- Joined
- Dec 8, 2015
- Threads
- 225
- Messages
- 4,787
- Reaction score
- 7,002
- Location
- Sacramento, CA
- Website
- www.signaturewheel.com
- Vehicle(s)
- 2017 GT350R
- Thread starter
- #1
I finally had the Opportunity to get the Mach-E and GT500 out to Sonoma Raceway Recently. The guys at Hooked On Driving and Turn 2 were very welcoming and both cars got a lot of attention. Talk about two completely different driving experiences.
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I did a larger writeup of my experience with the Mach-E that got picked up by Auto Evolution Online. You can check that out here: https://www.autoevolution.com/news/...s-to-the-track-not-bad-for-an-suv-165256.html
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The Mach-E was actually pretty fun to bring on track. It was a bit of a dance managing my battery. I lost about 30% of my charge getting to Sonoma and another 30% while on track. Only getting one session in provided some good results. Low slung weight and the AWD made the car feel fairly smooth on track. Not as much body roll as you would think and if you take your corners right you can really get flowing. At lower charge levels I have a suspicion there may be some behind the scenes battery management. I did not experience that EV jolt of speed as I exited out of the apex as I had hoped. 20x9.5 Square Signature Wheel Track Series SV502 paired with 275 Yokohama Advan kept me out of understeer for the most part. Definitely worth a little more seat time at a track that has charging stations on site. Also need to get it back out with traction control off and see if it gets hairy.
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The GT500 on the other hand was an animal. Rolling on the 4S tires at Sonoma Raceway really leaves you wanting more grip so you can carry greater speeds through some of the slower turns. It has been a while since I tracked the car but the added aero from Archetype Racing had the car feeling very planted. Its been a while since I tracked the car so its hard to compare the aero benefits now to when it was stock. The Racing Brake Carbon Ceramics hold up well, but I can tell the more aggressive track compound pads will be much better at managing this big girl at speed. This street compound has been marvelous for spirited driving, but I want to get deeper into those braking zones. The 20x11.5 square Signature Wheel Track Series SV504 and 315 square Pilot 4S kept the car planted.I only had two sessions in the GT500 before calling it at a day, and this car needs an all day thrashing.
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My next big thing to work on is just getting more seat time. I really need experience with knowing when my tires are at the limit, and how much further they can be pushed. I am always avoiding going off track, but to an extent you have to push yourself a bit to find out how far you and the equipment can go. I really respect those guys that have built up the track knowledge to really send a car through turns.
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While incredibly fun, all of this R&D is done to help with the street and track builds we later produce for all of you. I hope you are enjoying this automotive lifestyle as much as I do.
.
.
I did a larger writeup of my experience with the Mach-E that got picked up by Auto Evolution Online. You can check that out here: https://www.autoevolution.com/news/...s-to-the-track-not-bad-for-an-suv-165256.html
.
.
The Mach-E was actually pretty fun to bring on track. It was a bit of a dance managing my battery. I lost about 30% of my charge getting to Sonoma and another 30% while on track. Only getting one session in provided some good results. Low slung weight and the AWD made the car feel fairly smooth on track. Not as much body roll as you would think and if you take your corners right you can really get flowing. At lower charge levels I have a suspicion there may be some behind the scenes battery management. I did not experience that EV jolt of speed as I exited out of the apex as I had hoped. 20x9.5 Square Signature Wheel Track Series SV502 paired with 275 Yokohama Advan kept me out of understeer for the most part. Definitely worth a little more seat time at a track that has charging stations on site. Also need to get it back out with traction control off and see if it gets hairy.
.
.
The GT500 on the other hand was an animal. Rolling on the 4S tires at Sonoma Raceway really leaves you wanting more grip so you can carry greater speeds through some of the slower turns. It has been a while since I tracked the car but the added aero from Archetype Racing had the car feeling very planted. Its been a while since I tracked the car so its hard to compare the aero benefits now to when it was stock. The Racing Brake Carbon Ceramics hold up well, but I can tell the more aggressive track compound pads will be much better at managing this big girl at speed. This street compound has been marvelous for spirited driving, but I want to get deeper into those braking zones. The 20x11.5 square Signature Wheel Track Series SV504 and 315 square Pilot 4S kept the car planted.I only had two sessions in the GT500 before calling it at a day, and this car needs an all day thrashing.
.
.
My next big thing to work on is just getting more seat time. I really need experience with knowing when my tires are at the limit, and how much further they can be pushed. I am always avoiding going off track, but to an extent you have to push yourself a bit to find out how far you and the equipment can go. I really respect those guys that have built up the track knowledge to really send a car through turns.
.
.
While incredibly fun, all of this R&D is done to help with the street and track builds we later produce for all of you. I hope you are enjoying this automotive lifestyle as much as I do.
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