★ ★ Project Glacier | Make the E30 a Daily Again ★ ★

[Bimmerman325i]

for what it's worth....

Ben and I were able to follow each other pretty closely around HPR back in the day (and when my car was much more stock).

He was in your car with Dunlop star specs and HP+ pads, I was in my m3 with dunlops and HT10s, and we were turning 2:15-2:18s pretty reliably at HPR. Both cars had pretty stock engines with coilovers, nothing fancy.

Assuming you haven't changed suspension or diff, that car's got plenty of pep in it. Throw some sticky street tires and some not-crap pads, and go track it (don't get HP+, that car ran out of brake a few times)

[lambo]

Yeah I think that's what I'll do. I'll pick up some 15's with good tires, grab some better pads, spare rotors, do a brake fluid flush and I would be good to go.

In other news, my driveshaft killed another csb so I'm in the process of getting a rebuilt one.

[downforce22]

for what it's worth....

Ben and I were able to follow each other pretty closely around HPR back in the day (and when my car was much more stock).

He was in your car with Dunlop star specs and HP+ pads, I was in my m3 with dunlops and HT10s, and we were turning 2:15-2:18s pretty reliably at HPR. Both cars had pretty stock engines with coilovers, nothing fancy.

Assuming you haven't changed suspension or diff, that car's got plenty of pep in it. Throw some sticky street tires and some not-crap pads, and go track it (don't get HP+, that car ran out of brake a few times)

I doubt Ben was running anywhere close to 2:18s in the stock 4 door m20 e30. That is what i would expect an s52 e36 m3 to run though. Maybe 2:22 on a fast lap with an open track.

[Bimmerman325i]

I doubt Ben was running anywhere close to 2:18s in the stock 4 door m20 e30. That is what i would expect an s52 e36 m3 to run though. Maybe 2:22 on a fast lap with an open track.

I have video somewhere, pretty sure he does too.

I did a 2:12 via data logger on my S50 car before leaving for CA, with just seat time mod. Hell, buddy's nonvanos M50 E36 does 2:08s on NT01s, which is roughly the same power/weight as E30 325i, but he's also a really good driver.

Point is, 2:18s are quite doable, and the little blue e30 sedan here is a great car.

[tschultz]

In my experience, stock e30 325i's and e28 535i's run right around the 2:24/2:25 mark at HPR. 325e's near 2:30.

Change the diff ratio, lose some weight, new extreme summer/rcomp tires and you can be faster obviously.


Having the right tires does make a big difference, but 5 seconds a lap is a big jump in cornering/straightaway speeds!

Either way, these cars are super reliable and can take the abuse of the track with the right pad and fluid selection.

Here's a s52 e36 m3 with a pretty good driver with a best lap of 2:14-2:15 a month ago: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WR2c...QlhdCw&index=1

[325ix]

I wish I could've driven out at HPR. Should be fun in that car.

[lambo]

Come in October to Emich track day with us, $80 for the whole day at hpr.

I'll definitely be coming out to that.

[Eric]

Today I tried to keep up with an NC Miata on rcomps through the canyons. That didn't go so well. I need to get those new wheels and tires asap. Also adding better brakes to the list of shit to do asap.

I'm not sure if I should do a track day on my current setup or not. Like, I feel the experience will be super valuable but at the same time I'm not so sure if there would be much of a point to spending ~$200 to do a proper track day on super shitty tires and brakes. Surely I will still be able to improve my skills on a decent set of tires and brakes. Nothing crazy, mind you... Just some RS3's and better street pads.

You actually learn more, learn better, and become faster if you start out on shit tires. Sticky tires will only mask bad habits...habits that you can kill quickly when your slow. Shitty tires will also teach you how to feel the car, how to make it dance, how to pull maximum momentum from what your given. I saw a quote recently that applies here. "If you feel like your car is on rails, you are too slow."

A mentor of mine got the track bug when I first started driving my first e30 M3. He didn't know what car he wanted to make a track car, but knew he needed the experience, so he showed up at driving schools and auto-x's in a rental car. Eventually he bought an M3 and had it sent off to become a j-stock racecar. For the year or so the cage was being done, more track time in rentals. By then end of 2 years he was terrifyingly fast in any shitbox econo car you could rent. He finally gets his M3, and he is setting lap records at Miller first time out and competing for the top spot in the western region. His car wasn't any more special than the other racers, he just had a much more intimate feel of where the grip is... Something he solely contributed to his season of rental car track time.

Btw, pueblo DE just opened up a few days ago.

http://www.motorsportreg.com/events/rmc-bmw-cca-fall-2016-driving-school-pueblo-motorsports-park-rocky-421508#.V4RuMkVOLCQ

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[lambo]

You actually learn more, learn better, and become faster if you start out on shit tires. Sticky tires will only mask bad habits...habits that you can kill quickly when your slow. Shitty tires will also teach you how to feel the car, how to make it dance, how to pull maximum momentum from what your given. I saw a quote recently that applies here. "If you feel like your car is on rails, you are too slow."

A mentor of mine got the track bug when I first started driving my first e30 M3. He didn't know what car he wanted to make a track car, but knew he needed the experience, so he showed up at driving schools and auto-x's in a rental car. Eventually he bought an M3 and had it sent off to become a j-stock racecar. For the year or so the cage was being done, more track time in rentals. By then end of 2 years he was terrifyingly fast in any shitbox econo car you could rent. He finally gets his M3, and he is setting lap records at Miller first time out and competing for the top spot in the western region. His car wasn't any more special than the other racers, he just had a much more intimate feel of where the grip is... Something he solely contributed to his season of rental car track time.

Btw, pueblo DE just opened up a few days ago.

http://www.motorsportreg.com/events/...8#.V4RuMkVOLCQ

Hmmm.... giving me more to think about.

[Eric]

Improving the driver is the best mod you can do. I've found driving schools grow the driver much much faster than doing a bunch of open lapping day.


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[Bimmerman325i]

Yup. Biggest mistake I ever made was modifying my car.....which I haven't learned from. Oops.

My first few trackdays were not in the m3 though-- HPDEs with RMC bmw club in a bone stock non-turbo Subaru Legacy, with 700tw tires (i.e. shit). Car was slow, but hilariously fun to hustle through the corners...only to get passed by a 2002 on the straights. It was that slow, and it taught me a hell of a lot.

[tschultz]

Btw, pueblo DE just opened up a few days ago.

http://www.motorsportreg.com/events/rmc-bmw-cca-fall-2016-driving-school-pueblo-motorsports-park-rocky-421508#.V4RuMkVOLCQ

Will a cracked windshield fail tech inspection?

[ADOPEWITASCOPE]

Will a cracked windshield fail tech inspection?

I looked at the tech check list and they seemed very lenient about stuff like that. No specific mention of cracked windshields anywhere that I could see. Look on page 4 of this PDF: http://media.wix.com/ugd/129d7c_b1bf...c3be2a9131.pdf

[Eric]

Will a cracked windshield fail tech inspection?

Yeah I believe it's a no go- windshield intact is a line item check box on the inspection form for the track. I imagine a small chip or crack might be okay, but not something significant that can compromise safety upon the vehicle flexing in turns. http://rmcbmwcca.org/wp-content/uplo...ional-2015.pdf

Best bet is to have the vehicle inspected early for free through one of the vendors listed on the club page and see what they report back. Do it early so you have plenty of time to fix anything that might pop up.

[lambo]

Got a rebuilt driveshaft from Blunt. I'm hoping to get it put in this weekend but I'm waiting on a DSSR and transmission mounts from Garagistic, hopefully they show up tomorrow. I was hoping to knock those out and put in a tunnel-mounted shifter while I have the exhaust and driveshaft off. Unfortunately the guy I was going to get a shifter from won't have any until the end of the month. So, now my plan is to just put in the DSSR and transmission mounts and then put in the shifter later.