When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
With spring time here, this seems to be a popular topic, but I wanted to share my experience with my .2GT3. Quick background, I'm an intermediate driver. I have driven roughly 15 HPDE's, in a variety of cars (BMW M Coupe, Subaru STI, Porsche 930, 981 Cayman S, 991.1 C4S), but never in a car as capable as a GT3. So needless to say I was a bit intimidated going in. The event was through the Alpine Mountain Region PCA, and was at Pikes Peak Raceway. This was my first time attending one of AMR's HPDE, first time in my GT3, and my first time and the track (PPIR).
My brother flew in from Texas and drove my car on Saturday in the green group while I ran in the yellow group on Saturday, and I was moved up to the Orange group on Sunday. Friday night we had several inches of snow along the front range so I was expecting the event on Saturday to be cancelled. But luckily the Porsche God's stopped the snow about 2 miles north of my house and we had a dry stretch from my place all the way to the track. Several people on Saturday morning showed up in daily drivers for the drivers meetings and then picked up their Pcars later in the day as the snow melted. Crazy weather, but it turned out to be perfect track weather both days. Mid 50's to mid 60's and sunny.
So how did the car drive? Well it's no surprise that it's amazing and pretty much in line with most of the reviews. For me, this was a big step up compared to other cars I've driven, so this felt much more like a track weapon. The braking, cornering, and acceleration coming out of a turn are above my ability. These were definitely the areas I kept trying to find the limit, and never really did. It's much more than most street cars and your brain just keeps telling you no more, but the car just laughs and asks "is that all you've got?" Even though I never found the limits of the car, I felt very comfortable almost immediately. The initial intimidation wore off quickly, and I felt right at home. It is more forgiving than I expected, and the manual transmission is such a peach that it is second nature. I only had a couple of oh sh*t moments, and rarely missed a shift. I definitely need racing harnesses. The bucket seats are great, but with only a 3-point belt I was still sliding around. My car came with the Dunlops, and honestly they performed great. Once I got the pressure dialed in they felt great, very even wear, and held up really well. Not sure which tire I'll replace these with, but I can't imagine getting much better than these. The temps for they day were in the mid 50's-60's and the car ran really cool. Never got above 215 oil temp. Brakes never showed any signs of fading, and my pedal still feels very firm after this weekend. Not bad for 12 - 20 minute sessions.
Pikes Peak Raceway is a very nice facility. The best in Colorado. It's not the most exciting track compared to Pueblo and High Plains Raceway, but the overall experience is on par. It's a one mile oval with an in field. So the road course is 1.3 miles long with 9 turns. The oval is a bit intimidating because of the high speed you carry through the banked turn with a wall siting 25 feet from your car. The infield section is great. Two 180 turns followed by a section of s-turns, and then back onto the oval. Just the right mix to keep it challenging.
My times improved quickly and I was running 1:08-1:07s by Sunday. One of the instructors in a .1GT3 said he runs about 1:04 and another instructor in her GT4 with several modifications runs 1:07s. So I felt pretty good for my first day at this track and in the GT3, but three seconds is a lot to gain on a short track,
Not sure what else to say other than it's an amazing car and I can't wait to get it out on the track again!
Awesome! Glad to hear your track experience and glad to see the car being driven/pushed. Too many of these cars are sitting with delivery miles waiting to be sold/re-sold so I am happy to encourage & support RLers who are lucky to have this car and are using it as intended. I also agree with you re: finding the limits of the car. I hit my own personal limit of comfort with pushing the car likely way before the car's actual limit...
Looking good! Hope to meet you out at HPR next month with RMR. I would have made it down there but didn't have enough miles on my Touring, next time!
Thanks! I might not make it to HPR next month because my wife and I are traveling that week. But I'll be out there at least a couple of times this year with RMR.
04-17-2018, 10:38 AM
Another First HPDE in a .2GT3 Thread
