First DE Track Day in the books - Need some tips/suggestions

[Bill Verburg]

I didn't notice that you have a wide body, that opens up a lot of possibilities just no so much w/ 16" Fuchs

I agree w/ Gary that the rears in particular seem to have a lot of o/s

What is the wheel width and o/s(aka ET)?

[FstTarga]

Originally Posted by rdimarco

^This^. You may not need aftermarket pedals. The brake pedal can be adjusted down to match the gas pedal.

not a great idea to adjust the brake pedal down too far however. you don't want to be going into turn 1 at Laguna Seca and need just another inch of pedal to stop in time because someone had a spin and is blocking most of the track. personally I bought an adjustable accelerator pedal riser from rennline.

[HWG09]

Ok so I took the car to a shop and we put it up on the lift to dig in to the situation.

On the front I'm running 8x16 with 28 offset and a 1.5" spacer 205/55/16
On the back I'm running 10x16 with 23 offset and a 3" spacer 225/50/16

So basically previous owner kept the stock tire size but went from stock 6x16/7x16 to 8x16/10x16 which is a pretty big gap!

What we tried is placing the 1.5" spacer on the rear and increased the tire size to 245/45/16. This will fit but a 2" spacer would be better.

On the front we can place the existing rears 225/50/16 and keep the 1.5" spacer most likely.

So I'm on the hunt for 2" hub centric spacer for rear and then new rear tires. May just get 4 new ones (thinking Toyo Proxes T1R) so that they match.

[Flojo]

dont use a spacer up front.
DE-ing is not looks'n style, handling & performance rulez.

as you found out yourself, do exactly this:
Front: 8x16/225-50
Rear: 10x16/245-45, try handling no spacer first, then try handling with spacer

[Bill Verburg]

Originally Posted by HWG09

Ok so I took the car to a shop and we put it up on the lift to dig in to the situation.

On the front I'm running 8x16 with 28 offset and a 1.5" spacer 205/55/16
On the back I'm running 10x16 with 23 offset and a 3" spacer 225/50/16

So basically previous owner kept the stock tire size but went from stock 6x16/7x16 to 8x16/10x16 which is a pretty big gap!

What we tried is placing the 1.5" spacer on the rear and increased the tire size to 245/45/16. This will fit but a 2" spacer would be better.

On the front we can place the existing rears 225/50/16 and keep the 1.5" spacer most likely.

So I'm on the hunt for 2" hub centric spacer for rear and then new rear tires. May just get 4 new ones (thinking Toyo Proxes T1R) so that they match.

I agree that you are making the best of a bad situation w/ 225/50 & 245/45 x16, w/ around a 2" rear spacer(in lieu of 3").

It's still not ideal, the 245/45 is only spec'ed for a 9" wheel, you can use it on wider but it's not recommended.

Unfortunately the only wider non R 16 is a 255/50 that is over an inch taller than a 245/45 and will kill acceleration

The ultimate solution would be 17s w/ something like 235/40 & 255/40 or even 255/40 & 315/35

You really want to keep the rears under 25.5" od unless there are major motor and/or trans gearing changes, under 25 is even better

[T77911S]

take some measurements of the rim to the fender lip.
then put the 1.5 on the rear and take measurements.
you want the RIM just inside the lip. this should give you an idea of the spacer you need.
ideal would be get the tires you want then do the measuring because the tires will or may have some bulge on the sidewalls.

nice size wheels.
you should be able to run a 285 on the rear like mine. with a 235 up front.
you may want the 1 inch spacer on the front.

do the same measurements on the front except you need to also turn the wheel lock to lock.
then take the spacer off.

let me know if you want the 1inch.
you still want to go as wide as you can.

[HWG09]

Originally Posted by T77911S

take some measurements of the rim to the fender lip.
then put the 1.5 on the rear and take measurements.
you want the RIM just inside the lip. this should give you an idea of the spacer you need.
ideal would be get the tires you want then do the measuring because the tires will or may have some bulge on the sidewalls.

nice size wheels.
you should be able to run a 285 on the rear like mine. with a 235 up front.
you may want the 1 inch spacer on the front.

do the same measurements on the front except you need to also turn the wheel lock to lock.
then take the spacer off.

let me know if you want the 1inch.
you still want to go as wide as you can.

The problem with all that is finding a tire that wide in a 16. Like previous poster said anything 255 and up is going to be too tall most likely.

So it looks as if I've got to go 225s in front and 245s in back.

The current setup is good fit wise as far as the fender goes so if I go from a 3 inch spacer to a 2 inch and go from a 225 to a 245 I'm really only giving up about 5mm from it's current spot which should be fine.

This is all being done on a somewhat tight budget since baby #3 on the way (hey at least I get to keep the car) so I will buy the tires and keep an eye out for some 17" wheels in the future which should open up my options.

I think the ultimate solution is put race tires on the 16 BBS for the track and find some 17" for normal driving. Having trouble finding ones I like although I do like Fikse. Any other suggestions?

[Driven97]

Do you plan on heading out to the track every other week or twice a year? That makes a big difference on how serious you should get on your prep.

[HWG09]

Originally Posted by Driven97

Do you plan on heading out to the track every other week or twice a year? That makes a big difference on how serious you should get on your prep.

No doubt, it's probably going to be 2-4 times a year.

I'm in Nebraska so won't be a ton of driving in Nov-Feb

[bpu699]

The widest street/track tire for a 16 inch rim 10 inch wide, is the re11 245... It looks SQUARE rather than stretched when installed.

There is ONE tire available in a 255/50/16... I think its by continental and tirerack JUST got them in stock. But, its not a Ultra high performance tire...

[LIRS6]

Pardon my ignorance - what does DE stand for? - Driver Education track day, as in instruction?

[HWG09]

Originally Posted by LIRS6

Pardon my ignorance - what does DE stand for? - Driver Education track day, as in instruction?

Yes, Drivers Education

Sponsored by our local PCA (shoutout Great Plains Region) where you drive on the track with instructors.

[jpnovak]

Glad you have fun on track.

The pedals are all adjustable. You should setup the pedals to make heel-toe easier. Takes about 20 minutes to complete.

The brake pedal can be lowered by shortening the vertical linkage rod between the pedal cluster and vacuum booster. There is a jamb nut on the bottom and it will allow you to move the rod end. Don't go to far.

Additionally, the gas pedal can be raised by lengthening the connection rod between the pedal and bell crank. Also use this opportunity to check the full linkage to get WOT and the trigger the WOT switch on your 3.2. Make sure to adjust the pedal board throttle stop to prevent bending the pedal cluster mounted bell crank.

[jons911]

Jamie with the answers I wasn't even really looking for. 20 min sounds worth the effort to me. My SC will probably never see the track, but having the pedals better aligned with each other would be quite nice.