So I decided to share my experience in racing. I have a friend with a 2007 Ford Mustang v6. His car has lots of work done to it: I.e. flowmaster catback exhaust, aem intake, tune, and some gt upgrades, etc. while my car has just an intake and Borla catback exhaust a.k.a. Minimal gains (I figure it adds approx. 10 hp) his car weighs 3300lbs, my car weighs 2700lbs. so numbers wise his car should have (off the top of my head) approx. 255hp 300tq. My car should have approx. 191hp 200tq.

I drag raced and he came out on top.

Anyways, I made this thread so that other people can share their experiences too.

Edit: Let it be known that I do not encourage, condone, or support street racing. Racing should ONLY be done in track settings as street racing is illegal in the U.S.

Edit #2: Share your experiences in whatever kind of racing you wish. As mentioned in comments, include AutoX, Circuit, Drag, etc. Your comments are appreciated, thank you!

 

Street racing = fail

Moderators and others will probably come in here and tell you they don't condone this and say take it to a proper track. I agree. Once you're at the track though, you'll see him in the rear view after turn 2.

 

Have u ever been on the track, ra2? Sounds like loads of fun.

 

Yes I have and I absolutely love it! As my friends tell me, "its the most fun you can have with your pants on". LoL. It's truly addictive fun and we always try to hit the track once a month.

 

**** it dude do what you want. This thread will get locked soon.

 

On the track they are equally matched and sometimes the MINI can really embarrass a higher power car like a Mustang. That is one of the best feelings I get on track as my "inferior 4-banger" gets many point-bys from high power bullies. As far as "bench racing" goes, I think that's one of the biggest time wasters as a driver. People can talk smack all day about their numbers but on the track is where they get egg on their face.

Out of the many track days i've been to i've run into some bolt-on upgraded v6 Mustangs. They are not as impressive as the v8 variants. They have OK straight line power, but their suspension and brakes is their achilles heel. I got to chase one of the new Boss 302 Laguna Seca editions around Gingerman Raceway last year and the MINI gobbled it up. I really think the guy behind the Boss' wheel was inexperienced because that's supposed to be a fantastic track car.

 

Uh-oh

 

Yeah. Just so that State Farm is aware, I'm not a part of this.

 

If you want another path to legal fun don't discount autocross. While competing in parking lots against the clock may not initially seem that interesting you will no doubt be surprised at the amount of adrenaline it can produce. I've been competing for many years and it still satisfies my need to compete. And it's far and away the least expensive way to radically increase your skills as a driver.

 

Least risky too!



Cheers,

Charlie

 

Absolutely! And don't forget the old adage "Drag Racing is for fast cars, Autocross is for fast drivers!" Back to the original post, the MINI is a less than perfect platform for drag racing but can be a giant killer on an autocross course.

 

I like that you autox that MG too! I plan on autox'ing both my '09 Justa, and my '65 AH MKIII Sprite, if/when we ever get it together... (total basket case).

 

I just complete my first autox this weekend. It was awesome.

 

Cheers,

Charlie

 

Auto X is a good time, unless you're this guy:

 

I see your vette vid and raise you this

 

Hey! What's the curb doing in the middle of an Auto-X track?


Ummm... Can't even guess what happen here? Cute bikini clad girl walked by while he was swapping to his track tires before he tightened the lugs??? Brain fart???

 

I spun out on my 4th run with the instructor, I was just like whatever. The guy in the Vette, yeah that was just inexperience. the guy in the RX7, I can't tell you how many times they told us to make sure you check you lugs because of stuff like this. There is a a lot of stress put on the wheels especially on a fast track like we were running.

 

**Supposed** to be a fantastic track car haha. Don't discount yourself as a driver though. I'm sure you're better than the average track goer . I personally think the MINI is underrated (especially tuned/modded MINIs). I've seen youtube vids of stock MINI GPs harassing Porsches and I'm sure with uprated power and suspension some of the MINIs on here may very well be quicker than a GP version. Who knows though. You might just be the Sebastian Vettel of MINI owners haha

 

Lulz! I can't believe he didn't finish his run: you only get three. Suck it up and keep driving!

 

My understanding is that they were not the correct lug nuts for the car.
I still have trouble understanding how that could be; that the nuts were close enough that they put them all on, torqued them, but still were able to come off so quickly. Weird, but that's what was reported when this occurred a few years ago.

 

The MINI is great track. You have to rule the corners but that is what the MINI loves. You are not going to pass many cars with just your HP. Momentum is your friend in a MINI. Driver and experience are ussually the differential more so than car. Passed many 911's on the track. Also had my doors sucked off by a few. My JCW with just tires and brakes will run with a 911 or Vette for that matter on most tight to medium tracks. Mostly all these higher powered cars are not going to let you by in the MINI. Thats when the MINI harrasment starts. All you are going to see in the corners in my MINI stiffing your tail pipe trying to give you a hint. Corner workers seem to love the MINI's too. Ussually within one lap they will be flagging the car that was holding me up. If they would just lift for a second coming out of the corners I will be gone at the next set of twisties. Why I love the MINI at the track. I can run about 95% to 98% every lap. Higher HP cars that is very hard to do consistantly. After 10 to 15 laps I am going to wear you down or you will make a mistake.

Last track day I was at there was another MINI that was totally set up for the track. I could barley stay with him with his race suspension. he was flat and tight. I was using the whole tracking and driftign the hell out of the MINI to just hang with him. A 430 Ferrari from Canada happened to be in our same session. He was a good driver and the poer of the 430 on the track is hard to beat on the straights. We were about 1/4 of a track behind him and chasing when the session started. If he got into traffic we would close and start the chase. He would use his HP to pull away on the straights but we just kept coming. If pushed hard for a lap of more his tires would get hot and so would his brakes and we kept coming. The last 4 laps we had clear track and we were reeling him in. He was getting tired and his tires were hot and greasy. We were closing hard when the session ended. When we got to the pits I over heard him talking with his crew. "I am glad that session is over. Those dam MINI's were running me down. They are fast every lap. One little mistake and they are in your mirrors and all over you like flies on S". Love that part. I have Maserati GT with a 6 speed. People ask why I don't regually track the Maserati. My standard answer. I don't want to see her getting passed by a MINI. Like a Super Model losing a best buns contest to a Hooters Girl. She might never recover from that blow.