Sorry it took so long to respond, but I have been out of town for the past week.

As for the "pit crew" I thought that's what we were setting up: a bunch of folks who will help out with whatever comes around. Jack T and Philip bring their own engineering centers, but I certainly don't have anything more than I can carry in the car. I would welcome somebody who had assorted parts, tools, and so on -- such as a BIG floor jack that will take the car up with two pumps on the handle. All we can carry are those dinky little Sears jacks that fit in a plastic case.

So, sure, M-Spec: bring it on. Pray that Murphy's Law of Racing applies here (whatever you are prepared for will never happen). Therefore, if you are prepared to fix anything, then nothing will break and we will all have a wonderful weekend.

Rich/slow old poop

Hey Jesse,

I did not get a "topic reply notification" for some reason. Let me reply to your questions. A choice of paint is very important. You definitely do not want anything that would get dissolved by the brake fluid. Also, some hi-temp paints do not produce a mirror finish and trap dirt and brake dust.

A safe choice is powder coating. It produces a durable, mirror-like and chemically resistant finish. The coathing thickness looks to be thick enough to nicely mask all the surface defects, so the surface quality looks better than before and is easy to clean. True racing calipers are usually hard anodized and not painted, but many of other brand name performace calipers appear to be powder coated.

I offer powder coating survices: http://supercar-engineering.com/serv90- ... oating.htm , however if this is brake calipers, those need to be rebuil too at the same time because the seals may get too hard from the heat of the powder coating oven. I rebuild the calipers too, http://supercar-engineering.com/serv70- ... ebuild.htm . I would say I could rebuild and powder coat your four calipers for $175 plus parts (which is $25 for car parts store seals and $110 for OEM seals, OUCH!). This may not be a cost effective solution if you do not really need to have your calipers rebuilt but this work takes a lot of time, so this is the only way for me to offer this service.

If you use factory brake pad shims and Motul 600 brake fluid, then your calipers should not overheat. I have used (and abused) that setup many times and noticed that the pads will give you a good warning before things get too hot. They will fade a little and let you know that you need to ease up on braking too hard and let them cool down. Can't emphasize enough the importance of removing the factory splash guards. They stop a large part of the airflow to the hot rotors.

Philip

_________________
http://supercar-engineering.com
StopTech Kits (NEW!!!), AP Racing, Big Reds, and custom brake upgrades bonanza!
3/S Open tracking parts, Carbotech Panther, Bobcat and Axxis Ultimate brake pads, and more products to come.

FYI:

Registration for the April 17th and 18th, 2004 event at Road America is now open. There will be a "FREE" seminar to all participants on Friday April 16th, 2004. The seminar will be done by multiple people that have participated in MFBA/Speed Seekers Events in the past. The location of this seminar will be held in the hall of the "Wilderness Roadside Inn" http://www.foodspot.com/wilderness/

You can register at http://www.speedseekers.com/liabilitywaiver.html They are accepting payment by check or paypal.

I SIGNED UP TODAY COUNT ME IN!

I signed up too.

Philip

_________________
http://supercar-engineering.com
StopTech Kits (NEW!!!), AP Racing, Big Reds, and custom brake upgrades bonanza!
3/S Open tracking parts, Carbotech Panther, Bobcat and Axxis Ultimate brake pads, and more products to come.

Here are some tips from Philip Glazatov about HPDE events. Reprinted from his post (with permission) on Team3S Racers.

THE BASICS:
- memorize the track
- know the braking zones, apexes and turn in and tracking out markers if available
- be afraid of the walls, push the limit only in open and safe areas with plenty of run-off
- learn to tell understeer from oversteer and learn to do it safely; a definition of understeer would help -> understeer is safe and slow, oversteer is dangerous and also slow
- AWD cars usually understeer under throttle unless the traction is
limited (rain, snow)
- you can usually save the car from a spinout by stepping firmly on gas
- AWD cars usually oversteer under braking and turning, you cannot slow down much if you enter a turn too fast
- discover brake oversteer in a safe place and do not do it again; hard braking is reserved for straight lines only
- see how your car responds to trail braking - you can use it to your advantage in some places
- know the difference between high and low-speed handling and high and low-speed under/oversteer
- participate in an autocross to get a feel for low-speed handling; keep in mind that high speed handling will be completely different
- select your gear before the turn while braking; learn rev matching and heel/toe techniques
- if you cannot make the turn leave the track nose forward, not sideways
- grass is slippery, especially wet grass, you also can't steer much once on the grass, so use with caution
- warm up your tires, especially the rear ones, for a lap or two for your
own safety
- cool down your engine and brakes for a lap to keep them happy

Just as a reminder to all who plan to attend the event... Philip and Rich have both said they would allow W3SI members to ride along with them DURING the event as a passenger so our members can get a feeling what high performance driving is all about. Passengers MUST have an appropriate helmet as stated on the Speed Seekers website. We can't guarantee everyone will be able to catch a ride, but there will be opportunities for members to ride along, help in the pits checking brakes, fluids, etc.

I just need to install my passenger Sparco seat. I did not have time to get to these "minor details" before last time at RA in October, so my passenger had to bring his own seat with him.

Philip

_________________
http://supercar-engineering.com
StopTech Kits (NEW!!!), AP Racing, Big Reds, and custom brake upgrades bonanza!
3/S Open tracking parts, Carbotech Panther, Bobcat and Axxis Ultimate brake pads, and more products to come.

More tips for open track novices written by Rich Merritt. Reprinted from his post (with permission) on Team3S Racers.

...The best advice I heard so far is to not use your brakes at all after hot
lapping and don't use them to stop the car at yer parking spot. Glide up,
put the car in 1st gear, and turn off the key or use the parking brake.

As for track tips for first timers, I suggest these:

Brake in a straight line before a corner.
Brake hard, but not so hard the ABS chirps
Brake for as short a time as possible. Get on, get off.
DO NOT brake at any speed over 100 mph. Coast down to 100 before braking.
Your brakes will last much longer that way.
Complete all braking and downshifting BEFORE you turn in.
Turn in, clip the apex, increase the throttle, and be at full throttle by
track out (the classic line).

Practice all the above on every corner during street driving. You can stay
in your lane and still clip an apex.

Practice making ONE steering motion to initiate the turn and holding the
wheel steady as you complete the corner. Treat freeway entrances and exits as if they were carousels (constant radius turns) and practice maintaining a constant speed without billions of steering adjustments.

Remember, every time you move the steering wheel even a tiny fraction of a turn, it scrubs off speed. Work on making turns without constant steering changes. Turn in, hold the wheel steady, and straighten it up as you approach track out.

Practice all this on the street at legal speeds, and it will become second
nature on the track.

DO NOT attempt:
Heel and toe
Trail braking
The AWD line

You can try those later. For the moment, just concentrate on the classic
line and learning how to brake and turn.

Here's some information from Dave Dill of Speed Seekers regarding splitting the cost of the event with another person and sharing track time.

"...If [W3SI members] want to share the spot that is fine. The only catch is they have to be willing to run in the same group (Novice, Intermediate, Advanced, or Assertive). Just have them send in both sets of registration forms together with the payment."

So, if two people want to split the cost of the event 50/50, they can do so and have one person race Saturday and the other on Sunday.

-------

Also, I found some good information on the NASA website (National Auto Sport Association) for HPDE events and rookie drivers. Check out http://www.nasaproracing.com/hpde/preparing.html for articles on prepping your car, safe passing, learning the line, weight transfer, and in slow - out fast (something I've heard Rich Merritt discuss on Team3S Racers). Speed Seekers is not a NASA event, but the information provided on the website is still applicable (although rules for things such as passing may be slightly different).

JRink

What are the costs for spectators? I want to come and watch. Will spectators be allowed in the infield area? I want to bring my camcorder and cameras to get some shots of 3S's on the track.

I would enter but I'm still having a problem with having to replace my Stillen brakes that only have 16k miles on them. It's $700 down the drain. I also don't like the idea of having to tow my car home if something goes really wrong.

I figure I'd have to get new rotors and pads ~$500, new helmet ~$200, do a tune up/complete fluid change ~$350 and enter ~$400. It's an expensive outing, but it seems worth it.

_________________
1992 3000GT VR-4
-----------------------
3SI Member 0660, 1753, 2038
W3SI Member 15

Joe... regarding guests (info provided by John at Speed Seekers)

"...The charge is $5 per guest per day and there is no limit to the amount of guests one may bring along. Guests don't necessarily have to arrive with the driver either. However, all guests must check in upon arrival to the track at the registration booth to sign the necessary waivers and get a wristband put on.

When we refer to a guest, it refers to anyone who is not a 'driver' that is on the Road America property. Anyone can come up and watch or go for ride-alongs, even if they don't know anybody whose a driver. "

Hope that clues you in.

BTW, if you are interested in driving, there are options to make the weekend cheaper overall for your wallet. You can split the cost of the event with someone (see my post in a previous post). As for brakes, check out the previous posts from Rich and Philip on this thread AND the tips Word document on the Upcoming Events page. You may be surprised as to workable your current setup might be (unless your brakes are nearing their end) especially if you're only going to be driving one of the two days. One other tidbit Joe. There IS a possibility (small maybe, but still a chance) you can drive your car on the track for as little as $20. It's happened in the past when someone's car had problems and they need to sell their spot in a pinch. Just a thought.

Looking forward to seeing you there. Bring your camcorder and camera

Any one want to go "halfvies" at RA. I am will to drive either day, but would prefer Sunday. I would prefer to run in group b or c, but I know we can change groups between days/drivers.

Okay gang.

If anyone else is planning on running RA, you'd better sign up quick. Slots are filling up fast and there's not many left at all. It looks like there will be approximately 8-10 3/S cars tearing it up in April!!

_________________

Best in Show - NG07
2010 - 6G74/3.5L E16Gs - 688awhp/679awtq (Race+Meth)
2011 - 6G74/3.5L 68HTAs - 740awhp/762awtq (Race+Meth)
2013 - 6G74/3.5L MTC Stage4 - 908awhp/832awtq (Race+Meth)

just a quick question on brake pads to clear up a few things.. it was said stock or (racing pads).. well what is considered to be a real racing quality pad???

_________________
noone is anyone until they are someone.
before you can get to know someone, you must first learn who you are.

love is like a box of chocolates.. you never know what you got tll its gone..............

I run porterfield R4 pads... other like carbotech....

Contact Phil at supercarengineering.com he can help with your descision. I boiled by brake fluid (did not bleed before event), and toasted my stock pads after 3 laps at RA.

It may have been asked before (to lazy to search) will an m95 helmet be acceptable for a ride along.

_________________
'94 vr4- Now with extra slowness