tyre pressures for track day ?

[Darren]

this question is primarily intended for those with a bit of track experience.

when hitting the race track (circuit), what sort of tyre pressures seem to work/recommended ? I realise different pressures for different tyres & cars, but do you usually go a little higher than regular street use or about the same ?

I find 36psi works well on my setup on the street, so should I leave it at that or go a little higher/lower ?

[EQUIPE-T]

this question is primarily intended for those with a bit of track experience.

when hitting the race track (circuit), what sort of tyre pressures seem to work/recommended ? I realise different pressures for different tyres & cars, but do you usually go a little higher than regular street use or about the same ?

I find 36psi works well on my setup on the street, so should I leave it at that or go a little higher/lower ?

go lowered than what you would usually use, you'll find after a few corners once the tyres have warmed up they will build themselves up in PSI

[Ben]

go lowered than what you would usually use, you'll find after a few corners once the tyres have warmed up they will build themselves up in PSI


he said for those with exp pete, not driving water beds ;) lol

[EQUIPE-T]

not that its very much the same lol, but when i did speedway ( falcon sedan AU 3, so fairly heavy ) i used to start the night out on 20 - 25psi, at the end of a night however they would be hovering around 40 - 45psi (ever watched the speedway when an accident happens? or a yellow comes out? notice all the cars drive down into the mud on the inside of the track?, thats us trying to cool the tyres down ;) )

[EQUIPE-T]

he said for those with exp pete, not driving water beds ;) lol

yeh i have no road track experience, just speedway :p

[newsyk06vr2.0]

hey darren, if you are using normal street tyres, i would run about 38 to 40 psi.

but if u are running semi comps or a full race slick. i would run between 30 to 35 psi.

[CalaisRider]

:)

Yeh same here. When I ran the semi comps on 18" it was great at 26-28psi, yeh they did warm up and gain different PSI on various tyres so I would let air out as required through the day.

With my 20" street tyres there is not much sidewall so I need to keep them pretty firm. The times I've been out on street tyres I have had 38-40 in em and sometimes go to 44 in the front but my car is almost two tonne so does give the fronts a bit of a hammering. Will be interesting for me as I've got Falkens on front and Federal on rears atm.

Just by way of different motorsport dicipline example - for Motorkhana I always have 55psi in the front tyres and 40 in the rears. Motorkhana is pretty tight and tyre roll on the front is extreme if pushing hard.


Darren my "suggestion" would be to start out with what you normally have in PSI, then try raise or lower depending on how you car is handling. Don't expect super good times on streets though. I will be playing on the side of caution with mine.

You will get a feel if the rears are going off. Just give em a rest for a whilse and they should recover ok. The weather is quite cool now so track temp should be good to reduce wear and tyre probs.

I have a pretty big 12 volt compressor from my 4x4 days. I will try and remember to bring it out, that way you can play and fiddle with no probs.


PS
Darren, do you have a set of brake caliper spreaders? If I can find the $$ I am goint to bring a set of Bendix SRT front pads out. Hopeing to fit em sometime early in the day. I have SRTs on the rears from previous.

Pete

[ghz28]

OK well I have a reasonable amount of track experience, but none at all on street tyres, but have been at the track a few times with Pete on his so his experience is good for this.

The reason track tyres require less pressure is that the sidewalls are VERY stiff so don't need air pressure to hold themselve's up, we adjust the pressure to trim the tread contact patch.

I start with high 20s as my out pressure, check after a few laps and reduce to 34 psi hot or 32 psi after the cool down lap, that is all round temp by the way, load varies on the tyres but you need an even temp/pressure on them all for balance.

Go with fairly high starting pressure, in the vicinity of 40 psi and adjust from there. I will have my compressor and tyre gauge there on the day as will others I am sure. QR do have an air hose, but it doesn't have a gauge on it.

If they do have passenger rides, or even a conga line allowed to show the correct lines I will volunteer myself and maybe a couple of others I know as experienced track people to participate.

You won't miss my red VT car on the day, or Dan's VK so come and ask questions etc as much as you like, here/there to help where we can.

Garry

[Darren]

thanks for all the replies guys, all of your advice is much appreciated.
I've also got a small tyre compressor that I'll bring with me.

Yeah Garry I will be running street tyres, so I'll bring the compressor and tyre gauge and keep an eye on pressures. Will be a good bit of experience. I've been talking to Pete for some time now about doing a few track days. So hopefully I will get some good experience from this one, which will break the ice for some future time attack events etc.

thanks also for the offer for assistance/advice on the day!

[Carbon]

Awesome advice guys. Thankyou.

I will be removing my 20's and putting on my 18's for the day. I usually run at 40psi in my 20's. Should I still stick with this advice from you Gary for the 18's?

[CalaisRider]

thanks for all the replies guys, all of your advice is much appreciated.
I've also got a small tyre compressor that I'll bring with me.

Yeah Garry I will be running street tyres, so I'll bring the compressor and tyre gauge and keep an eye on pressures. Will be a good bit of experience. I've been talking to Pete for some time now about doing a few track days. So hopefully I will get some good experience from this one, which will break the ice for some future time attack events etc.

thanks also for the offer for assistance/advice on the day!

:)

Yeh mate Garry is the Guru amongst us - techno analyst man and wise for an ol mate LOL. Over time I have but played and learn by what he teaches me - not that I'm always a very good student as I generally do it my way, much to my detriment.

I rekken on my 20's I will start with 42psi on front and 40psi rear, then get the pressures somewhat even with the tyre gauge as they warm up. Each of our cars will be a tad different though due to the various models, suspension, power and car computer gear. I never use ESP for motorsport - it's a pain in the ass.

Hi Torque fixed all my suspension and steering issues today. Feels much better and no clanging and banging. Bumper bar is stuffed and will need a panel beater to fix - so the Race Tape will still be plastered on the day to hold it on. Need to raise ride height by 10mm on the front I think.

[Darren]

well Pete, I will certainly be a student on the day :p
Good to know there are a few experienced guys out there on the day - I will be trying to learn as much as I can from you guys & keeping the car on the black stuff :D

I've lined an RDO up for tomorrow so I can go over all the steering, suspension and brakes, make sure it's all tight and in good order. Going to throw those QFM pads in the rear, and flush the brake fluid out and refill with the new supa-dupa fluid from GSL. I'm really happy with the way the car feels on the road, but things could be very different under track conditions!

anyhoo, looking forward to seeing my fellow BCCC members and the XR boys out there on Friday. :cool:

[ghz28]

To those looking for starting pressures for street tyres for Friday, I suggest you start at around 40 psi and see how the car feels.

If you want more help, come see Dan in the grey VK or myself, we will be together, and we will help as much as we can.

Both of us will be running slicks, its just safer in our cars that way, but have experience with all sorts of setups.

gh

[CalaisRider]

Hey Garry can you bring out your coilover adjustment spanners, I don't have any. I may as well adjust the ride height so the bumper doesnt hook the gutters at the same time as putting the SRT pads in the front - the bloody pads haven't arrived as yet, hopefully they will today sometime.

I'm pretty sure the pads on it atm will have enough depth for the day should the SRTs not arrive. It feels nice and strong under brakes as it is.


Pete

[Darren]

can't find my caliper spreaders Pete, I ended up using an old brake pad and a g-clamp today. Place is still in a shambles since the last move. I've got stuff in boxes crammed everywhere.... I NEED a shed!

but brake pads are all in. I flushed all the old brake fluid out, filled it back up with the high temp TRW stuff. Replaced the rear pads with the QFM's. I've tightened all the suspension bolts, steering & brakes. Even gave the k-frame a bit of tighten. Just got to check the tailshaft bolts and give the wheels a bit of a clean on the inside while they are off, and put it back together.

[CalaisRider]

Thanks for checking on the spreaders anyways Darren. Garry is going to bring his with him so all will be good - I just have to remind him online tonight.

The SRTs did arrive and are in my hot little hands.

Frigged if I know, my radiator thermo fans aren't kicking in as they should and the Techno Mode setting tells me I'm running 15 degrees hotter than I normally do around town - only happend this arvy. Might squish all the conections to make sure all clipped right and bit of CRC, then hope like hell it works, not that it will matter much on the circuit due to high volume air flow from speed.

.