Howdy, I finally took the time to make a one lap video with no identifiers of myself or other drivers.
My lap time was 2:31, in the simulator I can get a 2:07 in the same car so I left a lot out on the track. In the sim there is no break fade and on track I could get 2 or 3 really hard breaking zones before I’d start to experience fade.
My fastest lap on the day was a 2:19 mostly due to the break fade. I have good video of it but the audio is just wind, and the only laps I did with the GoPro on the rear of my car for good sound were pretty casual laps. So I took a casual lap and paired it with the audio.
I’m going back in September for my last outing of the year most likely, then likely working on better breaks and cooling system as I could only get about 5 laps full out before I had heat soak issues and needed to pull into the cold pit to let the car cool off.
Fantastic track, quite technical. I put about 150 laps in the simulator before I went out and I’m glad I did. While there is pretty much nothing to hit, a few off camber turns and a few late apex turns would have thrown me into the weeds otherwise.
I look forward to hearing more about your car! My son and I are big car enthusiasts, but I’m past the age where I want to wrench on a car but am happy to live through other people!
When I was young I had a second generation Mitsubishi Eclipse, the DSM motor could take a lot of punishment and I planned to do a ton of work to it, then I started having kids.
As for my car yeah it’s fast and gets a ton of attention. But I’ve driven a McLaren 650s and I felt like I could tell you the exact shape of every pebble on the road. It was fantastic! And in my sim rig (Moza with VR) I get a lot more communication in the steering than in my Vette. The Vette in the sim is about as lacking though so it’s is a good model.
This winter I’ll consider my options and see what I come up with. Looks like there are used spec Miatas for as little as $8k, not sure what all work it would need but right now that’s feeling like the best option.
But I’m going back to the track in September so clearly the Vette not being as visceral as I want isn’t enough to stop me from enjoying my time on track.
Well once the kids grow old enough they become apprentices, would have loved it if my dad was into motorsport and asked me to help him hahaha
Does the Vette have electric steering? Mine’s hidraulic and I always felt a big difference going from it to a softer electric, most manufacturers tune their electric steering to be soft for comfort. I did notice the stiffer suspension really improved steering feel a ton in that regard, I can feel the road so much more now (which at times gets annoying since the roads I daily are a mess)
Either way comparing the Vette to a Maclaren is kinda unfair, not only because of price but because of what the cars are actually designed for lol
I’d say you should see if there aren’t any events or private courses where you can drive a Miata around a track before you buy one. You know make sure you’ll actually fit in it and enjoy it
Yeah it’s electric, one of the main reasons people track C6s over C7s is the steering.
My son is bigger into motorsports than I am. He reignited my excitement for it that had died out when he was born. He is going to college to be an aerodynamicist and design race cars.
We race in the sim together and he’s still a bit faster than me but I’m catching up! I don’t know that I’ll ever catch him, the advantage of youth is real.
I’ve driven a few Miatas of different generations and there is a surprising amount of room once I get in it. The day after my track day is the 24 hours of lemons and there are always a handful of Miatas there. I’m hoping there will be a few testing that day that I can get a ride in or maybe drive.
At this track the track day drivers are pretty open about that which is cool. Everybody is just excited to talk about and share the experience of their cars.
Hey that’s awesome! Hope he finds his way into a racing team and fulfills his dreams!
And yeah I suggested you test the Miata first because I’d believe there’s a big difference going from a Vette to a Miata in terms of power haha
Oh for sure, I’ll keep the Vette to daily. The MX-5 would be a track only toy. What I missed most was cornering which the Vette lacked in.