louisifis

Hi guys,
did my first track day at Sandown for 15 years (Melbourne, Australia) and have some interesting feedback.
-Bridgestone Potenza RE050a's were very good, but still displayed a little understeer.
-Predominately a left hand turn track-R/H front tyre was overheating and loosing grip. ran better lap times with 1-2 psi lower than l/h fnt. I guess the oil cooler in that guard adding heat didnt help either
-G pipe added a little top end
- Took the airbox off and seemed to breath a little better
-PBR metalmaster front pads worked well
-Trailbraking in the C4 worked very well-helped turn in and minimised the understeer
-i feel the car may need a little more neg camber-thinking of going from -01.40"to -2.0" ????
Car overall felt very good for a 20 year old bucket of bolts. Very controllable in a slide for a 911,.
-Still a great band of pwr/torque-heaps of grunt out of low speed corners yet lots of legs in the straight.
-Great feel and sound and very satisfying when 'you get it right'.
-4wd worked very well when you get your head around how to make the most of the system.
-I had deecnt lap times which were improving as I learnt the track.Ended up with a 1.31.2, but i think I could have gone quicker with more laps.
Thinking of fitting a more track orientated street tyre-Any recommendations??

Anyway guys, thought I would share the experience with you.If any of you are thinking of tracking your car, bite the bullet and go for it-its awesome!!!
Take care,
Lou.

joey bagadonuts

Nice write up, Lou. Yes, a well-maintained 964 willl require very few mods to run well at the track.

I think R compound tires (with stiffer sidewalls, minimal tread) would be your next step. The RE050's will deliver performance about as good as any street tire. Yokohama A048's, Toyo RA-1's or Michelin Pilot Sport Cups are somewhat street-friendly but will demonstrate a marked improvement at the track vs street tires.

Jimjacqmx5

Hey ya melbournian.

I recently did a Vic series in my 964 at sandown and yes, it is a brilliant fun track.
Here's the good news. A relatively stock 964 with basic exhaust and suspension mods will do as well as a mid 1:24 but set up is crucial.

I run quite a bit more camber than you do and also, I would highly recommend a set of adjustable sway bars. As for tyres, I highly recommend going to the Dunlop DZ03 G tyres. the Bridgestones RE55's are good but with the Dunlops, they come in a much greater range of compounds in Oz than the Bridgestone and the quick 964's run a medium compound front with regular compound rear which results on much better front end grip. If you aren't going a full track tyre, I would highly suggest the Dunlop Z1 Direza sport. These have a race tyre carcass and nice compound but a deep treaded directional tyre pattern for good wet and dry performance. In independant tests, they are the best of the street/track tyres and beat the Re01 Bridgestone, Falken RT 615 Azenis and Yokohama Neova tyres.

As for Sandown. Most of the time comes from nailing the run down the hill to sandown corner and keeping the foot buried in the accelerator as long as possible up the back straight. Brave pills required! Dandenong corner, Don't be afraid to run right out onto the concrete apron on exit, you can apex much earlier and gain 10-15km speed through the corner.. And turns 2-3 should be made as straight as possible. Runs onto front straight is also crucial to lap times so sacrifice a little on second last corner and get a really nice line onto the straight.

If you need anymore local advice, tips or set up, feel free to send me a PM and I'll drop you my number so you can chat away

Cam Arnott

I've seen a bit of stuff on youtube on Sandown - hope to have a run there one day buts its a long way away!! Phillip Island is also on the hit list.

I can vouch for the fact that Mallalla and Hidden Vally are pretty good fun too

Jimjacqmx5

Phillip Island is just sensational. Fast, flowing and daunting due to such high speeds involved through the long sweeping turns. Not a place to have an 'off' that's for sure. It takes your breath away when you are brave enough and trusting in your car enough to get a lap in on the limit. I used to oove it in my MX5 as I knew the car so well i could totally attack the track. I've still got about 2 seconds improvement in the 911 to get the absolute best out of it at the island. As Mr T says, "get some nuts!"

I'm hoping to get over to Mallala sometime. Got it on my to do list for 2011. I bet Hidden valley is fun through the 'esses' bit that seems to be quite undulating.

louisifis

Great replies guys-particularly jimjacqmx5. Great tips on Sandown and looking back, your spot on!! Looks like I will be increasing the neg camber up the front and fit semi slick road / race tyres.
I have been on Phillip Island before years ago and cant wait to get back there again...has to be one of the best tracks in the world!!
PS - I have heard the Kumho KU36(god forbid a Korean tyre) and the Bridgestone RE070 are also great.

Cam Arnott

Yes Jim some fun bits to be had at HV and the elevation changes are deceptive. The long straight means my early car gets a little 'floaty' with its lack of aerodynamics!

Luis thos Koreans make good tyres! - I have the V700 Ecstas and they are very good tarmac rally and circuit tyres that have good wet grip as well.

Oh and guys I have a hankering for a manual C2 so let me know if you hear of anything for sale

Cheers

Jimjacqmx5

You have a PM Lousifis......

Steve40

I would concur on the Dunlop Direzza Z1, great tyre for the track and the street. I use them on my cayman S daily driver.

frank964

Toyo R888's do it for me, pressures are critical.. Price is right.
John Bowe drive days at Sandown are a real hoot.
The 964 is a great piece of machinery, drive it to the track, thrash the nuts off it, drive it home, drive it to work the next day. Good fun all round!!!

Jimjacqmx5

Hey Frank, good to see the girl's getting a few good runs at the track.
Toyo's are good value but they are around 1.5 seconds per lap slower than the Dunlop DZ03-G in independant tests.
If you aren't worried about getting the last 2/10ths of a second per lap, go the Dunlops but get a regular front and H rear compound. They will still be quicker than the Toyo's but wear quite well. (Ultimate set up for most melbourne temps is M compound front, R rear)

Tyres for all track specific activities are very pressure critical as is camber which is why if you are spending a few grand a set on a set of tyres it is a must to get a temp gun to measure tyre temps immediately on returning to the pits. It's very easy to destroy a good set of tyres if you are driving them at the limit and your pressures or camber settings are out.