Feb 7, 2004 - NASA HPDE @ Infineon

After completing a full suspension rebuild (Tokico springs/struts, Poly bushings), new set of Yoko tires, new stock braking system, and getting the motor running smoothly, I felt the Z was safe enough to run in my first HPDE event and on Saturday Feb. 7th 2004, I did just that at Sears Point Raceway.

The first session went as expected, slow and uneventful. Mostly I just wanted to get to know the car. I knew the track well enough since I had gotten to drive it a few years back. I didnt get a good clean lap in with the amount of traffic but I did get a few segments in so I could feel the car out.

Second session was a lot better with everyone speeding up a bit, myself included, and getting some good laps in and just enjoying the drive. The Z performed flawlessly, gripping the road well and being extremely predictable all the way around the track. I listened to my instructor and made a few changes in my line and was pleased with what I had learned both in the line and in the car.

Third session I decided to really get to know the car a bit more intimate and pushed out some laps much closer to the limits. The instructor was confident enough with me to allow me to do so. This session turned out to be the most fun as I led the pack onto the track giving me a nice open track to really lay it down. Of course, I wasnt shooting for 100% (it is only HPDE) but wanted to test the car in a few corners and over a couple specific curbs. I let me instructor in on what my plan was and we were off for the ride of a lifetime. The Z was intense and simply performed well beyond my expectations. It ran exacly where I asked it to go. Through the Esses it shifted it's weight at the moment in needed to and held firmly to the asphalt. I did get a great run into turn-2 to get a nice understeer at turn exit, but easily within a minor correction to keep the car at speed and rev'd up. Had a real fun moment under braking into turn-11 (hairpin) where I was going from 110mph to a 35ish. While under hard braking over many laps the brakes began fading and the pedal began going further down to the floor-baord. This of course prevented me from my standard heel-toe to burp the throttle upon shifting. The wide gap between 3rd and 2nd under downshift/braking/turn-in and lack of heel-toe caused the rear to twitch out just ever so slightly. Easy catch with steering input and back to full throttle to finish off the turn.

I cut my day short only a few laps into the 4th session as the brakes were very faded... and so was I after some hard driving in the third session.

Simply put, this past Saturday was the most fun I have had in any car. The Z is a dream to drive at speed on a track. I expected the lack of power steering to be tough on me, but I never noticed it. I didnt expect the brakes to fade as quickly as they did... I just over-estimated stock brakes I guess.

When I returned home that night, I removed the front wheels to inspect the brakes. Luckily, I retired from the day at a perfect point. My stock front pads (only 2 weeks old) were gone. The heat simply ate thru them in only 3 25-minute sessions and I was left with 0% pad. I'm happy I didnt bother running any additional laps... I would have lost all brakes and went off. I picked up new rotors today and picking up better pads tomorrow, for the next HPDE day... soon.

For anyone that has considered going to an HPDE event and hasnt... my advice is to go for it. It was not only VERY enjoyable, it was extremely educational. The amount of respect and knowledge I gained for the Z cars is beyond description.