Tracking a stock 135

[tzsgti]

I have a 2011 BMW 135i DCT that is completely stock. Is the car really that bad stock? I read a lot of reviews how this car is not made for the track and all. I see that there is a lot of people who add few suspension mods and track the car all the time. Since my car is leased and its my daily driver i am planning on keeping the suspension mods to a minimal, possible upgraded sway bars in the future.

My previous car was a 2010 Subaru WRX STI SE and was amazing stock. I only tracked it once and that has been my only track experience thus far(has some auto x experience in my VW as well). I am planning on going to NJMP this spring and tracking the 135. Am i wasting my time tracking the car showroom stock? I only go to the track once or twice a year.

How do the stock pads hold up on this car. How about the OEM runflats? Am i going to have a horrible time with this car on the track?

[int2str]

The car will be just fine stock, you'll have a blast!

Two minor things though:

1) Change (or have someone change) your brake fluid to a "racing" brake fluid like Motul RBF 600. It's a very cheap and easy "upgrade" to make sure you're not experiencing brake fade at the track.

2) The stock brake pads are great initially, but can fade a bit. With a stock engine and on runflats you're probably perfectly fine. But again, for a few hundred bucks you can upgrade your brake pads for some additional peace of mind and consistent brake feel throughout your runs.

Leave the suspension alone for now until you know exactly what you want to change (if anything).

[Freon]

+1 on pads and fluid. I do think the car comes with decent dot4 fluid, but good fresh dot4 fluid isn't a bad idea. Pads are almost required for tracking a car to get the most out of it, so I would pick up some DTC 60+ or other track-ready pads. Swap out pads for the track.

[Lubo]

Originally Posted by Freon

+1 on pads and fluid. I do think the car comes with decent dot4 fluid, but good fresh dot4 fluid isn't a bad idea. Pads are almost required for tracking a car to get the most out of it, so I would pick up some DTC 60+ or other track-ready pads. Swap out pads for the track.

I've done 3 events on the stock pads. While they tend to fade quickly they give up gradually. DTC60 is a full race pad and would not recommend running around with those on daily driver. I was running EBC yellowstuff and went thru 3 sets of those and they were really good at doing the double duty of DD and some track time without breaking the bank. I was running Motul RBF600 for 2 years and Castrol SRF last year either one is great with Castrol being slightly more expensive.

Originally Posted by tzsgti

I have a 2011 BMW 135i DCT that is completely stock. Is the car really that bad stock? I read a lot of reviews how this car is not made for the track and all. I see that there is a lot of people who add few suspension mods and track the car all the time. Since my car is leased and its my daily driver i am planning on keeping the suspension mods to a minimal, possible upgraded sway bars in the future.

My previous car was a 2010 Subaru WRX STI SE and was amazing stock. I only tracked it once and that has been my only track experience thus far(has some auto x experience in my VW as well). I am planning on going to NJMP this spring and tracking the 135. Am i wasting my time tracking the car showroom stock? I only go to the track once or twice a year.

How do the stock pads hold up on this car. How about the OEM runflats? Am i going to have a horrible time with this car on the track?

you will be fine going showroom stock. One thing to look into is separate tires and wheels that you can rotate. lack of camber up front will eat your tires 2x as fast as the rears. I would skip the FSB and just opt out for camber plates. I also had my car leased and I went to at least 10 track days with nothing but Front camber plates and 255 tires all around.

Have fun and post up your impression on the car later.

Lubo

[cooler2442]

Yes you need pads + fluid ASAP. Look at my thread, where it shows how badly my stock pads cracked after only a few track days.

http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showt...ghlight=ds2500

[syenisch]

Whether or not you need to change pads/fluid depends on the track. My first three DE's were at a track with only one hard braking zone (140 down to 70 I think), and the brakes were fine. Saturday I tried a new track with 4 hard braking zones (105 down to 45), and after I got comfortable and pushed the car to the limit, there was notable fade after 5 laps, and they were toast after 7. My advice is find a YouTube clip of the track you are going to that shows telemetry. Give us more info about the braking zones and we could probably give you a more confident, consistent answer as to whether or not you need to change anything.

[pixelblue]

if you are tracking the car once or twice a year I would say not to worry too much about it. the car has some inherent deficiencies when it comes to handling and brakes but not unless you're driving at 9/10th. having said that, changing the pads and fluid is relatively inexpensive and doing so will allow you to push the car a little harder. IMO starting totally stock is the way to go since you will quickly learn where to make improvements if you decide to go tracking more. otherwise, take it easy and learn the car first before you make any upgrades

[tzsgti]

Thanks everyone for the advise. So the general consensus is changing brake pads. Fair enough...

[int2str]

Originally Posted by tzsgti

Thanks everyone for the advise. So the general consensus is changing brake pads. Fair enough...

AND Fluid - it's cheap and makes a big difference!

[Focusedintntions]

Yeah fluid is the number 1 thing!!!!

[FDM68]

Allot of good advice here brake pads/fliuids etc... I've been stock and done a couple of laps out at the ring and for me the weak point seemed to be the tires. I know allot of people bash the RFTs but they did well enough with grip my problem was any type of road irregularity seemed to unhindge the rear. I would also recomend a tire upgrade or if you can a second wheel set up with non RFT's. I know I'm about to drop dime on some new Mich's once the weather warms up.

[adrean8j]

Originally Posted by FDM68

Allot of good advice here brake pads/fliuids etc... I've been stock and done a couple of laps out at the ring and for me the weak point seemed to be the tires. I know allot of people bash the RFTs but they did well enough with grip my problem was any type of road irregularity seemed to unhindge the rear. I would also recomend a tire upgrade or if you can a second wheel set up with non RFT's. I know I'm about to drop dime on some new Mich's once the weather warms up.

That rear shimmy has more to do with the rear bushings and suspension components...get the M3 suspension upgrade.

[FDM68]

Yeah thats true also, but I know from being in my car with the RFTs and one of my friends on non RFTs there a bit more shudder. Have the bushings etc on my to do list also though. Thanks

[TX78666]

Should be fine. I'd be more concerned about the organization and how the event is run, than the car. I've had the 135 on the track three times now, with the fourth coming up next month. It is stock.

For me, the driver has been the limiting factor 9 times out of 10 so far.

[mbintx]

^ I see you had a chance to run MSR 1.7 clockwise. That doesn't happen too often...

[TX78666]

Yep. It was a blast. I think we'll be running the whole thing (3.1?) in a few months.

[mbintx]

Originally Posted by TX78666

Yep. It was a blast. I think we'll be running the whole thing (3.1?) in a few months.

End of April 2-day event? I've got a couple of friends who are probably going to sign up, and it will be their first time for a track weekend. I'll probably go out there one day to watch....

[TX78666]

July 14 and 15.

[Sauce]

Originally Posted by tzsgti

I have a 2011 BMW 135i DCT that is completely stock. Is the car really that bad stock? I read a lot of reviews how this car is not made for the track and all. I see that there is a lot of people who add few suspension mods and track the car all the time. Since my car is leased and its my daily driver i am planning on keeping the suspension mods to a minimal, possible upgraded sway bars in the future.

My previous car was a 2010 Subaru WRX STI SE and was amazing stock. I only tracked it once and that has been my only track experience thus far(has some auto x experience in my VW as well). I am planning on going to NJMP this spring and tracking the 135. Am i wasting my time tracking the car showroom stock? I only go to the track once or twice a year.

How do the stock pads hold up on this car. How about the OEM runflats? Am i going to have a horrible time with this car on the track?

I used to have an STi as well. I'll just leave it at this: the STi felt a lot more comftorable on the track and being pushed. Like it enjoyed it and the 1'er just feels a little out of place IF you have enough experience to start going very quickly. Now to answer your question, I have a pretty good amount of track time, so I will only speak on what I have experience from, but your pads will be fine. Actually I feel as if it is extremely important you do NOT change your pads. Mostly due to the fact that you have a 2011, when your pads or rotors wear out, BMW will take care of the bill. It isn't worth it for 1-2 track days a year when most likely you will not even get near the point of heat effecting the pads too much. However you absolutely, ABSOLUTELY need to change your brake fluid. Use DOT4 fluid, and make 100% sure no air gets in the system. If it does it expands when the fluid gets hot, it bubbles, it causes the lines to expand and pressure can go down, causing what "feels" like fade. On the issue of tires. Runflats suck.... If someone is timing you. However for the occasional DE, they do have some upsides (hear me out on this). They wear like they're made of freaking granite and tires are damn expensive. They also will let you know if you did something wrong. If you go into a corner too hot, your going to understeer, if you get onto the power too hard and early, your going to spin the crap out of your inside wheel (F*uckin open diff!). The best way to learn driving dynamics os to run skinny, low grip tires. The big, wide, sticky stuff is a crutch (that's why everyone loves them!). 95% of people can't outdrive the stock tires, or stock car as a whole, you will be fine.

One last piece of advice. You need to have an instructor ride with you, even let him drive your car.

Originally Posted by cooler2442

Yes you need pads + fluid ASAP. Look at my thread, where it shows how badly my stock pads cracked after only a few track days.

http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showt...ghlight=ds2500

Hey man, I think we wen't on a run new years day. Was that you? I had the montego blue 135.

[TX78666]

Originally Posted by Sauce

They wear like they're made of freaking granite

Yep. Three events down with the 135, and I am still waiting to replace these things.

[tzsgti]

Originally Posted by TX78666

Should be fine. I'd be more concerned about the organization and how the event is run, than the car. I've had the 135 on the track three times now, with the fourth coming up next month. It is stock.

For me, the driver has been the limiting factor 9 times out of 10 so far.

NASA so it should be fine.

[mbintx]

Sauce makes some good points.