops...dang, I haven't "fixed" my RaceRender templates to work out-the-box with the Solo 2 DL yet. Argh! Maybe I can do those fixes on the plane tomorrow morning. hahaha

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by rhyary

I selected to go with the EVO5 and the GS display. Arriving tomorrow and being installed next week. I chose the gps that would be bolted (not the magnetic) to either the roof using the shark fin hole, or new hole in the trunk for clear sky all the time.

I will report on that in a separate thread. Don't mean to hijack yours.

Alas, Race 3 software issues will be the same

Very nice choice. I look forward to seeing how it is mounted in your car.

[rhyary]

Originally Posted by dogbone

Very nice choice. I look forward to seeing how it is mounted in your car.

The idea is to learn the software during my off season and add potentiometers to the JRZs in the spring before the season.

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by rhyary

The idea is to learn the software during my off season and add potentiometers to the JRZs in the spring before the season.

If you have prior experience with an AIM product, like a Solo DL, the analysis software is the same between all the products. The setup apps RaceStudio 2 and 3 are quite a bit different from each other. I didn’t find RaceStudio 3 hard to learn vs. RaceStudio2.

If you have no prior experience with the AIM Analysis software, it is a bit daunting at first. The interface is not very user friendly for the new user. As time goes by, you get the hang of it and it does allow detailed analysis of your driving.

I will say again here: the AIM support staff is EXCELLENT. You can call them and ask any kind of question and they’re happy to walk you through whatever you need help with. I have greatly appreciated and benefitted from that kind of support.

[rhyary]

Originally Posted by dogbone

I will say again here: the AIM support staff is EXCELLENT. You can call them and ask any kind of question and they're happy to walk you through whatever you need help with. I have greatly appreciated and benefitted from that kind of support.

Support is important to me and I am very happy to hear you saying that AiM is helpful post sales.

During my decision process I called the Roanoke office number of times with my usual annoying and tedious questioning process and I was able to get answers and validating the answers.

One if the annoying things I do is looking for discrepancies. So once I get answers, I call again and ask the same questions differently to see what comes back.

I went for the EVO5 which requires understanding the AiM connectivity network system and what goes where. Since my project involve keeping the interior, how everything look makes a difference.

Anyway, I am very excited to learn the software and make a good use of the hardware.

It looks like you will be a great resource :-)

I have been in the IT industry for a long time so software and hardware configuration is not a problem for me.

[dogbone]

Let's file this one under----DON'T DO WHAT THIS MIATA DID AT THE END OF THE VIDEO!!!!!!

I participated in Bimmer Challenge this weekend at Buttonwillow with Speed Ventures. Overall the day went well. I was able to capture the win in my Bimmer Challenge class. And I put down the fastest lap of the day, aside from the LeMans Prototype that was out there practicing.

Ok, let's talk about the LMP car for a moment. Holy cow, I think he was running 30 seconds faster than us. He lapped the field in less than 4 laps......uh....WUT???? I mean c'mon---I did a warm up behind him, 2 laps at 1:51, was on a semi-mellow cool down 4th lap to get off the track and the LMP lapped me at Sweeper.....hahahahaha.

So, the first session the LMP showed up, his crew was asking very nicely, "do you mind if we grid first? hehe I was like, "GO AHEAD!!!!!" And I know these cars can be funky, so I gave him a lot of room on the out lap, and sure enough, he went all 4 off after Sweeper hehe

When you're in the grid, and you see this in front of you, you know it's going to be interesting.


Here he is lapping me going into Sweeper on the 4 lap. I mean, what the hell kind of lap times was this guy putting down? IN TRAFFIC!! He might have actually been setting course records right there on an open track day with 30 other production cars at 75ºF!! I would have asked them, but I never did see where they were pitting. It is amazing and humbling to see what a crazy race car can do while you're out there on the track at the same time.



Ok, back to the main topic: My fast lap of the day was a 1:49.2. Fine. The car was feeling good at the end of that lap, so I decided to try another. As I was coming around Turn 1, I could see a Miata coming onto the track. (This was an Advanced Open Passing Group.) The procedure for coming onto an active racetrack at Buttonwillow 13CW is, STAY LEFT as you merge onto the track. I never assume someone is going to do the right thing, so as this Miata is coming onto the track, I ease back a bit, and he jumps onto the track and zooms to the right side of the track right in front of me.......What the hell was he doing!!? That's about the least safe track entry I have witnessed in 7 years of tracking. After he pointed me by, as I was passing him, I was so frustrated, I did something I've never done before-----I flipped him the bird. I reported him to the organizer. Hopefully he got a talking-to.

Here's video of my fast lap of the day with the Miata's crappy entry at the end:

The car had a couple tweaks done to it prior to this track day. I'll talk about them in my next post.

[roastbeef]

I enjoy this video angle. I like seeing your hand work. Nice relaxed hands.

Shame on that Miata.

[dogbone]

Prior to Saturday's track day, I had a few things done to the car at Racewerkz:

-VoltPhreaks VPR-P6 battery: Now that I live in CO, it is possible the car could sit longer between track days. This summer, the car sat for almost 3 months and the MiniCooper battery died. After talking to Racewerkz, I decided to go with a VoltPhreaks. It's around 6 lbs vs my 28 lbs MiniCooper battery. Casey had installed a bunch of VoltPhreaks and said that as far as he knew, all of them were working great. And he could easily build a wiring harness and connect it up to the dash with a battery power button. (He also built a metal "cage" for the battery to facilitate mounting the battery in the car.) We put it in the OEM spot. So, on Friday, he installed that. I'm happy to say it works great. I really like the battery power button on the dash. It's not an engine shut-off/safety switch----just a battery on/off button.

-Power to the AIM Solo 2 DL: Casey connected the power wires on the AIM's CAN harness, so now power is being sent down the CAN cable to the AIM Solo 2 DL. Thank goodness too. The AIM just turns on CONSTANTLY while the engine is off. It blows so much battery juice auto-turning-on that even with power connected to the device, by my 5th session, the AIM battery was at 0%. I really wish we could have a manual On/Off option.....Anyway, power is connected now, and it makes your life a heck of a lot easier. (AIM claims they are working on the Solo 2's CAN sensitivities. Their goal is to make the battery run as long as the original Solo DL.)

-Exhaust: The rear portion of my right exhaust fell off at Chuckwalla a week ago, and I dragged it 2/3 of the way around the track before I could get it into the paddock. (No corner worker gave me a meatball flag.....) That was fun. We got it back on there for the rest of the weekend, but I had Racewerkz get some new hanging parts to secure it. Hopefully it will stay on there.

-Misting system: Ever since I removed the fender liners in the front, the misting system tubes have been dancing with the devil because they're so close to the front right tire. (We use the windshield washer reservoir for the misting system which is tucked within the front passenger fender, so there's a bunch of tubes there.) At Chuckwalla, a week ago, one of the tubes rubbed the tire and the misting system sprung a leak......so we dealt with that too.

All the mods held up at Buttonwillow on Saturday (although the misting system might need a bit more attention.)

Oh, did I mention the laundry list of items I want to have done to the trailer? **sigh** everything is needing maintenance these days......

[tom @ eas]

Originally Posted by dogbone

Prior to Saturday's track day, I had a few things done to the car at Racewerkz:

-VoltPhreaks battery: Now that I live in CO, it is possible the car could sit longer between track days. This summer, the car sat for almost 3 months and the MiniCooper battery died. After talking to Racewerkz, I decided to go with a VoltPhreaks. It's around 6 lbs vs my 28 lbs MiniCooper battery. Casey had installed a bunch of VoltPhreaks and said that as far as he knew, all of them were working great. And he could easily build a wiring harness and connect it up to the dash with a battery power button. (He also built a metal "cage" for the battery to facilitate mounting the battery in the car.) We put it in the OEM spot. So, on Friday, he installed that. I'm happy to say it works great. I really like the battery power button on the dash. It's not an engine shut-off/safety switch----just a battery on/off button.

-Power to the AIM Solo 2 DL: Casey connected the power wires on the AIM's CAN harness, so now power is being sent down the CAN cable to the AIM Solo 2 DL. Thank goodness too. The AIM just turns on CONSTANTLY while the engine is off. It blows so much battery juice auto-turning-on that even with power connected to the device, by my 5th session, the AIM battery was at 0%. I really wish we could have a manual On/Off option.....Anyway, power is connected now, and it makes your life a heck of a lot easier. (AIM claims they are working on the Solo 2's CAN sensitivities. Their goal is to make the battery run as long as the original Solo DL.)

-Exhaust: The rear portion of my right exhaust fell off at Chuckwalla a week ago, and I dragged it 2/3 of the way around the track before I could get it into the paddock. (No corner worker gave me a meatball flag.....) That was fun. We got it back on there for the rest of the weekend, but I had Racewerkz get some new hanging parts to secure it. Hopefully it will stay on there.

-Misting system: Ever since I removed the fender liners in the front, the misting system tubes have been dancing with the devil because they're so close to the front right tire. (We use the windshield washer reservoir for the misting system which is tucked within the front passenger fender, so there's a bunch of tubes there.) At Chuckwalla, a week ago, one of the tubes rubbed the tire and the misting system sprung a leak......so we dealt with that too.

All the mods held up at Buttonwillow on Saturday (although the misting system might need a bit more attention.)

Oh, did I mention the laundry list of items I want to have done to the trailer? **sigh** everything is needing maintenance these days......

You think AIM should be able to allow the device to remain in sleep mode until the power button (or any hard button) is pressed.

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by tom @ eas

You think AIM should be able to allow the device to remain in sleep mode until the power button (or any hard button) is pressed.

Yes! I’ve asked them for a preference/option for manual on/off vs CAN-sniffing-auto-on. They seem more intent on figuring out how to make the device ignore stray CAN data.

[ApexWheels]

Originally Posted by dogbone

-VoltPhreaks battery: Now that I live in CO, it is possible the car could sit longer between track days. This summer, the car sat for almost 3 months and the MiniCooper battery died. After talking to Racewerkz, I decided to go with a VoltPhreaks. It's around 6 lbs vs my 28 lbs MiniCooper battery. Casey had installed a bunch of VoltPhreaks and said that as far as he knew, all of them were working great. And he could easily build a wiring harness and connect it up to the dash with a battery power button. (He also built a metal "cage" for the battery to facilitate mounting the battery in the car.) We put it in the OEM spot. So, on Friday, he installed that. I'm happy to say it works great. I really like the battery power button on the dash. It's not an engine shut-off/safety switch----just a battery on/off button.

Which model did you go with? My track car is about due for a new battery, and I'm debating between the VPH-750 and VPR-P6 models for warm CA weather. Weight is impressive on both, so I'm thinking of going with the VPR-P6 to ensure I've got enough juice.

VPR-P6
900 CA
500 CCA
31 Ah
6 lbs.
$1180 MSRP

VPH-750
720 CA
400 CCA
25 Ah
5.5 lbs.
$960 MSRP

- Ryan

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by ApexRaceParts

Which model did you go with? My track car is about due for a new battery, and I'm debating between the VPH-750 and VPR-P6 models for warm CA weather. Weight is impressive on both, so I'm thinking of going with the VPR-P6 to ensure I've got enough juice.

VPR-P6
900 CA
500 CCA
31 Ah
6 lbs.
$1180 MSRP

VPH-750
720 CA
400 CCA
25 Ah
5.5 lbs.
$960 MSRP

- Ryan

We went with VPR-P6.

Just keep in mind that as far as I know, it doesn’t come with posts. So make sure you get all the needed pieces. The harness to put in a power switch is also a whole other thing.

[slicer]

Originally Posted by ApexRaceParts

Which model did you go with? My track car is about due for a new battery, and I'm debating between the VPH-750 and VPR-P6 models for warm CA weather. Weight is impressive on both, so I'm thinking of going with the VPR-P6 to ensure I've got enough juice.

VPR-P6
900 CA
500 CCA
31 Ah
6 lbs.
$1180 MSRP

VPH-750
720 CA
400 CCA
25 Ah
5.5 lbs.
$960 MSRP

- Ryan

I had the vph750 in my e46, upgraded to the VPH900 for e92 and upgraded again to the VPH1200 on my e92. I would recommend the 1200 as I never need to charge it while the smaller versions did shut down after a few weeks without use. It still only weighs like 8.5 lbs. Also be sure to wire a remote switch into the cabin so you can turn it on if it shuts down at low voltage. I also Re-routed my emergency trunk release to the cavity behind the exterior switch. That way I can pop off trunk switch and pull the release to access the trunk and battery

[Richbot]

I have the VPH900 which I don't think is offered anymore (Battery is almost 3 years old at this point, been in the car for almost 2.5 now), looks similar the the VPR-P6 on paper, and use it as a street car daily driver battery. Weather here gets colder than anywhere below 3000'asl in CA sooooo yeah. But I use it daily so it's not sitting for weeks without a tender or anything. If you plan to keep it on a tender in between events I'd think the P6 would be fine in CA.

My car has a lock tumbler in the trunk lid so I don't need to worry about a flat battery keeping me from accessing the rise-from-the-dead button on the battery itself.

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by Richbot

I have the VPH900 which I don't think is offered anymore (Battery is almost 3 years old at this point, been in the car for almost 2.5 now), looks similar the the VPR-P6 on paper, and use it as a street car daily driver battery. Weather here gets colder than anywhere below 3000'asl in CA sooooo yeah. But I use it daily so it's not sitting for weeks without a tender or anything. If you plan to keep it on a tender in between events I'd think the P6 would be fine in CA.

My car has a lock tumbler in the trunk lid so I don't need to worry about a flat battery keeping me from accessing the rise-from-the-dead button on the battery itself.

hehe well, I'm gonna be the village idiot who sees how long the VPR-P6 can go without trickle charging when it's been turned fully off. My Mini Cooper battery could make it more than 6 weeks. I'm hoping the VPR-P6 being turned off can go longer. If it can't, I'll need to have my trailer shop install a solar powered trickle charger since I have no access to a power outlet where the car is stored.

[Richbot]

I’ve done two weeks or so over the winter with no ill effects. Got to the point I didn’t bother anymore with the trickle charger. But I drive it too much to give anybody any good data on max time in between.

Maybe if we get SOME REAL GODDAMNED WINTER FOR ONCE I can do an experiment

[dogbone]

Originally Posted by Richbot

I’ve done two weeks or so over the winter with no ill effects. Got to the point I didn’t bother anymore with the trickle charger. But I drive it too much to give anybody any good data on max time in between.

Maybe if we get SOME REAL GODDAMNED WINTER FOR ONCE I can do an experiment

My car was last driven on the Oct 20th. My next track day is either Nov 10 or Nov 17. That will be either 3 or 4 weeks depending on which one I choose. So the experimentation has already begun!!

(Hehe we may get 1-5” of snow tomorrow here in Denver. (Today it was 75°......) Already got like 2” two weeks ago. My E92 street M3 goes into hibernation when that crap happens. The Tundra becomes the DD. I’ve got the trickle charger waiting for the E92’s winter slumber here in CO.)

[dogbone]

I signed up for the PCA-San Diego Buttonwillow event this weekend, so the VoltPhreaks battery will only sit for 3 weeks this time around. Hopefully it'll be good to go.

PCA is running 1CW so that should be interesting. I haven't run that config in many years, so it will be fun sorting out the Star Mazda turn with the car in it's current config and then navigating the Esses at higher speeds (due to a longer run up)---specifically the exit of the Esses.

The other interesting challenge is a Porsche driver that I've been competing against in the PCA time trials. In 2017, at Chuckwalla, I took the win. A few weeks ago, at Chuckwalla, he took the win. (I could give a few excuses why I didn't fair better in the time trial a few weeks ago, but I'll just----grrrr----let it go!) Anyway, our cars could not be more different, but our times are close to each other. He's running a 1973 911 that has far less horsepower than my car, but his car weighs 1000+lbs less (!!!) than my car and is on 335 slicks and has solid aero. (Don't be fooled by the age of the car. It's good-to-go. He's a race shop owner! (and very nice guy) And he's been racing for a long time. Plus, he has a funny habit of going around the paddock and downplaying himself and the car, and telling people he has no good tires to run......and then right at the last minute, he drops on some crazy tires onto the car and goes out and kills it. haha!) We've never gone head-to-head at Buttonwillow. I'm hoping this style of track tilts the scales in my favor. Chuckwalla is a very momentum-y track----it rewards light cars that can maintain high speeds around all the long rounders that just keep turning and turning. Buttonwillow is not like that. So I'm hoping that helps me. His lap times from 2017 on 1CW were solid, and I don't have any times of my own to compare, so it should be a fun challenge.

The only minor bummer about PCA events is their fairly new policy of point-by-required-in-all-run-groups-all-the-time. Makes it a bit tough to get clean laps. At the last event, we had a guy on his out-lap that simply refused to point us by while all of us were on hot laps......so frustrating.


(hehe the last time I was on 1CW was literally almost 7 years ago. It was within the first few track days I ever did. I was a complete novice. I remember I tried turning DSC off after Phil Hill to see what that was like. On the very next turn, at Star Mazda, I promptly spun the car right into the dirt.....hopefully I'll get through there a bit cleaner this time around! )

[Richbot]

blue flag honestly