[InOcULaNcE]

im taking my first trip to the track on Friday. im a little nervous about the whole thing. I plan on setting my tire psi to 25 psi on all four, is there anything else i should do before i run? and when i launch, how does the christmas tree work? some people have told me that i need to take on when the second yellow lights light up to get a good reaction time. any help will be appreciated.

 

[nospeedlimit143]

here's what i've been doing. change your oil. fill it with 5 gallons of premium with a bottle of octane boost. 25-30 psi is good. when you are waiting in the staging lanes talk a lot of sh*t. on your way up to the line... don't burn out unless you have an LSD and drag slicks... when you pull up to the line... stop when the 2nd stageing light goes on. then make sure your 1-2 shift is gonna be smooth by going 1-2-1... launch on the 3rd yellow... don't pop it, but rev to about 3000 rpm and just let the clutch out quick like you normally would at a light and then put your foot all the way to the floor when you feel the clutch grab... keep your gas pedal down even when shifting... and depending on your car, you should be at about redline in 3rd right when you cross the finish line..... good luck!

p.s. if possible take your stereo out, and if you have a crappy dash kit for your cd player like i do... take that out too... it's no fun re-installing your cd player at half track.

 

[InOcULaNcE]

i do have a very heavy speaker box in there, but it is not removable, its custom made for my trunk, being my first time tothe track i am just gonna leave it there, and pretty soon remove the box and get a smaller, removable one put in. thanks alot for the info.

 

[01Night gsr]

You shouldnt lower your tire pressure in the back, you're suppose raise them actually..only lower the front. And if you're going to powershift, do it carefully..misshifting while powershifting = bad....bend valves maybe..

 

[StyleTEG]

Yeah, I wouldn't powershift. When I went, just shifting quickly while fully letting off the gas, the engine would rev up another 100rpms before it dropped down.

 

[nospeedlimit143]

in my first post i didn't mean to powershift... just don't let your RPMs drop too much... you should get your tires to chirp in 2nd and maybe a little in 3rd if you do it right.

 

[InOcULaNcE]

i went out and practiced my launches on a back road last night. In the end, it seemed like 3,000 RPM and dropping the clutch was the best launch. What do i need to be careful of at the line so i dont get disqualified?

 

[b18bad]

there's a few tricks I use when i go(every other weekend) if you have a AEM or similar intake, take out your pass. side bumper light
make sure you shed all the weight you can including and most importantly in the rear (spare tire,jack,ect.)
pull your power steering belt. I know for a fact now that this is worth a tenth and a half.
as far as tires, inflate the rear as much as you feel comfortable with, the front is somthing you have to just play w/ to see what works (25psi is a good starting point,but w/ radial, dont go too low.
run as little gas as possible.
if you run premium w/ an octane booster you can get away w/ 20-sometimes 22 degrees ignition timing.