How hard on a car is doing track days?

Depends on you. TR is not a good track car. Transmission is fragile. brakes are inadequate. Before you think I am putting the car down I own one and love it.
Its a great road car. It is not a great track car.

 

I have never tracked a Ferrari of your vintage but I have tracked an F12 and a 458. I am an intermediate driver. I do maybe 6-8 days a year. I did not have any trouble with the wear and tear. Yes it will wear tires faster. The brakes are fine. They are CCB but unless you are very good and braking very had you should not have a problem. I have steel brakes in my Porsche and those wore a bit faster but not that bad. So unless you are doing a ton of events and driving hard then I think you should be fine. I would want to hear from someone who actually tracked a Testarossa though. I would be curious about cultch wear.

 

Assuming you warm the car up properly and take a nice cool down lap at the end of every session then the wear and tear on the drive train and suspension is nothing to worry about unless you are beating every last ounce of performance out of the car (something no amateur can do). The big consumables are brakes and tires which can vary wildly depending on the track and individual driving styles.

That said if you are going to track the more modern the car the better. They are just built to higher tolerances and generally more suited to the task. A TR is not a great track car as it is relatively heavy and under braked. It can be fun for a session or two but very quickly the limitations would be found. A Mondial QV is not much better unfortunately. The issue is that the cost of maintenance on these cars is so high that you would be better off buying a Miata that is essentially disposable which you can drive as hard as you like with no fears of a 5 figure mechanical bill or the crippling cost of an accident.

 

Driver is largest factor on how hard it is. If you’re smooth and don’t hit curbing a lot then it’s not much harder on the car than highly spirited driving. You can also avoid hanging out near redline a lot. Limit sessions to 20 minutes “at speed” and cool the car down before parking.
Sure there will be consumables of tires and brakes. But I wouldn’t hesitate to go enjoy the car as long as it’s in good condition.

 

I was factory trained on them and have worked on them since October 85. I have owned one for over 23 years but by all means listen to people who have probably never driven one.

Want a good track car? Get a Corvette or an M3. The amount you will save in broken worn out Ferrari parts will pay for a Corvette or M3.

I forgot to mention. The frame flexes so much under high torsion they are famous for breaking back windows. You have not lived if you have not changed a back window in one.
Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

I don't even own a testarossa and I'm scared. I like doing the track courses where the car is provided for you, that's a good intro and a lot of fun.

 

At one point I had 1000 of my 812's 1200 miles at COTA and my DOT 1 RS 6,000 out of 6700mi.

From a mechanical failure: I had 2 shocks go out on my 812 at COTA. I've heard of guys losing brakes and going off in gravel.

While they would last the lifetime for most CC & blue weather fun runs, on track Ferrari brakes suck. If you do Ferrari parade laps or pat each other on the back times, they'd last a season. Getting after it a bit, 3+ weekends. Start getting down to similar times as my RS and/or slick crossover times and they (brand new pads) would last one weekend. Same with tires. ($10K)

Again, all depends you. The RS pads could last up to multiple weekends. Porsche are bullet proof track cars. No failures.

At COTA Ferrari parade days v. Chin upper level laps is about 20 sec. So you can drive fast and not really do anything but good on your car. They need to be driven above posted speed limits.

Unless you want to rent a race car with slicks there's nothing better than driving the wheels off your Ferrari on track. Nothing.

Regardless. Do it!! Canyons are for posers and *******.

 

Look at those gear box pictures again. No, a TR gearbox will not be perfectly fine.

 

The OP asked about tracking his car. He did not ask if it is the best car for the track. Everyone already knows that decades old technology can be beaten by decades newer technology.

Kind of ridiculous to suggest switching to Miata or Corvette or BMW or any other marquee if the desire is to experience the Ferrari at its limit.

I’ve tracked a very wide variety of cars and raced a fair variety. And yet I enjoy tracking vintage sports cars as much as I enjoy formula cars. Sure it’s a different kind of enjoyment and experience but nonetheless totally worth it.

Terms like cheap or expensive mean different things to different people. You can always make more money tomorrow but you only live once.

 

It depends on how fast you drive the car. There is plenty to enjoy as a track newbie. Your 1st few trackdays will show you real fast what the car will need. A fast driver will find the car's weak spots in a few laps. A conservative newbie might just enjoy the car at speed and never find the breaking points. Some people really get into track driving. The more you do it the more capable car you need.

When I 1st started seriously racing in a vette C5Z06 in 2005 it had stock brakes and race brake pads. I did not have to upgrade to a big brake kit for a few months of developing the car for SCCA T1 racing. I sold that car and then just a couple years ago bought the same model C5Z06 to race in spec corvette and SCCA T2 so the car was basically in the same trim as the prior to 2012 T1 class. In the 1st shake down of this 2nd C5Z06 I could not go but a few laps on the stock brakes and race pads. I had to immediately go to a big brake kit. But that's what 20 years of race experience will do.

Track driving is like skiing. Beginners have just as much fun as experts but the experts need a steeper hill to have fun.

 

I appreciate your experience and contributions to FC, but can you please add some context to the broken gearbox components that you shared pictures of?

I ask because I’ve seen plenty of similar pics for C6Z06 and yet mine has been trouble free for 165,000 miles. That includes plenty of track days in advanced group even at some of the more grueling tracks like Sebring, Daytona, RA, VIR. And I put it down the drag strip several times, most recently at 150,000 miles and still pulled 11.6 @ 124mph. Mind you it’s still on its original clutch! Literally nothing has been changed on the car since the day it was built except for a set of replacement OEM shocks at 110,000 miles, spark plugs at 115,000 miles and of course tires, brakes, and fluids.
Alibi, I did a cold air induction and tune right after I bought the car when it had 29,000 miles on it.

So bottom line is that context is important to understand failures.

 

While this is true it is really fun to track Ferraris. You do need to have the ability to write the car off if you have a really bad day. But so much is under the driver's control. Shifting just a bit slower to prevent a money shift cost you a couple seconds of laptime. Big deal. If you want to push a bit harder pick your track. A mistake pushing at Watkins Glen means you hit blue armco. Pushing at Willow springs means your car gets dirty and maybe damage an undertray or spoiler. Many turns at Sebring an off means you scrub into tarmac and just scare yourself. Pick a safe turn with good runoff to push a little harder there like T1 at VIR where is a long way in the grass before you hit the fence. Learn how to make a mistake and not hit a wall by going off track straight vs. over correcting into the wall example Buttonwillow at sunrise and sunset. Staying on street tires reduces your risk because it reduces your ultimate laptime but does not reduce your fun.

 

sounds like a hard pass on anything outside a touring or green novice group.

i stopped tracking my fcar and bought a spec miata. there are many risks tracking a street car. there have been deaths at DE events @ road atlanta.

i'm amazed people show up and absolutely wring the crap out of their GT3RS and other $200-300-400k cars. not like 1 or 2, there are dozens @ a CHIN event.

 

Because they can. Those are bullet proof track cars. COTA Camrys......that's why dealers do an overrev check on everyone of them when they get traded in (I sold mine privately).

The first couple-three times I ran COTA, seemed like every day a McLaren would come back on the truck.

Just sayin.

ps IMO spec miatas and other momentum cars are more to hone your skills, and of course can be fun as well, but........nah......F em


Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

I'll echo Brian's comments there.. great car, but I would never track one. I looked at buying a 512TR many years ago... just a rolling work of art in my opinion but I personally would not subject a car like that to a track day.

Ray

 

Aside from parts potentially been taken beyond their limit as seen in the pictures, track wear and tear ratio is about 10:1 track vs (german) roads.
Source is a department of chassis engineering with 100.000s of laps on the Nürburgring.

You may find that your tires fade within 5 laps as do the brakes.
And your brake fluid will boil out the water giving you an "empty" pedal. Unless you have new fluid.

 

If you want to go as fast as possible and learn how to drive on the ragged edge, Testarossa is not it. But if you want to drive your Testarossa on the track and treat it like you are taking a drive in the country with no oncoming traffic or law enforcement concerns, then by all means go have a good time. Riffledriver is correct in his posting of the fragile nature of the TR box. But if you are driving hard on the road anyway and just enjoying your car, it is the same risk. You own the car, you have had the service and upgrade work done, just go enjoy the car for what it is.
You will run the risk of rear glass fracture, so stay off of the aggressive curbing. You address appears to be Alabama and Barber is a great track to go enjoy your Testarossa. Make sure the brake fluid is very fresh. I recommend changing it right before you go. The actual wear and tear is just like driving on the street but with an accelerated rate. So tires and brakes will need to be checked regularly, engine will not be used up and if you shift respectfully and have street tires, the transmission should survive.

Now, go enjoy your car.

 

I have been tracking my 84 QV for 27 years. Twenty seven.

You are enjoying your car at speed, not in a wheel to wheel race. You are in charge of how hard you push the car. Don't get stupid and abuse it and you will be fine. How you bring that car home is up to you, not the event.

 

There is a world of difference between a 308 transaxle and a TR. My advice apllied to the TR.
If he had asked about a 308 my response would have been different.

 

could a TR make it thru that back section with the quick turns? 17a and b seems like a rear glass breaker for sure

 

You compare apples and oranges. Had he asked about a different model or a different make I would have advised based on a different model or a different make.
May I ask your specific experience with Testarossas?