Tips for using Evora S on a track

[Mossyboy1978]

Having owned the car for a couple of months and realised I can't exploit the power on the road, I've booked in for an open pit trackday at Bedford next week.

Any advice from anyone on using the car and getting the most from it on a closed circuit without blowing up the engine?

[blueg33]

Not Evora specific

dont cane it when its not fully up to temperature
dont put the handbrake on when you park after a track session
dont turn it off straight after a track session
always do a cool down lap, dont make your last lap a hot one
don't ride the clutch (surprisingly easy to do on a track)

I would also increase the tyre pressures

Which circuit at Bedford? The large one?

Also (no liability accepted)

You can probably brake later and harder than you think
Feed power in smoothly and try to maintain momentum in the corners

All in all standard track driving stuff

[Mossyboy1978]

Mine is an IPS so clutch issues not a problem. Good point about cool down lap. Espec with the supercharger at full chat most of the day.

Circuit at Bedford will be full GP.

[Undirection]

You won't blow it up. Firstly you have the rev limiter, secondly, on an IPS you can't change down too many gears and the buzz the engine (e.g. going from 5th to 2nd instead of 4th) and thirdly the engine runs quite rich to help keep piston temps low. Oh, and its Toyota engine and they don't tend to go wrong uless you mess about with them - but I wouldn't know anything about that at all!

Let us know how you get on an video it if you have a camera.

[Oilchange]

Eh?

blueg33 said:

Not Evora specific

I would also increase the tyre pressures

[blueg33]

Oilchange said:

Eh?

blueg33 said:

Not Evora specific

I would also increase the tyre pressures

Think about it

[Oilchange]

I did.
normal driving the tyres heat up to temp, that's why you do a warm up lap and don't throw it into the corners straight away. Spirited driving and they heat up more, so dropping the pressure a little might be more sensible.
Not totally essential though, it depends how hard you are working them and he probably won't be working them that hard on his first time out.

Upping the pressure will just make them overheat.

Edited by Oilchange on Wednesday 12th November 21:52

[blueg33]

Oilchange said:

I did.
normal driving the tyres heat up to temp, that's why you do a warm up lap and don't throw it into the corners straight away. Spirited driving and they heat up more, so dropping the pressure a little might be more sensible.
Not totally essential though, it depends how hard you are working them and he probably won't be working them that hard on his first time out.

Upping the pressure will just make them overheat.

Edited by Oilchange on Wednesday 12th November 21:52

I found when competing in the G33 that increasing the pressure reduced sidewall movement and increased the feel. They were slightly higher profile tyres but the car was much lighter. I have found with Avon ZZ5's on my Evora that the handling and grip are improved with higher pressures (That is also what Lotus handling guru said to do)

Quote here from Drivingfast.net on track day prep

drivingfast.net said:

If you only do one thing before a track day, try to get the pressures right. This is a bit of a dark art, and many drivers are secretive of the pressures they run. At the very least, match the manufacturers guidelines, and as a rule of thumb, increasing by 5-10% should provide a better turn in and be generally more suited to track conditions. Experiment here, and take notes - eventually you'll find pressures which will give you a good compromise between grip, predictability at the limit and turn in. Pressure increases with temperature, so bear this in mind if you'll be doing a large number of laps - if you're doing short runs, you can probably get away with slightly higher pressures. Rubber compounds also tend to get softer and provide more grip as they get hotter (up to a point). So ensure your tyres are warm before attempting full racing speed.

[Oilchange]

Yeah I see what they are saying, upping them will cause them to heat up quicker, no doubt, but be careful they don't become too hot and end up like castors, possibly unlikely in this season but if you are hard on the corners they will, very quickly. Remember Hammond talking about the rubber tracks on his skiddoo overheating on ice? It's easily done.

To be honest I'm used to dropping mine due to pushing quite hard and the tyre going 'greasy' after a few laps but that's racing, not a first time track dayer.
Lots to think about, track temp, how hard you're pushing, what pressure you're starting with, etc. Definitely a dark art though.

Personally, I would run normal pressure until the confidence builds and you are pushing, then drop a few, just a personal thing because, as said, pressure rises with temp.

I always do warm up and cool down laps and check tyre pressures before and after. Oh, and take a footpump with you!

blueg33 said:

Oilchange said:

I did.
normal driving the tyres heat up to temp, that's why you do a warm up lap and don't throw it into the corners straight away. Spirited driving and they heat up more, so dropping the pressure a little might be more sensible.
Not totally essential though, it depends how hard you are working them and he probably won't be working them that hard on his first time out.

Upping the pressure will just make them overheat.

Edited by Oilchange on Wednesday 12th November 21:52

I found when competing in the G33 that increasing the pressure reduced sidewall movement and increased the feel. They were slightly higher profile tyres but the car was much lighter. I have found with Avon ZZ5's on my Evora that the handling and grip are improved with higher pressures (That is also what Lotus handling guru said to do)

Quote here from Drivingfast.net on track day prep

drivingfast.net said:

If you only do one thing before a track day, try to get the pressures right. This is a bit of a dark art, and many drivers are secretive of the pressures they run. At the very least, match the manufacturers guidelines, and as a rule of thumb, increasing by 5-10% should provide a better turn in and be generally more suited to track conditions. Experiment here, and take notes - eventually you'll find pressures which will give you a good compromise between grip, predictability at the limit and turn in. Pressure increases with temperature, so bear this in mind if you'll be doing a large number of laps - if you're doing short runs, you can probably get away with slightly higher pressures. Rubber compounds also tend to get softer and provide more grip as they get hotter (up to a point). So ensure your tyres are warm before attempting full racing speed.

[The Wookie]

DO NOT increase the tyre pressures, it's a relatively heavy car and even with them set to 2.4/2.6 they will shoot up to well over 3 bar within 5 laps of any circuit if driven hard and take away a significant amount of grip, particularly from the back end on an S. It will also wear out the centre section of the tyre more quickly. If anything you should lower them slightly.

All I'd add to what's already been said is to limit the number of laps if you're really pressing on as, although they hold up very well for a road car, you will find the limit of the tyres and brakes eventually. If you have done a lot of laps in one go then take a little care as, like I said, the rear does get quite lively.

If you're used to light cars then I'd also suggest being little bit more patient and progressive with your inputs as the temptation for many people is to chuck it about like an Elise and then complain that it's lazy and wallowy. If you're a bit more gentle with it and work with the weight rather than fight against it then they are a lot of fun, about half way between a vanilla 911 Carrera and a GT3 in terms of body control and response.