GoatHead

I have 2017 M7 GS with Comp Seats, iron rotors, and Super Sport tires.

I am new to HPDE, and I did one 2-days event couple of months ago. I am planning on attending 4 or more events next summer at VIR. My Vette is not a dedicated track car, and I don't have the means to liberally spend. So, I'd like to do this in the most economical way. I need some guidance:

I already purchased:
- Helmet
- HANS Hybrid S
- Carbotech XP12 and XP10 (I have a set for the street as well)

My questions:
- Should I invest in 18" track tires and wheels NOW or wait? The Super Sport won't last more than 2 more events and they are expensive to replace. I have 2600 miles, 2-days HPDE event, one autocross event, and it is a weekend car.

- Can I fit the track wheels with mounted tires in the hatch and passenger seat? I will drive to VIR 60 miles each way.

- Because I am 6' tall and my shoulders cover the path through seat holes, harness bar won't work for me. Is there anything else to do for more safety?

Any other suggestions and advises are much appreciated.

PeteC7

I have a 17/GS/M7 also so I'll share my experience:

The stock MPSS hold up surprisingly well while learning and the XP12/XP10 work quite well with them. I'd say focus on learning on them before going to 18's. The great thing about 18's is not only the tire cost reduction but also being able to go 1" wider in the front which helps really balance the car. These wheels are huge and will no way fit in the hatch so you'll have to run R888R's, NT01's, etc if you need to drive to and from the track. I bought a set of inexpensive rotary forged wheels and three sets of tires will pay for them so the economics work out very good.

I'm 6'2" so the harness bar doesn't work for me either. I bought some anglewing pads which are an improvement at minimizing movement in the seat but I don't want to install race seats in it.

Be sure to add track brake fluid like Motul or Castrol and 15w50 oil to your list as well as a track alignment.

GoatHead

Thanks for sharing.
Which wheels did you buy? Link?
What the anlewing pads? Could find anything on google other than Fairies..

I used SRF and switched to 0w40 dexos2. I already flushed the diff after the first HPDE event.

jaredtxrx

Angel Wing pads are pads that go between your thigh/hips and your door and center console. google "Angel wing pads corvette". (link isn't working for some reason right now).

You can also look at the CG Lock. I use one along with the Corvette's "cinch mode" I stay in my seat "OK" but I'm in a C6, your seats are no doubt much better than mine.

joezr2

Don't forget the track insurance. If your event is registered through motorsports.reg there is usually a link for track insurance right there.

GoatHead

Thanks. I did buy track insurance in my last event, and I will not attend an event without one. During my first event, I saw a Z06 crashing and number of other vehicles spinning. I am not taking that risk...

NiceGuySanti

I have a 2017 GS 7 speed as well - As it was mentioned earlier, the Super Sports will hold up quite well, I have 6 track days on them and about 2000 road miles and they have a good amount of life left, probably another 4 days minimum before they wear out. You will see that as you become a better driver your tires will last longer and longer because you will not be over driving them as much as you are now. It looks like you have taken some really good steps so far which indicates that you definitely want to improve your driving, the HANS is very important to have, especially if you will be bouncing around from your car to your instructors' car. Another suggestion is to get as much seat time in their car as possible if you can so you can see first hand how to drive around a circuit, this will accelerate your learning curve.

I do not see how you can transport tires inside the car to an event, even with the hatch open, the tires are massive I can barely fit all 4 inside my Volt hatchback, I say keep it simple and stick with the OEM setup and focus on being smooth on track. Look way far ahead and everything will start to slow down visually, your inputs will be better timed and you will ask less of your tires.

I too am 6' tall and I am using the Sharkbar with a 5 point harness in the car, I converted my sport seatbacks to competition backs and I had slots cut in my seat bases for the antisub straps to go through. If you recline the seat as much as you can and still drive efficiently, your shoulders should dip just enough to get the straps through with a decent angle, it will take some time getting used to this position but it works for me, give it a shot and see how it feels driving around on the street. I will be taking the seat bottoms off this winter and sending them to my upholstery shop to remove some padding in order to gain a little more space at shoulder level to improve the way the straps come through the competition backs.

Hope this helps.

rocsvette

GoatHead

What tire pressure do you run on the track? hot and cold?

smitty2919

18" track wheels/tires, track brake pad setup with better fluid, proper seat/harness/helmet and go drive.

I would invest in a hitch and tire trailer instead of trying to stuff wheels in the car.

Poor-sha

26-27 cold, 32-24 hot.

Honestly, I agree with the others saying to just stay with the MPSS. They are very grippy when hot (I did a low 2:01 at VIR on them in the C7 Z06) and last a long time. However, the faster you get the faster any tire will wear because you are constantly slightly over and under the limit. Also, as they lose grip you will like push them over the edge more or slip them more and that will accelerate wear.

Eventually though you're going to want a truck and trailer if for no other reason because you will have something happens that keeps you from being able to drive home. That could be a mechanical issue, a shunt, or just failing to keep track of tire or brake wear.

TCorzett

My '18 C7 GS is my daily driver and my track toy... I highly recommend getting a set of dedicated track wheels/tires at some point. Being able to maximize my track setup (within the limits of still driving on the street) without having to compromise my ability to get to work the next day has been nice. After my last track day my tires were shot, but I tossed the Super Sports back on and was able to continue driving to work. Increasing the front tire width to 315 has made a very noticeable difference with handling, a good track alignment helps as well (also with tire life on track). So far I've been very happy with the Rival S (315/30-18, 335/30-18), both for the track and occasional street use... being $275 cheaper helps too. I drive on the street a minimum of 70 miles each way to Sonoma raceway and up to 170 miles each way to Thunderhill raceway... I've also been known to drive them a few days on the street between track events. I've recently started swapping-out pads/rotors for track days (only using XP10/XP8 for now, but will likely go to XP12/XP10 once the pads I'm using now are consumed), and enjoy the idea that some day (when my skills are ready), that I can step things up to R888R, NT01, or R7 without having to buy different wheels.

While a truck/trailer would be great, it's just not in the cards for me anytime soon. I have AAA Roadside Assistance and the Premier level has 200 mile towing (1x 200mi, 3x100mi) per year... having left the track on the back of a flatbed twice for mechanical failures (prior to the Corvette), so feel it's worth it's weight in gold. Last tow would have been nearly $900 without the coverage!

spdislife

Very smart man!

Bill Dearborn

Don't bother investing in track wheels and tires at this time. You don't have the experience yet to use the extra grip they might provide. Also there is no way you can do what the BMW guys do which is to throw your track wheels/tires in the car and drive to the track. Corvette wheels/tires are huge compared to BMW wheels/tires and they just don't fit inside the cabin, especially if you want a bag with toiletries and spare clothes.

If you want to move to race seats then adding a BK harness bar will work. However, you have to consider the costs. You have the cost of the bar ($800 BKAuto), cost of two seats ($800-$1600), cost of two seat mounts and the cost of lap/sub belt mounts if the seat mounts don't provide them ($400 BKAuto. You are easily looking at $2K-$3K+ for a proper setup.

You can get fairly good support from using the stock 3 point cinch system and making door and tunnel pads that fill up the space between the door/tunnel and the inside of the seat bottom cushions. When using the cinch system make sure the seat is all the way to the rear, pull the belt all the way out until it stops then insert into receiver and use both hands to remove any slack and feed it into the shoulder belt retractor. Since you are 6 ft tall you may not be able to run the stock seat very far forward but if you can this is the time to get the belt really tight by running the seat forward until you reach your driving position. At that point the lap belt should feel like it is cutting you in two and the shoulder belt should be tight across your chest. If it isn't you need to practice getting more slack out of the belts.

I made a very nice fire resistant high density foam pad to velcro to the door my my Z06. I used two one inch thick foam pads like these: https://www.pegasusautoracing.com/pr...IaAv94EALw_wcB

I cut the pads so they would fit against the door and when glued together actually fit over top of the seat bottom raised bolster. I had an upholsterer make a nomex wrap for the foam block and sew velcro strips to it. Then I put some matching velcro on the front and bottom of the door in the door opening. I also have a velcro strip sewn to the wrap that wraps around the door pull. When the door is closed the pad keeps my leg in place just like the seat bottom bolster of a race seat. I haven't made the inside pad yet but it would be even simpler since velcro strips attached to it would stick to the carpet.

The stock Comp seat does a pretty good job of holding the torso in place so using the pads to hold the legs in place you probably can get by without a race seat if you don't want to spend the money.

Bill

village idiot

Here's my two cents:
If you are going to get a set of 18's, why not get them now? Aside from increase in performance, they will save money. Why not start saving money earlier? Plus, on the street, having deep treads is important. On the track (unless its wet) it's detrimental. Why waste good "top tread" on your street tires?
For a beginner I'd suggest R888R. They have less grip and last longer than NT01 and they don't let go as abruptly as NT01. NT01 has great grip but they're not as forgiving and they wear fast.

As mentioned, don't forget brake fluid (SRF) and proper alignment. If you're running R888R or MPSS, the street/track combo is my suggestion. You won't have enough grip (or skill) to need the full track camber. My R888R wore very evenly with that setup.

edit: You don't need a harness bar. It's more dangerous anyway.

Quickshift_C5

I moved to the NT01 specifically because everybody on this forum said they lasted longer. As always, I decided to do my own research and see for myself. I used two sets of R888R and then used the NT01. And yep...the NT01 not only lasts longer, but has better grip and keeps that grip through the whole life. Fantastic tires.

I recommend completely against using an R compound as you're starting out too. Bad idea. Use a 200 treadwear street tire, as the learning curve will be much easier and faster. Just like using a slow car to learn on the track vs a 500hp monster.

lobsterroboto

Super important in bold.

GoatHead

That was my thought. It is about economics and saving money on tires and perhaps wheels. I don't think I will have the skills to out-grow the stock wheels and tires - not for several years at least.

I flushed my brake system with SRF last october, and I will flush it again before the first event in the Spring. I adjusted the alignment to DCS street/track spec. Also, I flushed the diff fluid after the first event. I don't know, yet, whether I should change the transmission fluid or not.

village idiot

lobsterroboto

NT01's lose their tread quicker than R888R but they don't lose their grip as fast.

NT01's have a magic hour right before they're cycled out they're better than new.

The last few NT01's I ran had well over 30 cycles on them.