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07-21-2026LAST POST
mikerunt wrote
Let's go before it closes for the summer. Can't find track days through SpeedDistrict or SDC until fall/winter, and my MotorsportReg for some reason is glitching out and thinks I'm in South America. Does anyone know of upcoming track days at Willow Springs?
jmeenach wrote
Let's go before it closes for the summer. Can't find track days through SpeedDistrict or SDC until fall/winter, and my MotorsportReg for some reason is glitching out and thinks I'm in South America. Does anyone know of upcoming track days at Willow Springs?
id be down to pitch in to do a full private track day.
How much is it?
okusa wrote
How much is it?
Weekday Exclusive Track Rental – Big Willow (2.5-mile course)

Base Rental Fee:
  • Weekday Exclusive Rental: $4,750.00
  • Mandatory Racetrack Safety
  • (Required if 4 or more vehicles are on track):
  • First 8 Hours: $135/hour × 8 hours = $1,080.00
  • Overtime (after 8 hours): $210/hour
  • Optional: You can hire your own BLS or ALS ambulance
Insurance Requirement:
  • You must provide a $5 million liability insurance certificate naming Willow Springs Raceway as additional insured.
  • If purchasing insurance through the track, the cost varies based on the type of event.
  • Estimated Insurance Cost: $600 (could range from $300 to $1,000+ depending on the event) non competitive (HPDE) should be around $600.

Total Estimated Cost for an 8-Hour Weekday Rental:

Item Cost:
  • Track Rental - $4,750.00
  • Racetrack Safety (8 hrs) - $1,080.00
  • Insurance (Estimate) - $600.00
  • Total Estimated Cost - $6,430.00

Additional Info:
  • 50% deposit required to reserve ($2,375.00)
  • Cancellation policy for weekdays: 30 days' notice or full rent is due

25 people @ $300 each would cover the event + left over cash to hire a caterer to have lunch or hidden fee's.. maybe. idk.
Wondering if anyone can help with a suspension question.

I have MCS 3WR. My rear reservoirs are hot mid track day while my fronts are cool/normal to touch.

Is there an issue with the dampers that could be causing them to get this hot, or am I simply not insulating them appropriately from the exhaust heat? Perhaps wrapping the reservoir hose in some sort of insulation?
omgzirra_exe wrote
Weekday Exclusive Track Rental – Big Willow (2.5-mile course)

Base Rental Fee:
  • Weekday Exclusive Rental: $4,750.00
  • Mandatory Racetrack Safety
  • (Required if 4 or more vehicles are on track):
  • First 8 Hours: $135/hour × 8 hours = $1,080.00
  • Overtime (after 8 hours): $210/hour
  • Optional: You can hire your own BLS or ALS ambulance
Insurance Requirement:
  • You must provide a $5 million liability insurance certificate naming Willow Springs Raceway as additional insured.
  • If purchasing insurance through the track, the cost varies based on the type of event.
  • Estimated Insurance Cost: $600 (could range from $300 to $1,000+ depending on the event) non competitive (HPDE) should be around $600.

Total Estimated Cost for an 8-Hour Weekday Rental:

Item Cost:
  • Track Rental - $4,750.00
  • Racetrack Safety (8 hrs) - $1,080.00
  • Insurance (Estimate) - $600.00
  • Total Estimated Cost - $6,430.00

Additional Info:
  • 50% deposit required to reserve ($2,375.00)
  • Cancellation policy for weekdays: 30 days' notice or full rent is due

25 people @ $300 each would cover the event + left over cash to hire a caterer to have lunch or hidden fee's.. maybe. idk.
I'd be in for that.
ok guys, hear me out- an overnight event at buttonwillow where we smoke up some brisket or pulled pork and baked beans. after the track day we all just drink whiskey and eat bbq around a bonfire and then have another track day the next day.
Uh… are there arrive and drive setups out there? I’d come out for a closing party, but getting my car out there from Chicago and back would be a shitshow.
roastbeef wrote
ok guys, hear me out- an overnight event at buttonwillow where we smoke up some brisket or pulled pork and baked beans. after the track day we all just drink whiskey and eat bbq around a bonfire and then have another track day the next day.
This is the plan
mikerunt wrote
This is the plan
roastbeef wrote
ok guys, hear me out- an overnight event at buttonwillow where we smoke up some brisket or pulled pork and baked beans. after the track day we all just drink whiskey and eat bbq around a bonfire and then have another track day the next day.
def down for this, given we have easily a few of us between NorCal and SoCal who can easily make up the event at buttonwillow.
MaX PL wrote
Wondering if anyone can help with a suspension question.

I have MCS 3WR. My rear reservoirs are hot mid track day while my fronts are cool/normal to touch.

Is there an issue with the dampers that could be causing them to get this hot, or am I simply not insulating them appropriately from the exhaust heat? Perhaps wrapping the reservoir hose in some sort of insulation?
Where are your reservoirs mounted? I don’t see how they’d get hot unless you’ve intentionally placed them near the rear exhaust or something lol.

Most of us running 2WR or 3WR setups typically mount the reservoirs near the shock towers inside the trunk, which should keep them away from major heat sources.

Even if you’re on non-remote 2-ways, they shouldn’t be anywhere near the exhaust. If they’re still getting hot, it’s likely an internal issue—possibly the shock oil isn’t dissipating heat fast enough. I’d recommend reaching out to MCS directly. You might be due for a rebuild if temps are getting that high.
omgzirra_exe wrote
def down for this, given we have easily a few of us between NorCal and SoCal who can easily make up the event at buttonwillow.



Where are your reservoirs mounted? I don’t see how they’d get hot unless you’ve intentionally placed them near the rear exhaust or something lol.

Most of us running 2WR or 3WR setups typically mount the reservoirs near the shock towers inside the trunk, which should keep them away from major heat sources.

Even if you’re on non-remote 2-ways, they shouldn’t be anywhere near the exhaust. If they’re still getting hot, it’s likely an internal issue—possibly the shock oil isn’t dissipating heat fast enough. I’d recommend reaching out to MCS directly. You might be due for a rebuild if temps are getting that high.
I'm have a F80 and they're inside the trunk. They were just rebuilt 6 months ago. Now I question if they missed something; I doubt thats the case but nothing else make sense at this point.
MaX PL wrote
I'm have a F80 and they're inside the trunk. They were just rebuilt 6 months ago. Now I question if they missed something; I doubt thats the case but nothing else make sense at this point.
That’s definitely a possibility—could be they didn’t match the shock oil volume correctly to your spring rate. Too little, too much… who knows lol. I’m not an expert either 😄 but it’s something worth bringing up with MCS. They’ll probably have more insight based on your spring rates, setup, and use case.
former 240 s14 wrote

Needless to say if you want to be smart about getting into either multi-class or spec series racing this is my advice......

1. Do many many HPDE events, get yourself up to the advanced group and practice.
2. Attend a racing school. BMW CCA does a good job from what I've heard and you don't need a full race car to attend.
3. Start small, try either Champ Car or Lemons. Learning at a slower pace makes the learning curve easier.
4. Once comfortable and you find pace in traffic and are consistent start looking to move up to AER or WRL.
Totally agree with these 4 steps, For W2W your driving has to be at an advanced level because racing adds a lot more complexity but is a LOT of fun.
Edit: Also I did the BMW race school and its really good to learn the basics and get your rookie license
kolosy wrote
Uh… are there arrive and drive setups out there? I’d come out for a closing party, but getting my car out there from Chicago and back would be a shitshow.
Pretty sure SDC has an e36 you can rent :)
roastbeef wrote
ok guys, hear me out- an overnight event at buttonwillow where we smoke up some brisket or pulled pork and baked beans. after the track day we all just drink whiskey and eat bbq around a bonfire and then have another track day the next day.
Yeah I'd be in!
omgzirra_exe wrote
That’s definitely a possibility—could be they didn’t match the shock oil volume correctly to your spring rate. Too little, too much… who knows lol. I’m not an expert either 😄 but it’s something worth bringing up with MCS. They’ll probably have more insight based on your spring rates, setup, and use case.
i swear you're the only person that uses the long hyphen / emdash on a car forum

there was a moment when i thought you were chatgpt'ing your messages or something
former 240 s14 wrote
Absolutely. My path into road racing is very non traditional. I visited the BMW M Performance Center for their two day M School with my dad in June 2018. I was recruited to go racing with a couple of their instructors after my two days there. I had a drifting and "light" autocross background but never had done HPDE or anything resembling W2W. My first event was at Watkins Glen in 2019. 55 cars on track and I was thrown into an ex Continental Challenge E92 M3. What an experience!

Seven years later I race primarily in AER (American Endurance Racing) but have done several WRL races. I race with a team based out of Columbus Ohio called Autoworx Motorsports, we focus on E34/E30/E36/E46 platforms. Here is my one of my favorite battles at VIR a couple years ago. Unfortunately, we lost that E30 at Road America the following year at the King.
*snip vid to not have super long quoted message*

Needless to say if you want to be smart about getting into either multi-class or spec series racing this is my advice......

1. Do many many HPDE events, get yourself up to the advanced group and practice.
2. Attend a racing school. BMW CCA does a good job from what I've heard and you don't need a full race car to attend.
3. Start small, try either Champ Car or Lemons. Learning at a slower pace makes the learning curve easier.
4. Once comfortable and you find pace in traffic and are consistent start looking to move up to AER or WRL.

The two series are the same but different. AER has many seasoned drivers but WRL has been printing money and you will see many many factory built GT4 cars. The drivers who can afford those seats aren't typically as talented as your grassroots driver and that causes issues. WRL has worked really hard to clean up racing and it's working but there is still room for improvement. Just look at a race control log for reference.
this is super cool stuff, wow! really impressive that you got recruited out of M School.

thanks for sharing, great to hear your journey into motorsport. really appreciate it, and gives a pretty good sense of the trajectory.
bipp wrote
i swear you're the only person that uses the long hyphen / emdash on a car forum

there was a moment when i thought you were chatgpt'ing your messages or something
You know, I started this habit about 6 years ago when my boss sent me an email and I was like, 'WTF is —?' Now I use it all the time because it looks cool… LOL. Sometimes I get lazy, but I have it set up as a macro shortcut since the normal way is Alt+0151 (—).

I've also been trying to work on my writing more, and I find it more appropriate to practice on forums rather than Discord—where I mostly just meme and abbreviate everything.
This doesn't warrant it's own thread, so I'll ask the question here to get peoples opinions:

I'm about to install the do88 cooler package on my M3 track car. I'd call it a clubsport 'build' (full interior w/ race seats, half cage, rear seat delete) for reference.
I'm strongly debating deleting AC while I'm in there. For myself, it serves almost no use - the car only gets driven to and from the track and the climate up here is livable without AC for those drives. Deleting it saves some weight, a few HP, and better air flow to the coolers with the condenser gone.
However, I don't know how long of term I plan on keeping the car. So doing mods that are re-sale friendly to potential future owners of a track car is a consideration.

Thoughts?
1. Remove AC, cause track car
2. Keep AC, cause cool boi
tsk94 wrote
This doesn't warrant it's own thread, so I'll ask the question here to get peoples opinions:

I'm about to install the do88 cooler package on my M3 track car. I'd call it a clubsport 'build' (full interior w/ race seats, half cage, rear seat delete) for reference.
I'm strongly debating deleting AC while I'm in there. For myself, it serves almost no use - the car only gets driven to and from the track and the climate up here is livable without AC for those drives. Deleting it saves some weight, a few HP, and better air flow to the coolers with the condenser gone.
However, I don't know how long of term I plan on keeping the car. So doing mods that are re-sale friendly to potential future owners of a track car is a consideration.

Thoughts?
1. Remove AC, cause track car
2. Keep AC, cause cool boi
100% leave the AC if you are uncertain, or at least be willing to keep the ac components and re-install when the time comes—or offer it with sale.