I've been tracking my G35 Coupe for a number of years, and have gone through a number of upgrades in the process. I haven't been to Bluegrass before, but most tracks will overwhelm certain parts of the car (depending on how hard you are pushing it).

As far as prepping the car, take EVERYTHING out of it. Spare tire, jack, floormats, garage door opener, etc. Top off the oil, check all other fluids (except the washer fluid). Pump up the tires to around 38PSI to start.

The first issue you will run into on track are brakes. Even the OEM Brembos have their limits, and I found them at Road America back in 2004. Things that you can do to help are:
1) Change the brake fluid! This is critical. Motul 600 is excellent stuff, ATE Super Blue isn't half bad either. Boiling brake fluid is a very scary experience that I do not recommend.
2) Change your pads to "race" pads. I can't comment on the pads others have suggested as I haven't used them, but I use Hawk's line of pads with great success. DTC 60's are terrific for track-only, but don't use them on the street! They don't really start "biting" until they are over 400 degrees.
3) Remove the splash shields from the front wheels completely, cut away the splash shield that isn't holding in the parking brake mechanism in the rear. This helps a LOT with cooling.

Everything above assumes you have OEM Brembos. If you don't, a brake upgrade would be a very good idea. I would recommend against the Ebay solution you found, buying an "unknown" brake system on Ebay is kind of like buying insulin on Ebay-- you are trusting your safety to your brakes, buy quality! Stoptech makes excellent kits for G35's, Brembo does as well but you pay more.

Otherwise, go have fun! If you do this frequently, an oil cooler would be an extremely good idea, as would synthetic oil (I use Mobil 1 0W40 and have had great results). Watch your water temp carefully, if it starts creeping up you need a radiator upgrade. Feel free to ask any other questions.

--Bryce

 

Great advice thanks for the help!

 

dont mean to hijack but i was accidentally shipped Hawk HP+ track pads instead of Hawk HP street pads. i have them. they have like 50 miles on them they are almost brand new. i bedded them properly but when i heard the extra noise the track pads make i inspected the box and saw the error. the company sent me a new pair but wouldnt take back the HP+ bc i had "used" them.

my loss is your gain would you like to buy them. i have no use for track pads currently as i dont track my car and also it is upstate ny winter right now.

make me a reasonable offer and i will ship them to you.

Thanks a lot.

I have pics of you need them and oh they will only fit the brembo application ('03/'04 6MT)



OH AND HAVE FUN AND GOOD LUCK AT THE TRACK

 

All I did was get new brake pads, a Snell M-rated helmet (SA is better) and took along my torque wrench. After driving for a little, re-torque the lugs. Depending on how long the runs are, you'll likely need a full gas tank. I thought a 1/2 tank would help keep down weight, but my warning light came on during one of my runs. I went through a whole tank in 100 minutes of driving.

 

That's awesome. I started autoX'ing in the kentucky region last year with my G and had a lot of fun. I guess im going to check out the bluegrass tack when spring comes!

6SP33D, let me know the date and time. I would go with you if you don't mind.

 

Good call on the torque wrench, I should have mentioned that. 80 lb-ft has always worked well for me. If you take the wheels on and off a lot, using a bit of anti-sieze compound (NOT GREASE OR ANY OTHER KIND OF LUBRICANT) on the threads will do wonders to keep the nuts from siezing. I've had to replace at least a half-dozen studs over the past few years.

For helmets, there are 3 "levels" of helmet ratings AFAIK:
1) DOT approved. Most track sanctioning groups do NOT accept these helmets
2) Snell M or K rated. Some track sanctioning groups accept these helmets, check with yours.
3) Snell SA rated. All track sanctioning groups accept these. They are grouped by age-- Snell SA95 helmets were made between 1995 and 2000, SA00 were made between 2000 and 2005, and so on. Check with your group to see what age they allow.

If you are keeping your airbags on (which I've been told is a very good idea unless you have a HANS device), I'd use an open-faced helmet. I'm using an Impact brand Velocity model open-face helmet, and have been very happy with it. I had a Simpson closed-face helmet before that, it also worked well but is difficult for those of us wearing glasses.

--Bryce

P.S. Did I mention to flush your brake fluid???

 

Thanks for the offer ONLYG35. I am planning on driving to Bluegrass in the G, and return in G (if I don't crash). I don't want to swap between the track and street pads, since I wont be tracking that much with the G anyway.

Sounds cool. I am planning on attending one of the 10/10ths track day. Looks like they pushed the initial date. I am guessing, I will have to wait until May 2nd. Here is the link http://www.1010thsmotorsports.com/2009_TOTAL.html
Will c u there. my G would be the one with "6 SP33D" plate It's not set in stone yet. I'll let you know when I confirm the plan.


Thanks for the info again Bryce. I will go get a open face helmet, and be done with it, instead of using my bike helmet. Yes, I will flush the fluids

Thanks for the info darnelled. I will take my torque wrench with me, and fill up on the gas before I leave to the track. I was intially thinking about taking gas cans with me, so I can run with half the fuel (weight savings like you mentioned).

 

I would consider heading to the track with a full tank-- gas tank weight is low and in the rear of the car which is a good thing, and you will suck down fuel very quickly. I normally get around 7MPG on a racetrack. It's ironic that my Saturn SC2 (at less than half the HP) only got around 8MPG.

--Bryce