There is one track in particular that I'm out to conquer this year- Shenandoah Circuit @ Summit Point. It's quite technical, lots of off camber tight turns with a good amount of elevation change.

Overhead view- http://mazdadrivers.com/09_trackmaps...cuit_map_3.jpg
Quick clean lap- http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...andoah+circuit

My car will be full weight, minus the rear spare, so roughly 3200lbs, 3350 with me in it. I have Swift springs with Tokico DSpec shocks. Most likely will be running the BFG T/A KD's in 245/40/18 and 275/40/18 on LMGT4's. I'm looking to spend no more than $500 for this year's track season.

I know the first answer most track guys give is track time, and I'm getting it. I've already done 3 track days there and I will have 5 more track days on this circuit before my time attack session there in late September.

This circuit feeds understeer. So the question- Am I better off going with a set of adjustable swaybars or adjustable front control arms?

 

For less than $500 you could get a set of tires that will make the biggest improvement over your BFG's! Falken 615's come to mind - and those new should run you about $500, and you can drive them on the street if you only have one set of wheels. And if you have an extra set of wheels - buy some used R-Compound tires (like RA-1's) and that will cost you much less than $500!

 

or spend the $500 on an extra track event or two to get more practice. Go with tires, too. $500 for this hobby is nothing, Ive learned that very quickly, worry about improving yourself, first.

 

That all depends on the situation. Are you allowed to run R compounds in your time attack class? If I were you I would run wider front tires and adjustable sways. I just got the A arms, and they seem to help with turn in on autocross, but I don't have any track time on them to judge. I noticed the biggest improvement with wider front tires. From what I have heard KD's (not KDW's) are on par with RT-615ss. Anyone have experience with both?

 

500 doesn't go far..

I kart at that track with WKC. that is so funny. great track.

 

I'm getting plenty of track time on the course this year, that's not the issue. 9 track days on the same circuit is plenty and I'm sure after the first 4 or 5 days I'll be struggling to cut off any more time.

I have to run a 140+ UTQG rated tire for Street Class. The obvious tire to run is the RT-615 but it doesn't come in a 275/40/18 whereas the KD does.

If I was to run the 275/35/18 on the 9.5 rear wheel what would I run on the front 8.5's? If I could swap the 8.5's for another 9.5 I'd run the 275/35's all around- but that's a lot more than $500. And would the extra front rubber allow me to cut just as much time per lap as I would with swaybars or extra camber? Keep in mind that my track tires and wheels will also be my street tires and wheels.

Haven't completely decided on what tires to get yet but they're coming soon, need to order them by March. Beit RT615's or KD's, I will get whatever the stickiest legal tire is that I can run in my size.

 

That's what I've heard as well. Ed with VRT suggested I run those.


Track-ready ultra high performance tire with near race-level grip. Multi-time magazine showdown winner. The highest dry cornering mark (1.08g) one leading testing organization has ever recorded for a full tread depth street-legal tire*. Who it’s for: High-performance car owners and weekend track event competitors seeking absolute no-compromise, dry cornering performance.

 

Other - Professional driving instruction and coaching.

 

Best way to gain more time than is to remove weight, and the further away it is from the center of gravity the more it is worth.
Some easy things are: dry-cell batter, passanger seat, carpets, rubber gaskets under hood, a bunch of plastic skid plates under the car, drain the windshield wipper fluid, remove the weight from the rear hatch, spare tires and tools. I am sure there is more - just can't think of them all now. I bet you could find 100 to 150# that won't cost anything to remove and would be easy to put back after. And as the saying goes - every 100# is worth 1/10 of a second.

About the tires, GRM did a test off all the street tires that people track, the 615's where almost a full second faster per lap than any other tire (non-R) for any price range.

And once again - John is right! A professional coach would be the best money ever spent! Just read what they said on the last issue of GRM if you don't believe it, the guy that they used to test if a coach was worth it was dead set against it. After, he said he didn't know how he ever got along without one!

 

cusco sways...143% stiffer up front, 173% stiffer in the rear...that'll eliminate alot of body roll...look into Yokohama Advan Neova AD07's as well...supposed to produce more grip than KD's

 

weight reduction would help...lighterweight batteries are nice...test pipes cut off about 35 pounds from the stock cats ...sways would help alot...& stoptech's stage 2 break kit upgrade for 500$ would allow you to brake later durin corner entry & thered be far less brake fade

 

Shenandoah is very hard on brakes and tires, so consider that as well. I'd suggest just going with a more aggressive pad and work from there, b/c it's not going to take you long to eat it up there. Then save your money by doing the free things to drop off some weight in the car...

 

I know a professional instructor would be ideal however I'm sure that's quite a lot of money.

I'm running the Project Mu B-Force pads all around. I used them on my NSX without any issues at Shenandoah and Beaverun last year. Great for street and track.

GRM tested the Azenis to be that much faster? Wow... hmmm... so the best option really is to go with another 18x9.5 in the front with RT615's? I wish there was a 275/40/18 available!

 

You can get Rt-615's in 265's. The actual track width is about the same as the 275's, the sidewalls are reinforced (good for the front), and they fit well on a 8.5" wheel. I have been running them for a while now, with no complaints. They held up great at Buttonwillow. I ran those with Cusco sways as my only suspension mods. With your springs and shocks, you should be fine on that setup.

 

If you want to be cheap step down to a 17" rim and buy my 5 Azenis 615's for $300.

Other than that, I would say more negative camber and good brakes would make the biggest difference aside from tires.