A little track time in the GT350

[916Bob]

The first video is of a recent session at Motorsports Ranch Cresson. The car is a 2017 non-R GT350 that I bought right at 2 years ago. It has18,000 total miles on it, 2,400 of which are on tracks including MSR Cresson, Eagles Canyon and COTA. It's needed both rear bearing carriers replaced but nothing else out of the ordinary (knock on wood).

Vorshlag camber plates are installed with camber set to 3.0F and 2.7R. The tires wear evenly except for a very narrow band on the inside edge of the front tires. Heavy camber on the street has its price; I do not reset the alignment for the street. Pilot Super Sport tires are mounted with 18 sessions on them. This is the cars third set. There is little grip left but about 1/2 of their tread remains. When new, the tires have decent grip for about 12 sessions and then drop off quickly. I start sessions with cold pressure equivalent to 23psi. I target 30psi hot and notice a decrease in grip at 32psi. At 35psi, they slide badly. At the end of this session, pressures were 34LF, 36RF, 33LR, 34RR.

I use stock brake pads. They stop reasonably well but don’t last very long. I’ve worn out a set of front pads in as few as 7 sessions. Regular changing of brake fluid is important to avoid fade / hard pedal.

The camera used was a Garmin VIRB XE with image stabilization on... makes me look smooth.

[ame]

The second video is of a flight I took to a small airport just up the road from the MSR track (Bourland Field 50F). It includes some flyover shots of the track and also DFW, Love Field and Addison airports. May not be interesting for everyone but I included it anyway. The last part of the video is footage of the landing at Bourland.

[ame]

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[jedirocker]

MSR is a great track. I tracked there in my previous 2 cars. Am taking my new GT350 there 2nd weekend of July for DriversEdge program.

Thanks for the info on your tire pressure, and for identifying the increased slip point.

Which do you enjoy tracking more? GT350 or GT3?

 

[tlisotta]

The first video is of a recent session at Motorsports Ranch Cresson. The car is a 2017 non-R GT350 that I bought right at 2 years ago. It has18,000 total miles on it, 2,400 of which are on tracks including MSR Cresson, Eagles Canyon and COTA. It's needed both rear bearing carriers replaced but nothing else out of the ordinary (knock on wood).

Vorshlag camber plates are installed with camber set to 3.0F and 2.7R. The tires wear evenly except for a very narrow band on the inside edge of the front tires. Heavy camber on the street has its price; I do not reset the alignment for the street. Pilot Super Sport tires are mounted with 18 sessions on them. This is the cars third set. There is little grip left but about 1/2 of their tread remains. When new, the tires have decent grip for about 12 sessions and then drop off quickly. I start sessions with cold pressure equivalent to 23psi. I target 30psi hot and notice a decrease in grip at 32psi. At 35psi, they slide badly. At the end of this session, pressures were 34LF, 36RF, 33LR, 34RR.

I use stock brake pads. They stop reasonably well but don’t last very long. I’ve worn out a set of front pads in as few as 7 sessions. Regular changing of brake fluid is important to avoid fade / hard pedal.

The camera used was a Garmin VIRB XE with image stabilization on... makes me look smooth.



The second video is of a flight I took to a small airport just up the road from the MSR track (Bourland Field 50F). It includes some flyover shots of the track and also DFW, Love Field and Addison airports. May not be interesting for everyone but I included it anyway. The last part of the video is footage of the landing at Bourland.

Hi Bob - its Tony Lisotta with the 350R - Black with White Stripe. We met a few times at MSR. Engine blew a few weeks ago and they put a new one in. Hope to see ya out there again soon once I complete break in.

 

[tlisotta]

MSR is a great track. I tracked there in my previous 2 cars. Am taking my new GT350 there 2nd weekend of July for DriversEdge program.

Thanks for the info on your tire pressure, and for identifying the increased slip point.

Which do you enjoy tracking more? GT350 or GT3?

FYI - I am a member. If you ever want to come out on member day send me your contact at [email protected] or you can always call me at 214.415.5180. I have to break in my engine again so it will be about a month before I head back out. Also, a great FB group to join is Track Shelby 350 at

https://www.facebook.com/groups/Tra..._id=1530103477911783&notif_t=group_highlights

Tony Lisotta

 

[916Bob]

MSR is a great track. I tracked there in my previous 2 cars. Am taking my new GT350 there 2nd weekend of July for DriversEdge program.

Thanks for the info on your tire pressure, and for identifying the increased slip point.

Which do you enjoy tracking more? GT350 or GT3?

I enjoy them both. They are very different and need to be driven accordingly which keeps them both fun. The GT350 is very well balanced and slides very nicely... I love that. The GT3 explodes out of corners and is an animal... what a hoot. If I could only have one it would probably be the GT3... but then again...

 

[916Bob]

Hi Bob - its Tony Lisotta with the 350R - Black with White Stripe. We met a few times at MSR. Engine blew a few weeks ago and they put a new one in. Hope to see ya out there again soon once I complete break in.

Hi Tony. Sorry to hear about the engine. I'll be looking forward to seeing you at the track soon. Remember though... no track driving until the odometer says 50 miles.

 

[tlisotta]

Hi Tony. Sorry to hear about the engine. I'll be looking forward to seeing you at the track soon. Remember though... no track driving until the odometer says 50 miles.

LOL! Debate on when to track it. I waited until 850 miles and engine still blew at 2600 miles. Question is should I track it earlier or later !

 

[Austinj427]

I'm actually looking to move down to this area in the future. This would likely be my home track but I would only go on Chin and Edge days.

Prices seem fair and it looks plenty technical to be fun.

 

[jedirocker]

FYI - I am a member. If you ever want to come out on member day send me your contact at [email protected] or you can always call me at 214.415.5180. I have to break in my engine again so it will be about a month before I head back out. Also, a great FB group to join is Track Shelby 350 at

https://www.facebook.com/groups/Tra..._id=1530103477911783&notif_t=group_highlights

Tony Lisotta

Tony! Last time we talked, I believe this was your car:

I was in the blue Mustang GT.

 

[tlisotta]

MSR

Tony! Last time we talked, I believe this was your car:

I was in the blue Mustang GT.

Yes! I remember. Didn’t you go on a ride along wi me? I wondered where you had been.

 

[jedirocker]

Yes! I remember. Didn’t you go on a ride along wi me? I wondered where you had been.

Yes I did! Sent you a FB message.

 

[jedirocker]

I enjoy them both. They are very different and need to be driven accordingly which keeps them both fun. The GT350 is very well balanced and slides very nicely... I love that. The GT3 explodes out of corners and is an animal... what a hoot. If I could only have one it would probably be the GT3... but then again...

Thanks. Your GT3 track video is greatness. I was planning on finding either a GT3 or an R8 pre-owned to become my dedicated track car. Ended up getting the GT350 instead. Hoping the motor holds up.

 

[Bingo13]

LOL! Debate on when to track it. I waited until 850 miles and engine still blew at 2600 miles. Question is should I track it earlier or later !

Earlier. I did a proper ring break-in procedure at a 100 miles on both of mine and then tracked them at 250 miles, never burnt a drop of oil and on my '16, not a single issue after 8K miles, about 2500 on track. The '18, well, we will find out over the next few months, but looking good so far.

 

[tlisotta]

Earlier. I did a proper ring break-in procedure at a 100 miles on both of mine and then tracked them at 250 miles, never burnt a drop of oil and on my '16, not a single issue after 8K miles, about 2500 on track. The '18, well, we will find out over the next few months, but looking good so far.

Meaning - variable RPMs for 100 miles under 5k RPMs?

 

[Bingo13]

Meaning - variable RPMs for 100 miles under 5k RPMs?

Variable RPMs under 100 miles, yes. Just a bit more aggressive with the RPM ranges. This is probably not for everyone and I am sure there are plenty of opinions against it (waiting longer or going to redline in the first 20 miles), but it has worked on every modular motor I have owned since '96. I have not had an engine burn oil or had scored cylinder walls and typically have higher than average dyno numbers.

My numbers are based on the redline capabilities of the engine and then applying a certain percentage range for each session. I was more aggressive starting in the mid-70s on other built motors at the time, but tend to worry more about the transmissions and differentials now as part of the break-in procedure.

I do the following routine on the 5.2L, but always with the engine oil at temp >192F. Assumptions are you have "friendly road or track" stretch to run through the first four gears and are either upshifting/downshifting every few minutes to vary the rpms or varying throttle input depending on road conditions and posted speeds. I'm not liable for anything that happens or advocating exceeding legal posted speeds*. Just relaying what I do with these vehicles and take personal responsibility for my own actions, not others.

0-20 miles - vary engine rpm from 2500~5000 rpm, do three individual pulls up to 5500 or so (gears 1~4) with a cool down period between pulls.. I then always downshift through the gears before coming to a stop on the way home (four or five before I get home). I usually do a 20 mile or so drive and then park the car overnight. Check the oil level before you leave.

20~50 miles - vary engine rpm from 2000~5500 rpm while driving, do five individual pulls up to 6500 rpm (gears 1~4*) with a cool down period between pulls. At the end of the acceleration pulls, I do one pull in sixth gear from 1500 to 3500 rpm and always downshift through the gears before coming to a stop. I do a 30 mile or so drive and then park the car overnight.

50~100 miles - vary engine rpm from 2000~6000 rpm while driving, do five individual pulls up to 7250 rpm (gears 1~4 in a responsible manner*), with a cool down period between pulls. At the end, I do two pulls in sixth gear from 1500 to 3500 rpm and always downshift through the gears before coming to a stop (four or five before I get home). I do a 50 mile or so drive and then park the car overnight.

100~130 miles - vary engine RPMs while driving, do three individual pulls from a stop (idle) to 8250 rpm (running through gears 1~4 in a responsible manner*) with a cool down period between runs. I do a 30 mile drive in total and then park the car overnight. Check the oil level after the car cools down for about 20 minutes.

130~150 miles - vary engine RPMs, do three individual pulls from a stop (idle) to 8250 rpm (running through gears 1~4, and then go as high in 5th gear as possible in a responsible manner*) with a cool down period in-between runs. So once again a safe road stretch or track is required. I do about a 20 mile circuit and then park the car overnight.

~150 miles - I change the oil at this point and then again around 1000 miles along with the transmission and differential fluids. After that, I am changing engine oil after every other event and transmission/differential fluids after every 5th event.

I usually do my first track event with about ~300 miles on the car if I track it. And I keep a record of oil levels and volume in the oil catch cans at the end of each daily session until I am comfortable with just checking on a periodic basis. Which so far is before and after the events as the '16 just does not burn a drop and it takes three or four events to get more than 2ozs in the catch cans.

On the '18R, I have about 350 miles on it, only had about an oz of oil in the passenger side catch can (nothing but a light glaze in the driver side can) after the break-in period and no oil burned. I did a short run at Harris, but nothing crazy yet. I am running at MSR-C next weekend, so will see how it does after six or seven sessions.

On my '18PP2, I followed a similar break-in period routine and at 600 miles, not a drop burned yet. In the end, this information is just my opinion, not right, not wrong, just my experience.

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