MX5 MK3 Sport Track Day Running Costs

[vanman1936]

I ha e run a few track day cats in the past (MR2 MK3 Turbo) and Megane R26....both great in different ways. Not silly expensive to track, but it’s never cheap is it.

MX5 MK3 the next candidate, anyone track their costs of running one of these?

Cheers

P

[anonymous-user]

I have a fairly standard NB but they are cheap as chips really. They are light on tyres and brakes as you would expect and you don’t need drilled discs or fancy pads because they are comparatively low on power to most other stuff, other consumables are just the same as a daily driver, I haven’t found they burn any extra oil on track for example.

I basically add 50% to the cost of the track day as a ball park figure for maintenance and consumables for the day. Given parts are so cheap, that covers running costs and I’m currently in credit so to speak!

Edited by anonymous-user on Monday 29th March 10:52

[Humour]

I'm interested in feedback on this too. What does a MK3 sport weigh 1100kg with a rollbar?

I have a striped and caged E36 in the region of 1250kg. It is not light on consumables that's for sure. Brake pads wear at a high rate which cost a fair whack for track suitable stuff (that's with cooling to the hubs and oversized disks). Discs not so bothered as they are cheap to replace in comparison and as said, don't need anything fancy, just good quality Brembo/OEM stuff.

Tyre wear depends on setup of course but also how hard you lean on them. Wrong geo and soft side wall tyres whilst driving at close to 10/10ths will see you destroy tyres and be expensive, no matter the car.

The other big cost is fuel, but can't count that it's what we are all there to do lol.

[E-bmw]

Humour said:

Brake pads wear at a high rate which cost a fair whack for track suitable stuff (that's with cooling to the hubs and oversized disks).

I assume from that you have done the e46 330 disc upgrade?

If so what do you call "track focussed pads"?

I ask because I have tried many & if you are using the likes of DS2500/Mintex 1144/1155 etc you need to pay more to cost less.

eg (IIRC, don't quote me on prices as I hade AP 4-pots)

RS29/DS1.11 were around £230/front set & lasted well over a year of TDs.

DS2500/1144 were about half that & lasted no more than 2 x TDs.

[vanman1936]

Also, would want to fit a proper roll bar. Am I limited to the soft top / removable hard to? Seen one or two that fit under the retractable hard top, but headroom / protection looks less.

[CarlosFandango11]

vanman1936 said:

Also, would want to fit a proper roll bar. Am I limited to the soft top / removable hard to? Seen one or two that fit under the retractable hard top, but headroom / protection looks less.

I’ve had a bit of a look into this. The protection looks less on the hard top roll bars. Take GC Fabrications for example:
https://gcfabrications.co.uk/product/mk3-gc2-roll-...
https://gcfabrications.co.uk/product/mk3-mx5-gc2-p...

Note they state “Whilst this is not a full ROP system, we do believe this provides better safety protection than the existing equipment.” for both of these NC roll bars, but not for their NA & NB ones.

[DanGPR]

Track running costs on the NC are very reasonable.

Rodders pads with ducting to the front brakes, the pads will easily last 4-5 track days. The brakes even on standard cheap pads are very good.

I run AD08R's, they don't have the outright grip of an AR-1 or Cup type tyre but they last very, very well and grip levels wet and dry are good. Easily 5+ track days out of a set, especially as front and rear sizes are the same so can be rotated.

The car is great on track, obviously it's not the most powerful thing in the world but from a handling and enjoyment perspective it is very, very good.


I'm in the process of dropping a 2.5 engine with aftermarket cams in mine, should be around 220bhp which at just about 1100kg is more than enough.

[QBee]

DanGPR said:

The car is great on track, obviously it's not the most powerful thing in the world but from a handling and enjoyment perspective it is very, very good.

I'm in the process of dropping a 2.5 engine with aftermarket cams in mine, should be around 220bhp which at just about 1100kg is more than enough.

I agree with you, but I am coming at it from a different perspective.

My 4.6 turbo TVR Chimaera is a similar weight as the MX5, and has 395 bhp and an aircraft hanger load of torque (525 ft lbs). Which has made me realise that while I might be quicker on the straights, I doubt that I am any quicker around the corners than you, as the TVR does not handle as well as a well set up MX5, and if you are a better driver than me then you are probably getting more enjoyment than me from your faster corner exit speeds.

If you watched last night's Top Gear, then the race sequence with the Saxos chasing the mid-life crisis presenters demonstrated this brilliantly - the only car that stayed out front was Harris in his Monaro, and that's because he races and thus knows how to corner.

Have fun in your MX5s and enjoy the great handling.
Here's an MX5 making my point perfectly for me> I might have been quicker on the straights, but my cornering was awful. It had 315 bhp back then.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAZCOXpZCWY

[andy97]

vanman1936 said:

I ha e run a few track day cats in the past (MR2 MK3 Turbo) and Megane R26....both great in different ways. Not silly expensive to track, but it’s never cheap is it.

MX5 MK3 the next candidate, anyone track their costs of running one of these?

Cheers

P

Speak to Paul Roddison or Paul Sheard

[roddo]

The video above is Richard Cookson aka tigger in a car we supplied him many years ago...

[QBee]

roddo said:

The video above is Richard Cookson aka tigger in a car we supplied him many years ago...

Decent fella.
I joined a gang of MX5s and a sole MR2 that day, as the only TVR present, and they all made me very welcome, especially Richard.
It was my birthday, so a treat to myself.
He was good company and we traded passenger rides during the day.
The experience in his car, with the tyres screaming for mercy, was much as in the video.