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Tire/Rim Track Day Suggestions

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I've never tracked a car with snows on it, but I wouldn't be surprised if they get so soft that they get greasy; ie, very little traction.

But now that you remind me, why does a FL car have Blizzacks on it? I think you may have the only 4 in the state. :)
 
As an instructor I would tell you to take the car with stock high performance tires. As others have said, you'll learn significantly more in the begining with less grip. I would also add that if you search the forum you'll find that people have not been able to drive their Model S for more than 2-4 laps without it going into limp mode on the track. There is mention of this on the Nurburgring thread where the car can't even make half a lap of that track. Unfortunately Tesla has not built the cars to work well in driver education events that typically have 15-20 min sessions. Without being able to do more laps, you won't even be able to build much heat in "R compound" tires. Thus I don't think I would even bother with R compounds for a more experienced driver.

As an alternative there are many cars you can rent from mainstream rental car agencies that will work just fine for your first track experience. You can rent a 3 series BMW or C-class Mercedes and learn at ton.
 
The old adage, "nothing handles like a rental car", comes to mind :)

someone was running a rental car in the Medford Spring Enduro last year. thought that was awesome!

wrt traction control. I have ran autocross with it on(forgetting to turn it off) and off. The S has pretty awesome traction control and as long as you are trying to run clean lines and not lose speed by spinning tires I don't even notice I forgot to turn it off on occasion, only when you I a corner too hard and get Stability Control to kick in because of trying to drift a bit then traction control just stops the car from pulling anymore.

winter tires in FL, no
 
As you know this will be the first track day, those Blizzacks are the LM32s they are v rated but I know they are the last type of tire for a track that said what I do not understand is if they get soft will this not enhance their grip?
The handling may well leave a lot to be desired but as far a grip goes I thought a softer compound will offer more grip?

No, it's not that kind of "soft". The softness that the Blizzaks have is temperature dependent. They also have large grooves and many sipes. If you get them hot on the track they will literally melt. Even if the tread compound doesn't melt (think butter on a hot day) the sipes will cause the tread to wiggle. When driven to the limit parts of the tread might even start flying off in chunks.

With real racing tires you get the tires for the ambient temperature that you will be racing in. It doesn't take much additional heat to turn grip into grease. A number of F! races have been lost because the correct range of tires weren't shipped. Of course the power of the car and the average and maximum speed matter too. However, if you are ice racing, then the temperature isn't a problem and the sipes and grooves will help. However, you won't be going nearly the speed that you get on a dry track during the summer.
 
As an instructor I would tell you to take the car with stock high performance tires. As others have said, you'll learn significantly more in the begining with less grip. I would also add that if you search the forum you'll find that people have not been able to drive their Model S for more than 2-4 laps without it going into limp mode on the track. There is mention of this on the Nurburgring thread where the car can't even make half a lap of that track. Unfortunately Tesla has not built the cars to work well in driver education events that typically have 15-20 min sessions. Without being able to do more laps, you won't even be able to build much heat in "R compound" tires. Thus I don't think I would even bother with R compounds for a more experienced driver.

As an alternative there are many cars you can rent from mainstream rental car agencies that will work just fine for your first track experience. You can rent a 3 series BMW or C-class Mercedes and learn at ton.
Ok, I'll be right with the crowd complaining (and have been) about the acceleration limiter that kicks in during lap 1 (or lap2 if you're being generous).

But...

I think the case is being overstated here. You can definitely get a lot of fun out of a 20-30 minute session, just don't expect to be able to full throttle throughout. My current strategy is (1) switch to low regen (this seems to help buy some more time in awesome mode) and (2) let the others go by in the straights. Straights aren't all that interesting after you've gotten it out of your system a few times. I save my push for taking the turns at speed. It seems to work pretty well.

At ORP, it was roughly 65 rated miles per session for all but the last session of a two-day event. For the last session I burned through over 75mi rated. YMMV. Caveat emptor. Don't take any wooden nickels.
Track Info Map | Oregon Raceway Park
 
Wow $175 a day and lunch at ORP what a deal!
I'm paying $300 but I will start looking for clubs that have track time as I guarantee I am going to get hooked on this.

I gotta say I am losing sleep over the excitement of taking on this track day and work is suffering watching You tube videos of Homestead Track days
But not today GO USA fiery-soccer-ball-smiley-emoticon.gif

It is a shame I cant seem to motivate others in the area to try this, to me it seems more fun than sex :tongue: (it lasts 6 hours).......The track day that is.

Do you have any video of your time on the track?
I have been following #48 over at TESLARATI.com and Vlad has been kind enough to spend time conversing with me about his experiences on the track. and just as others have pointed out the speed limiter will undoubtedly kick in but still I don't plan on maxing out the car and even with the limiter I will be going fast enough.:biggrin:
 
Went to a local tire wheel place and by chance they had a set of TSW Nurburgring rims 20X9/20 - 20X10/30 with Michelin Pilot Sport tires Tesla caps but no TPMS they are asking $2200 mounted (I supply the TMPS Sensors)
As everyone is saying I will trash the Blizzacks after Saturday I might as well get a set of road/Track tires now and save the Blizzacks as they only have 3K miles on them.

1) the price seems OK but not amazing any thoughts?

2) I found these http://www.amazon.com/2012-2014-Tesla-Model-TPMS-Sensor/dp/B00GS90V7O

3) do I need the sensors reset each time I swap the rims

4) If so can you DIY

5) Do I really need sensors for the track tires
 
1) the price seems OK but not amazing any thoughts?

2) I found these http://www.amazon.com/2012-2014-Tesla-Model-TPMS-Sensor/dp/B00GS90V7O

3) do I need the sensors reset each time I swap the rims

4) If so can you DIY

5) Do I really need sensors for the track tires

1) It's really best if you have tires that aren't new. There is mold release on new tires that needs a few miles to wear off. Also you'll get better performance if the tread depth is low. Track day is a good way to finish off those tires that are just about worn out.

2) I show there's only three left.

3 & 4) Yes, but you can do it yourself from the display.

5) No. The only thing the sensors will do (when properly mated) is remove the annoying popup telling you there is a sensor problem.
 
I talked to a guy at Bridgestone and he said not to try to run the Blizzacks on a track as they will start to disintegrate and could become hazardous..... that did it for me.
So I made an offer on the ones at Elite Roads and the guy took it:biggrin: so no complaints there. I got a really good deal they installed them using my TPMS from the existing rims (the reason Amazon only shows three is a bought the other four)
It is 55 miles to the track so I should get the mold release off by the time I get there.

So at least I am track ready thanks again to all who contributed to this thread hopefully I will have video of the day up on Sunday.