Wakefield 14/8/09 Plug

[DeanB]

How many times it skidded off the track and he held his breathe.

You have to know your limits, constantly skidding off makes me believe he had very little understanding of the car he was driving (ie. feel for it) or the limits of his own abilities.

[Petrina Polo]

Each to their own... I dont want to be the one saying "I told you so"..

I hope everything runs smooth but if someone damages their car or someone elses, you watch everyone disappear.. Its a very lonely walk after that. Noone will pay for it. But thats motorsport as some of you will say.

Remember Eric Banas face in his movie about his old Falcon Coupe he crashed. That will be your face.

[swingn]

Hi All

Have updated the original post & master list for this track day. Link is below:

http://www.vwwatercooled.org.au/newforum/upload/showthread.php?t=29055

Please check it out all for the latest details etc.

[noone]

Polo GTI vs 3000GT.

Driving to the point of breaking parts vs driving for the joy and learning experience.

Cars do get broken on track days, but I don't think that you should assume that they will get broken.

I really should stop posting on this one...

[swingn]

Nah ive never been on a track day, although i would really like to some time. I'd like to know where I can and can't push the polo to become more confident in knowing its limits.

Hmm i might have to keep an eye out in the future - even a defensive driving course would be good fun..

There's no time like the present

You learn so much when your on the track its unbelieveable. Without a doubt you will walk away a much better

The best thing about the track is being able to push your car that little bit harder & faster in a safe & legal manner.

I am in the process of organising a driving instructor (Costs to be split equally between those wanting this service) to be there on the day for people who are noobs to the track &/or noobs to Wakefield Park.

[swingn]

Whats the go with peoples insurance for the track day? Im pretty sure my insurance doesnt cover track days and I dont want to smash someone or myself by accident with no insurance

Don't worry mate, everyone will be in the same boat. Very few insurance companies offer coverage on the track.

Wakefield is a pretty safe track overall. No walls to hit! Generally speaking, you won't be driving next to, behind or in front of someone when you are on the track. Should that happen, there are rules & regulations in regards to over taking etc.

Trust me, everyone attending this day (So far) are bring road cars... & no one wants to come away with any damage... Trust me... I'll cry if my car gets so much as a stone chip

[seangti]

some tracks are simply car breakers, e.g. lakeside. without respecting that circuit you WILL end up hurting the car, yourself or someone else. I've done one sprint there and 3 cars came off into the wall, hard. Not sure if I'll go back, though it was made absolutely clear by the officials at the outset.

Queensland raceway on the hand, perhaps 2 cars come off and I've done 10-12 days out there. Both considerable driver error (read: driving like a knob).

Shannons will insure for track events (sprints). Most insurers will cover you if it's a driver education program, not a sprint or sanctioned race event.

Mines stock and the brakes have held up exceptionally well at QR and lakeside, coming into the carousel (hair pin) at 180km/h. Don't overestimating the cars braking ability, though I certainly don't underestimate it when on the track.

Tyres and brakes are consumables like bread and milk, haha. enjoy

[noone]

I'm paid and coming.

Love to have a fleet of POG's there, c'mon peeps!

[swingn]

In regards to damaging your car, it seriously all comes down to the driver.

If you hit the track, flat changing every gear or open throttling every gear, breaking waaay too late & just generally flogging your car... Then yes, it would not supprise me if you car was subject to damage or reduced life of components.

In saying that, if your none to drive hard on the streets or give the car the berries through say nasho , then doing the same on the track is not going to do any more damage... You are just doing it in a safe & legal manner.

& if it's higher speed your worried about causing damage... Well, you must remember that Euro cars are generally made with Autobarns (Sorry, my German isn't up to scratch ) in mind.

I no I'm repeating what other members have already stated. But in reality, the only real components that you are really going to wear out / go through are:

* Petrol
* Brake pads
* Discs (Depending on how hard you brake & pad compound you are using)
* Tyres

At the end of the day, a track day such as the one I'm organising is what you want to make of it. If you want to drive around like Miss Daisy, there is nothing stopping you

[Timbo]

Imagine how our Polo Gti bicycle brakes will go.

What ARE you talking about?! Stock Polo GTI brakes are fine for a track day where you are doing 6-8 lap sessions, driving within your limits and observing reasonable care in cooling etc. If you want better braking performance, a simple change of pads and fluid to performance versions will suffice. I speak from experience.

[swingn]

What ARE you talking about?! Stock Polo GTI brakes are fine for a track day where you are doing 6-8 lap sessions, driving within your limits and observing reasonable care in cooling etc. If you want better braking performance, a simple change of pads and fluid to performance versions will suffice. I speak from experience.

From what I've heard & experienced, the Polo GTI standard set up is actually fairly well matched (Unlike Subaru ). So if you do hit the track, what Timbo suggested is quite right IMO

I think a Polo GTI set up running something like DS2500 pads, AP Racing Dot 5.1 Fluid & some DBA 4000 rotors all around would actually be pretty awesome

Of course, some Brembo's would make a slightly larger difference

[Petrina Polo]

When something goes wrong.. People will not be so encouraging. They will dissappear.

[Timbo]

I think a Polo GTI set up running something like DS2500 pads, AP Racing Dot 5.1 Fluid & some DBA 4000 rotors all around would actually be pretty awesome

That was the first set of mods I made to mine (not rotors) and they worked well. In fact, I can't really say there was a significant improvement on that by going to 312mm rotors/S3 calipers.

I'm actually a bit wary of sets ups with cross drilling and slots, especially if you don't know their pedigree and whether matched to calipers. They look "aggressive" but with all that metal missing, you need to know they will hold up

[noone]

When something goes wrong.. People will not be so encouraging. They will dissappear.

We understand your point of view, you have been very vocal on your stance and we appreciate it.

Now can you please stop telling me my car will be forever ruined from a couple of dozen track laps, its really not helpful.

If my car dies, I'll buy you a beer.

[Petrina Polo]

So when you guys sell your cars, mention in the ads "been on a few trackdays".

So buyers can correctly distinguish between the track cars and garaged cars.

If there is no harm tracking a car why not mention it in an ad?