I8ABMR

Took the F to Wild Horse Pass this weekend and the car was amazing. I was only in HPDE 1 but this car handled the track better than any car in the group, tires held up well for about 7 laps then started to under and oversteer, and the brakes did very well as well. I was impressed at how the stock set up did even at full tilt on the track. Brakes never smoked ( they got a little smelly for a second ), suspension felt flat, and tires did well considering the front were as wide as the Honda S2000 that was chasing me . The instructor kept saying that he thought the front tires were fine and the car was amazing. He drove my car for three laps and DAMN that guy was incredible. His line was better than mine and he went deeper into the corners. I learned a lot just driving with him. HPDE usually requires 4-6 20 min sessions to advance, but I was bumped to level 2 after only two sessions. The instructor said he was surprised at how well I could drive the car and how I already had great control and knew where the faster lines were. Needless to say I am hooked !!! My pads are at the last bit so I will be replacing them ( not sure if Im going to stick with oem or go after market now that I know the stock set up is not weak) . As far as tires I will be going to Michelin PSS but I may stick with the stock size . Not sure. Most of the instructors I spoke with said a better compound would be better than a wider size. Not sure if the PSS is enough alone. (Still havent found a picture of the upsized tires at stock height. I know most say its negligible but I notice different sizes and they way they look. I just dont more fender gap in the front. The cool member who posted a pic had his dropped in front so I cant get a true idea of what it would look like )

The track was only 1.6 miles long and had a back straight where we got up to about 100 mph. Great track, and a lot more technical than one would think when watching footage on youtube . If we have any AZ members there is another track day in Tucson in 3 weeks and we are right back to wild horse pass on 5/31.

All in all it was a great day, with lots of class learning, track time, and got to meet a bunch of cool guys who were there to learn. No BS, no testosterone, just learning to drive better and faster

I would highly recommend a track day to all members. You will not mess up your car. I dont think that some of us are truly aware of what the F can do at 10/10ths


GoPro VIDEO ADDED ON PAGE 2 of the HPDE 1 sessions and an HPDE4 session with my instructor in his Corvette

JM51526

Awesome - glad you did it, and enjoyed it!

Really, what's the point of owning a performance car if you never really experience what it's capable of? That's what these were built for, and why I've started Solo2 and plan on track days and Solo1 in the future.

I8ABMR

very cool buddy. what really surprised me is how I thought pushing the car on the street would get me close to the max performance. What a joke. In my opinion the track is really the best place to get to know your ISF and to see what it can really do. I had no idea that the car could stop as hard as it does and that front grip is actually pretty damn good if you let them get warm enough. I think the 245 front would be great for the street because you dont get them hot enough to stick before you do something stupid.lol

What also blew my mind is how easily the ISF can pull on other cars on the straight even when they are going at WOT. I took GoPro video of the driving and the instructor keeps commenting on how well the car handled, and how it sounded. I even chased down a widebody NSX ( not sure why he was in HPDE1 when it looked like a race car. Bottom line is I caught up and passed him on the straights ( literally right after my camera died). Needless to say I ordered three back up batteries and a case

lobuxracer

iTrader: (2)

Now you know why I laugh everytime someone posts about a setup being "better" when they've only driven it on the street. It's impossible to drive fast on the street. As much as anyone says they do, as soon as they get on the track they find out just how slow they really are. I know I did, and I've only known one guy who truly went fast on his first day, but he spent a ridiculous amount of time karting...

I8ABMR

Man you are so right !! I thought I was pushing it on the street when it was empty. LOL You just cant do it. The cars capacity is greater than what the street can allow safely. I see now that the set up that Lexus provided stock is pretty damn good when the car is warmed up appropriately. I still think it would be great to dial out a little of the understeer when the tires are hot. My concern is dialing in oversteer and having the traction control intrude. The light only came on twice , and only in the second session. I tried half a lap with it off and it felt squirley . The rear was way too willing to rotate even when I rolled on the throttle and tried to exit the corner as smooth and as wide as possible. I actually found ( and the instructor noticed the same) that I would have smoother inputs on corner exit if the sport was off but manual was on. The car got a lot of attention and I didnt want to be the dude in the ISF that ended up in the dirt. I saw a GT3 and a Vette end up in the dirt and the recovered fine but I didnt want to see what their wheels looked like. The edge of the track where they went off had a very high lip.

I am curious to find out if stock drivers feel that the Michelin PSS is significantly better at the limit than the Bridgestone. What do you think Lobuxracer?? WHat tires are you running? Do you have the F sport rear bar? I will be honest and say that I have new respect for Bridgestones after I beat the hell out of them and they still look brand new.

darbs242

iTrader: (5)

It's a lot of fun out there. I do feel that even with cheap coils the heavier spring rates on the BC's are nice. The F needs wider tires or more spring up front....

PatrickISF

So true. Taking the ISF out on the track is definitely a completely different experience. The stock setup is very capable. I still haven't not even pushed the car as hard as I should've. I can't wait for my next track event. I really want to do Road Atlanta.

I8ABMR

Me too. I am doing better with the late breaking but still not hitting them as hard as the instructor when coming to the end of the back straight. The car's brakes held up to repeated 100-35mph drops and then an immediate jump to about 75 and then down to 25, and all in within a 3/4 mile span. No smoking brakes, and the tires only squealed a few times when I was still learning to stop braking as I initially entered the corner. Got that down. Now I need to get the ***** to stop deeper into the braking zone

Next event is at the end of next month. It will be hotter but I am doing it !!

itsmike177

iTrader: (3)

I have ran the RE050's and PSS on the track, 100% stock ISF both times.

If the weather is good and the track is smooth, the Potenza's have better performance for about 15minutes. Even the OEM PS2's got "greasy" after getting them past 15 minutes. For longer runs, PSS' have the advantage of not getting "greasy" after even 25 minutes of hard driving. The PSS' performance are definitely more consistent throughout the entire 25-30 minute track sessions.

I have had FIGS LCA bushings installed about 2 months ago to correct a right pull and have yet to take it to the track, but from what I have noticed, "understeer" has diminished a bit and the front end feels a bit more willing to change directions. Downside is, on rough roads when braking hard, I do have to hold onto the steering wheel more to control the car. Stiffer LCA bushings might be what you are looking for to reduce the ISFs understeer.

Defratos

You guys are lucky to have such places to go to.

Wish we had a track here....or even a damn quarter mile.

MYISF

Congratulations on your track day...it is truly an eye opener to what "handling" performance is all about...oh yeah and how important tires are...LOL And this can be addicting!!!

I use to road race sport bikes and put my 350Z on the track a few times to know how much fun u had...but I also know it is expensive so u have to pick your poison...track days or mods (wheels, body kits, etc...)

PatrickISF

The brakes on this car are incredible. I did go during a cooler part of the season in Atlanta so I was using Porterfield R4S pads and stock rear pads. If I go out at all during the late spring/summer I'm going to pick up some track pads for the fronts. A car this heavy and doing late braking would probably cook any street pads.

kauaian

iTrader: (18)

Taking the ISF to the track and pushing it to your limits is an amazing feeling and very addicting! I got hooked just like you did with only 1 track day. I believe it's safe to say that the cars capabilities far exceeds a lot of its owners driving abilities. However, it is so much fun to be able to push it and not have to worry about legal ramifications. My instructor told me at the beginning of the day, don't worry about being fast it's all about being smooth and in control.

I am glad to hear you're enjoying the car. Myself and a co-worker actually were having a conversation the other day about people owning cars and not really using them for what they're built for. Which I can respect as I was one of those with my garage queen Mkiv Supra a few years back. Which he then laughed and stated he is that guy with his C5 Vette as well. I think I was able to convince him to take it out to the track this summer, lol.

Post your videos!

torxuvin

Nice. I've tracked my corvette once. Loved the experience. Looking forward to taking the F out at some point. I am curious as to how the electronic diff will do...

tmf2004

iTrader: (15)

sounds like a fun day