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MASTER THREAD: Comprehensive Road-Course Modification Guide — Optimizing the 3 for the track

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First post! I have read through almost everything I can on this thread and some others and wanted to ask for feedback on the path I'm considering for my Model 3 with respect to track prep. I'm in San Diego, planning to go to Buttonwillow as it seems the only place down here where you have good supercharging access which I presume is critical to do a full track day?

I have a P3 on order to replace my LR AWD. My main concerns are the ability to actually run the car all day without overheating the battery, drive unit(s), running out of charge or losing my brakes. I don't want to set the fastest lap times, I just want to be able to go out there and get as much seat time as possible without wrecking the car.

My plan is to upgrade brake lines, pads, fluid, wheels and tires and then run the car in sport or chill mode to conserve energy, be nice on the brakes and allow me to have more track time. Is this dumb? Is it even needed?
 
First post! I have read through almost everything I can on this thread and some others and wanted to ask for feedback on the path I'm considering for my Model 3 with respect to track prep. I'm in San Diego, planning to go to Buttonwillow as it seems the only place down here where you have good supercharging access which I presume is critical to do a full track day?

I have a P3 on order to replace my LR AWD. My main concerns are the ability to actually run the car all day without overheating the battery, drive unit(s), running out of charge or losing my brakes. I don't want to set the fastest lap times, I just want to be able to go out there and get as much seat time as possible without wrecking the car.

My plan is to upgrade brake lines, pads, fluid, wheels and tires and then run the car in sport or chill mode to conserve energy, be nice on the brakes and allow me to have more track time. Is this dumb? Is it even needed?
You can run 20 min, but you will lose performance and then stabilize after. The car will just cut power when it heats up, it doesn’t shut you down. You just have to charge the car after. Brakes is a concern, you need to do something about that.
I have done full 20 min 3 times. As you become slower, you draw less power remember
 
First post! I have read through almost everything I can on this thread and some others and wanted to ask for feedback on the path I'm considering for my Model 3 with respect to track prep. I'm in San Diego, planning to go to Buttonwillow as it seems the only place down here where you have good supercharging access which I presume is critical to do a full track day?

I have a P3 on order to replace my LR AWD. My main concerns are the ability to actually run the car all day without overheating the battery, drive unit(s), running out of charge or losing my brakes. I don't want to set the fastest lap times, I just want to be able to go out there and get as much seat time as possible without wrecking the car.

My plan is to upgrade brake lines, pads, fluid, wheels and tires and then run the car in sport or chill mode to conserve energy, be nice on the brakes and allow me to have more track time. Is this dumb? Is it even needed?
As long as you do the fluid, you should be good to go. I personally boiled the fluid on my P3D on my first track day at Buttonwillow. As far as other mods go, how much experience do you have with Tracking other cars? Is this your first time? First time at Buttonwillow? The answers to these questions will determine if you really need the tires and pads.

I personally believe you should just get the fluid done and track it as a stock car first, then change things after that.

As far as the overheating thing goes, this also depends on your experience level. If you are running 2:20's at buttonwillow, you are not going to have any overheating issues. From what I've seen 2:20 seems to be the average first timer lap times. The car will limit itself when it needs to, so no need to worry about damaging anything due to heat.

Hope this helps. Feel free to PM me if you have any other questions. I'll be at Buttonwillow September18th with Tesla Corsa, maybe ill see you there.
 
First post! I have read through almost everything I can on this thread and some others and wanted to ask for feedback on the path I'm considering for my Model 3 with respect to track prep. I'm in San Diego, planning to go to Buttonwillow as it seems the only place down here where you have good supercharging access which I presume is critical to do a full track day?

I have a P3 on order to replace my LR AWD. My main concerns are the ability to actually run the car all day without overheating the battery, drive unit(s), running out of charge or losing my brakes. I don't want to set the fastest lap times, I just want to be able to go out there and get as much seat time as possible without wrecking the car.

My plan is to upgrade brake lines, pads, fluid, wheels and tires and then run the car in sport or chill mode to conserve energy, be nice on the brakes and allow me to have more track time. Is this dumb? Is it even needed?
Fontana (Auto Club Speedway) also has decent amount of supercharging access and is much closer to San Diego and a more beginner friendly track. Willow Springs / Streets of Willows / Big Willow it's closeish to do, but not as good of a track.

Chuckawalla is the one that tesla owners can't really do without a supercharger being installed in the future.
 
Great info above! I had written off Auto Club Speedway thinking it would be rough to have to run back and forth to the chargers.

I've done 4 track days total most recently with a 2007 Porsche Cayman and 2007 Carrera 4S using upgraded fluid and Pagid pads so I am accustomed to strong brakes. I would honestly be happy out there in a Miata or way slower car, I actually was thinking I'd just run the car in chill mode to conserve energy and avoid the extra heat in the drive units. I just want to have fun and be 100% confident in the brakes never putting me in a sketchy situation but also don't want to waste money doing incremental upgrades to then get a big brake kit eventually anyways.
 
Great info above! I had written off Auto Club Speedway thinking it would be rough to have to run back and forth to the chargers.

I've done 4 track days total most recently with a 2007 Porsche Cayman and 2007 Carrera 4S using upgraded fluid and Pagid pads so I am accustomed to strong brakes. I would honestly be happy out there in a Miata or way slower car, I actually was thinking I'd just run the car in chill mode to conserve energy and avoid the extra heat in the drive units. I just want to have fun and be 100% confident in the brakes never putting me in a sketchy situation but also don't want to waste money doing incremental upgrades to then get a big brake kit eventually anyways.
You won't have any issues with the stock pads not stopping as long as you change the fluid out. Yes, they will fade when they get hot, but its not a sudden thing where all of a sudden you lose brakes.

IMO running in chill mode is kind of silly since your intention should be to see how fast you can go around the track, especially if you want to compare yourself to others. The only person I know that runs in chill mode is @mattack4000, pretty sure he just does that to rub it in on how much faster he is than me, haha.
 
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I think you are still ahead of me at bw. I don’t have you yet.

I think I ran a 2:07 in chill mode if I recall correctly.


You won't have any issues with the stock pads not stopping as long as you change the fluid out. Yes, they will fade when they get hot, but its not a sudden thing where all of a sudden you lose brakes.

IMO running in chill mode is kind of silly since your intention should be to see how fast you can go around the track, especially if you want to compare yourself to others. The only person I know that runs in chill mode is @mattack4000, pretty sure he just does that to rub it in on how much faster he is than me, haha.
 

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Fontana (Auto Club Speedway) also has decent amount of supercharging access and is much closer to San Diego and a more beginner friendly track. Willow Springs / Streets of Willows / Big Willow it's closeish to do, but not as good of a track.

Chuckawalla is the one that tesla owners can't really do without a supercharger being installed in the future.
I’ve done one track day at Chuckwalla, was super painful and I wouldn’t recommend it for any Tesla owner. Indio supercharger is 50 miles away and there’s only one ChargePoint charger within a 20 mile radius.
 
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You won't have any issues with the stock pads not stopping as long as you change the fluid out. Yes, they will fade when they get hot, but its not a sudden thing where all of a sudden you lose brakes.

IMO running in chill mode is kind of silly since your intention should be to see how fast you can go around the track, especially if you want to compare yourself to others. The only person I know that runs in chill mode is @mattack4000, pretty sure he just does that to rub it in on how much faster he is than me, haha.
It very much depends on how you drive. But losing brakes suddenly is absolutely real opportunity if you ignore or don't notice soft pedal.

It's important to remember in such case to keep pushing empty brake pedal to the floor (to let brake pump pressurize gas in the brake lines) as well as push continuously on P button on the stalk (to engage rear emergency brakes mechanically). Those are 2 Tesla unique brake safety features you must know and remember to use. They are in the manual, which you didn't read.

Always check that you still have brakes before the turn.

Do not downplay those risks, please!
 
It very much depends on how you drive. But losing brakes suddenly is absolutely real opportunity if you ignore or don't notice soft pedal.

It's important to remember in such case to keep pushing empty brake pedal to the floor (to let brake pump pressurize gas in the brake lines) as well as push continuously on P button on the stalk (to engage rear emergency brakes mechanically). Those are 2 Tesla unique brake safety features you must know and remember to use. They are in the manual, which you didn't read.

Always check that you still have brakes before the turn.

Do not downplay those risks, please!
I didn't intend to downplay, you just said it yourself. Its only sudden if you ignore the signs leading up to a loss of brakes. Apologies for any confusion.
 
I didn't intend to downplay, you just said it yourself. Its only sudden if you ignore the signs leading up to a loss of brakes. Apologies for any confusion.
It's ok, I just want to emphasize that if you never boiled brakes completely it always sudden.

Most people mistakenly feel that it's soft, but still ok like 20% softer. And finding out absolutely no brakes on the next turn while going way too fast to pass without them, panic and not using emergency brakes or keeping a pedal floored (doing pointless manual pumping instead).

Total brake loss with M3 on a track is extremely real scenario compare to many cars - motor power to brakes heat dissipation power is too high.

Luckily we have a regen braking, but somebody might turn it off. And 75kw regen braking is far from megawatts that mechanical brakes could do...

if pedal is softer - go back and bleed brakes.
 
Has anyone installed the new MPP.R compression rod bearings yet? Any feedback?
I've done one track day with them and they are a huge improvement over stock. The car is now stable under hard braking where before it was a handful to stay in a straight line. This is especially noticeable if you run a little toe out in the front. So for track use I'd highly recommend the swap.

That said, if you are not going to the track very often and drive on bumpy roads these are going to add quite a bit of nvh. Especially with sharp bumps like reflectors and small cracks in the road. Your choice of tire/wheel size and psi will effect this quite a bit also. (I run 265/35r19 ps4s on the street, lowering to 35psi helps a lot with nvh, at the cost of range obviously)

For the track day enthusiasts out there these are a must imo, but if you like a cushy ride these aren't for you.
 
I had to clean up my bearings, because without bushings they got tons of tiny stones and making all kind of sounds. Once clean, I don't think there is any nvh vs stock. What kind of nvh you have on MPP?
 
I had to clean up my bearings, because without bushings they got tons of tiny stones and making all kind of sounds. Once clean, I don't think there is any nvh vs stock. What kind of nvh you have on MPP?
I noticed a significant difference in small sharp bumps such as reflectors and the little speed bumps. Maybe NVH isn't the right terminology?

Edit: After thinking about it it more its just the Harshness that is worse, I don't have much more noise or vibration. If that makes sense
 
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Guys, any of you run 18 slicks? Need some input on optimal diameter and tread width.
I used to run 27/65, 28/65 but it seems 650mm diameter is too small for Tesla, want to try 680. Same question about width. I understand that at some width I can get more negative effects, but when it is too much? 300? 310? 320?)