E46 M3 Trackday #22 - Thunderhill West - Ongrid 2/24/24

Forty-fourth track day. Starting the year off with the Ongrid birthday bash out at Thunderhill West.
This event had so many people going off track, getting towed, being in the wrong run group. Little bit of everything! One of the more chaotic events.
Ended up being a fairly hot day for February. Dorito and a few other corners had strong puddles throughout the day which really hindered any PB chasing.
1.26.00 flat was my best time. About half a second off my personal best. Had the puddle not been on dorito. Probably woulda PB'd and shaved a few hundredths off.
Was my first event with a Hotchkis front sway bar.
I wasn't sure how much i would gain out of the sway bar. The car definitely feels more planted than without the bar. Just need to find the sweet spot.
It added a little too much understeer in a few corners and I need to go softer. Was on medium setting all day for a baseline.
Only real issue of the day was session 3 with my shifter.
The centering mechanism came outa line and I was unable to get into 1/2 gear. Was stuck between the pit exit and last corner trying to figure out what was happening. Fun!
Had to take the center console apart to realign the shifter and it was all good for the rest of the day. Still lost about half a session :(
Will be breaking in the new pavement at Sonoma next month with SpeedSF.
Thunderhill West 2/24/24 hosted by Ongrid. Group 5 - Red (Open Passing)
14:42 - Subaru goes rallycross
35:56 - Shifter issue
37:43 - How many times can you go off in 1.5 laps? (4) By GR Corolla
40:12 - 1.26.0 best lap of the day
47:20 - Chasing ‪@chrispy28‬
00:00 Catalyst Overview
00:06 Session 1 (failed gopro - go figure)
08:19 Session 2
27:20 Session 3
37:04 Session 4
52:10 Session 5
Suspension:
- TC Kline D/A coilovers
- Ground Control camber plates
- Hotchkis sway bar (med)
- Bimmerworld sway bar links
- Rogue Engineering strut bar
Brakes:
- AP Racing 9660 front bbk
- Stoptech slotted rear rotors
- Raybestos ST45/43 brake pads
- ECS brake lines
- Bimmerworld brass brake bushings
Wheels:
- Apex EC-7 18x10et25 wheels
- Kumho V730 265 tires (day 1)
Engine:
- Beisan VANOS
- BE/ARP rod bearings
- Radium oil catch can
- Eventuri carbon intake
- Megan Replica muffler
Chassis:
- 3350lbs full tank
- RTD REVO1 reverse lockout shifter
- OMP WRC-R XL bucket seat
- Brey Krause seat mounts
- SCHROTH Flexi 6 point harness
- Autopower roll bar
- Rogue Engineering transmission bushings
- Powerflex diff/subframe bushings
- Turner subframe reinforcement
- DIY rear seat delete
- Full interior
- Garmin Catalyst lap timer

[@chrispy28]

damn you're right - I was really close to that T1 wall on entry

[@Driver_407]

👀🙈👀

[@jeremyeaton89]

Nice driving - I was in the other black e46 m3. How are you mounting your catalyst? That’s a nice setup

[@Driver_407]

Thanks, The previous owner had a phone mount which had predrilled holes that aligned with the catalyst ball mount. Bought some short - flat top alen heads and bolted it up. Try google image searching "PanaVise E46 M3 Mount". Not sure if that is exactly mine but that is 99% the same. It is a really solid setup for the garmin for sure! Also soldered the hardwire power connection to my cigarette lighter and ran it through the center dash under seat.