First Track experience tomorrow.

Start at around 28 psi cold on the tires

Go to rli track insurance online, it's cheaper than lockton and very good.

Do not put your car into track mode, sport mode is what you want.

Start at the back of the back and dedicate the first lap to warning up your tires.

Most of all have fun

Grab that track by the p*ssy.

Lots of good advice in this thread. Today was my first day on the track with the GT350R. I've been on tracks before, but never with my own car, and never with a Shelby.

Advice:

1) Worry less, have more fun. If insurance helps you do that, buy it. I bought insurance for this weekend, but it was more expensive than the event itself. As I become more confident and get to know the car and the line I'll probably skip insurance or drop the coverage amount.

2) Painters taps on the rear quarter between the arch and door isn't a bad idea.

3) Ignore everything about the car in front of you except for how close it is. Don't follow their line as it's probably wrong. Don't brake when they do as it's probably wrong. Listen to your instructor instead.

4) Learn how to botch the turn before the turn before the straight. That is, make the turn before the straight count, which may mean displacing the prior apex.

5) Torque your wheels to spec before each run. My R wheel nuts needed +10 ft/lb after each run to get back to 150 ft/lb.

6) Eyes up. Look at the turn ahead of the turn you're in. Ignore your speedometer and tachometer. Set your shift lights to ~7500 or so.

7) Make friends. I was at a Porsche Club of America event and my GT350R was the most discussed car there.

xXANCHORMONXx said:

Start at around 28 psi cold on the tires

Go to rli track insurance online, it's cheaper than lockton and very good.

Do not put your car into track mode, sport mode is what you want.

Start at the back of the back and dedicate the first lap to warning up your tires.

Most of all have fun

Click to expand...

Why sport mode not track mode?

GJarrett said:

Why sport mode not track mode?

Click to expand...

More protections

Goals for the 1st track day:

1. Don't wreck your car.

2. Learn the track.

3. Have fun!


I've used track day insurance in the past and other times have not. I was always more worried about others hitting me...

As was mentioned, check fluids, flush brake fluid, check oil, tire pressure, full tank of gas, etc.

I'd also leave all the nannies on while you learn the track.

Do you have an instructor?

Here is the company I used for track day insurance:

https://ontrackinsurance.com

GJarrett said:

Why sport mode not track mode?

Click to expand...

Exactly what another member said.

Unless you are experienced and knows the cars limits I wouldn't do it.

Sport mode is great on this car is great

It just keeps your pointing straight and prevents you from spinning out

TDC said:

For your first time I would suggest the following:

- Sport mode with steering in Normal. The nannies are not intrusive unless the car really gets out of shape or you jump on the power way to hard for the steering input.
- FP tire recommendation in the owner supplement that came with the car.
- Clear out the car of extra items not needed for your trip
- Make sure your helmet meets the clubs requirements in case they don't have a loaner.
- If you don't have something like track wrap tape the front up to at least the hood with blue painters tape when you get there. Don't forget headlights.
- Check all your fluids.
- Nearly full tank of gas when you get to the track.
- If it is one day and first time ever then don't worry about your camber setting yet.

Relax, have fun and listen to your instructor.

Click to expand...

Everything TDC stated above pretty much covers it. I like the idea of not f**king with your camber since it's your first time and plus the fact it's a PIA, even if you know what your doing.

Also- wear your best tennis shoes, (or driving shoes), and a new pair of socks. You'll be giving those dogs a workout. Enjoy the car man. :first:

[MENTION=25906]STFUdonny[/MENTION]

Let us know how it went!

Tomster said:

[MENTION=25906]STFUdonny[/MENTION]

Let us know how it went!

Click to expand...

Thank you all for your help with getting your suggestions to me.
Here's my quick break down of yesterday.

Not really close to any type of HPDE 1 training I had imagined. Racing Adventures was the group putting this on at AZ motorsports park. It felt more like a money grab and let us hopefully not wreck or kill our selves or someone else. 10 minute talk about fundamentals of road racing that lead into an immediate threshold braking, vision drill.

Later the 6 of us would follow an instructor lead car to demonstrate the braking areas and proper line of the track. Each one of us did about 3 slow laps trailing the lead before giving way and allowing the next car to trail the lead.

After a 20 minute brake we did it all over again but getting up to higher speeds. Following that session they allowed us to run the track at our own pace with no passing. The final session was to be done at "80%" of what we just did to focus on our lines and track vision.

It was an absolute blast to finally open the car up. I felt the instruction was something I could have received from you guys. Not having an instructor drive the track in my car and me observing was disappointing. Not having an instructor critique my driving was detrimental if you ask me. I felt my timing of braking and down shifting was seriously lacking which resulted in very poor lines in the turns.

Besides that, I had one pucker factor due to late braking going into the first turn. A guy in his 911 S went into the dirt on that same turn. I was almost rear ended twice by some kid in his Genesis that was clearly trying to "keep up with a Shelby". So much for "this isn't a race"...

So that's my first day. I really had fun but felt I didn't really learn much besides the absolute basics. As this was a gift from my wife for Christmas I was grateful to have a go at it but felt this type of practice of no instructor ride along and letting us go at it as fast as we can could lead to an absolute disaster. I'll be hoping to join a proper association soon and actually learn skills vs listening to feedback from an instructor watching from the side lines.

So now with that day behind me, how critical is a brake flush or any other maintenance at this point? Thanks again guys!

Sounds like a great first day. You went home with everything intact. It is amazing how late you can brake in these cars. Each time out you will learn more. Having an instructor ride with you is very useful. I rode with a professional at the Track Tour and all I learned was that I have a lot to learn.

Hey Donny,

Glad it went well, sorry it wasn't exactly what you expected. If you haven't been to the track attack, I suggest you go. You will get better training and some actual track time at no cost to you except the airfare and hotel.

All the prep is important, some more than others, but I would start with the basics if you plan to track your car a lot. Bleeding the brakes is important because fluid will absorb moisture over time. Factory brake fluid has lower boil points than Castrol SRF or torque 700 for example. Under consistent hard braking conditions, your brakes could heat up to a point where the moisture in the fluid (as well as the fluid itself under extreme conditions) could boil over. Fluid properties are that it is incompressible. Add vapor from the boil over and you have spongy, ineffective brakes.

Camber plates? Factory alignment settings are optimized for street driving. Take the car off the street and put it on a track with hard turning and you will see tires wear unevenly due to a non optimal alignment setting. Look up the differences between track alignment settings and factory settings. The most noticeable parameter that is different is camber. Camber is simply the angle of the tire in relation to the horizontal plane of the road or track. Ford recommends -1.5* camber for a standard GY350. The problem is that Ford put stock camber plates on this car that cannot obtain that setting. Many use more than -1.5* camber. It all depends on the track, conditions, tires, and performance expectations. Negative camber (at optimal settings) will give you better traction and performance as well as reducing the wear on your tires. For this reason, a lot of people who track their car install camber plates to reduce tire wear and optimize performance.

There are so many things people do to prep for the track. I could go on and on, but those two things are what most people focus on first.
[MENTION=16139]cjgt350[/MENTION] just did a write-up on his track prep to include many more items (which was excellent by the way). http://www.mustang6g.com/forums/showthread.php?t=74433 I did a write-up in preparation for my last track event. http://www.mustang6g.com/forums/showthread.php?t=70716&highlight=daytona Read up on it all and decide how you wish to proceed.

Either way, definitely look into the track attack. Sorry the experience was a minor disappointment, but at least you are a little more educated and informed so that you will be better off next time.

Thanks for the reply.

Thank you for the great write up Tom! I really appreciate it. I'm thinking I'm not eligible for the Track Attack as I got this 17MY preowned. The original owner only had 1400 miles on it so I'm doubting he went to the track attack program. With that said, would there by any chance of them letting me go if the original owner never went! I know it's a long shot but might be worth the effort to ask.

And yes, it was a minor disappointment in regards to a bit of safety concerns due to no instructor ride along as well as not getting any feedback for what my strengths weaknesses are. Besides that, it was really awesome to see how this car can lay down the power and feel so solid in that type of environment. Needless to say I caught the fever now...

I didn't know that your car was pre-owned. I am not sure if you can attend or not. I'm leaning towards not, but I am not 100% certain. Before you call them, I would confirm eligibility myself. Maybe open up a thread and ask some others. Have a look at the track attack sticky thread, it may be covered there.

The kicker is that you cant even PAY to go out to the Ford Performance Racing School and track their GT350's. I know.... I've asked. I commonly find myself out in UT and I would like nothing better than an arrive and drive using their GT350's.

With that said, you can attend a one or two day program in the Mustang GT, but that is not free..... Not even close. Great bunch of instructors out there, but considering the price and the distance you would have to travel, it probably is not worth it.

The only reason I thought of the Track Attack for you was that it is an excellent introduction that sets very good basic skills and foundations.

I would probably approach it from a simple beginners prospective. Find various track events in your area. Many groups such as PDG, Chin Motorsports, Hooked on driving, etc all sponsor events that you can sign up for. They have instructors who will ride along with you and show you the important stuff. These events are not cheap, but welcome to the hobby..... Certainly not a poor mans sport.