ShahulX

Ive done 5 track sessions so far... think my Motul RBF-660 and MObil 1 15w-50 will be ok for 3 more sessions (20 min sessions)? about 1500 miles, maybe 3 months been in the car..

I know some of you are doing 2 day events and 4 sessions a day... so 8 sessions in 2 days... versus me doing 8 in 3 trackdays...

should be fine right?

After my next event I'll change brake fluid and engine oil.. and replace tires and redo alignment..then a trackday at VIR

SunnydayDILYSI

Can't speak to your specific car and situation. But 3-months, 1500 miles, and 8 20-minute track sessions is not unreasonable to expect from those fluids. Never hurts to bleed the brakes a bit before going to the track though.

Dan H.

I always bleed the brakes no mater what before each event. Cheap insurance. My friend boiled his fluid in his sti and had no brakes at Watkins Glen going into the bus stop. Anywhere else would have been ugly. He bled his, but why take the chance on something like this.

As for oil, again every car is different. For me and my car, I'd let the oil slide. I was changing my oil, same M1 as you, after every event. I sent a sample to Blackstone and the report said I could easily go another event. So after my next event I'll send in a sample with 20 sessions on it between WGI and SP. you should be good

SunnydayDILYSI

If you were running in a high temp environment and were pushing the fluids to the limit (e.g., oil temps over 270), would recommend flushing before next event. Especially if significant time in between. Both the abuse and time between events are factors.

Dan H.

Very relevant point by sunnyday
If you cooked the oil, that's a situation to def change it: if it read 290-300 during your sessions change it, Walmart sells 5qts for $25. Cheapest line item on the maintenance list

Deuce Man

I drove on new Royal Purple 5w30 HPS oil in my base C6 for about 500 miles, then did 150 minutes (6 sessions total) of track time on Friday and 160 minutes (8 sessions total) of track time Saturday and Sunday at Mid Ohio with NASA (so a total of 14 sessions, with 20 minutes the shortest duration). Came home and sent a sample of the oil to Blackstone and they said the oil could go at least twice as long between changes. My oil temps were in the high 270's/low 280's. Everyone always says to change your oil after each weekend, but the Blackstone analysis said I had plenty of room to go. I realize oil is cheap insurance, but for $28 I found I could more than double my oil life without any impact to my engine. I strongly suggest a Blackstone analysis, as it will save money on oil long term, at least in my experience. If it doesn't tell you that you can extend oil changes, you will at least have scientific analysis to prove otherwise. I don't want this taken the wrong way, but many folks around here are very conservative with oil, but have no basis for their suggestions. I was the same way. but I paid for the analysis, and now I have scientific data to make me feel better about my decisions. I am going to do another analysis after the next event just to help support my decision.

SunnydayDILYSI

Good data above. But would be interested to also see the results if you take a sample after the car sat for 2-months (i.e., just before the next typical track weekend, as opposed to just after the previous one). My understanding is that sitting after use is just as harmful as the use itself.

Dan H.

My car will have sat for 7 weeks since my last DE when I run it august at SP. last event was 8 sessions at WGI. Summit will be around 10-12 session (chin).

I'll be doing a Blackstone after and can report back or PM you if your interested.

Car will see less than 250 street miles in between these events

ShahulX

^ yea im at Summit point in Sept...and VIR about a month and half later... just wanted to do oil, brake fluid and tire change (sport cup 2's do not last) after this next summit event and before VIR.. because it'll only be 8 sessions total.. im "spritied" but no pro driver.. just seems expensive to do oil and brake flushes after every 6 sessions of track time... granted I only do 4-5 events a year

Car is barely street driven. Got the 1st 1500 miles because I had to before a track event (from the track prep guide GM sent). Since then 2 track days and a couple sunday relaxed drives...less than 500 miles total in 2.5 months

My brakes are Carbon ceramic Z07's.. It never had any fade or anything with those and the motul RBF660

I think I will roll the dice and go "as is" .. thanks for all your input

ShahulX

nevermind.. I think I already changed my mind...

I'll do the new fluids now.. see if I can run my tires through VIR.. over winter I'd have to switch to a lower weighted oil and back to a dot3.. and dont really want my new(ish) pilot cup2's in the cold garage over the winter

I asked in another thread, but I assume my brake pads will last through VIR.. that'll be 11 sessions

SunnydayDILYSI

Cool, would be very interesting to see the comparison.

Dan H.

No sweat! I'm happy to help the community where I can. Probably be mid to late august

Fulton 1

While there are certainly rules of thumb and you can always err on the side of caution and just change the oil, there's just really no way to know for sure without a proper oil analysis. There are so many factors that contribute (e.g. which oil are you using, which oil filter, which air filter, how's the tune, what fuel are you using, what's the climate in your area, what temps is the oil seeing, what mileage and modifications done to the engine, etc etc?) to the condition of your oil that what works great in your application may not be appropriate for me.

With my current setup and usage I usually go 8-10 sessions and then send in a UOA for evaluation. At that point I may choose to change the oil or not depending the feedback. Additionally, I store the car over the winter months so that factors in as well.

FWIW, I was a Blackstone customer for probably 15 years and they're a good resource considering the low cost of the analysis, however there's been a couple of occasions where they've missed things. About 5 years ago I switched and started using Dyson Analysis instead. Relatively expensive, but the testing fidelity and personalized feedback is without peer - its really a quantity vs quality thing. Terry Dyson is a wealth of knowledge, has history with GM, and provides some fantastic feedback even with his basic test. He'll help you identify (and troubleshoot if possible) potential issues and diagnose problems well beyond just oil change intervals. If you're serious about monitoring your engine oil (and other fluids) on a track car I'd recommend contacting him and setting up a monitoring plan.

TKOGTO

Same experience here. Blackstone reports repeatedly show plenty of protection left in the oil after 6 very hard track days.

SunnydayDILYSI

One additional thought for consideration... About a year ago, I had my oil pump seize. Luckily, I've gotten into a routine during track out... First look for obstacles and flags, then gauges, then relax to the next corner. As I looked down at the gauges after a track out, the oil pressure was almost zero and I shut down the car. But I'm sure there was at least several seconds between pump stopping and the engine shut down. In that scenario, what condition do you want your oil? I don't change my oil after each event (have been running about 4 events (32 sessions) over 5-month period). But I do have cooling that keeps the oil temps under 155, run Motul, and check the gauges often .