Nissan Performance Academy - Homestead-Miami Speedway

FortuneLSX-TT · 10-02-2013, 09:56 AM

Much like the great AK, I recently had the opportunity to go to the Nismo Performance Academy. This one was at the Homestead-Miami Speedway, and it was awesome!

Osiris and I drove down from Central Florida after cleaning our cars. We knew we'd have to clean them again once we got down there, but we weren't expecting what followed. Road construction on the Turnpike with concrete dust and water flowing all across the road.

So we found a 24hr car wash and got to detailing until almost midnight.

Our swag bag

Decals applied to the cars

Hanging out on the bank during the course drive thru

Nismo Jukes for AutoCross. Let me just say, I was very impressed by the Nismo Juke. It handled very well and was incredibly peppy for what it is. I would seriously drive one as a daily without a single reservation. Secondly, the seats in the car were amazing. As in, I want to seriously swap my seats for the Nismo Juke seats.

Lunch... no sandwiches for us. Salad, chicken, brisket, and brownies.

Maxima with a few mods

We did a brief amount of classroom/Nismo immersion and did a ton of driving. The GT-R is simply amazing and getting to drive one and my own car on the track for free with professionals giving instruction was priceless. I simply cannot explain how much fun this was. If you ever get a chance to go...do NOT hesitate, call in sick if you have to.

Big thanks to Nissan for doing this too. I'll post some of the videos and photos when I get them e-mailed to me.

Oh, and I won this at the end

triggaZ · 10-02-2013, 09:59 AM

I hate you

Sent from my SC-03D using Tapatalk 4

6spd · 10-02-2013, 10:40 AM

Hey, I was the guy, Jay, who was there with the 2013 sport when you got there. Terrible hearing about the cement accident! Glad you got it taken care of for sure. It was nice meeting you and pretty sweet hearing your car go around the track!

It was a killer awesome event! Driving all the cars at the (my) max was so thrilling and it really teaches you a lot about your car and what is is capable of. There isn't much better than getting the opportunity to flog someone elses GTR around the track! What a beast!

Auto-x in the Juke Nismo was actually really really fun! I finished the day with the second fastest time, too! So that was pretty sick.

Driving my own car around the track was something special, too. And I'll tell you what, after finishing and driving home and to work this morning, the car has never felt more powerful or alive! It must be properly broken in now.

The bad news: I had to pit early due to my transmission slipping (7AT). It had been for a couple weeks on rare occasion

. Got to bring it to a Nismo mechanic who took it out around the track and felt it slip. He said he wanted to change the trans fluid for me but couldn't because he just didn't have the resources available at that time, like a lift and the Consult tool to properly check the level. He said if it slips during normal driving, take it in right away, so I called my dealer and got a mighty fine appointment for thursday.

All in all it was a great event, capped of by a hot lap in the passenger seat of a GTR piloted my one of the pro drivers! It was shockingly fast!

FortuneLSX-TT · 10-02-2013, 11:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 6spd

Hey, I was the guy, Jay, who was there with the 2013 sport when you got there. Terrible hearing about the cement accident! Glad you got it taken care of for sure. It was nice meeting you and pretty sweet hearing your car go around the track!

It was a killer awesome event! Driving all the cars at the (my) max was so thrilling and it really teaches you a lot about your car and what is is capable of. There isn't much better than getting the opportunity to flog someone elses GTR around the track! What a beast!

Auto-x in the Juke Nismo was actually really really fun! I finished the day with the second fastest time, too! So that was pretty sick.

Driving my own car around the track was something special, too. And I'll tell you what, after finishing and driving home and to work this morning, the car has never felt more powerful or alive! It must be properly broken in now.

The bad news: I had to pit early due to my transmission slipping (7AT). It had been for a couple weeks on rare occasion

. Got to bring it to a Nismo mechanic who took it out around the track and felt it slip. He said he wanted to change the trans fluid for me but couldn't because he just didn't have the resources available at that time, like a lift and the Consult tool to properly check the level. He said if it slips during normal driving, take it in right away, so I called my dealer and got a mighty fine appointment for thursday.

All in all it was a great event, capped of by a hot lap in the passenger seat of a GTR piloted my one of the pro drivers! It was shockingly fast!

Yeah, I remember. It was great being able to meet people from the forum.
Sorry about the trans slipping. My oil temps got to 285 and my coolant, well on the last lap I had to coast into the pits because I hit the do not pass go barely idle limp mode because of coolant temps. I guess its time to vent the hood and front bumper to add some more airflow.

A guy in a 350Z and myself got to go out for laps with an instructor by ourselves. Here is the video he took.

6spd · 10-02-2013, 02:12 PM

Was that Zach in the loud as all hell white 350z?

FortuneLSX-TT · 10-02-2013, 02:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by triggaZ

I hate you

They warned us that this might happen.

Quote:

Originally Posted by 6spd

Was that Zach in the loud as all hell white 350z?

Yes, it was.

Shadezz · 10-02-2013, 03:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FortuneLSX-TT

I liked when you guys cruised by the GTRS and 370Z!! Tearing it up guys!! Cool Video and wish I had attended one of these eventS!!

Great that you got a GoPro too!!!

gurneyeagle · 10-02-2013, 04:24 PM

Glad you guys had a chance to participate and enjoyed it.

I find it interesting that a lot of people are saying how much they enjoyed auto crossing the Jukes. It was very popular in Austin too. I had a blast doing it.

It is interesting they changed the free stuff. We got the same shirt and hat along with a pen and diary. The big change was all the "drivers" (not the guests got a go-pro. The back pack you guys all got was a prize for winning the auto cross. We got a smaller lighter bag.

All-in-all, it was an incredible experience. Anyone that gets the chance to go must do it.

djpathfinder · 10-02-2013, 04:45 PM

It was a fantastic event for any Nissan/Nismo enthusiast! Being able to compare between platforms while performance driving is a good thing.

Here are some snapshots I took on Monday when I had a chance between activities:

Gathering and rolling into the paddock area:

Opening remarks and schedule for the day:

Dynamics course:

Track intro (check out the bank on the turns):

Autocross/Juke Nismo:

Track Drive:

gurneyeagle · 10-02-2013, 04:50 PM

Great pictures!

That's awesome that you came down from Canada to participate.

ssmoked · 10-03-2013, 12:06 AM

I attended on Tuesday and had an absolute blast! Nissan definitely went all out to please their fans! I spoke to one of corporate engineer managers and he told me the 3 day event here ran north of $200,000!!

I also tested out the launch control function on the GTR, TWICE, on the vehicle handling and acceleration part of the day. And yes I asked for permission first haha

I just feel bad for whoever purchases these 'factory demo' vehicles after these events...

If you are the lucky ones next year, definitely try to attend. You will not be disappointed.

6spd · 10-03-2013, 08:14 AM

The opportunity to straight up flog the crap out of the GTR/Z/Juke Nismo all day really is a special chance that very very few people will get, for that I can't thank Nissan enough.

wheee! · 10-03-2013, 08:37 AM

Great pictures Adel! Sure looks like you got your money's worth out of that trip!

Footloose301 · 10-06-2013, 09:21 PM

Hey there I am!

I had a blast as well. I'm car #43 in there. The 40th anniversary. I too won a GoPro Hero3!

Hands down it was the best day of my life.

Here's me driving the 2013 black edition GTR. Got up to 140mph or so around the track!

Nismo Performance Academy - YouTube

FortuneLSX-TT · 10-14-2013, 03:25 PM

Nismo sent the link for their videos they took. So I uploaded it to youtube

Also made it to the photo gallery on their site

10-02-2013, 09:56 AM	#1 (permalink)
FortuneLSX-TT Base Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Deltona, FL Posts: 144 Drives: 10 NismoTT MB M6 Rep Power: 16	Nissan Performance Academy - Homestead-Miami Speedway Much like the great AK, I recently had the opportunity to go to the Nismo Performance Academy. This one was at the Homestead-Miami Speedway, and it was awesome! Osiris and I drove down from Central Florida after cleaning our cars. We knew we'd have to clean them again once we got down there, but we weren't expecting what followed. Road construction on the Turnpike with concrete dust and water flowing all across the road. So we found a 24hr car wash and got to detailing until almost midnight. Our swag bag Decals applied to the cars Hanging out on the bank during the course drive thru Nismo Jukes for AutoCross. Let me just say, I was very impressed by the Nismo Juke. It handled very well and was incredibly peppy for what it is. I would seriously drive one as a daily without a single reservation. Secondly, the seats in the car were amazing. As in, I want to seriously swap my seats for the Nismo Juke seats. Lunch... no sandwiches for us. Salad, chicken, brisket, and brownies. Maxima with a few mods We did a brief amount of classroom/Nismo immersion and did a ton of driving. The GT-R is simply amazing and getting to drive one and my own car on the track for free with professionals giving instruction was priceless. I simply cannot explain how much fun this was. If you ever get a chance to go...do NOT hesitate, call in sick if you have to. Big thanks to Nissan for doing this too. I'll post some of the videos and photos when I get them e-mailed to me. Oh, and I won this at the end cdoxp800, 6spd, onzedge and 5 others like this. __________________ GTM TT, OS Giken GT clutch, Greddy Ti-C, Z1 test pipes, Hawk HP+ pads, steel braided brake lines, ZSpeed CSC, 34r oil cooler, CSF radiator, HKS EVC 6 boost controller, Whiteline sways, Swift Springs, Kinetix adj camber package, Osiris UPrev tune

10-02-2013, 09:59 AM	#2 (permalink)
triggaZ Base Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: 213 Posts: 96 Drives: 日産 Rep Power: 15	I hate you Sent from my SC-03D using Tapatalk 4 FortuneLSX-TT, Rusty and Shadezz like this.

10-02-2013, 10:40 AM	#3 (permalink)
6spd A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: South Florida Posts: 3,001 Drives: Q50RS Rep Power: 25	Hey, I was the guy, Jay, who was there with the 2013 sport when you got there. Terrible hearing about the cement accident! Glad you got it taken care of for sure. It was nice meeting you and pretty sweet hearing your car go around the track! It was a killer awesome event! Driving all the cars at the (my) max was so thrilling and it really teaches you a lot about your car and what is is capable of. There isn't much better than getting the opportunity to flog someone elses GTR around the track! What a beast! Auto-x in the Juke Nismo was actually really really fun! I finished the day with the second fastest time, too! So that was pretty sick. Driving my own car around the track was something special, too. And I'll tell you what, after finishing and driving home and to work this morning, the car has never felt more powerful or alive! It must be properly broken in now. The bad news: I had to pit early due to my transmission slipping (7AT). It had been for a couple weeks on rare occasion. Got to bring it to a Nismo mechanic who took it out around the track and felt it slip. He said he wanted to change the trans fluid for me but couldn't because he just didn't have the resources available at that time, like a lift and the Consult tool to properly check the level. He said if it slips during normal driving, take it in right away, so I called my dealer and got a mighty fine appointment for thursday. All in all it was a great event, capped of by a hot lap in the passenger seat of a GTR piloted my one of the pro drivers! It was shockingly fast! __________________ -Jay- jonathanjamesphotographer.com

10-02-2013, 02:12 PM	#5 (permalink)
6spd A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: South Florida Posts: 3,001 Drives: Q50RS Rep Power: 25	Was that Zach in the loud as all hell white 350z? __________________ -Jay- jonathanjamesphotographer.com

10-02-2013, 04:24 PM	#8 (permalink)
gurneyeagle A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Houston/Saint Augustine Posts: 2,681 Drives: '18 Audi TT RS Rep Power: 20215	Glad you guys had a chance to participate and enjoyed it. I find it interesting that a lot of people are saying how much they enjoyed auto crossing the Jukes. It was very popular in Austin too. I had a blast doing it. It is interesting they changed the free stuff. We got the same shirt and hat along with a pen and diary. The big change was all the "drivers" (not the guests got a go-pro. The back pack you guys all got was a prize for winning the auto cross. We got a smaller lighter bag. All-in-all, it was an incredible experience. Anyone that gets the chance to go must do it. __________________ Waiting on the Z35! SOLD - 2011 Gun Metallic Touring 7AT w Sports Pkg & Nav, Nismo Bumper and Rims, RC Grille, RC Brake Ducts, H&R Spacers, Painted Door Hdls, GTR Start Button, Nav By-Pass, EVO R Fog Light, CF Ducktail, CF Interior Trim

10-02-2013, 04:45 PM	#9 (permalink)
djpathfinder A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Edmonton, Canada Posts: 12,910 Drives: 2012 GT-R BE Rep Power: 733	It was a fantastic event for any Nissan/Nismo enthusiast! Being able to compare between platforms while performance driving is a good thing. Here are some snapshots I took on Monday when I had a chance between activities: Gathering and rolling into the paddock area: Opening remarks and schedule for the day: Dynamics course: Track intro (check out the bank on the turns): Autocross/Juke Nismo: Track Drive: wheee!, onzedge, gurneyeagle and 1 others like this. __________________ 2012 GT-R Black Edition Jet Black 2010 370Z 40th Anniversary // SOLD

10-02-2013, 04:50 PM	#10 (permalink)
gurneyeagle A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Houston/Saint Augustine Posts: 2,681 Drives: '18 Audi TT RS Rep Power: 20215	Great pictures! That's awesome that you came down from Canada to participate. wheee! likes this. __________________ Waiting on the Z35! SOLD - 2011 Gun Metallic Touring 7AT w Sports Pkg & Nav, Nismo Bumper and Rims, RC Grille, RC Brake Ducts, H&R Spacers, Painted Door Hdls, GTR Start Button, Nav By-Pass, EVO R Fog Light, CF Ducktail, CF Interior Trim

10-03-2013, 08:14 AM	#12 (permalink)
6spd A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: South Florida Posts: 3,001 Drives: Q50RS Rep Power: 25	The opportunity to straight up flog the crap out of the GTR/Z/Juke Nismo all day really is a special chance that very very few people will get, for that I can't thank Nissan enough. __________________ -Jay- jonathanjamesphotographer.com

10-03-2013, 08:37 AM	#13 (permalink)
wheee! A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Mod Capital of Canada Age: 57 Posts: 7,354 Drives: cars. lots of cars. Rep Power: 40182	Great pictures Adel! Sure looks like you got your money's worth out of that trip! Footloose301 likes this. __________________ H&R / Stillen / Berk / HKS / Swift / Michelin / UpRev / SPC / Amuse Rep / Seibon / Fringe XVO / TWM / more... My Journal

10-06-2013, 09:21 PM	#14 (permalink)
Footloose301 A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Naples, FL Posts: 2,659 Drives: 40th Rep Power: 21	Hey there I am! I had a blast as well. I'm car #43 in there. The 40th anniversary. I too won a GoPro Hero3! Hands down it was the best day of my life. Here's me driving the 2013 black edition GTR. Got up to 140mph or so around the track! Nismo Performance Academy - YouTube __________________ 2010 40th Anniversary 370Z

10-14-2013, 03:25 PM	#15 (permalink)
FortuneLSX-TT Base Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Deltona, FL Posts: 144 Drives: 10 NismoTT MB M6 Rep Power: 16	Nismo sent the link for their videos they took. So I uploaded it to youtube Also made it to the photo gallery on their site Apollo8642 likes this. __________________ GTM TT, OS Giken GT clutch, Greddy Ti-C, Z1 test pipes, Hawk HP+ pads, steel braided brake lines, ZSpeed CSC, 34r oil cooler, CSF radiator, HKS EVC 6 boost controller, Whiteline sways, Swift Springs, Kinetix adj camber package, Osiris UPrev tune

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