Educate me on driving schools
- Thread starter Phreakazoid
- Start date
i would suggest skip barber up at road america but it can be kinda pricey. i believe they have 1 and 2 day classes. otherwise i would suggest trying some track days. almost all of them have beginner groups and you get an instructor. very valuable information.
i know a guy on here is part of one. ive been to a few speedtrialusa outings because i know the guy that runs them. they pretty much only run at gingerman though.
i know a guy on here is part of one. ive been to a few speedtrialusa outings because i know the guy that runs them. they pretty much only run at gingerman though.
Skip barber will teach you all you need to know about driving. My buddy did it and had a great time while learning a lot. What he did was drive a Neon ACR, a manual Dakota in the wet, and finally got to take a Viper around an auto cross. They have tons of expert racers to correct any problems.
The only down side is the cost. i think a one day school is around $1000. Though if you sign up at Road America i think there is a 15% discount.
The only down side is the cost. i think a one day school is around $1000. Though if you sign up at Road America i think there is a 15% discount.
I'd start off with autocross. Most clubs have driving school type events, either in a autocross/parking lot type setting or track. For example the BMW club is having one at Gingerman raceway http://www.windycitybmw.com/Calendar/EventDetails.aspx?Id=23
i wouldn't spend a whole lot of money on mods to start out with other than tires... summer tires are the biggest thing. after that i'd go for suspension and maybe brakes and then engine...
worth doing autocrosses to start out with just to learn some basics and learn how to be more aggressive in how you are doing things. although it is a lot tighter and the road track is a different beast. autocross is still good and much cheaper/safer too.
there are a couple private organizations running track days, but clubs run track schools as well. i have only done bmws but i know audi has them and so does vw. not sure if vw runs them as track days or schools. bmw definitely runs them as schools and they are done very well. http://www.windycitybmw.com - you'll have mini buddies there too!
gingerman i pretty much the safest track around to start out on. i think autobahn was designed by the same guy and it is probably the next best... the only other ones i've done around here are grattan and road america and they are fun but not good for first time IMO. blackhawk and putnam park are also around here but i haven't been to either.
expect autocross to be about $35
track day with some random group and no/minimal instructing $125+
bmw track school - $350-$500 depending on track; 2 days
expect to be burning a lot of fuel on track... not sure what i get maybe like 3mpg i never really calculated it well.
i've done the bmw track school twice, i think it's the best one to start off with.
here be my vids - http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=sickmint79
worth doing autocrosses to start out with just to learn some basics and learn how to be more aggressive in how you are doing things. although it is a lot tighter and the road track is a different beast. autocross is still good and much cheaper/safer too.
there are a couple private organizations running track days, but clubs run track schools as well. i have only done bmws but i know audi has them and so does vw. not sure if vw runs them as track days or schools. bmw definitely runs them as schools and they are done very well. http://www.windycitybmw.com - you'll have mini buddies there too!
gingerman i pretty much the safest track around to start out on. i think autobahn was designed by the same guy and it is probably the next best... the only other ones i've done around here are grattan and road america and they are fun but not good for first time IMO. blackhawk and putnam park are also around here but i haven't been to either.
expect autocross to be about $35
track day with some random group and no/minimal instructing $125+
bmw track school - $350-$500 depending on track; 2 days
expect to be burning a lot of fuel on track... not sure what i get maybe like 3mpg i never really calculated it well.
i've done the bmw track school twice, i think it's the best one to start off with.
here be my vids - http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=sickmint79
Awesome, I would totally sign up for the one on the 28th if I could. I'll have to keep an eye out for gingerman dates, it sounds like that's a pretty good spot.
Yeah, i'm trying to keep away from doing a bunch of power mods. I'll be replacing the tires soon, fucking runflats make the ride awful. After I replace the tires I'll pop in a rear sway bar, supposedly it makes an immense difference in the handling.
Yeah, i'm trying to keep away from doing a bunch of power mods. I'll be replacing the tires soon, fucking runflats make the ride awful. After I replace the tires I'll pop in a rear sway bar, supposedly it makes an immense difference in the handling.
i got these - http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Dunlop&tireModel=Direzza+Sport+Z1+Star+Spec
haven't mounted yet (will very soon) but it they appear to be pretty tough to beat in terms of performance per dollar. as far as suspension i'm sure the mini guys know all about that but be sure to listen to someone that actually tracks or autocrosses and knows what they are talking about and not just any old pud who does some mod and thinks it makes things better! no way to get into bmw gman this year by now, you can see on their schedule other events coming up though. accc (audi) or cvo (vw) may be having track/school days coming up at gman though.
haven't mounted yet (will very soon) but it they appear to be pretty tough to beat in terms of performance per dollar. as far as suspension i'm sure the mini guys know all about that but be sure to listen to someone that actually tracks or autocrosses and knows what they are talking about and not just any old pud who does some mod and thinks it makes things better! no way to get into bmw gman this year by now, you can see on their schedule other events coming up though. accc (audi) or cvo (vw) may be having track/school days coming up at gman though.
not sure what size the mini uses; you can price them out at tirerack, they have pretty good prices but you may be able to beat them elsewhere.
the only club that wants you to own one of their cars IIRC is porsche, i think you need to provide a VIN to join. nobody else cares what kind of car you have; membership is $40/yr i think for most/all. events are cheaper if you are a member, or depending on the club/event, you may be required to be a member. the only club i am actually a member of is bmw.
the only club that wants you to own one of their cars IIRC is porsche, i think you need to provide a VIN to join. nobody else cares what kind of car you have; membership is $40/yr i think for most/all. events are cheaper if you are a member, or depending on the club/event, you may be required to be a member. the only club i am actually a member of is bmw.
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