Few questions going start doing tracks days
Discussion
Hi all,
I am going to buy a car to start doing a few tracks days in (nothing to special or expensive!) so just had a few questions I hope you all can help me with!
- Do you need special insurance to drive on the track? (the car wont be driven on the road)
- What are the penalties for crashing on the track (ie must you pay for damage to the track/barrier etc, pay recovery from track to pits, or anything else)
- What happens if you crash into another car on the track? Who pays for what damage?
I have a few more that I will post up later
Thanks!
I am going to buy a car to start doing a few tracks days in (nothing to special or expensive!) so just had a few questions I hope you all can help me with!
- Do you need special insurance to drive on the track? (the car wont be driven on the road)
- What are the penalties for crashing on the track (ie must you pay for damage to the track/barrier etc, pay recovery from track to pits, or anything else)
- What happens if you crash into another car on the track? Who pays for what damage?
I have a few more that I will post up later
Thanks!
The general rule is don't crash! People can take a very dim view of it if someone piles into their pride and joy on a track day, but if things do go wrong...
- Do you need special insurance to drive on the track? (the car wont be driven on the road)
No, in a word. Track insurance is a good idea though.
- What are the penalties for crashing on the track (ie must you pay for damage to the track/barrier etc, pay recovery from track to pits, or anything else)
Depends where you are. On the Nordschleife (which isn't technically a track) you're liable for any repairs, but I have a feeling you're not liable on normal UK track days.
- What happens if you crash into another car on the track? Who pays for what damage?
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm not sure you're liable here either. I think it's always up to the owner of each individual car (or their insurer) to repair damage, irrespective of who causes it. This could probably change if you could be proven to have done something in contravention to the rules (passing on the left, not overtaking in corners etc)
Does raise some interesting questions for any PH legal types to expand upon. I would also re-iterate what I said above: track days aren't racing and everyone's quite rightly expected to 'play nice'.
- Do you need special insurance to drive on the track? (the car wont be driven on the road)
No, in a word. Track insurance is a good idea though.
- What are the penalties for crashing on the track (ie must you pay for damage to the track/barrier etc, pay recovery from track to pits, or anything else)
Depends where you are. On the Nordschleife (which isn't technically a track) you're liable for any repairs, but I have a feeling you're not liable on normal UK track days.
- What happens if you crash into another car on the track? Who pays for what damage?
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm not sure you're liable here either. I think it's always up to the owner of each individual car (or their insurer) to repair damage, irrespective of who causes it. This could probably change if you could be proven to have done something in contravention to the rules (passing on the left, not overtaking in corners etc)
Does raise some interesting questions for any PH legal types to expand upon. I would also re-iterate what I said above: track days aren't racing and everyone's quite rightly expected to 'play nice'.
amglover said:
- Do you need special insurance to drive on the track? (the car wont be driven on the road)
Insurance not really necessary. Depends on your weapon of choice and amount of dispposable income. We run a 25 year old MR2 (2nd one now) for trackdays as for us it's totally disposable. If we stack it (and we don't intend to), we can get it collected a by scrappie. No regrets.If we use the RX8 or another car we can't afford to bin, we get it insured. We've been doing trackdays for 5 or 6 years now and haven't stacked a car yet. In the last 3 years we've been helping BookaTrack out and we are on track every other weekend or so now. We never get above our station and never push beyond our comfort zone.
Most reputable track day organisers require the car to either be road legal (Tax & MOT) or competing in an existing series with the car recently scrutineered. So it's worth considering this if you're not planning on driving it to/from the circuit. I have been known to turn away cars at the pitlane if they don't conform. It kicks up a stink, but at the end of the day, makes it safer for everyone else.
amglover said:
- What are the penalties for crashing on the track (ie must you pay for damage to the track/barrier etc, pay recovery from track to pits, or anything else)
Not so bad or common in the UK although some circuits will charge the TDO and they can pass those charges onto you. As mentioned above, the ring will cost you dearly, not only in damage to armco, but track closure and rescue/recovery services too. Spa also charge for damage to armco and it's not cheap. IIRC, it's around £300/m and the sections are 3 high so if you go in straight and only take out 1m - you're still in for £900!amglover said:
- What happens if you crash into another car on the track? Who pays for what damage?
I suspect the other driver will have a few choice words to say and it could possibly get a bit more heated than words. But it's very, very rare for car/car contact on trackdays. There are rules in place that reduce the risk of this though. And if the marshals or TDO sees or hears of rules being ignored, then the offenders will be dealt with. Report anything you see that you don't like or that contradics the rules it makes it a safe day for everyone and it's not seen as snitching.Have a read of this - makes good bedtime reading
http://bookatrack.com/-pb_Frequently-Asked-Questio...
amglover said:
Well the 325i fell through, it anyone knows of a decent track type car for sale please let me know!
Mine's still for sale...http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1232826.htm
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