Does anyone "Track" their Z?
I'm interested in hearing about how well these new Z's handle at the track and local auto X's.

I've been seriously looking at a couple models at a local showroom. I've pretty much narrowed it down to the Performance and Track models.
Of course, ideally, I'd much rather have the track model with those sweet Brembo's and Forged wheels, but it is about $4-5K beyond what I really want to spend.
So, I may end up settling for the Performance model.
Has anyone had the ***** to take their car to any club races?

I'm new here and am really hoping to find a forum of enthusiasts more interested in driving and tracking their cars vs. the crowd that seems to mainly focus on getting colored plug wires to match their new Kustom Kool Air Intakes.

Either way, I look forward to joining the ranks of ownership very soon.

When I was in high school I always thought that someday I'd own one of two cars.
One was a Porsche 911
The other, a 300 Z.
I've owned my 911 for 6 years and now look forward to adding a new 350 to my stable.

Cheers,

 

For the best bang for the buck, I would go with the Enthusiast, as it's got everything you need for the track, plus the cool extras like the HIDs, aluminum pedals, dimming rear mirror, and cruise control over the base model. You can get better tires and better brakes, and you're basically set. You really don't need the VDC for the track or Auto X. For the track, any Z will do fine.

Even in stock form, the Z does will on the track. I think it's a bit hefty for Auto X, but it's still doing pretty well.

Many Z owners have been tracking their Zs already as well as Auto Xs. There were 3 at a Laguna Seca event hosted by Speed Ventures this past weekend.

I would've been tracking my car by now, but my Z's in the shop. I've done 2 track days in my previous car, 2 on my previous bike, and 1 shifter karting event.

 

Good luck in obtaining a good deal (ie. UNDER MSRP) for your 350Z. IMHO the car, quick as it is, understeers at the limit and this should be the primary area for development initially. On the other hand, it's quite benign and will give the unskilled driver plenty of warning and a chance to back out of a bad situation.

I plan to take my 350Z to many tracks around the country and you can bet we'll discuss it here.

 

Very good imput so far.
Thanks for the advice. I was pretty sceptical about this VDC system.
It sure sounds like something that could go hay-wire down the road...and not be something cheap to fix!

I do subscribe to the theory that "Simpler is better".


Thanks again,

 

If you don't live in an area where it rains/snows or has really cold weather frequently, then I don't think the VDC is really all that necessary.

The general consensus from Z owners on this board as been that Cali owners don't need it, and East Coast/Canadian owners do .

 

I was one of the Z's at Laguna, and had a very good time.

The does push a bit in the corners (most of the time) but I somehow managed to spin out of control anyway. I luckily missed the wall (by a few feet), but I was so used to the Z pushing that the oversteer really took be by surprise. I was able to get a little crossed up occassionally, but this one time was obviously more severe. I found that if I could get the initial turn-in correct, the Z would hold the line quite well. However, if I missed the turn in, and had to correct, I would typically just understeer around the corner. I am a very inexperienced track driver, so that may have something to do with it as well.

I have a Performance model, and tried to go pretty easy on the brakes. I will probably get a front wheel big brake upgrade simply for the added confidence under extreme heat. I really like the Brembo's that come on the track model, but I would rather spend less money on an aftermarket brake kit that performs similarly.

I turn off the VDC when I race or AutoX, but always leave it on when I drive on the street. There really isn't much that can go wrong with it, because the system is basically ABS with added programming. The only mechanical systems that can fail are already present on every other car since they all have the ABS. I think the main consideration would be: is it worth the extra cost. I've had the VDC activate one time on the street, but it didn't really do much. The car would have simply plowed a bit that time. Next time, however, who knows?

I would say that if you plan on tracking and want to do mods, go for the Enthusiast (you can get aftermarket brakes and extra wheels for racing tires, and possibly some suspension goodies for less money than the track model). If you plan on tracking and want to stay stock (like if you don't want to go into a modified AutoX class), then the Track model might be a good bet. You will already have the excellent brakes, and the wider rear wheel will help you get a little extra rubber to the road.

I would only get the Performance if you like the VDC and stock 18" wheels and don't want to spend the extra few grand for the Track (which is pretty much why I got it). The big thing for me, was that I was thinking of eventually getting some extra wheels for race tires. I then figured that I would basically be loosing one of the main features of the Track model which was the lightweight Ray's. I would basically be spending the $4K - $5K extra on a brake upgrade. That just didn't seem worth it to me.

-D'oh!

 

Wow it's getting tense now!!!!

Last night I spent 5 hours at the dealership!
Haggle, haggle, haggle!

It came down to the wire and in the end, they wouldn't give me what I wanted for my trade-in by $2,000 so I walked.
I even managed to get them to let me take the car off the lot for what was on the window sticker. (Meaning, they'd eat the tax, title and license) And if they had only made me happy with my trade, I'd have driven home happy in my new '03 350Z Performance in Le Mans Sunset!
Sweet car... the shift light must die, but sweet car.

Thanks for the responses so far... I really look forward to getting myself into one of these machines.

 

You can always have to the shift light set at 7500 so that you never see it

 

i spent 4 hrs haggling w/ 4 or 5 different salesmen....i won at the end

about vdc, well i use it when i go canyon driving cuz i cant drift like initial d and some of those curves are hairpins. havent tracked my track yet, but want to, and would probably leave vdc off.

i cant really compare the different brake setups cuz i've only driven my track, but the brembos are awesome the car definitely handles beyond my capabilities

 

Yeah you could say we track it.............

 

Well Wholy Hell!

I am now the proud owner of a gorgeous 350Z Chrome silver Performance model!

I just drove her home from the dealer. What a car!
I'll post pictures soon. Although, I'm sure it's not a terribly big deal... everone here has basically the same car. I still want to show off my baby!
*** soon as I sell my 911, I'll be the sole owner. No banks, no liens, no nuttin'.
Glad to be a member of the club!
Oh, and if anyone is looking for a super special 911SC, send them my way.


Cheers,

 

We race a Formula Vee now and other cars for 30+ years. In the past I have instructed at Driver's Schools in our Miata (7,000 track miles).

The 350 has taken over as my instructor ride. Its a Touring so it has all kinds of stuff on it I didn't want (VDC, leather, etc.). But it was available to drive home that night and the deal was right.

Its had 4 days and 250 track miles so far. 3 at Sears Point and one at Thunderhill. Sunday will be day 5.

Impressions? The leather seats suck on the track. You slide around a LOT. The VDC sucks, I'm sorry I had to pay for it. Turn it off. The standard RE 040 tires suck. I use about 45 PSI hot (Suggestions from anyone?). I don't think it pushes and is well balanced, the tires just don't stick at all.

Changes---

1. I made up a belt contraption out of my old racing harness to hold me in the seat and it seems to work well. I will keep playing with that.

2. The sooner I burn up the tires the better. Any one got suggestions for good track/street rubber?

The brakes seem Ok if you forget about the run down the escape road at T14 at TH. If I had it to do over again I would have ordered a Track model and waited for it. I won't change out the brakes for better ones. I can race the Vee for a season or two for that much $.

On the other hand, the 350 goes like hell, is very responsive, and is a blast to drive fast. Its a dream come true.

 

At Laguna I went with an instructor and after our first session the pressure was 47 Front 45 Rear. He lowered the pressures to about 38 leftside and 37 rightside and I kept them there the rest of the day.

I will probably be going to Toyo T1-S's when these tires are gone, and will also probably get a front brake kit as well.

We'll see how the money works out.

One disappointing lesson I learned was how expensive racing is.

-D'oh!

 

Thanks for the input. 38 hot sounds low. On unfamiliar cars I usually start at 5 over the cold recommend pressure and see what happens. I'll try it Sunday at SPIR and see how it goes.

Racing does not need to be expensive. Years ago I saw this sign on a speed shop wall:

SPEED COSTS, HOW FAST CAN YOU AFFORD TO GO

That's why we race 1962 VW technology. Formula Vee technology has not changed much since their first race in the mid-1960s.

I love to tease other racers. What do you think our gas bill is for a weekend of racing? $10.00 We burn about 1 gallon every 25 minutes. It doesn't take a lot of fuel to make 61HP. It does takes A LOT of fuel to make 300 HP. Racing a fast car is expensive. It cost $10 in fuel just to start a Corvette.

 

Do'h is right 37-40lbs hot is the right temp in the Z. I found this out too late at Laguna Seca or else I believe I could have gotten down to 1:52's or so. My hot pressures were 47lbs and the tires were just getting too damn hot a greasy. Next time. My suggestion is start at about 31-32lbs cold and after your first session bleed them down to 40 lbs hot. Keep doing this throughout the day to maintain a 40lb hot pressure adding or removing air as necessary.

 

I just got back from Sears. For the first session I started at 37 "hot off the freeway" PSI. The air temp was about 37 degrees. Each one went up 9 PSI.

The second session I bled some air out and at the end it was about 44 all around. Next time I will start at about 30 "hot off the freeway" and I think it will be better.

 

what is so great about Toyo T1-S's

 

I thought the tires gripped better when they were around 41/42psi F and 43/44psi R. If you bump up the rear pressure a tad, you can get the car to rotate a little better, thus minimizing your understeer.

 

I used 36 front and 34 rear to start cold and then got up to 40 and 38. The car did understeer but was very controlable. Finished second best time of day. Only a very well turned miata beat me by a few tenths

 

Ironic that your latest post bumped the thread so I saw your earlier question about the tires.

Honestly, I don't know if anyhting is "so great" about the Toyo's. I just know that many people seem to like them, and they supposedly weigh less than the S-03's, which also seem to be a favorite, and have better traction and treadwear than the stocks. I figured I'd just try them out to see what all the hype was about. I'm probably not enough of a driver to really know the difference (I've never noticed anything really bad about the stock tires, while everyone else seems to strongly dislike them), but what they hey.

You can check out the tire's section where many people have posted about them.

Oh yeah, the tread pattern looks pretty cool, too!

-D'oh!