Track Days

[Mich the Tester]

Anyone done track days (in real life) with their own or a hired car? Or one of those "Ferrari Experience Days" you can buy?

I did a day in an M3 at Assen that was organised by a BMW dealer, and a trip to Zandvoort organised by MB Netherlands to drive a few different AMG models. Good fun but I realised I have no talent for car racing and both days probably made me a more sensible driver on the road as I know my limits, and my limits aren't very impressive.

Also went to the Nordscheife and took the 'taxi' with Sabine Schmitz driving an M5. Some poo came out.

[Old Hack]

Track days using your own cars are fun. Track days using 'their' cars isn't fun, as they're controlled but track days using hire cars is the most fun you can possibly have.

My nephew has a 318is stripped out as a track day car and has a hoot. Once a month, gets out and ruins a set of tyres.

He's quite handy too.

[doodab]

Why? reading the speil make them sound as if they are replica's

Yes, possibly based on period chassis in the case of the various racers, so could be something of a bargain if you just want some nice looking toys for cheap. That should leave £130m for a yacht and some supermodels.

[d000hg]

Also went to the Nordscheife and took the 'taxi' with Sabine Schmitz driving an M5. Some poo came out.

Is she the one they had driving a transit on Top Gear?

Didn't know you could get a 'taxi', quite neat as a way to see what a proper driver would experience without having to actually have any skill!

[Mich the Tester]

Is she the one they had driving a transit on Top Gear?

Didn't know you could get a 'taxi', quite neat as a way to see what a proper driver would experience without having to actually have any skill!

That's the one. You pays your money and she takes you around the track at speed. Pack a fresh pair of undies. Really, it's terrifying. Here's a racing driver taking his wife around the track, a bit SLOWER than Sabine Schmitz; his wife actually remains somewhat calmer than most people.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2o96xcZtaVI

[bobspud]

That is exactly what I want, a day driving a selection of Ferraris around a track so I can decide which one to buy.

This really isn't a lottery win fantasy. You can buy most of the ferrais that you would be interested in for sub 100k I found an F430 the other day for £70k. (I am waiting for Mercedes to sort out their pricing for the 2014 SL500 and I was bored). But the answer is you don't take a road ferrari on a track. (unless you have the extra £1200 pet set for the new tyres that you will need fairly quickly) Meanwhile a chap with more skill and intelligence will be lapping you in some crappy little kit car that has better power balance and weight distribution. I worked with a guy a few years back that destroyed a very nice ubber-tuned BMW M3 CSI sport trying to turn it into a track day car. He ripped the thing apart, chucked out the interior doors and bonnet then replaced everything with carbon then tore out the suspension and and air con and ended up with a track car that a standard Honda Civic Type R could piss all over... He was not a happy bunny.

You also need to bare in mind if you go for a racing car then you need to be divorced from common sense to get the brakes to work and going fast enough for the airfoils to work so that you actually grip the track...

[doodab]

This really isn't a lottery win fantasy. You can buy most of the ferrais that you would be interested in for sub 100k I found an F430 the other day for £70k. (I am waiting for Mercedes to sort out their pricing for the 2014 SL500 and I was bored). But the answer is you don't take a road ferrari on a track. (unless you have the extra £1200 pet set for the new tyres that you will need fairly quickly) Meanwhile a chap with more skill and intelligence will be lapping you in some crappy little kit car that has better power balance and weight distribution. I worked with a guy a few years back that destroyed a very nice ubber-tuned BMW M3 CSI sport trying to turn it into a track day car. He ripped the thing apart, chucked out the interior doors and bonnet then replaced everything with carbon then tore out the suspension and and air con and ended up with a track car that a standard Honda Civic Type R could piss all over... He was not a happy bunny.

You also need to bare in mind if you go for a racing car then you need to be divorced from common sense to get the brakes to work and going fast enough for the airfoils to work so that you actually grip the track...

I don't want to buy a Ferrari to drive on the track. I don't want a car to drive on the track at all. I want a Ferrari to drive on the road (probably a 348 as they are cheap and sound good) but I'd like to have a spin in a couple of different ones on a track so I can decide whether it's going to be worth it or whether I am better off spending my money on something else like flying lessons or more holidays.

[Old Hack]

I don't want to buy a Ferrari to drive on the track. I don't want a car to drive on the track at all. I want a Ferrari to drive on the road (probably a 348 as they are cheap and sound good) but I'd like to have a spin in a couple of different ones on a track so I can decide whether it's going to be worth it or whether I am better off spending my money on something else like flying lessons or more holidays.

348's are notoriously unreliable, and one of the worst ferraris. If you're looking to get into ferraris at not top dollar, you want a 355, one of the best cars they've made. Avoid a Mondial like the plague too.

[bobspud]

I don't want to buy a Ferrari to drive on the track. I don't want a car to drive on the track at all. I want a Ferrari to drive on the road (probably a 348 as they are cheap and sound good) but I'd like to have a spin in a couple of different ones on a track so I can decide whether it's going to be worth it or whether I am better off spending my money on something else like flying lessons or more holidays.

Why drive something on a track to decide if you can put up with it at a 10th of the speed and power while it rattles your internal organs around every time you hit a pot hole and kills your left leg every time you change gear?

[bobspud]

348's are notoriously unreliable, and one of the worst ferraris. If you're looking to get into ferraris at not top dollar, you want a 355, one of the best cars they've made. Avoid a Mondial like the plague too.

The problem with ALL supercars is the same. Guys buy them then leave them in a garage for all but 10 days a year. My friends hubby was a ferrari mechanic on Jersey and said the best ferrari on the island was being used as the everyday shopping cart. Meanwhile the pristine, lived in an air conditioned garage and only driven on sunny day toys were in bits most of the time... Have another contact that said the same for Lambo's (he worked for them in Australia for a while)