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This report is a continuation from my original report posted here:
http://www.stingrayforums.com/forum...-track-day-new-c7-report.html?highlight=track
This is the second track day in my car.
What I've done to the car since the first track day:
Replaced brake fluid with ATE Super Blue. Completed a performance/track alignment. That's pretty much it.
The track is Buttonwillow Raceway. Fairly flat and a bit bumpy, but has some really cool, fast sections. The first part of the track is fairly tight, which accentuates any push tendencies a car may have. The back half of the track is fast and flowing. Quite fun with lots of run-off.
Weather was high 60s in the a.m., getting up to mid 80's later in the day.
I set cold pressures at 27 lbs vs 26 lbs since I had a bit of rollover the last time. Pressures ended up around 33 lbs hot and rollover wasn't quite a prevalent.
I enjoyed the car as much as the first day if not a bit more. I felt more comfortable allowing the car to slide a bit on some of the high-speed sections and it was very predictable each time. As mentioned before, the stock tires are about the best I've driven on a track. They have a good amount of grip for the first 4-5 laps. As any street tire, the tend to get greasy when hot and will start to go away. They do this very predictably, however; and never sneak up on you.
The acceleration off the tight corners is very good. The eLSD does an amazing job of allowing you to feed in throttle while maintaining grip. Obviously, getting too greedy will result in the rear breaking traction, but if you finesse the throttle; it gets off the corner really well. Turn-in on the tight stuff illicited some understeer. It became more pronounced later in the day as the track heated up and the tires got hot.
Turn-in on the faster corners allows for some rear rotation that can be managed by picking up the throttle slowly. You can essentially toss the car in and throttle it in order to set the nose where you want it to be. VERY fun!
The car makes it very easy to get a good laptime, especially if you are smooth with inputs. The Vette does require a bit of patience to let the chassis "take a set" before major inputs. This is a bit different than the Porsche which allowed more of a flick. But, if patient, the Vette handles very, very well.
I ran every session in Track mode and manually turned ALL electronic aids off. I do this by holding the TC off button down until both the TC off light and Stabilitrak off light come on.
I checked the oil level 5-8 minutes after each session and never had to adjust the oil level as it was spot on.
The bad news: I wish I had none to report, but the brakes on the car just seem to struggle to provide on-track performance. Even with the Carbotech Race pads and high-temp fluid, plus those pesky rotor cooling rings. I'd still get brake fade before the end of each session. Fortunately, after cooling off; the brakes would come back for the next session. At a fast track pace, the brakes have trouble dealing with the addtional heat generated. I had hoped that the Z51 track package with the upgraded brakes would truly be track capable, but I am beginning to think that my first "it's too good to be true" reaction may be reality.
I'm going to try Castrol SRF and steel-braided lines before my next day at the track in hopes that maybe this will solve it. I am optimistic, but also realstic. If it doens't do the trick, a big brake kit may need to be an investment I make in order to continue enjoying track days in the car.
BUT, I don't want that issue to take away from all of the goodness of this car. It is simply amazing how capable the handling and power are on track. It brings a huge grin to my face every corner and every acceleration.
I can't wait until May 2nd to do it again!
Mike
http://www.stingrayforums.com/forum...-track-day-new-c7-report.html?highlight=track
This is the second track day in my car.
What I've done to the car since the first track day:
Replaced brake fluid with ATE Super Blue. Completed a performance/track alignment. That's pretty much it.
The track is Buttonwillow Raceway. Fairly flat and a bit bumpy, but has some really cool, fast sections. The first part of the track is fairly tight, which accentuates any push tendencies a car may have. The back half of the track is fast and flowing. Quite fun with lots of run-off.
Weather was high 60s in the a.m., getting up to mid 80's later in the day.
I set cold pressures at 27 lbs vs 26 lbs since I had a bit of rollover the last time. Pressures ended up around 33 lbs hot and rollover wasn't quite a prevalent.
I enjoyed the car as much as the first day if not a bit more. I felt more comfortable allowing the car to slide a bit on some of the high-speed sections and it was very predictable each time. As mentioned before, the stock tires are about the best I've driven on a track. They have a good amount of grip for the first 4-5 laps. As any street tire, the tend to get greasy when hot and will start to go away. They do this very predictably, however; and never sneak up on you.
The acceleration off the tight corners is very good. The eLSD does an amazing job of allowing you to feed in throttle while maintaining grip. Obviously, getting too greedy will result in the rear breaking traction, but if you finesse the throttle; it gets off the corner really well. Turn-in on the tight stuff illicited some understeer. It became more pronounced later in the day as the track heated up and the tires got hot.
Turn-in on the faster corners allows for some rear rotation that can be managed by picking up the throttle slowly. You can essentially toss the car in and throttle it in order to set the nose where you want it to be. VERY fun!
The car makes it very easy to get a good laptime, especially if you are smooth with inputs. The Vette does require a bit of patience to let the chassis "take a set" before major inputs. This is a bit different than the Porsche which allowed more of a flick. But, if patient, the Vette handles very, very well.
I ran every session in Track mode and manually turned ALL electronic aids off. I do this by holding the TC off button down until both the TC off light and Stabilitrak off light come on.
I checked the oil level 5-8 minutes after each session and never had to adjust the oil level as it was spot on.
The bad news: I wish I had none to report, but the brakes on the car just seem to struggle to provide on-track performance. Even with the Carbotech Race pads and high-temp fluid, plus those pesky rotor cooling rings. I'd still get brake fade before the end of each session. Fortunately, after cooling off; the brakes would come back for the next session. At a fast track pace, the brakes have trouble dealing with the addtional heat generated. I had hoped that the Z51 track package with the upgraded brakes would truly be track capable, but I am beginning to think that my first "it's too good to be true" reaction may be reality.
I'm going to try Castrol SRF and steel-braided lines before my next day at the track in hopes that maybe this will solve it. I am optimistic, but also realstic. If it doens't do the trick, a big brake kit may need to be an investment I make in order to continue enjoying track days in the car.
BUT, I don't want that issue to take away from all of the goodness of this car. It is simply amazing how capable the handling and power are on track. It brings a huge grin to my face every corner and every acceleration.
I can't wait until May 2nd to do it again!
Mike
