I got an invite from my ex-boss to a private event at Palmer Motorsports Park in Warren MA. The track is brand new, and actually not quite finished yet, but did open for track days and racing this year. It's a 2.3 mile track with 14 turns and 190 feet in elevation change. That amount of turns means there's not much time for a breather, and the track wears you out quickly.
I've been to 7 track days before, but never a private event like this. This was 12 friends at a racetrack with no formal instructors, no flaggers, no classroom sessions, and no bunches of 20 cars on the track at the same time. Of the 12 guys, only 3 brought their own cars on the track. The rest drove a trio of spec Miatas and a race-prepped, but beat-up 1988 BMW 325 E30.
I was a little hesitant about accepting the offer since my car only has 3500 miles on it and is still perfect. On the other hand, offers like this don't present themselves every day.
The M235i is an amazing little track car. I drove it in Sport+ mode, and did not turn off the stability control. It was fine that way. I could still rotate the rear quite easily when I wanted to, and it was plenty fun. :)
I brought my iPod Touch with the BMW Laptimer app, and a Hero GoPro mounted to the inside of the windshield for video. I have to say the Laptimer app is fantastic! I spent a good hour or more at home later re-living the sessions. For those who don't know, this thing records each lap using GPS, and syncs that data with the car's onboard computer, so you can review all kinds of telemetry data in detail. For example, there's a g-force mode, where you can see the lateral g-forces at each and every point of the lap. Same with rpm, mph, braking g-force, fuel usage, and throttle input.
As far as the lateral g-force, I was taking most of the turns between .75 and .80g. On my best lap, I hit one at .92g. Car And Driver tested the car on a 300 foot skidpad and said the limit was .92g. So not sure how accurate the app and C&D are, but on paper I was at the limit there. And that's also the difference between me and a real racer, since the real racer would likely take all the turns at the limit... :cool:
The app also said my best lap was 2.03 and the max speed was 126. In another thread in this forum, I mentioned a 2014 Mustang GT driven by an instructor on this track and linked to the video on YouTube. That guy did 1.59 lap with max speed of 130. So I was not far off the instructor's speed where his car had 100 more horsepower.
I was driving as hard as I could, but I only went 20 laps total in 4 different sessions. I was learning both the track and the car at the same time, and felt that I had pushed the car enough.
I also got about 10 laps in the 325. The car was beat to hell, but it did have race tires, brakes, seat, roll cage, and 5-point harness. I had a blast in it. The steering was maybe better than mine! So much feel to it. Braking and grip were terrific too. Because the track is so technical with turn after turn, it doesn't require a lot of horsepower. Not that horsepower doesn't help, but you can negate some of the need for it with momentum.
Attached is a picture of the Laptimer app, and another of the pit. The yellowish/green car behind mine is the 325. The red one behind mine on the other side is my ex-boss's Ferrari Superamerica. He thought about tracking it, but then only did a few parade laps - it's just too expensive to take a chance with. The only other street car there was the blue Subaru, although if you look closely, there's a BMW i8 hidden behind mine. The owner did take it on the track for a few slow laps, but nothing beyond that.
I've been to 7 track days before, but never a private event like this. This was 12 friends at a racetrack with no formal instructors, no flaggers, no classroom sessions, and no bunches of 20 cars on the track at the same time. Of the 12 guys, only 3 brought their own cars on the track. The rest drove a trio of spec Miatas and a race-prepped, but beat-up 1988 BMW 325 E30.
I was a little hesitant about accepting the offer since my car only has 3500 miles on it and is still perfect. On the other hand, offers like this don't present themselves every day.
The M235i is an amazing little track car. I drove it in Sport+ mode, and did not turn off the stability control. It was fine that way. I could still rotate the rear quite easily when I wanted to, and it was plenty fun. :)
I brought my iPod Touch with the BMW Laptimer app, and a Hero GoPro mounted to the inside of the windshield for video. I have to say the Laptimer app is fantastic! I spent a good hour or more at home later re-living the sessions. For those who don't know, this thing records each lap using GPS, and syncs that data with the car's onboard computer, so you can review all kinds of telemetry data in detail. For example, there's a g-force mode, where you can see the lateral g-forces at each and every point of the lap. Same with rpm, mph, braking g-force, fuel usage, and throttle input.
As far as the lateral g-force, I was taking most of the turns between .75 and .80g. On my best lap, I hit one at .92g. Car And Driver tested the car on a 300 foot skidpad and said the limit was .92g. So not sure how accurate the app and C&D are, but on paper I was at the limit there. And that's also the difference between me and a real racer, since the real racer would likely take all the turns at the limit... :cool:
The app also said my best lap was 2.03 and the max speed was 126. In another thread in this forum, I mentioned a 2014 Mustang GT driven by an instructor on this track and linked to the video on YouTube. That guy did 1.59 lap with max speed of 130. So I was not far off the instructor's speed where his car had 100 more horsepower.
I was driving as hard as I could, but I only went 20 laps total in 4 different sessions. I was learning both the track and the car at the same time, and felt that I had pushed the car enough.
I also got about 10 laps in the 325. The car was beat to hell, but it did have race tires, brakes, seat, roll cage, and 5-point harness. I had a blast in it. The steering was maybe better than mine! So much feel to it. Braking and grip were terrific too. Because the track is so technical with turn after turn, it doesn't require a lot of horsepower. Not that horsepower doesn't help, but you can negate some of the need for it with momentum.
Attached is a picture of the Laptimer app, and another of the pit. The yellowish/green car behind mine is the 325. The red one behind mine on the other side is my ex-boss's Ferrari Superamerica. He thought about tracking it, but then only did a few parade laps - it's just too expensive to take a chance with. The only other street car there was the blue Subaru, although if you look closely, there's a BMW i8 hidden behind mine. The owner did take it on the track for a few slow laps, but nothing beyond that.
M235i at Palmer Motorsports Park
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