noob HPDE questions

sig11

I think that depends a little on the track/instructor too though... I had my Carbotechs lightly smoking on my second track day (first dry). :P Admittedly that was at Gingerman which is fairly rough on brakes though.

flashburn

I definitely agree with this. I can't imagine how bad my first track day would of been if I kept everything at stock. I definitely recommend just biting the bullet and doing an oil cooler, pads, and fluid before hand. At least if you are expecting this to become a real hobby, more than likely, you'll come out of it wanting to do it again.

You might also want to look into HPDE insurance. You can do a google search to come up with a few companies that offer this.

Your tires will probably be okay, but not great. Certainly good enough for your first time out. I was running on Hankook V12's my first time, and was fairly happy with them. Also, changing the brake pads on our cars are very, very easy. Becomes very quick (under 10 minutes a wheel, after jacking the car up) after you do it a few times.

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Current Ride: 2012 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport Centennial Edition Carbon Flash 6M
Previous Ride: 2009 Nissan 370Z Sport Platinum Graphite 7AT

wh1te370z

I went to the track with the bare minimum. Here's my "build" thread. I used hawk pads.*

Wh1te370z Build

If your anything into cars (which you bought a Z so I'd imagine you are haha) you'll love it. Even if you aren't the best at it it'll be a blast.*

I got bit buy the track bug so hard I ended up selling the z and buying an older BMW just so I could attend more events.

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1998 BMW 328is... Track Build
2010 White 370z.... sold

chillz

Thanks for the link. The wrap on the 370 was pretty cool.

I was actually looking at your BMW build the other day, and it looks like you're having tons of fun and making good progress -- congrats on the build! I don't really expect to be any good at running rings quickly, but I do expect it will be a blast. It's just something I want to experience in the car, and I expect that I will learn lots as well. If I get bitten by the track bug really hard, I think that what you're doing makes the most sense. It's more cost effective to start with a cheaper platform if you're going to strip it anyway, and I'd be less paranoid about wrecking it. I suppose the thought of wrecking it is what keeps most people from tracking their Z to begin with... Well, that and it's a pretty expensive hobby.