Track/Street Driving
 

How many of you guys do both with your cars? I am planning to give the new car a go at our local track (Millville NJ). I have very limited track experience and have never driven my own car on the track. I have two friends who have dedicated track day cars but none which are Cobra kits. I am curious as to what changes (if any) do you do to the cars to make them perform better, my friends cars have suspension adjustments solely for track use but I can't see how that would be practical for a non dedicated set up. The new car (BDR) has a lot of adjustment capabilities so I am wondering if a "tweak" here and there would help track performance without compromising the street use (tire wear etc...) too much?

Any insight would be much appreciated, thx.

If you are going just for the fun of it I wouldn't make any radical changes. Maybe a set of stickier tires for the track. If you are going to be serious there are several changes that can be made and they would depend a lot on the track and conditions. Also check your tire air pressures. I had 12 way adjustable coil overs on mine so I could set the rebound easily and various sway bars for different tracks.

Ron

Gary if you are not going to get serious about tracking your car I wouldn't worry much about doing much more that adjusting tire pressure and basic safety measures for now. The value of your track time at this point, will be in you learning the limits and handling characteristics of you car for the street. You will also be a lot more comfortable and safer when you are on the street with the car. If later you are bitter by the racing bug you can worry about the best track set up for your car.

I suggest you start out autocrossing. Autocross is the perfect way to safely learn how your car handles and what changes to make. There are so many possible adjustments to make: tires, tire pressure, spring rate, ride height, shocks, sway bars, alignment, bushings, ect....too many to detail here. But, alignment changes are low cost and a good place to start. Make one adjustment at a time, evaluate results, then decide next adjustment.

As others said-don't touch the car-improve yourself.
Auto X and go to Skip Barber or Bertil Roos for training first. Or you'll hurt the car or yourself. Cobras are hard to get right and don't forgive.

Thx Gents, I am definitely going to do a school in order to improve my skills as well as learn the car.

I do both. Tried autocross, but it wasn't what I was looking for. I was looking for something that gave me high speeds, and a chance to learn what the car would do, what I could do and what changes did to the car. My car is a solid axle 4 link with a big block. The only changes I make are I put slicks on, change to race brake pads, and adjust tire pressures. I don't adjust shocks, or make camber/caster adjustments. I set the car up to drive on the street, but make the few changes to allow me to push myself and the car to our limits on the track. There are many changes you can make for the track, but unless you plan to seriously take on track days, I wouldn't bother. Set you car up for best driveability on the street, and it will perform fine on the track. You didn't mention whether your local track is a road course or a drag strip. I'm assuming a road course, which is where you will have the most fun, but it does cost. Which is why many stick with Autocross, it is a very affordable type of racing. Just not my cup of tea. Hope this helps, any other questions, let me know.

Tim

After my car was done and after a frustrating period of not knowing why it was such a bear to drive a seasoned racer friend of mine took me under his wing.Turned out my car needed the suspension scaled.Wow what a difference, also upgraded brake pad compound (very important) Final piece was dual purpose rubber all around. Not being a dedicated race car had to make that compromise. Feeling the car out was a pure joy not without a few hair raising rides learning where the adhesion level was in tight turns.
We have had this car now 20 plus years and still enjoy occasional spirited rides,the car still sticks like it's glued to the corners,now know exactly when it might bite if pushing too hard.

All good advice above. I can't add much. Good luck.

Thx guys-we have NJMP which is road courses and auto cross and ATCO Raceway which is the 1/4 mi track. I def like the road course the best, all excellent points above and pretty much what I expected so that is a good thing.

For those that swap to race pads, what is your procedure for the swap? You don't simply change pads and go do you?

Road courses are a lot more fun, no doubt,but doing some Auto Crossing is a good thing to start with, slower/safer speeds as you learn to "feel the car" and learn how far you can push your tires and car....
A front end alignment will make a world of difference as will the air pressure in your tires,I'd suggest keeping some notes on air pressures and how the car handles till you figure out what works best for your car/tire combo......
On my 65 Mustang I'm using these alignment specs: -1/2 degree camber,+1.5 degrees caster,1/8th inch toe in......made a huge difference in handling and no appreciable extra tire wear on the street,so I have left my front end set at these specs for the last 8 years and it works great on the street as well as the track......
Don't be afraid to go up or down on your air pressures,do it 2 pounds at a time,you'll see a difference in handling,keep adjusting till you find what works best for you......

Scott,that's all I did....

David

scottj ... several schools of thought on that . I worked with Roush Racing in Mooresville on my pad selection and their brake guy said I had to remove all the old pad material that was deposited by cleaning with Dawn detergent and scuffing the rotor with 100 grit paper , cleaning again and then bed the new pads in . These are strictly race only pads and can never be used on the street . Howevere , I will say that the car stops like it hit a brick wall ...... time and time again with zero fade . The hotter they get , the better they stop and yet cold stops are pretty great too .
Others just change pads and go ... both seem to work ok .

Tires and brakes are probably your best bet. Tires will make the biggest difference. Most people don't realize just how much tires do until the get a really good set of performance tires.
Brake pads are another thing to look into. The last thing you want is brake fade after 10 minutes of lapping.
And watch your engine and fluid temps. Then you can see how well your car breathes.
Knowing a good photographer can be fun too. ;)

Excellent info guys-I had a set of NT01 road race tires on my last Cobra kit which I only used on the street and they were excellent aside from the assault on my wheel wells:D

The new car Jay is building has some nice suspension upgrades along with spherical bushings, solid diff/sub mounts. Tires are NT555R on rear/555 on front, not a good as the NT01 but I'll give them a go and see what happens.

Car will be ready soon so I'll post some pics/video-could make for a good laugh at my expense!!!

I'm gotta agree with Roush Racing on that being the correct school of thought. I actually have a set of "street" rotors that I run with street pads. I only use rotors for one or two track days anyway, depending on how hard the track is on brakes.

I'd look into some higher temperature brake fluid also. Even the best pads don't work when your fluid is boiling.

I expect you will have a blast. Taking the cobra onto the track for the first time you will likely experience some 'sensory overload'. :)

I did forget to mention that I have a full set of rotors that I only use for the track. So my track prep includes:
- Removal of all (4) street rotors
- Removal of all street pads
- Installation of track pads/rotors
- Flush brake fluid - I use the same High Temp fluid for street as I do track. More expensive I know, but I can get away with just flushing old fluid with new fluid without having to flush the system with alcohol to get all the old fluid out.
- Change engine oil - I use 10W-40 for Street and 20W-50 for track, both full synthetic
- I tape my headlights - to prevent rock breakage
- I don't tape the front of my car, but if you are particular about your paint, look in to the clear bra products out there. Looks better than the blue painter's tape on the track :D
- I inspect all bearings, pivot points, and important nuts/bolts for tightness
- Safety inspection of the car and all safety equipment. I will make the assumption that you've never been on a track before. If that is the case, you will need an SA2005 or later(depending on the organization running the event) Automotive helmet. Not a motorcycle helmet. Make sure you have at least a 4 point safety harness if not a five. I have a suit, arm restraints and a HANS, but these aren't required by most organizers, however keep in mind you are in an open car with a single roll bar behind your head, your safety and noggin are only as good as your equipment.
- If drag racing, or road racing for that matter...a safety loop on your driveshaft should be installed.

So there isn't a short answer to your original question, all depends on how you want to perform on the track. Trust me, you will not be satisfied with just tooling around the track for a Sunday drive, you will want all of these things to go faster and push the limits :D

Castrol SRF is by far the best fluid I've found. It's the only fluid that didn't require bleeding the calipers after each session... although, I still did it out of habit... always bleeds clear and never any fade.

Also check to see what their safety inspections call for.

Some require a 'broomstick' type test. (Sit in the car with your helmet on. Your helmet should be below a straight edge from the top of your rollbar to the top of your windshield.)

You might want to try to find a large vacant parking lot and try some circles and figure 8's to see if your car understeers or oversteers. Slide it around a bit to get used to the feeling.

Tires have been mentioned. They make a huge difference. What tires do you have on it now?