CobraStangGT16

There's a COCOA (Cobra Owners Club of America) meeting at Willow Springs Intl. Raceway out in the Lancaster/Palmdale in a few weeks. It's on saturday and sunday.My dad and I finished the Shelby Cobra kit car w/500hp last month, took us 2 years, but it's done, and now wee gunna see how it handles a roadcourse.

I signed my car up, though it's not a Shelby, for two reasons...1) I would like to get some roadcourse instruction, and see what my little 260rwhp can do. 2) We need another car to put the stuff in!

Requirements:
-Good brakes/tires
-No leaks
-Battery fastened down
-Torqued wheels
-2 throttle return springs
-SA 2000 Race helmet
-Fire Extnguisher mounted somewhere.

The Bold is what I have to do still on my car. I need to buy a fire extinguisher, and for whatever reason...my battery is not held down by anything. It just moves around freely under the hood? I can get a helmet from somebody too.

Any tips? Anybody ever done this track in a GT? I know for SUREI'll get werrrked by the classic GT350's andGT500's, the 2007 GT500 will be there for the first time, lots of old Mustangs, AND a group of 30 or so11 sec. Shelby Cobra's!!! I will be the slowest car there, but most of those guys are afraid to push it in their $50,000+ cars. I bought mine for $6000. Anyway, it should be alot of fun and thought I'd share.

P.S- Will the road course have a big impact on my clutch? I'm beginning to see signs of an old clutch...Should I do a swap before, or just run this one to the end? Also, I may be able to get my hands on someopened3.55 gears with (literally) 10 miles on themfor $75...should I put them in before going?

Aereon

Gears, if you can properly break them in and get a couple hundred miles on them before the event, then I would suggest installing them asap. If not, hold off on it. There should be a little triangular plastic peice with a screw through it, that holds the battery down. If not I would suggest buying a battery relocation kit to 1) secure the battery 2) weight distribution.
I cannot help much with the clutch, as I race with an auto tranny.

If you have yet to install some larger brakes, I would suggest buying the mach1 brake upgrade for 299 at buyfordracing, keep the blanks that come along with it, and spray some rustoleum on the hat of the rotor and about an inch near the hat to prevent rusting.

Biggest tips I can offer are, take things reaaaaaaallly slow at first, take the turns 5-10 mph slower than you think you can take them, the first 1-2 time around, gaining speed as you familiarize yourself with the track. Before getting into your own car, see if you can do a ride a long with an instructor or a more experienced person on that track. Whoever you decide to get your info from make sure the info they provide is credible, as you will inevitably emulate their habits and tendencies. Choose wisely who you decide to listen to. If a car moves closer to you, point them by, do not be an asshat and try to stay ahead of them(you may cause an accident). Last but not least!

HAVE FUN=P It's great to hear another GT owner get into road courses, and away from the strip.

HaV

Every course drives differently... Ive only been on one, but I have been on it multiple times. Nice long write up for you.

What speeds are hit on the straights on the course (IE how long are the straits?), how many corners? How many laps or how much time are you going to be out there, and how many times in a day will that be? That plays a huge part in it.

First, the main things I would reccomend are doing an oil change before AND after you go.. the day before and the day after would be good. Brake pads are also a really good idea to do before hand if you can wear them in a bit first. Also better tires if you wanted.

If there are a lot of corners and some long straights, you will really wear the clutch.. lots of up and down shifting, and a lot of motor braking going on as well. Your brakes will get hit pretty hard and your tires will take one hell of a beating as well if your driving the car anywhere near the potential.If there are quite a few turns with short straights, be prepared for a lot of different things.

Some advice for you...
Watch the track and see if there is a lineon it where many other cars have turned. The biggest thing on a road course is hitting the "lines", which is the entry and exit of the corner. it varies widely if its an early or late apex corner (early or late turn in). Just watch the road.. a lot of times you can tell where people turned out, then turned through the corner. the goal is to loose as little speed through the corner as possible. Go in to fast and you'll come out waaaaay to slow from braking. Go in to slow you will have issues getting out with speed.. have to really be on the gas... it takes some practice to get used to it.

Remember.. you can brake, you can turn, and you can accelerate.. but you cant do any of them at the same time or you'll spin out. In a corner you brake before the corner, downshifting before the turn in.. if you take the proper line you will go straight for a portion of the corner and you can do some more braking then, but dont have your wheels turned when doing so. When you exit the corner you can accelerate. dont accelerate when still turning (still in the turn but pointed the right direction is fine).. you can very easily loose it, especally with the problems you'll find below.

Problems you'll run into: Oversteer, Brake fade, tire glaze.
Brake fade is the biggest issue. Stock rotors and pads will get hot REAL quick.. and the hotter they get the less they work. If your going very long, be prepared for this.. after the second or third lap, you will no longer be able to stop anywhere near the same amount of time... and when you hit your brakes it may feel like they are doing next to nothing. Dont be afraid to drive slower at this point and let people pass you. Its normal and expected.. and your wheels will be covered in brake dust when your done.

Tire glaze: This is from street tires mostly... when heated they produce an oil like substance.. your turning ability will go way down (causing you to oversteer) and causing you to slide t hrough corners a little more than you would like. Drag radials or very high performance competition tires will help a lot here as they will get sticker when hot. Its normal.. and again, when having this and brake fade, dont be afraid to slow waaaay down on the track. Let people pass you who have cars that are not having this issue.

Oversteer (created by YOU not the car). This is a tendency to try to overcorrect due to unresponsiveness of the car on the track. Not the true over/understeer you here magazines talking about when grading a car. When your suffering brake and tire issues, you will have a tendency to overcorrect. Your tires and brakes are not reacting like they normally do so you will turn a little harder trying to move like normal and shoot past what you were aiming at. Just try to keep it in check a bit.

Also... probably most important, make SURE you take a "parade" or cool down lap. Dont exceeede 35-40mph, stay out of the way as much as possible, try not to brake at all through corners, etc. A proper cool down lap is a MUST for your car, especally your brakes. Come off a hot lap and let the car sit and the rotars will probably be warped. You want to use this lap to cool the car as much as you can.

After you race, check your tire pressure immediatly, especally if you are going to do another run. Your tires will have expanded from the heated air and its a good idea to let some out.. you dont want 45psi of pressure on your tire when you start the next lap.. that is probably the number one thing that will lead to a blow out. Shouldnt be to much of an issue on your tires, but with slicks and drag radials it can be. Just do a quick check and make sure they are still around where you want them.

ALSO, tighten your lugnuts before each time you go out and before you drive home. Aluminum wheels will expand and contract with that much heat, and your lug nuts will actualy be loose sometimes.


Hope that helps.. just keep those in mind when your driving around and be ready for them to happen. dont overreact when they do, and just keep dropping speed. Your car isnt built for a full on road course (neither is mine.. or anyone that really streets them to be honest..) so you will turn steadily slower laps after the first 3 or so.

CobraStangGT16

Wow! Thanks for the response.

Yeah I'm aware of the problems I can run into on the track, and I have a few upgraded options on my car to handle them.

I have slotted and drilled rotors, and I changed my front pads to Motorcraft about 3 weeks ago. I'm having some trouble with bubbles in the brake lines, so I need to probably bleed them before heading out right?

About the gears...I've never installed new gears in any car, but I have tons of automotive experience. I don't want to do something wrong, and have a gear whine. The install is $250, outta my budget.

We will be there for 2 days, and I will be on about 8-10 runs each consisting of about 10-15 laps.The track has 10 turns, and about a 1/3 mile straight, and a 1/4 mile back straightaway. Most people don't go over 110-115 in the striaght with the Cobra's, so I don't think I will get higher than that. There is one tricky corner.

Here is a picture of the track...it goes clockwise.



My tires are Kumho ASX-ECSTA's, street tires, but they are not ZR rated, just R. Will this be a problem? I used to have a set of Falkens on there, but they got worn down, and I was slipping everywhere in the rain, so I bumped them up to these All-Season tires.

StealthGT2V

Good for you, its nice to see people get away from drag racing for a change..Post up how you do when your done and your experience. One day I also would like to start doing road courses and things of that nature.

fiad06

you can tell cobra owners made that track its too simple with alot of straightaways

nvm...usally in like auto x people design their own tracks, but i read that it is international race way thing

CobraStangGT16

yyyyeeeeaaaaahhhhh.........

Cobra Owners Club only races there 4 days out of the year...

The rest of the year, it's used for commercials, racing events, Road and Track mag, photoshoots, and even F1 and Champ car racing.

HaV

Really close layout to the track I go to.. the whole track is 1.8 miles.. so its not all that long. Its very technical though due to some extreme elevation changes and some sharp *** turns.





Good luck... that is a LOT of runs. Your going to really see brake fade as long as your going for... 10-15 laps on a course that size will be about 30 min per run.. after about the 6 min mark you start seeing all those effects, possibly sooner.

And yeah I would bleed your brake lines now as well if your getting bubbles.


As long as that back straight is, I am kind of suprised the cobra's arent hitting any higher. On the straight at the track i go to I was having to shift into 5th a couple times meaning 110+.. and they have longer straights... guess they are keeping it down a bit for the turns...

And remember.. your not pushing the limits of your car if you dont go sidways into the grass atleast once.

Im actualy going again this weekend.. and they reveresed direction on us this time.. this will be the first time Ive ever ran it clock wise.. normally counter clockwise.. so it will be... well like driving an entirely different track. Lol.

HaV

Ohh and for tires:
No you shouldnt exceede the speed rating on the tire on that course... so thats not an issue. But being all season they are going to glaze real quick.. just be prepared to be passed alot.

I ran my BFG drag radials last time out and they were great.. this time I have some sumitomo 315/35/17 ZR competition tires this time... feel like drag radials to the touch (same really soft compound) but they have directional tread and are more track prepped.
If you have drag radials you use for the drag strip, or can borrow a set from someone, I would reccomend doing it.. it will help out a LOT with some of the traction issues.

Two other little things.. if your having any saftey troubles.. corners are getting almost unmanigable or your starting to feel some sway in the car, do a slow lap and pull off.. let the car cool back down, then get back on. You dont have to do every lap.

And if your going a little slower due to issues, feel free to point to your left or right side when someone is behind you to tell them to pass. If you point most the time they will follow your direction and fly by you on that side... they dont have to but its kind of a common curtesy thing for non competition driving.

CobraStangGT16

OK thanks for the tips.

Yeah thats a close looking track, and Willows has ALOT of elevation changes. The top corner is about 70-80 ft above the straightaway, so the back straight takes you down and turns 1,2,3, and 4 take you up.

I have a question about apexes, should I use them for now? I'm not really going to compete with these 500hp+ cars, so I'll definately let them pass...I don't know if I should stick to the track, or go full on in the corners with apex use.

I'm actually getting nervous now that you say my tires will stick and my brakes will get hot. This is my daily driver, and since I'm only 16 years old, I can't afford to fix too much on my car. I'm not going to take it full on this time around, there is another event in Oct/Nov that I will also be attending, and I am taking a competitive racing school this summer, where they actually put you on the same track......but in Celica GTS's. I can take my own car, but I dunno if I want to...

Thanks again for ALL the help!