NC as a daily with occasional track duties

[hmd]

Hi all,

I am looking at getting a NC as daily driver, with the occasional track days particularly regularity events like the 6 hours etc...

My question is would a stock nc with just pads and fluid do the job at these events? More from a reliability angle than performance.

[NitroDann]

Yeah absolutely.

You'll get pages of specific advice soon, but in short, yes.

Dann

[Luke]

Short answer: YES
I give it a big tick for reliability and performance is there if you trust the car.

Been using my Dad's NC for a few years now which is his daily drive car.
I have noted on the track it doesn't seem to matter if it is 15c or 35c. I get pretty much the same consistent lap times in it unlike my Turbo SE which can vary by 1.5s.
All that we have ever done is slightly better tyres, Kumho KU36 and Now Hankook RS-3's. Tip get a 2nd set of Wheels for road use as a standard NC's have heaps of body roll so they wear the outside of the tyre. We just have a set of Mazda 3 SP25 Rims and tyres for road use. 205/50/17 does fill out the RAV4 guard gap a bit better.
Better Pads. Standard fronts are surprisingly good but do start to fade a bit after 4-5 laps. Rears were fine. Tried Hawk HPS up front, not really any better than standard. Currently Carbotech AX6 Front and 1521 Rear. No fade, good bite, non corrosive dust. I will be sticking to this combo.
Good Fluid. Penrite Racing ATM. Had ELF before. Never have had a soft pedal.
And if it just a road car with some trackdays change the engine oil every 5000KM's and your good to go.

[Guran]

Yep. 100%. Just do it. NCs are getting cheap enough to make this a very good option. Tyres, pads and fluids replaced regularly and you're on your way.

Luke and I are having a ball competing in stock NCs with road tyres (not Rspecs). Both doing consistent 1:12s at Wakefield Park. Would comfortably do 11s with Rspecs. I used my NC for the 6hr Regularity at Phillip Island. Will be doing that again in 2017 and also the 6hr at SMP GP at Easter.

Brake pads - I've used Hawk Blue and they were awesome ... at both braking performance and eating rotors. Did a nice job of coating the rims in rusting iron debris too. Now using Carbotech XP12 which don't bite as hard but are more forgiving on rotors. Both are very noisy for daily use. If you're doing a lot of daily driving you should swap pads & rotors before & after each track event.

[taminga16]

Re; NC's daily/ track, Look at the Whiteline options, front and rear offer a fairly aggressive setup (maybe leave the front alone), little steps. TEIN Super Streets with some fiddling, work well but the biggest improvement for general use was braided brake lines.
Greg.

[Luke]

Re; NC's daily/ track, Look at the Whiteline options, front and rear offer a fairly aggressive setup (maybe leave the front alone), little steps. TEIN Super Streets with some fiddling, work well but the biggest improvement for general use was braided brake lines.
Greg.

Greg, I really wonder if you read the question before posting???
How is that stock if you start putting in these mysterious unnamed whiteline parts and other bits and pieces? Sway bars I'm guessing.
He asked about running it stock and if the car has reliability.

Its funny that as soon as someone mentions track people think you need a list of parts.
Stock = reliable and that has pretty much been answered.

[plohl]

It's a sway bar dude, not like he's suggesting old mate drop a 2.5 in it straight away...

Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk

[greenMachine]

Hi all,

I am looking at getting a NC as daily driver, with the occasional track days particularly regularity events like the 6 hours etc...

My question is would a stock nc with just pads and fluid do the job at these events? .

Yes. Use good pads, good fluid that is regularly bled and changed. Regular maintenance of the callipers (especially the slider pins) will also help.

More from a reliability angle than performance.

Assuming you are NSW-based, the NSW MX5 Club runs stock classes at its track days, and the Club has a strong presence in the stock Class in the NSW State Supersprint Championships. Especially in the latter, the cars are pushed HARD, and mechanical failure is rare.

Without knowing your competition history, a stock car is a great way to enter motorsport cheaply. You can spend time learning to drive the car fast, without wondering whether the speed is coming from the driver or the mods. There are championships to be won in stock cars as Guran (and others) well know, so this choice has its rewards.

In terms of value for money, tracking a stock car is by far the best bang for the buck.

We look forward to welcoming you to the obsession

[Guran]

It's a sway bar dude, not like he's suggesting old mate drop a 2.5 in it straight away...

True. But putting in an aftermarket sway bar instantly puts the car in modified class at most Australian competitive events where it will be hopelessly underdone. Unless you're in Victoria where you're allowed two modifications for a "standard" NC in the club competition. Hence the polite queries above about which state the OP is in.

Bottom line, a well maintained stock NC is just fine for regular track duties. As is a stock NA, NB or ND.

[hmd]

I am from Victoria. I have an old race car that I raced 3-4 times a year.
I don't intend to use the road car for regular track work. Was looking at using it in 6 hours with my mates, the old race car is a bit too fragile for that.

I was looking at a 370z but a stock one can't do more than a couple of laps, unless you put on an after market oil cooler kit.

[Guran]

I did the Phillip Island 6hr this year in my stock NC with Kumho KU36 tyres. Our team of four drivers was doing stints of up to 30min. My NC ran fine all day until the original clutch started to slip on my last few laps. It was only noticeable between Honda and Siberia - I just put up with it. The car was absolutely fine for the 11hr drive home and afterwards until I got the clutch replaced.

If your NC has around 100,000km and the clutch is original, it's probably worth fitting a new one before the 6hr.

[hmd]

I did the Phillip Island 6hr this year in my stock NC with Kumho KU36 tyres. Our team of four drivers was doing stints of up to 30min. My NC ran fine all day until the original clutch started to slip on my last few laps. It was only noticeable between Honda and Siberia - I just put up with it. The car was absolutely fine for the 11hr drive home and afterwards until I got the clutch replaced.

If your NC has around 100,000km and the clutch is original, it's probably worth fitting a new one before the 6hr.

Perfect this is the information I wanted to know, many thanks.

[*DAN*]

NC is PERFECT for this sort of things. Brought out my NC when it was standard and raced it around all day on track with standard pads, rotors, and fluid and even then I didn't have an issue with fluid boiling up on me, only towards the end of the day. With better pads and fluid you won't have a problem at all.Obviously make sure you change out the coolant before hand as insurance but im sure you know that already

[AndyT]

Great thread and I hope to do the same with my NC shortly.

I had a Toyota GT86 from new, prior to the NC MX5 and though it was my daily, I did use it for the odd sprint day.

Invest in a flush and bleed of the brakes and use a DOT5.1 fluid. Also invest in a better than road use alignment with someone who knows what they are doing. I used longer camber bolts in the 86 for some more adjustment.

There'll be heaps of tyre squeal, lots of strange smells, and above all you will have a ball without breaking the bank

[Guran]

I've never had any issues with DOT 4 Super which at around $10 per bottle is very cheap. However it does require regular flushing. DOT 5.1 fluid seems to last a lot longer although I've never tried it as it's much more expensive. Might work out to be a better option in the long run.