Yes, those hot pressures are ridiculous, if they are indeed correct. That's like 20-22# cold! I have to run the RE71Rs at 34F and 32-34R COLD so they don't roll over onto the sidewalls. On a hot day I have seen 46 hot in front but usually around 42, rears are usually around 38 hot. Most of what I've read says shoot for 40 hot all round but that doesn't work for me. The rear of the car feels really good right now as is, and the front, well, I drive around it Camber is stock--I know I should get the IE fixed plates but I've driven Minis for so long w/o it (since 2005; 500+/- days?) that I don't want to change. So I just move the tires all over the car and/or flip them on the rim when needed.

I don't threshold-brake either, especially in the wet (unless there's someone in front of me that I think I can catch under late braking ).....as Tommy Byrne (ex-F1 driver now coaching at Mid-O) likes to say: "Early brake, early turn, early gas". I don't ski but you would love Mid-O. it's 2.4mi long with the chicane and has just about everything--Turn 1 is the fastest turn on the track that if I and the car feel good I can take w/o braking. Chicane is a smaller version of the Bus Stop and leads to the Keyhole which is totally off-camber and a real.....challenge in rain (as is the rest of the track). Long back straight with a kink in the middle, then the entire back half of the track you are almost always turning. T8 "Madness" and T11 "Thunder Valley" are blind crests where the car really gets light. And so on....really made for cars like ours, though the Indycars like it too!

Anyway, when the time comes (soon) I may get the DZIIIs as I've used them before; if they are as slow as they were before I'll change up. Hopefully by then the A052s will be back but TR is saying 60-90 days.

 

I wonder if their really low tire pressure is a reflection of it being RWD vs FWD? And being a proper race car with -3 deg of camber all of the way around? I know discussions on NAM of tire pressures for autocross talk about being in the 40 to 50 psi range... Big difference to the 28 they used. I also know at track events people with tires like Hoosiers run low 30s. Those are also proper race cars, but I have not heard about anything lower. My cousin, with a M2, runs something like 34 psi. Maybe, my little bit of extra camber helps. On my 205-50x15 RE71Rs, anything over 39 psi and they get greasy.

I have watched a lot of IMSA races and the Mid-O track looks like a definite “try it” track. But at 8+ hrs away, it is on my same list as VIR, which is 10+ hrs way. Maybe I can get to WGI this year and we can get out on the track together...

 

It would be great if you could make it to WGI along with GKP and myself at the end of August. Something tells me gbuff will be there as well...

 

We will see how things go...

 

 

Yeah, that's a haul.....Mid-O is an easy 4 hrs for me (excepting all the construction) and it's all freeway....speed limit in Ohio is now 70 so you can go, um, 80-ish

Love to try VIR but it's over 10 hrs for me too so not happening. PittRace is calling, though, someday.....

 

VV: If you're definitely planning on WGI in August, I will do the same.

I wish I could make an intelligent contribution to the tire discussion but I would need to drive on different tires close in time to each other on the same track to really compare. That's hard to do when driving only one event a month. However, after going back and forth between Yokos and Falkens, I went with the Falkens as my next set once the Hankooks wear out, IF they ever wear out. (Yes, what the reviews say about durability is true). If I slip and slide a bit more in the rain, it will be with an extra $300 in my pocket.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by gkp

VV: If you're definitely planning on WGI in August, I will do the same.

95% go for WGI August 30/31. Probably will be joined by Maria; hopefully she'll have some other women to talk to during the day.

Same here on the tires; the big decision for me comes down to starting pressures on the Rcomps. Hoping for dry track conditions for them. If not, I won't have nearly as much fun...

 

Rain is aways fun!

It just takes a little different attitude. It is all about learning the limits of the the car and what the car feels like at the limits. There are a bunch of place at WGI where this can be practiced without fear. T1, Bus Stop T8 and T10 come to mind. Then again, I run with traction control full on, so it is hard to get into trouble.

 

I've had some good times at LRP in the wet, and the same at WGI. I just enjoy the car so much more with the R-comps on. I feel much more confident of their limits compared to worrying about hitting some standing water on my street tires. And yes, I too always have the DSC on at the track!

 

I was going through my video from LRP last week and came across an on-track moment to remind us once again to be careful out there, not everyone knows where they're going or why!

 

I bet he got meatballed for a quick 'discussion' on which side to point by on the front straight. Not as scary as your levitating tow hook moment!

 

Ugh!

On a better note... MINI USA is running a GP3 in the race at COTA this weekend. That will be interesting for sure...
https://www.tcamerica.us/watch-live

 

Well, the first day didn't exactly get off to a great start...Track was nice a dry, and temps were in the upper 50s, so on went the R-comps. Car felt great....for 3 laps. As I was heading uphill in the essess in 4th, engine light lit up and the car powered down into limp mode. Back in the paddock, the engine bay looked normal; nothing disconnected, all spark plugs where they should be, no fluid leaks. Code reader displayed a misfire, but nothing more specific as far as cylinder #s. Cleared the code and test drove it a bit in an empty parking lot. Car felt normal, so out we went for the second session. All good, but I dialed things down a tad just in case. The drizzle that started just before my second session because more steady and a little heavier, so the street tires went on and talk of the 'wet line' was heard in the garages. I was first in line going out, with a Corvette behind me, so I was expecting to point him by soon after I entered the track, but I never saw him in my rear view. Elivan must've held him up to give me some room, and the Direzzas performed very nicely in the wet, except for when I hit any painted pavement. This happened at the bus stop and T12, where the white line at the apex indicating pit in is. DSC quickly corrected the 'mini' slide, and I adjusted my line to avoid those spots for the rest of the session. Not as much fun as R-comps, but I was smiling when the session was over. Rain stopped about 30 minutes before my last session, and the line was drying out, but anything offline was still throwing up a little mist. Direzzas stayed on the car, but this time the session was black-flagged after an accident at T8. I didn't see what happened, but track conditions were challenging because it was like driving on two separate tracks; one dry and one moist. Hoping to get more laps in tomorrow...forecast overnight is for some more showers, but hopefully the track will have time to dry out before my first session. Thunderstorms predicted for afternoon, hopefully after we're done. I'll be happy if the car doesn't throw any more codes and I can keep my R-comps on for 4 full sessions.

 

Hope today (Tuesday) is better for you; an R-Comp day.

It sounds like the car and the Direzzas performed well for you once you got things sorted.

Not sure if you will get this before you day starts... But, if the computer is seeing a misfire under heavy load, my guess would be that you need new spark plugs, your current ones maybe worn and the gap has gotten to be too large. Wires and coil would be my next guess. If it throws a code again, you could see if someone can pull a plug and check the gap. That may be a quick fix.

 

Limp mode? Sounds familiar! Hopefully today will be better.

 

Thanks, guys. Today was drama-free. No codes, and 3 out of 4 sessions were on dry track.

Eddie, thanks for the spark plug ideas. I'll check to see the last time the plugs were changed, but I don't think it was that long ago...never hurts to pull one and check the gap and overall condition, for sure. The short course is kind of like Lime Rock on steroids. It still favors the higher hp cars, but it does have a certain rhythm to it. I experimented with the carousel apex and found that later is better, at least for this MINI. I also found that downshifting into 4th and braking before the entrance to T10 (no trail braking) allowed the fastest entrance speed. I'm glad I made the trip; there were a bunch of MINIs here for company, too.

 

Glad all went well. Yes, the short loop is like LRP on steroids.... Apt description... But, WGI will always be WGI - A HP track, especially with the uphill esses and the long straights.

And I had not thought about what gear I would have been in on the NASCAR straight. So, yes, if in 5th, which is likely, downshift to 4th for T10 would be the right thing.

My gray S eats spark plugs. I should probably replace them too. It won’t be the time or miles that eats them, it will be the number of track days. But the coil on the Gen 1s has been known to go, too. Wires are cheap, just do them when either of the others are done.

I am still planning on Friday of Memorial Day weekend...

 

Checking in after a really good two days, rain notwithstanding.....actually had a good time out there in it as there were very few cars in my group (maybe a dozen) that went out. Most that were out were smaller cars but the husband and wife (?) with the dual mondo Camaros were out there on their slicks and we all left them for dead The Rainmeisters IMO turned out to be a totally-built Sube with boost on top of boost and four-wheel grip to die for, as well as an equally-built supercharged older GTI with 285hp and full-race underpinnings.....

VV, really enjoyed the time--lotta laughs and lotsa talk about driving and cars; really kept me dialed in mentally so I couldn't wait to get out there for each run (who's that goof lining up 10 minutes early? One guess ) There was a nice mix of cars in our group with quite a few smaller-bore cars along with the rocketships like the red (what else?) Ferrari and various Vipers, Vettes, etc. And I really got off on the short course as I knew I would, having driven it before; it was obvious who had NOT done so, like the E46M3 I pointed before the chicane. I followed him through into the Carousel and he got out beyond mid-track and had to hit the brakes so I almost bump-drafted him! Saw plenty of examples of this with other cars too....when the track dried I just took my "normal" line along the curb and held it there under full throttle, feeling the front want to go and dialing in more steering to get the rear out just a bit. At that point the line of cones blocking off the Boot is directly in your line of vision--don't look at 'em! Look down the track...and by then I'm unwinding and the car's drifting out to the left-hand curbs and just flying. And for the first time in memory they threw the checker on the front straight up on the tower where many people weren't expecting it, like the GT3RS that was bearing down on me up the Esses after it was thrown. I saw him coming and made a waving-flag motion in my rearview and he got the hint, or he might have ended up in the hatch As VV said afterward, "Eyes UP!" Also really enjoyed blasting into T10 even though in the process of downshifting I was braking too much and slowing the car. Next time I'll try braking less and keeping it in 4th gear, as I had tons of grip going through there as it was. I emailed Elivan to thank him and he said he was out in a Miata and really had fun on the short course too.

So today after mowing the lawn I'm online hunting for tires--after this event I realize just how much I'm going to miss those 'Stones after the four I have left are gone But.....TR has the A052s coming in on 6/12. Sure hope so....I just returned from having a couple tires done and the guy who did them at the dealer is an avid autoxer and tracker--at his meet this past weekend a couple guys had the 052s and he dug his fingernail into the tread and said it was "squishy". So I guess that's why they are purportedly so good in the wet....if that's the case I may have to finally break down and put some front camber in or I'll kill the left front before lunch!

Looking forward to being back with this group come August , and I'm trying to find someone to bronze my old Stan Smiths, VV

 

Great to hear your summary, gbuff! You forgot to mention how you kept up with the race-prepped MCS on Ohlins and slicks with your stock suspension and street tires. Your driving skills never cease to amaze. Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever seen you pop the bonnet. Do you really have a stock engine in there, or one of those modified jet engines? Really fun hangin' with you between sessions; the time flew by. Thanks again for subletting your garage for my tire changeovers between the raindrops. Regarding your Stan Smiths, I think they're more valuable without the bronzer. Put 'em up on eBay and see what they fetch!

 

Gbuff - That is great to hear...

Sorry I missed it. I am getting a bit of a slow start to the season... I have just now signed up for 2 days at NYST with GVC, the weekend a week from now, and I am hoping to do WGI at the end of June, again with GVC.

 

Glad you're getting out there, Eddie--doesn't matter when or how, just that you do so if you can

I'm back out at the Glen in Chin's advanced group Monday and Tuesday--I'll start my left-arm exercises tomorrow

 

Oh, the motor is totally stock under the hood, VV, PSA's finest......

But don't look in the hatch

And thanks for the kind words.....as I said at the track, science has proven that if a monkey repeats a task often enough, he MAY learn it. Now, where is that banana I had???

Re the shoes, I think I'll forgo the bronze and pack 'em up and send 'em to Stan Smith I think he'd get a kick out of 'em. Maybe he'd send me a new pair!

 

I don't think I will be able to unsee that photo, gbuff1.