135 track car...what to know?

[lastMleft]

Originally Posted by pixelblue

here's a fun video I found from a race prepped 135 at my local track that competes at nasa GT3 class. don't have much info about the car. I have sent a message to get some info about their setup but haven't heard back yet. for reference he's 4 + sec faster than my best time (ouchie) but I guess that's to be expected from a fully stripped race prepped car driven by a pro. I am shooting to cut that margin in half by next year

Damn nice!! thanks for sharing

[blutattoo]

Originally Posted by pixelblue

here's a fun video I found from a race prepped 135 at my local track that competes at nasa GT3 class. don't have much info about the car. I have sent a message to get some info about their setup but haven't heard back yet. for reference he's 4 + sec faster than my best time (ouchie) but I guess that's to be expected from a fully stripped race prepped car driven by a pro. I am shooting to cut that margin in half by next year

Funny I didn't see anyone pass him either. That's one quick 135. I bet just swapping to hoosiers you could get pretty close to that time.

[Focusedintntions]

I now have a benchmark for what I'm shooting for

[pixelblue]

Originally Posted by blutattoo

I bet just swapping to hoosiers you could get pretty close to that time.

you're probably right but honestly can't afford to change tires 3 times a year.

Originally Posted by Focusedintntions

I now have a benchmark for what I'm shooting for

nothing wrong with aiming really high buddy but first you need to beat my time

[yandy]

Originally Posted by pixelblue

here's a fun video I found from a race prepped 135 at my local track that competes at nasa GT3 class. don't have much info about the car. I have sent a message to get some info about their setup but haven't heard back yet. for reference he's 4 + sec faster than my best time (ouchie) but I guess that's to be expected from a fully stripped race prepped car driven by a pro. I am shooting to cut that margin in half by next year

Great video, thanks

[pixelblue]

Originally Posted by yandy

Great video, thanks

[mbintx]

Originally Posted by omar14711

Ive owned my 135 for two years in witch time I've installed LSD, rb turbos, coil overs, sub frame bushings, sway bars, camber plates. im not sure as to total $ spent but it's up there. I hope brakes will be my last mod. However Ive enjoyed every single minute. Miata, please, there are few cars that can keep up with a properly tuned 135 the power is simply intoxicating. Go with the 135 you won't regret it, other wise I'll be seeing you in my rear view mirror.

The point being, give me the money you spent on all those mods to make your 135i track worthy, and I can build a Miata that will outrun your stock 135i in a 20-minute track session....

[Sauce]

Originally Posted by mbintx

The point being, give me the money you spent on all those mods to make your 135i track worthy, and I can build a Miata that will outrun your stock 135i in a 20-minute track session....

That's a pointless argument that's been made 10 billion times. Guess what you'll have a race car you can't do anything with but trailer to the track. He has a car that is an amazing DD and is still a monster on the track. THAT'S what you are paying for. If you want a full purpose built car, your better off not using anything remotely modern anyway.

And beside all that even a 15k NA Miata is not keeping up w/ an RB Turbo'd 1..

[mbintx]

^ and you'd be wrong. My Miata is perfectly street legal, and I drive it to and from the track. AND I have a DD 135i that I'm not worried about blowing up or balling up on the track...

And if you give me $15k to build a Miata, I'll build one that can hang with a 1M all day, let alone a 135i.

And while it may be an old argument, it was in response to the OP's question about making a track car out of an 135i. Can a 135i do fine for an occasional HPDE event? Sure it can. But I assume a "track car" is something more dedicated and comes with a driver that is more advanced than a semi-annual HPDE visit...

[blutattoo]

Originally Posted by mbintx

^ and you'd be wrong. My Miata is perfectly street legal, and I drive it to and from the track. AND I have a DD 135i that I'm not worried about blowing up or balling up on the track...

And if you give me $15k to build a Miata, I'll build one that can hang with a 1M all day, let alone a 135i.

And while it may be an old argument, it was in response to the OP's question about making a track car out of an 135i. Can a 135i do fine for an occasional HPDE event? Sure it can. But I assume a "track car" is something more dedicated and comes with a driver that is more advanced than a semi-annual HPDE visit...

I think the op asked e46 or 135. Didn't really ask about a Miata. Great fun, cheap to run, blah blah blah. You could make the argument that you could run 100 different cars that would be faster and cheaper than a 135 or a miata for that matter.

For 20k you can buy a used open wheel race car that would beat both cars by a mile. Not sure that it merits inclusion just based on it being faster around a track and cheaper.

It may be your amazing driving skills that makes your Miata so fast, but where I race there isn't one out of the hundreds of Miata's including race prepped cars that turn faster lap times than my slightly modified 135 on street tires. As for the e46's I demolish them. E92's if driven by a good driver compete with me, but just barely. I'd argue that the e36 is a better chassis to turn into a track car. But then again the op asked e46/135.

[mbintx]

Originally Posted by blutattoo

It may be your amazing driving skills that makes your Miata so fast, but where I race there isn't one out of the hundreds of Miata's including race prepped cars that turn faster lap times than my slightly modified 135 on street tires. As for the e46's I demolish them. E92's if driven by a good driver compete with me, but just barely. I'd argue that the e36 is a better chassis to turn into a track car. But then again the op asked e46/135.

I think we found our amazing driver

[joeo]

Rukuss - great video! Thanks for sharing. Holy crap you're hauling a$$ down that straight!
Great fun to watch!

-joe

[lastMleft]

Originally Posted by joeo

Rukuss - great video! Thanks for sharing. Holy crap you're hauling a$$ down that straight!
Great fun to watch!

-joe

Not Rukuss driving Joe the driver was Pixelblue Big props to Pixelblue!!

[Sauce]

Originally Posted by mbintx

^ and you'd be wrong. My Miata is perfectly street legal, and I drive it to and from the track. AND I have a DD 135i that I'm not worried about blowing up or balling up on the track...

And if you give me $15k to build a Miata, I'll build one that can hang with a 1M all day, let alone a 135i.

And while it may be an old argument, it was in response to the OP's question about making a track car out of an 135i. Can a 135i do fine for an occasional HPDE event? Sure it can. But I assume a "track car" is something more dedicated and comes with a driver that is more advanced than a semi-annual HPDE visit...

Look, I've already said this to you, I LOVE Miatas. But you are either way underestimating the 135 or way overestimating your Miata. You own the two, have you had both on the same track on the same tires? Out of the thousands of Miatas I've encountered, I've had ONE Miata be able to hang. That car had a damn lot more than 15k into it. Fully built turbocharged motor, he was also on better tires than I was. A 15k Miata is NOT keeping up w/ a slightly track oriented 135. Is the 135 an ideal track car? Hell no! But you know what, it can put in a hell of a hot lap.

Originally Posted by blutattoo

I think the op asked e46 or 135. Didn't really ask about a Miata. Great fun, cheap to run, blah blah blah. You could make the argument that you could run 100 different cars that would be faster and cheaper than a 135 or a miata for that matter.

For 20k you can buy a used open wheel race car that would beat both cars by a mile. Not sure that it merits inclusion just based on it being faster around a track and cheaper.

It may be your amazing driving skills that makes your Miata so fast, but where I race there isn't one out of the hundreds of Miata's including race prepped cars that turn faster lap times than my slightly modified 135 on street tires. As for the e46's I demolish them. E92's if driven by a good driver compete with me, but just barely. I'd argue that the e36 is a better chassis to turn into a track car. But then again the op asked e46/135.

Great points.

[pixelblue]

Originally Posted by joeo

Rukuss - great video! Thanks for sharing. Holy crap you're hauling a$$ down that straight!
Great fun to watch!

-joe

Originally Posted by Rukuss

Not Rukuss driving Joe the driver was Pixelblue Big props to Pixelblue!!

you guys are funny. seems like no one reads the thread anymore. wish I could take credit but that's not me either. it's a video from a pro driving a race prepped 135 around summit point.

[lastMleft]

Originally Posted by pixelblue

you guys are funny. seems like no one reads the thread anymore. wish I could take credit but that's not me either. it's a video from a pro driving a race prepped 135 around summit point.

LOL

[BiscottiGelato]

Originally Posted by blutattoo

Oil Cooler cured my limp modes even with 100+ track temps. Factory oil cooler stinks!

Boxster seems like it would be an ideal track car with a fixed roof and roll cage. Lose the interior, add race seats w/6pt harness, brakes, tires, and presto bad ass race car.

I have an e36 and it's quick on the track, but way more work than my 135 and not as fun either. It's a momentum car so you have to be very precise to be consistent, turn in early or late and you lose speed that's hard to make up. Compare that to the 1 where if you get lazy or you get behind traffic the torque gets you out of a lot of spots.

The next thing I am hoping to address this season is limp mode. It's real embarrassing and not to mention dangerous to limp on the track. What oil cooler did you end up going with? How much did it all cost? A review? Thanks!

[blutattoo]

Originally Posted by BiscottiGelato

The next thing I am hoping to address this season is limp mode. It's real embarrassing and not to mention dangerous to limp on the track. What oil cooler did you end up going with? How much did it all cost? A review? Thanks!

I ended up getting the Dinan one, but solely because I wanted to keep the factory warranty intact. It does work really well though, but it cost a bunch of money($1400 minus 15% if you buy in March or October I think). I'm pretty sure there are other less expensive options with similar results.

[02rsxpilot]

Only going to revive an old thread because I'm sure it will come up in searches a lot.

My search has shown the 135i to be the best double-duty option on the market. I had a hell of a time finding any E46 M3 that hadn't already been abused by some third or fourth owner with too much cash and not enough brains. E36 M3s are even harder to find, and neither of those cars comes with the modern comforts that the 1er does. I was disappointed to find the 1st generation (06-08) Cayman S had serious engine concerns on track and didn't want to deal with that. The 09+ are still $50K+ which was over my budget.

I think if you go into HPDEs with the expectation that you have a rocket of a car that simply is not engineered to corner like a 2,200 lbs Miata or Lotus, you'll have a blast. If you think you're going to have the fastest straight line and cornering car on the track, you are going to need a massive budget.

[mb135is]

Originally Posted by 02rsxpilot

Only going to revive an old thread because I'm sure it will come up in searches a lot.

My search has shown the 135i to be the best double-duty option on the market. I had a hell of a time finding any E46 M3 that hadn't already been abused by some third or fourth owner with too much cash and not enough brains. E36 M3s are even harder to find, and neither of those cars comes with the modern comforts that the 1er does. I was disappointed to find the 1st generation (06-08) Cayman S had serious engine concerns on track and didn't want to deal with that. The 09+ are still $50K+ which was over my budget.

I think if you go into HPDEs with the expectation that you have a rocket of a car that simply is not engineered to corner like a 2,200 lbs Miata or Lotus, you'll have a blast. If you think you're going to have the fastest straight line and cornering car on the track, you are going to need a massive budget.

Interesting. If double duty were my goal, I'd have definitely searched for an e46 m. With an M you have to pay the premium for a babied car.

[jbass524]

Originally Posted by blutattoo

It may be your amazing driving skills that makes your Miata so fast, but where I race there isn't one out of the hundreds of Miata's including race prepped cars that turn faster lap times than my slightly modified 135 on street tires. As for the e46's I demolish them. E92's if driven by a good driver compete with me, but just barely. I'd argue that the e36 is a better chassis to turn into a track car. But then again the op asked e46/135.

Hey blutattoo,

I have a friend who runs a solid 1:53 in his Miata at Sears Point. It's a well built car but it's only mildly faster than a Spec Miata and doesn't have forced induction. I imagine you've run there. If so, what is your best time? This would give us all a good understanding of how hard you drive your 135.

This is important information as if you don't drive it hard enough to limp and continually have sessions and track days cut short then a lot of what you're saying is invalid. Or you may be able to get 2 really fast laps in before having to short shift and come in.

You may have some secret where you can drive it very fast with limited mods for full sessions full days without having the N54/55 gremlins rear their heads. If so, you should share that information as few people have been able to drive their 135/335's hard without significant reliability modifications.

I speak from experience coming from an E92 335.

[blutattoo]

Originally Posted by jbass524

Hey blutattoo,

I have a friend who runs a solid 1:53 in his Miata at Sears Point. It's a well built car but it's only mildly faster than a Spec Miata and doesn't have forced induction. I imagine you've run there. If so, what is your best time? This would give us all a good understanding of how hard you drive your 135.

This is important information as if you don't drive it hard enough to limp and continually have sessions and track days cut short then a lot of what you're saying is invalid. Or you may be able to get 2 really fast laps in before having to short shift and come in.

You may have some secret where you can drive it very fast with limited mods for full sessions full days without having the N54/55 gremlins rear their heads. If so, you should share that information as few people have been able to drive their 135/335's hard without significant reliability modifications.

I speak from experience coming from an E92 335.

I've run MRLS twice and my times where in the 1:49 -1:51 range with a fast lap of 1:47 prior to the addition of full race pads and better tires. I'll be there in August with BMWCCA with both full race pads and new tires combine that with more track knowledge and I should be 1:44 maybe 1:43. Monterey never gets that hot so limp mode really shouldn't be an issue even with a stock car. The real issue for long sessions with a 135 at MRLS seems to be the brakes more than anything else. That track eats street pads, even good ones. I believe Randy Pobst went 1:45 in a bone stock 135 around MRLS, so as you can see I have a lot of room to grow. He could probably be sub 1:40 in my car.

Contrary to other peoples experiences with limp mode I don't have that happen very often. The times I did have it happen it was due to the BMS intake I had on the car. I removed it and haven't had an issue since. I ran two days at Thunderhill two weeks ago with day time temps at 110 degrees without having limp mode raise its head. I do have a FMIC and oil coolers so those help tremendously. For comparison in the open group at Thunderhill Spec Miatas run in the 2:11-2:14 range. My 135 will run 2:08 lap after lap without limp mode, brake fade, etc.. The key might be that I only have a slight tune on the motor, guys with other tunes seem to have a lot more issues. Just a thought I'm not sure though.

I run in the open group and I have a bit of experience so that definitely helps keep my times down, but I'm not a pro. If you learn where to push and what the car is doing underneath you, fast times are readily available in a 1 series. Brakes, cooling, tires, and suspension all need to be addressed in order to be fast. For the money I've spent I could have made another car even faster, but the 1 series does double duty pretty well and this is still a car my wife drives to work every now and then so it can't be a total track rat.