Mazdaspeeder

Finally had my first track day, car was a lot more manageable than I thought, but again, I wasn't really pushing it. I did however manage to receive many point-bys quickly running up on 335is, corvettes, mustangs, even a few porsches. I ran in groups A (novice) and B (intermediate). This was at NJMP Thunderbolt Raceway.

Wins:
Water temp, oil pressure, all vitals stayed PERFECT
Tires warmed up quickly and were able to produce fantastic grip. Makes me wonder how good an even softer tire would be
My driving coach loved driving the car, said it was set up well, and I should be able to get great times out of it.

Fails:
Within 5-6 laps after the pace lap, the studs that hold the turbo to the manifold had all come loose. I started hearing a tapping (instantly panicked about engine) but after we pulled over and let her cool, I was able to wiggle the turbo a few mm side to side. Come to find that all of the hardware had come loose. We had used a regular stud and an oval pinched nut on top, so the nut fused to the stud, and the whole thing came walking out. I was able to re-tighten 3, but one totally fell out.
Spun out on my 10th lap or so, just turned in too hard. Think I developed a small flat spot on a tire or two.
On one of the first laps, my coach (and friend) was coming to the end of the straight going 140mph or so, stepped on the brakes, and they didn't really work, so we had about 50 feet of rallycrossing on the lawn.
One of my XIDA adjuster ***** fell off and disappeared. This is kind of a bummer considering I got them pre-assembled so someone at 949 did not tighten the **** down good.
Where my breather filter was touching my valve cover, the rubber literally melted and dripped on the valve cover, the head, even splashed on the exhaust a little
On my GarageStar brake master cylinder brace, the delrin part that butts against the brake master melted as well

I've never had more fun in my car yet, definitely a bit scary, but I was cheesing the whole time. Can't wait to do this again. Signed up for next event on April 27th, so that gives me time to work out the kinks I found today. Some snaps

Track map


Cooling down after my first heat


Tire goooo!


Delrin got pretty hot I'd say, was ready to shed a tear


Coach said the car should be able to hit 1:30 or so around the track. When I googled, that's similar time to a Lotus Exige CUP I saw there today.

Ive been on this forum a long time and you guys know how long the car took to build and how I tried to plan for everything that could happen and overbuilt it. Well, a lot of that has paid off, but some of these things you just don't know until you test them. The studs that lasted 5 laps and then came loose at once, ran fine for me on the street for nearly 2 years, lots of "spirited" driving, drag races, but it's like you all say track is a different animal. I'll be keeping updates of how I address these issues I found today.

Also, since I know not everyone will read this whole thing, I've also posted a separate thread just for the turbo hardware. You can comment here or there or PM: https://www.miataturbo.net/diy-turbo...3/#post1318915

aidandj

iTrader: (5)

If that delrn bit melted you are in need of brake heat shielding bad. If your reservoir melts you could end up like that guy in the bad track driving thread yesterday.

Mazdaspeeder

Yes, also on the to-do list.

Also, where can I get some of that silver or gold reflective tape. Do any stores carry it or online only? I'd really like to do some work with that stuff, as well as a shield.

dasting

Nice reading some East coast stuff. Thunderbolts a fun track for the area, though I do like Lightning more. 140 down the straight is smoking fast for a miata. I was barely touching 118 in my car with 145 at the wheels.

Sort out the turbo stuff and make it back out. Don't rush yourself, learn the track, learn the car, learn the limits, learn the flaggers, learn how to stay in control with other close cars on track, and have tons of fun. And try not to hang up on how many corvettes or Porsches you are or aren't passing, winning HPDE isnt the game. (Admittedly, hearing everyone ask who the heck was in that screaming miata during the group meeting post session is always a chuckle).

I'm confident a miata with your power can run down in 26s/27s with aero and Hoosiers at Tbolt. I haven't had my car on there since my first year driving on track, but I was running 34s with 225 old Hoosiers and way less than half your power. I think it would be good for upper 32s now, and there's two slow turn dig outs where double the power would make a huge difference.

BTW, looks like you might be running too much camber.

Girz0r

iTrader: (1)

Design Engineering, Inc. | Exhaust Header Wrap and Thermal Performance Products | Design Engineering, Inc.

Mazdaspeeder

My coach managed 140, I wasn't leaving the final corner fast enough but still getting to 130. Definitely not worried about time yet, but it would have been cool to time a real lap and see how I did my first time.

Alignment wise, I am at -2.5 front and -2 rear on the camber, kept it a bit more conservative than the true 949 Race Alignment. Outsides of the tires were definitely also very warm and sticky, it was actually funny cause I touched one and it cooled with some of my finger print still embossed in it. Is it possible that when I am actually cornering, that part of the tire that isn't touching the ground enough is actually then being pressed into the ground, but not when I'm just going 5-10mph through the paddock picking up the sand and stones? I'm sure they are, otherwise that outer shoulder wouldn't be sticky. Also, a friend of mine with the same 245/40-15 RC-1 said even at -3 and -2.5 he was wearing the outside more than the inside on his tires.

Good observation, and great to hear from someone who's done the track. My friend who sold me these slicks ran a fast time of 1:37 with them, and Aero (GTC300 and front splitter) in his 90-100whp stock engine 1.6L. I don't know how that stacks up for fast or not, but after I got home yesterday I watched his lines through turns 8, 9, and 10, and it was different than what my coach showed me. I don't think he's done an event with a driving instructor yet. I can't wait to get on his tail, though it will be a while until I get into his run group.

hornetball

iTrader: (4)

Welcome to the addiction.

sixshooter

iTrader: (12)

Heat shields.

It's your life.

add lightness

Your car looks very nicely set up! What do you have for brakes? Who'd you run with? I'm also signed up for the Thunderbolt event on the 27th. First event on my new engine, looking forward to the season starting!

stefanst

iTrader: (1)

Thunderbolt is fun, but I find Lightning definitely a bit more beginner-friendly. Anything 125 and higher in a Miata on Thunderbolt is super-respectable IMHO. I think my fastest was just under 120- that's with around 190hp.
I'll be on Lightning on the 6th with DeMonte Motorsports. Think about it....

18psi

iTrader: (76)

this


this this this

and inconel

dasting

Rolling around that paddock is definitely what's causing the sand to collect how it is, but I'm mentioning it because the outer tread depth divits don't look too effected, and most of the scrub is on the inside half of the tire. Just worth monitoring, that's all.

I'll be at the kick off NASA weekend the 15th-17th racing SM at lighting. Agreed with Stefanst, lightning is a better miata course, and better for beginners in general. Much more of momentum course, and I think more fun. Y'all should come out.

blkmkiii

iTrader: (2)

nasane.com
/thread

Mazdaspeeder

I ran with HOD. I'll see you at T-bolt then, come find my car. Brakes are Raybestos rotors, Hawk HPS pads, SS lines, and ATE super blue fluid. Lines under the hood are sleeved too
I don't think I'll have time to get my turbo hardware installed by then but I'll be out at plenty of events this year
Should I be measuring the depth of the divets? It is worth mentioning that tire pressures were 28psi cooled down, car weighs 2500lbs, and it was myself and my coach, so an extra 380lbs total.

I wonder if lowering pressures may help bring more of the outside to the ground. I've heard some say to run as low as 22-24psi cold for RC-1? I'm just thinking because it's not even as aggressive as the 949racing alignment, maybe there are other factors with this. Maybe it's just a track that doesn't require as much camber?

sixshooter

iTrader: (12)

The HPS pads are inadequate for track use in any situation. With all season tires and stock power they are inadequate. They are a very bad choice for more power and stickier tires than stock.

Mazdaspeeder

So before I had looked at the Carbotech XP10/8 combo, but now I see the company has split and there is something called G-Loc offering R10/8, similar temperature ranges, similar prices. Any differences between the two? Any other worthy brands to consider? Should get new rotors for these? (mine are fairly low mileage).

Other than that, definitely need a heat shield around the turbo.

sixshooter

iTrader: (12)

I've used several brands and compounds over the years. I really like the Performance Friction PF01 or PF11 pads now.

mx5-kiwi

Trackspeed (savington) for the inconel studs and fasteners. You will be chasing your **** UNTIL you get these.

I did the same (chased my ****) and problem solved instantly with the hardware.

Welcome to the addiction is an apt comment

WMP

iTrader: (1)

I'm running Carbotech (now G-Loc apparently) XP-8's all around. They've been my only set of pads for the last year or so. They're awesome on the track (stock hp). Never had a problem with them overheating, even when I spent a whole day practicing threshold braking at 100mph. In my opinion, they are a little too aggressive for autocross on street tires, especially without abs. They sound like a garbage truck/school bus on the street, but stop fine when they're cold. And they're really dusty.

I've put 7,000 miles on them including four track days and probably close to 100 autocross runs. I haven't measured the pad thickness, but they still have plenty of life left in them. I'll buy them again.

acedeuce802

iTrader: (1)

I heard that the main engineers at Carbotech left and formed G-Loc. All the compounds are exactly the same as their Carbotech counterparts.