Tire pressures at the track?

Go ahead and explain the technique for those not in the know.

 

I just put a mark on the shoulder of the tire, some tires will have this already molded in when you come off the track you can see if you've worn it off add air not touched it let some air out.

 

hey don,
yes, i took it down to 39 after they went up to 48. i'm guilty of not checking after that because the car ran great in the wet the entire run and i figured the wet was keeping temps down. for the first time, i noticed some understeer...but it was because of the wet and with a little more throttle, it came around very nicely (this felt incredibly comfortable on the re-01's).

next track day is at pocono infield course mid july....where those corvettes will prolly get even with me. but it'll be good seat time. then lime rock or the glen in august. trying to find an earlier date than sept 30th for thunderbolt. btw, your new track looks like a hoot!

 

Thanks for the clarification, sounds simple when explained. I usually use an pyrometer and go for even across the tread. Read the heat as soon as I pull into my pit area or one of my friends are ready with the p-meter.

It does get a little hectic when 3 or 4 of us pit at the same time.

Have to get a bright orange grease pen.

Tim, your summer sounds full, did you manage to film any with the new GP camera?

I will find out Sunday how HPR really works, we have a full day of lapping.

It will take me some time to learn this track, lots of elevation and blind areas. Just more fun. :devil:

 

the tech guys would not let me out with the gp unless the mount was bolted down.:frown5: silly, but understandable. i'm working on a way around this....i.e. screwing one of the 3m mounts onto the lower front grille?

have fun/be safe sunday:cornut:

 

Well I put on the XP10/XP8 combo on the R56 tonight, pretty simple install if you have the right tools and access to a lift.

Switched back to my 16s and GY F1s in prep. for Sunday's lapping day at HPR.

After the pad install I took it out and did some light bedding in to settle the new pads to the rotors. All feels and sounds good.

Took the time to open some gap around the exhaust hangers and the long pipe down the tunnel to the muffler. The Ed cat-back is settling in well and I like the sound. Not sure it adds much power, but build is good and it feels like it makes revs better.

I will do some more bedding of the brakes over the next day or so, light bedding then really bed them down during slow laps Sunday AM.

I set my pressure 37 all the way around cold. I will see what a few laps bring on the track, then adjust. :devil:

Don

 

hey paul,

pda is there 10/3-4...and they let cabrio's run!...i really want to go....but my anniversary is 10/2....and melinda is already kind of jealous about all the time i spend with the mini

this will require some planning. i'll keep you posted.

 

I'm all ears.

-Ben

 

Lapping at HPR

An update on what I finally ran for pressure at HPR.

Tires are GY F1 GS D3 205/50/16 on 16x7 rims.

Pressure cold today was 35 even on all 4. Track pressure was 40-42 front and 38 rear.

I brought the fronts even 39/40 after letting them settle for a bit in the afternoon runs.

The F1s did well, they only have about 200 street miles on them, now about 125 hot lap miles.

Most fun was coming out of turn 6 then going full power up 7, 7a to the blind hill and a hard left in turn 8.

You can hear the tires working real well. My MINI is no limited slip and fun working the paddle shifters. Out of 8, it would force out of 3rd gear with an upshift when I hit the rev-limiter. :devil:

This is turn 8, I'm holding a pretty good line in this picture. Up hill to 8 it is about 70-80-90mph then aggressive braking. The XP10/XP8 combo works well.



I'm going to work on a album of the top 25 pictures, I will post it later.

Don

 

sounds like a blast don!
curious. did your (think you're rmw tuned) or paul's jan tune effect when shifting occurs? i know my rev limiter is around 7500 now (love!) and am wondering how this effects the auto's...opcorn:



and i also am wondering if you asked if going out with the gopro hero would be okay at your track?

 

Tim, did not ask about the GoPro, I suspect I could have hung almost anything of the MINI without to much discussion, this was a special lapping day via the Lotus club, they had a good tech, but not to concerned with the extra stuff hanging about.

I saw some interesting camera setups.

I'm not tuned yet, that comes towards the middle of August, then I have a couple of track days planned for September and October.

I will let you know what it does with the R56 auto after the tune.

It was a blast.

Don

 

Tire pressure update from NHMS last weekend.

42 hot was great at Roebling Road in May, which is a flat track with lots of sweepers. New Hampshire has a lot of tight turns, with abrupt transition and all sorts of on-camber and off-camber turns.

Jason (aka snid) recommended 40 hot, which worked much better. It took a few sessions for the tires to stabilize there - had to keep letting air out after each run.

Car setup: TSW springs, 19mm RSB, 2.0* F, 1.5* R, Dunlop Star Specs 215/45/17 (3/32" fronts, 1/32" rears)

NHMS was brutal. I fried my caliper boots and went right through a set of new XP10s. In hindsight, I should have bled the brakes after the first day, but I neglected to. I'm also not certain I bedded in the pads enough beforehand, but the first session should have been enough. My brother managed to delaminate his Star Specs in a couple small places on the corners of the tread blocks, too. His E28 is pretty quick, too. Thicker sway bars make a big difference on a tight course.

 

Since you fried them... Are you going to do a big brake kit?

Nice report, I cannot get to the east coast tracks, but they sound like fun.

Next time for me looks like lapping in September or early Oct.

My XP10's bedded in great at HPR, I left my XP8's on the rear as my regular brakes, so far not much noise and braking is good.

Don

 

Yeah, I'm not going to buy pads that will only last one weekend, and this last one tore up my rotors. Scoring and uneven wear across the face combined with pad deposits makes my car sound like it's got a jake brake. I drove home from Boston to Raleigh with A LOT of engine braking.

Give it time for the cold pads to scrape off the adherent layer and they'll squeal like a pig. =)

 

Not a pleasant condition for your brakes, what BBK are you thinking about. Have you decided which way you want to go?

Thanks for the 'squeal like a pig' comment, we shall see, I don't brake hard on the street. :ihih: :lol:

 

In a piece of Motoring Alliance serendipity, I had just finished posting about my decimated front pads and rotors when I noticed that TSW was offering a discounted MDM kit.

I run their springs, camber plates, and engine dampener and have been extremely impressed with their craftsmanship and customer service. That, combined with the discounted price, pretty much made it a no-brainer. Jeff answered all of my questions over the phone, and I placed the order tonight. So now, instead of spending time and money rebuilding the calipers and buying new rotors, I can bolt on a BBK that meets my needs and budget. Sweet! Thanks Scott and Jeff!

@BlimeyCabrio: Now I'll still have the biggest brakes on the Beer Run. :lol:

 

I have their BDM kit, I can tell you from first hand experience you will not be disappointed with them.

I also run the Carbotech XP8's on the rear brakes. They don't squeal on the road for me. I leave them on all the time.