As per the title - I'm taking my 2020 Model S Performance to a race night there soon, was wondering if anyone here has done that before and has any hints/tips? There appears to be a destination charger on the site. 22kW isn't gonna charge a whole lot unfortunately, but better than nothing for sure. Also was wondering what kind of helmet they require, information seems somewhat scant surprisingly!
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Has anyone taken their Tesla onto the Sydney Motor Sport Park / Eastern Creek for a race day/night?
- Thread starter ZeeDoktor
- Start date
Are you talking about drags or circuit?
I have done plenty of both but never in my tesla. Usually they are not too picky with helmets, it should have the australian standards label on it.
Not too sure what they will check with an EV at scruiteneering, probably just tyre condtion and that you have no loose objects in the car.
I have done plenty of both but never in my tesla. Usually they are not too picky with helmets, it should have the australian standards label on it.
Not too sure what they will check with an EV at scruiteneering, probably just tyre condtion and that you have no loose objects in the car.
There should be some scrutineering requirements documented somewhere you should check before heading to the track. I used to help scrutineer (and flag marshal) for track days about 10 years ago for a sports car club I was a member of (still am a member, still own one of the cars, haven’t been to a track day in the last 10 years, hence my foggy memory).
From fuzzy memory, perhaps some/all of these don’t apply now (or my memory is simply wrong) and the list was a lot more than this:
You need a helmet and flame-proof/retardant clothing (doesn’t have to be a race suit but can’t be something that will melt and stick to you in a fire - jeans and a flannelette shirt might be considered ok but check).
Fire extinguisher (attached really well)
Secondary catch or tie-down on the bonnet - so it can’t possibly fly open at 250km/h and blind you just before you turn in to that first high speed corner (Not sure how to do this for a Tesla frunk)
Nothing at all in the car that can fly around in a crash or spin
As I said, check for the actual correct requirements with the circuit and/or the club or organisation that is running the track day. If you get a chance to do laps with a CAMS instructor (in your car or theirs) definitely do so. Remember your insurance probably doesn’t cover you - depending on the specific policy and the specific nature of the track day, but the default is you are on your own if you bin the car into the Armco or concrete.
Have fun!
My last track day was in 2019, cause.. Covid closed most of them last year..
Anyway, similar to above
Helmet (Aust standards stickers get checked), flame resistant clothing, eg jeans+long sleeve top, no dashcams (most mounts falls off at high speeds), empty cabin.
For non CAMS/club events. no need for fire or tie-down for most events as there are safety marshalls. If needed just take a bunch of long zip-ties just in case, just hook under the bonnet to the hook latch and you'll be fine.
Anyway, similar to above
Helmet (Aust standards stickers get checked), flame resistant clothing, eg jeans+long sleeve top, no dashcams (most mounts falls off at high speeds), empty cabin.
For non CAMS/club events. no need for fire or tie-down for most events as there are safety marshalls. If needed just take a bunch of long zip-ties just in case, just hook under the bonnet to the hook latch and you'll be fine.
Thanks guys! I did read the material they sent (hence my comment about it being a bit "scant"). There is no mention of a fire extinguisher or flame retardant clothing required just long sleeves/trousers and flat shoes. Happy to don my Nomex gear from test pilot days though. Well, all I have left is the gloves.
And yeah, insurance wise, that's not covered of course. I heard rumours they might charge $10k or so for a day of playtime but didn't even go so far as to inquire, assuming the risk on my own. I have no intentions of cornering wild enough to glide off into the walls, and doing 270km/h in a straight is, well, not really an increased risk on my Y rated and new tyres, unless parts start to shed or things are in the way.
Helmet wise, I'm not too keen on renting (bit of a germophobe here), and assuming motorbike helmets are somehow different than car racing helmets, but having zero clue about any of this, a shop (or one of you) might be able to fill that educational gap? Any further info on that part anyone?
Thanks!
And yeah, insurance wise, that's not covered of course. I heard rumours they might charge $10k or so for a day of playtime but didn't even go so far as to inquire, assuming the risk on my own. I have no intentions of cornering wild enough to glide off into the walls, and doing 270km/h in a straight is, well, not really an increased risk on my Y rated and new tyres, unless parts start to shed or things are in the way.
Helmet wise, I'm not too keen on renting (bit of a germophobe here), and assuming motorbike helmets are somehow different than car racing helmets, but having zero clue about any of this, a shop (or one of you) might be able to fill that educational gap? Any further info on that part anyone?
Thanks!
Insurance wise, depends on the track day you will be doing. You often have guys in 10k (but often very fast) beaters they dont care too much about. If they hit you its too bad so sad, fix your own car, not like public road rules. Just something to keep in mind as the P100D is not a cheap car to crash and pay for yourself.
Having said that, I have done about 100 track days in the last 20 years and havent been hit yet, it is fairly safe. Keep an eye on your mirrors, stay on the racing line and let the fast guys past you, the S is going to be a weapon down the straights but horrible in the corners.
Having said that, I have done about 100 track days in the last 20 years and havent been hit yet, it is fairly safe. Keep an eye on your mirrors, stay on the racing line and let the fast guys past you, the S is going to be a weapon down the straights but horrible in the corners.
Motorbike helmet is fine. For the car, all i'll say is the first lap isn't the issue, it's the second or third once you start to get some brake fade. Also it's AWD, so you can go from hero to zero pretty quick once you breach the traction limit.
I'd also tempted to say to switch reduce the regen. I got my first lift-off oversteer on the weekend driving through some very twisty country roads; I was on Autopilot and it didn't slow down as much as I thought it should have for a tight turn so grabbed the steering and then regen kicked in cause I didn't have the accelerator down enough and yep, a nice oversteer kick.
I'd also tempted to say to switch reduce the regen. I got my first lift-off oversteer on the weekend driving through some very twisty country roads; I was on Autopilot and it didn't slow down as much as I thought it should have for a tight turn so grabbed the steering and then regen kicked in cause I didn't have the accelerator down enough and yep, a nice oversteer kick.
I have a helmet you might be able to use, assuming a AS/NSZ1698 compliant visorless head bucket from 2008/9 is allowed.
Pretty much identical to this: RXT - Challenger Open Face Helmet
Bought and used only on that same day, and put back in the box for at least a decade, so if there’s any germs left on it they’ve earned the right to be there.
PM me if interested.
(By the way, that one use was at the Western Sydney Drag Races in a home built EV, so would be poetic to have it make another run in a Model S)
Thanks @Amphead I just heard back from drivingsolutions, they said the type of helmet you linked to is sufficient. I'll pick one of those up then, thanks for the offer though!
@ICUDoc of course I'll have video. I'll post a lap or two in my blackbox format, so you can see all the car parameters as well. Similar what I have posted here:
@ICUDoc of course I'll have video. I'll post a lap or two in my blackbox format, so you can see all the car parameters as well. Similar what I have posted here:
Come to the racetrack, they said. It will cure you of your need for speed, they said.
Now I'm hooked. That was a blast, and definitely to be repeated! Just processing the blackbox videos, will upload tonight. And when I do, please be kind. This was my first time ever on a racetrack at the tender age of almost 50... and while I'm definitely not driving like a granny, my lines are often less than ideal. I'm learning.
Some initial lessons for others who plan on doing this:
- Don't use Ludicrous+. That's for drag racing only (I could've figured that out beforehand but I didn't). The battery overheats in no time when driving a track. You want to start with a medium temp battery only (~30C) to get as much fun-time out of it as possible. Too cold it won't perform, too hot it'll power limit. I hit the long finish straight expecting to top out at 250km/h+, but only made it to 216km/h on my fastest attempt as the amber dashed arc appeared on top of the power graph.
- There are two 17kW destination chargers at the racetrack. I managed to put about 8% back into the battery between sessions, using about 20% battery per session. With 5 sessions yesterday that worked quite well arriving/starting with 100% battery and leaving with about 30%.
- Do set the the regen to low. Higher regen is of no practical use to save energy, and heats the battery more. Remember under the massive power demand, the battery heats up quickly. Very quickly!
- I had tyre squeal in all of the sharper turns once they were hot. I'm not sure why that is, talked to one of the Lotus pit team guys about it who wasn't sure what was going on either (he actually pointed it out to me). I have brand new PS4S tyres on it, alignment done at Tesla yesterday, pressures at 45-50psi (rising with temperature of course) so definitely not underinflated, but perhaps over? I noticed the centre tyre temperature was about 10C higher than the inside/outside which were about equal. That would hint at overinflated tyres. But I'm reluctant to go lower. Any of you race experts have a word of advice?
Now I'm hooked. That was a blast, and definitely to be repeated! Just processing the blackbox videos, will upload tonight. And when I do, please be kind. This was my first time ever on a racetrack at the tender age of almost 50... and while I'm definitely not driving like a granny, my lines are often less than ideal. I'm learning.
Some initial lessons for others who plan on doing this:
- Don't use Ludicrous+. That's for drag racing only (I could've figured that out beforehand but I didn't). The battery overheats in no time when driving a track. You want to start with a medium temp battery only (~30C) to get as much fun-time out of it as possible. Too cold it won't perform, too hot it'll power limit. I hit the long finish straight expecting to top out at 250km/h+, but only made it to 216km/h on my fastest attempt as the amber dashed arc appeared on top of the power graph.
- There are two 17kW destination chargers at the racetrack. I managed to put about 8% back into the battery between sessions, using about 20% battery per session. With 5 sessions yesterday that worked quite well arriving/starting with 100% battery and leaving with about 30%.
- Do set the the regen to low. Higher regen is of no practical use to save energy, and heats the battery more. Remember under the massive power demand, the battery heats up quickly. Very quickly!
- I had tyre squeal in all of the sharper turns once they were hot. I'm not sure why that is, talked to one of the Lotus pit team guys about it who wasn't sure what was going on either (he actually pointed it out to me). I have brand new PS4S tyres on it, alignment done at Tesla yesterday, pressures at 45-50psi (rising with temperature of course) so definitely not underinflated, but perhaps over? I noticed the centre tyre temperature was about 10C higher than the inside/outside which were about equal. That would hint at overinflated tyres. But I'm reluctant to go lower. Any of you race experts have a word of advice?
Didn't see any blistering, and the wear marks were even on all tyres, front to about 1/3rd into the wear mark, rear just touching the top of the wear mark. It sure looks like the front is doing most of the work!
BUT, and without much further ado, here's the video of the third session of the night. Watch the car in front of me wipe out at 5:16 (link to timestamp in the description). Keep an eye on the power limit above the power strip - massive decline of power with battery hitting 54C! Next time I'll start with a cool battery for sure.
HD version is ready as of 11:30pm - 2k and 4k versions still being processed by youtube, so come back if you want to view in full res.
BUT, and without much further ado, here's the video of the third session of the night. Watch the car in front of me wipe out at 5:16 (link to timestamp in the description). Keep an eye on the power limit above the power strip - massive decline of power with battery hitting 54C! Next time I'll start with a cool battery for sure.
HD version is ready as of 11:30pm - 2k and 4k versions still being processed by youtube, so come back if you want to view in full res.
race4life81
TSLA Investor ; Model 3 Perf - 2021
If you are planning to do more track days, you should definitely buy a set of wheels + tyres specific for track runs. Also make sure that you are a little under inflated going into the track, as the tyres start heating up, the pressure is better and provides you with more grip. As you said, if the centre is warmer than the edges then you weren't using the whole tyre, which would explain the tyre squeal at sharper turns. I am not sure how much you want to spend for the suspension setup (camber and toe) that will make a lot of difference to the tyre contact with the road. Battery cooling is a definite challenge not sure if there is any actual way of cooling them down proactively..
Wol747
Active Member
I'm using CANserver to log the data, TesLAX iOS app for in-car display of the relevant parameters, and self made software to assemble all of that into the blackbox movies. Every Tesla owner needs to have one of those: joshwardell/CANserver
There will be a web version of the video blackbox coming to market soon-ish, working on that atm. You upload a CANserver log, the video files, and hit go, and out comes a video like the one above.
That did cross my mind. Do you have any recommendations on the type of rims and tyres to use for that specific purpose? I can see myself doing that many more times...
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