How much wear would my tyres get in one track day?! Surly now 100%?! That would be crazy expensive replacing £600-700 tyres every time!
Pads are cheap, discs are expensive. Is it mostly the pads that get worn and not the discs?
Tell me about track days
- Thread starter Yucca
- Start date
How much wear would my tyres get in one track day?! Surly now 100%?! That would be crazy expensive replacing £600-700 tyres every time!
Pads are cheap, discs are expensive. Is it mostly the pads that get worn and not the discs?
Last track day I saw a 5 car pileup, at silverstone of all places.
Take out track day insurance for your car, the excess will be 5 grand or so but if some nobber wipes you out at least you arent paying out of your pocket.
Lol @ £5k excess! Thats not my idea of safe...
Yes I understand. I dont want to take it up as a full time hobby, just have a go. I want to do it to experiance my car property, not the other way around.
Associate
Honestly just do one and see how you go, it sounds daunting but it really isn't. Plenty of people like myself just rock up to the track in a road car and have a great time. Nobody forces you to go out and drive like a madman, that's why open pitlane is great.
If you want to know a cars true potential then nothing beats a track day. All you honestly need is a car and a helmet. Bear in mind that cars like yours are tested to destruction on tracks before they are released.
Last time I was at Donington about 2 months ago loads of people turned up in McClaren's, Porsche GT2 - 3's, R8's etc. People wouldn't drive cars like that on track if it wasn't safe....I know I wouldn't.
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Can one not go for half a day or a mini day?! I assume brakes only take a lot of abuse if you are doing a lot of hard breaking on the corners..... which I assume is inevitable if driving fast?!
Sadly Cadwell park is 2.5h drive from me. Id be tired by the time I get there!!
What is 'open pitlane'? How much as a helmet? I would not feel comfortable without insurance in case I destroy my 30k car. I took a look at some of the induction packages and they are like £300-500!
Associate
Open pit lane just means between 9:30am - 5pm you can go off and on track as you please. You could could do 500 laps or you could do 1, its up to you.
I just use my motorcycle helmet, you can get very good automotive helmets for reasonable money nowadays, not that you will need it.
I honestly wouldn't get hung up on insurance as the only time you would need it; is if you drive well beyond your limits and hit a barrier / armco (this rarely happens unless you drive like a nob). Nobody is going to crash into you unless you are reckless, in which case you will get black & white flagged and get a talking to and then get another chance.
If you are from Leicester then just do a evening at Donington, If you hit the barrier there then you have done well, unless lifting off through Crainer corner.
Depends on the tyre and how hard you push, I have done a half a set of MPS4S on a track day at silverstone, and ruined a full set of pzeros there also in a single day. Managed to also destroy a rear set of Cup2 in 1 day.
Well depends on the car but would you rather be 20, 40, 80, 150k in the hole if you write it off or 5k?
Caporegime
I didn't really think of that. Not a lot of run off on some parts and I did see someone bin a civic once.
Donny is a lot better in that respect.
Associate
If you bin a car at Donington then you have done something really bad lol. Only place I have seen people hit the wall there is at Crainer and even that is hard to do unless the grass is wet. Somebody did flip a car in the gravel on the left hand side there the other day tho
Had 1 butt clencher through there and learnt the old 'do not lift through Crainer'
Associate
Especially on two wheels like what I did, it was like being on a rollercoaster but not attached to the track
Associate
Lmao I already knew you guys were on about Cadwell Park before I looked back through the posts. They don't call it the 'Mini-Nürburgring' for nothing. It's my number 2 with Oulton Park.Especially on two wheels like what I did, it was like being on a rollercoaster but not attached to the track
They don't call it the mountain for nothing on a bike
You can do just a morning/afternoon but typically it’s not that cost effective, better of paying for a whole day but spreading out your laps more.
I’d recommend a novice day at Donington, it’s great and not as intimidating as it sounds. You can ultimately push as hard or not as you want, and do as many laps or not as you want.
Associate
What do people think of Mallory Park ? I'm considering a novice day there next month.
I went off at Craners at Donington, full on spins through the grass and back on to the track and all was good.
Even a woman who was doing her first track day, in the wet, in a Westfield who managed to come off at places you'd never believe didn't damage her car. You do have to do something special to hit anything there.
@Yucca totally appreciate your situation. Go out, drive your car how you want to on the track and enjoy it. Though you might well get the bug and decide on a cheap track car later!
Even a woman who was doing her first track day, in the wet, in a Westfield who managed to come off at places you'd never believe didn't damage her car. You do have to do something special to hit anything there.
@Yucca totally appreciate your situation. Go out, drive your car how you want to on the track and enjoy it. Though you might well get the bug and decide on a cheap track car later!
Associate
Bedford autodrome is another with lots of run off. Hard to hit what's not there!
Also has a nice long straight to open up the acceleration and tarmac runoff at the end of it if you run out of road!
Also has a nice long straight to open up the acceleration and tarmac runoff at the end of it if you run out of road!
Soldato
Bedford is perfect for first timers. Nice wide track, mix of fast and slower corners. Lots of run off, nothing to hit.
I'd say do a half day open pit lane there for your first time.
I'd say do a half day open pit lane there for your first time.
Soldato
One thing to beat in mind if you’re worried about the cost of replacing your brakes is that there’s nothing to say that you have to attack the braking zones “Last of the late brakers” style. As had already been said, it’s not a race so there’s no benefit in killing your brakes just to brake a few meters later. On the whole, with an unprepared road car the key to controlling brake and tyre wear is temperature management, keep the runs relatively short and drive smoothly and it’ll be fine.
Caporegime
I have been off in Craner's too but ended up in the gravel. You don't realise just how deep it is.