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It's been 2 years since the last time I was at Laguna Seca. The last time was only my second track day ever. Laguna Seca track days are hard to come by at a convenient time, but I was finally able to return this past Friday. I was worried about rain during this time of the year, but it was 60 degrees and sunny!
The track? Very fun. The corkscrew is definitely the highlight. I happen to have access to 4 cameras that day (2 gopros, 1 camsports, and an iphone 4), so I went nuts with the camera views. Unfortunately, my datalogger system was acting up (I didn't fully charge my GPS receiver), so I didn't get much usable logs to overlay my usual stuff. The gunmetal GTR that was chasing me logged a 1:48, so I'm guessing my time was about 2 seconds faster.
My brakes failed me for the first time ever. At the end of my last session the pedal started to feel soft, so I exited the track. As I pulled into the paddock, the brake pedal fell all the way to the floor, and brake fluid was dripping out of the fill reservoir. I boiled over. I just bled the lines with RBF600 fluid the weekend before the event, so I don't think it's a fluid problem. My brake setup (ST43 pads, titanium shims, brake cooling fins, and RBF 600 fluid) has never failed me before even in 100F ambient temps. I'm guessing the reasoning is 2 issues:
a) Braking technique: I'm still learning the track, and I'm unsure about ideal braking points and entry speeds. As a result, my braking technique was poor. Dragging, and increasing the brake force at the end of the brake zone, rather than the beginning.
b) Rotors: I'm still on the stock 2 piece rotors after about 12 track days on the car. The rotors are looking worn, and I'm wondering if they're not dissipating heat like they they did before.
I don't 'think' brake use at Laguna is significantly more intense than at Thunderhill. I've never had braking issues at Thill, so I'm guessing my braking technique was the real culprit.
I swapped out my track pads today and was shocked to find out that 1/2 of the pad had worn away. Prior to this event I had about 8 track days with my ST43s and they barely looked worn up until today. The rotors look pretty worn too. No cracks, but you can see/feel that it's significantly thinner from the wear. I suppose it's time to get new ones. Do I need to get new pads as well, or am I ok with still 1/2 of the ST43s left?
I have a lot of work to do still with this track. For some reason, I just couldn't figure out how to hit turns 6 and 9 correctly. I knew I was way off, but couldn't figure out how to correct it.
Since I don't have data overlay this time, I decided to add 'comments'. Look for the 911 that spun from leaking oil and caught fire. The end of the video is chase video of my friend's GTR that makes ~500whp/500wtq. It's an absolute monster. Surpringly I held my own on the straightaways with my measly 320whp.
The video:
The track? Very fun. The corkscrew is definitely the highlight. I happen to have access to 4 cameras that day (2 gopros, 1 camsports, and an iphone 4), so I went nuts with the camera views. Unfortunately, my datalogger system was acting up (I didn't fully charge my GPS receiver), so I didn't get much usable logs to overlay my usual stuff. The gunmetal GTR that was chasing me logged a 1:48, so I'm guessing my time was about 2 seconds faster.
My brakes failed me for the first time ever. At the end of my last session the pedal started to feel soft, so I exited the track. As I pulled into the paddock, the brake pedal fell all the way to the floor, and brake fluid was dripping out of the fill reservoir. I boiled over. I just bled the lines with RBF600 fluid the weekend before the event, so I don't think it's a fluid problem. My brake setup (ST43 pads, titanium shims, brake cooling fins, and RBF 600 fluid) has never failed me before even in 100F ambient temps. I'm guessing the reasoning is 2 issues:
a) Braking technique: I'm still learning the track, and I'm unsure about ideal braking points and entry speeds. As a result, my braking technique was poor. Dragging, and increasing the brake force at the end of the brake zone, rather than the beginning.
b) Rotors: I'm still on the stock 2 piece rotors after about 12 track days on the car. The rotors are looking worn, and I'm wondering if they're not dissipating heat like they they did before.
I don't 'think' brake use at Laguna is significantly more intense than at Thunderhill. I've never had braking issues at Thill, so I'm guessing my braking technique was the real culprit.
I swapped out my track pads today and was shocked to find out that 1/2 of the pad had worn away. Prior to this event I had about 8 track days with my ST43s and they barely looked worn up until today. The rotors look pretty worn too. No cracks, but you can see/feel that it's significantly thinner from the wear. I suppose it's time to get new ones. Do I need to get new pads as well, or am I ok with still 1/2 of the ST43s left?
I have a lot of work to do still with this track. For some reason, I just couldn't figure out how to hit turns 6 and 9 correctly. I knew I was way off, but couldn't figure out how to correct it.
Since I don't have data overlay this time, I decided to add 'comments'. Look for the 911 that spun from leaking oil and caught fire. The end of the video is chase video of my friend's GTR that makes ~500whp/500wtq. It's an absolute monster. Surpringly I held my own on the straightaways with my measly 320whp.
The video:
