When I used to track my S2000, taking out the spare tire and tools made a noticeable difference. That's probably 50lbs hanging out in the trunk, and it just doesn't need to be there.

Excess weight in the trunk is why the MkIII MR2's lost the trunk and all the storage was forward of the cabin. The MKII has only a rear trunk and a bunch of weight hanging off the ass past the motor even increased the snap on throttle lift.

Newb question:

Looking at the tech sheet (bad link now, btw), it states that the seat/restraint system must be the same for driver and passenger if there is going to be a passenger/instructor. My driver's seat is a Recaro Profi SPG XL. Does that mean they would require me to have another Recaro SPG XL, or could I get something more economical like a Sparco Sprint?

Option three would be to put my shitty stock seat back in, but I'd rather not do that for a number of reasons.

Your passenger seat doesn't need to be the same as the driver seat, but it must be held to the same standards as the driver seat. So a Sparco Sprint in the passenger seat will be fine, such that it's mounting and harness is sufficient.

Stock seat wouldn't fly, if the instructor isn't very short.

Thanks, that's what I figured.

Guess I wasn't clear, I would be putting the stock seat back on the driver's side. Then both me and the instructor would be at the same standard of: pretty much going to die if anything happens.:hatecat:

not so fast. Different clubs have different rules so I would email or call the event coordinator to discuss. its pretty safe to say if the details page says the seats need to be the same perhaps you need to choose a different event. Personally Ive not seen such a rule but I have seen rules that state if the driver has a harness the instructor must have a harness and you cant really run a harness very well on stock seat or so many will claim. if you planning to get an instructor and are new to an event I suggest you follow their rules to avoid the unpleasantness of being told you can't run.

Even if they don't require matching safety for both seats, it's just good etiquette to do so. Get a passenger race setup or reinstall OEM safety on your side and don't drive at 11/10ths.

^This.

Remember that even though you paid for a track day, when the instructor comes over to your car he can still say "Nope," and turn and walk away. It can happen.

I changed my oil a little under 2600 miles ago, would it be better to change my oil before the track this weekend or should I just wait until after?

If your going to change it soon anyways, do it before the the event.

Really? My dad was saying the opposite, he said since I still have quite a few miles to go before I NEED to change it, I should just change it after the track. I figured I'd just check up on here and see what you guys have to say.

Changing your brake fluid is more important. Oil is cheaper than the metal it is protecting and I would rather have fresh oil protecting things if I am going to be stressing the engine.

That's a good point, yeah brake fluid/pads is the first thing I did in my prepping process but is it really necessary to change the oil if it's fairly fresh?

For your first track day? I doubt it, you're not going to be pushing the car nearly as hard as you think you are.

I'd change it afterwards. Save the $40.

Also from your other thread, stay on street tires as long as you can.

Definitely not my first track day. My pops and I used to share his car and switch off every session but I decided to build my own. I decided to wait until after and luckily my car made it home tonight. It ran great over the weekend! I only paid for saturday but the lady at registration gave me a pass for both days so I got a whole day of seat time for fucking free. It was a phenomenal first weekend in my miata at the track. I'll be posting some pictures and videos in the near future.
Yeah it'll probably be at least a year or two before I go with anything below TW200 but I definitely wanna try a set of NT01s when I get another set of wheels.

happens all the time. i instruct our local instructors to inspect the cars. if it looks questionable, walk away.


ehh i'm sure there will be one turn that you push too hard. on average yes you are correct. and beginners are harder on brakes then the pros are. lots of dragging the pedal= lots of heat. good race pads area a great idea.

What would turn away an instructor besides seats/harnesses? And yeah I found myself dragging the pedal a bit more than I should have in the beginning of the day. After a few sessions I realized my brake zones could be smaller and I could be much harder on the brakes. Also, my buddy told me Hawks HPS pads can hurt the paint on your wheels, is this true?

Slowing from 100 to 50, puts the same amount of energy into the brakes regardless of how long it takes.

The difference is the pros do it more quickly, so the brakes have more time leading up to and after the braking event to cool down.

Hawk DTCs have corrosive dust. I don't think the HPS does, but it's not a good track pad.

If you were at Norcal SAAC, it may have been me who said that about Hawks. I must have mistakenly assumed you were using DTCs for the track.