Advice about Tracks?

First make sure that yor car is in good shape. Brake pads, brake fluid, tires, etc. Depending on your sessions, driving conditions and style, get ready to replace your pads, brake fluid and engine oil and your tires. They will be most likely "finished"
It is also a good idea to cover all the critical body parts which are prone to stone chipping with some removeable film/tape. You can not believe the amount of junk you will get on your car. Lastly, make sure that you have at least 1 full lap for cooling down the car properly after your sessions. Never come in to pit area and stop your car after hot laps.

One last warning, once you get the poison of track driving, you will find the weekend rides quite boring

Good Luck

 

Don't over think it, don't get too caught up in it all - Just relax and enjoy the day!

If you dont go too crazy I wouldnt worry about additional wear. It's all upto how you drive it.

You'll be in good hands with the instructors/coaches etc. Remember, your in a Ferrari, its no stranger to a race track.

 

I’m assuming you’re aware, but ensure you obtain a track specific insurance policy.

 

You can choose not to be covered but it is almost certain your dealer will not be providing accident insurance for the car (like on the public highway)

Nonetheless as you note you should try it at least once - your car should be fine but you might need new tires at the end

Just go at your own pace and obey the instructor

 

Is it safe to take out a 400 mile 488? No break in period required?

 

Which country are you Hendry ?

 

full car protection - don't follow other drivers closely. Either go around them or back off. Sometimes there is rubber (and other debris) that gets left on the track that can be kicked up by a car right in front of you or by your own tires. Sometimes this can damage film with a mark that won't come out. I wouldn't sweat this too much. It's pretty rare and your session hopefully will be wide open with lots of space. You might ask the organizer if the track will be swept before your event. If you really are concerned, some guys will use blue painters tape on the vulnerable surfaces.

Don't worry about changing anything on your car, seriously. 20+ years of track experience tells me your 488 is about as perfect as can be for a newbie track driver. Everyone wants to mess around to 'improve" things, but more than likely they screw something up. Leave it alone, your car is fine.

You have a handful of responsibilities: a) start with factory recommended cold tire pressures before your first session. This will rise 6-10 lbs when hot, you can check them immediately after your session. Maybe you drop a 2-3 pounds of pressure for your last session if you want to feel a difference, or just leave it alone. b) Make sure your lug nuts are torqued to factory spec before your first session. c) Make sure you have a full tank of gas and your oil level is where it should be (probably not even a concern for a 400mi car!). You may need gas in the afternoon depending on how long the sessions last. d) Wear proper safety equipment. e) Listen closely to the drivers instruction and follow the rules f) learn the flag instructions, g) learn where the flag stations are on the track (generally at or preceding corners) and follow the flagger's directions.

Depending on your experience or style you can play with the manettino. I would start in sport mode for your first session. Try RACE in a later session but I would be cautious about moving to CT Off until you are very comfortable with the car at the limits the factory is presenting in RACE mode. By all means, do not move to the ESC Off position as you can easily spin or end up in the gravel or worse. Your responsibility is to get comfortable with your car and understand what it's capable of. You have no one to impress.

Start out in a mental "cool" mode. Both you and your car need to be warmed up. 2-3 laps like this at least. This is really hard, most of us just want to "GO" with the drop of the flag. Just get comfortable with the track. After a few cool laps start adding straight line speed and figure out the braking indicators for corners. The brakes on your 488 are phenomenal but they need to be pushed hard to get the full performance. It always takes a number of laps to figure out the line on a new track, this should be what you're working on on your first sessions.

Where do you want the car to be on the track? The answer is generally not straight down the middle. For a new driver I would shoot for a 2-3 foot from the edge of the track at corner turn in, about 1 foot from the edge at the apex and then back to the 2-3 foot edge on the exit. During the straights traverse the track to be at the edge turn in point for the next corner.

Keep your vision down the track not immediately in front of the car. Set up wide for your corner, brake in a straight line and complete braking at the turn in point, turn in to find the apex. When you know you're going to hit the apex you can start to squeeze the throttle and slowly unwind the wheel at the same time to find the outside of the track for corner exit. Then throttle up for the straight, rinse and repeat. Most new drivers are going to brake too hard and turn in too early. You will know you're off line if you have to change your vector in the middle of the corner. When you're doing it correctly, most corners should be a single, even sweep of the wheel, hold for a moment, and then unwind.

One idea I like to help new drivers understand is the balance of the car. When balance gets upset, well, that's when you spin. Upset can happen with any input, steering, braking or throttle. It boils down simply to weighting the axle that you want doing the work. When you stand on the throttle (straight line) the weight shifts to the rear. That's where you want the weight transfer for the best traction. When you want to turn the car, you want the weight on the front axle -- that's accomplished through braking. Aim for smooth inputs, not jerky or abrupt.

Most of all relax and enjoy the experience. The 488 is a phenomenal car that rarely gets driven to the level to which it's capable simply due to the environment. A track is a place to finally enjoy that car. Find the balance and have fun.

 

In my experience, a single dealer three session track day won't require replacing anything. And there is nothing to worry about but the other cars on the track. Ferrari will take care of your tire pressures, watch your brake pads, and all that. Just don't assume anyone else on the track has the slightest clue what they are doing and you'll be good. Have fun!

 

+1

Try to be smooth, not fast. If you do the former, the latter will come naturally.

And most importantly, just have fun.

 

Enjoy it
On a (relatively) light car like the 488, you probably only need to replace the front pads (or you'll get close to needing that). Rear pads last longer, and tyres even more.
I'm still on the original tyres on my car, I probably changed 4 or 5 times the front pads and 2 or 3 times the rear pads.
I cannot resist re- posting:

 

I took my 488 on the track with about 500 miles. Did two different events this past summer/fall. Tires are in good shape. And it was a lot of fun! Just listen to your instructor as noted above and have fun. I am curious as to what sort of air pressures they recommend.

 

Ffan5 is correct .

Typically , you’ll get some classroom instruction , some time on skid pad doing car control exercises (braking , hitting apex , etc) then some sessions doing lead/follow at probably 50% of speed and then go home .

A three day event would have been better . Day 3 is when they’d probably let you loose and then (pads/consumables would be in play )

Beginner with one day event is mainly just a tease

 

Excellent advice all around. I would also say its a good idea to learn the terms they will use and also make sure your cell phone is off in there are no loose items in the car- cell phone holders etc. Put all of that away. The forces at the track are higher than on the road, so any loose items will go flying. You don't want your phone as a distraction. If you have a wife/ loved one/ who wants to know you are OK then tell them you will have it off at some times and you will turn it on when you are done and text them. And then make sure to send them texts!

Some terms:
Oversteer: when the car turns more than you are asking via the steering wheel- hence the rear of the car can come around on you.
Understeer: when the car turns less than you are asking via the steering wheel- hence the front of the car "plows"- you turn the steering wheel and you go kind of straight.
Apex: usually the mid point of the turn
Turn In: where you begin your turn
Track Out: from the apex to the end of the turn
Braking Zone: where you will do your braking, usually all of it is done before turn in

Some thoughts about looking down the track. Its very important. Because your hands (and body) do what your eyes tell them. A common example instructors use is opening a door. When you open a door, do you look at the handle, or do you look up and through the opening door? Of course its the latter. If you look at the handle the whole time, you will walk into the door. For driving, its the same. On the street you can get away with a bad habit of not looking too far ahead. On the track, you really want to look quite far ahead. At first it feels difficult, and at first you may have some nerves which make you want to look more down. As you get more comfortable this will go away. Always look where you want to go. Sometimes that's literally looking out of the side window.

Also they say "slow is smooth and smooth is fast". This just means if you are smooth with your requests of the car ("inputs") then you will be able to carry more speed. Carrying speed at the track is a byproduct of good (usually smooth) technique. At first you will just want to get used to it. So make sure to have fun. But as you do, work with the instructors to help you make smooth inputs.

I think you are going to have an amazing time and you will learn a lot about your car, and also, you will learn about yourself. Have fun!

 

I wouldn’t worry about the wear on ur brakes and tyres at all given you are new to tracking and you most likely be instructed, you will not be near the limits of brakes or adhesion so wear will be minimal. As some have indicated, stay cool, level headed, learn from the experienced and enjoy by gradually building up your confidence. Never let the ego take over, that’s when things go wrong. Enjoy

Tyre pressure is one to keep an eye on, as your pressure & heat builds up, you will start to feel the car a little slippery. Then you need to bleed some pressure from the tyres back to the recommended.

Dun hold your brakes after a session, cos brakes are hot and will damage your rotors and pads. Remind yourself to keep ur foot off the brakes when you are in the pit, ground is level so your car should not move once it is stationary Hence the importance of cool down laps where you just cruise around without touching the brakes to cool it down as well as your engine...

 

Dont turn off the engine between runs.

Always do cool down lap.

Listen to instructors.

Dont slam the brake but be gentle afterall it is your car.

Ignor tire pressure or lap time. Just focus on having fun without hurting.

Drink alot and eat good amount of calories.


Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat.com mobile app