So, my buddy Bob very fast driver, invited me to Sunday's festivities, an open track day at this small technical and dangerous track, not for the faint of heart. I wanted to bring my Miata and see how the BFG Rivals do in the rain, but it was pouring by my house, 2 hours away, and my DGF said: just take the Mazda2!
OK, the Mazda 2 just got shod with BFG Sport Comp 2s and I was having a hard time finding their limits on the street. So, I grabbed my helmet, my driving shoes, some cash(125 bucks) and a big bottle of water, and running late, I got there 2.5 hours late. It was only drizzling and I was regretting leaving the Miata home. I got over it, and ran 3 sessions, 35 laps, 46 miles, and loved it!
The Mazda2 in the wet with the BFg Sport Comp2s was only 2-4 seconds per lap slower than the Miata in the Dry on RE-11s. Why? Because the tires are really good, and they work better with the OEM suspension than the Advan Ad08s did. And because I love racing in the rain, and I passed an M3, a BRZ, a Mustang. They were new at the track but not new to track days. The Mazda2 has so little power that a small indulgence on the throttle after the apex does little to mess up the line. And a FWD uses a different racing line in the wet than a RWD.
I did run the RT Data Logger and was a bit slower than the Miata. On 14 lap session I did not get lapped by M3s, Mustangs, FRSs, nor other cars. The DL showed 0.8-1.1 Gs in corners on wet surface. The surface was actually good enough for r-comps and the Rivals would have done great.
If you do get a chance, go race your Mazda2 in the rain, you will love it. In my first session I forgot the AC on and the ATC off and I did high 1:32 laps . With AC off ond ATC off I managed low 1:32s. Most drivers in my group asked about mods and were surprised to hear that it was all stock. Better to drive a slow car fast...
That being said, the tires got a bit of graining, meaning that if you want to do track days, you should run Extreme permance Summer Tires or R-Comps but you then need B-Spec suspension at least. Trail-braking is tough sometimes because stability system saves you, but overall this is a fun car. Today I drove to work w/o any problems.
OK, the Mazda 2 just got shod with BFG Sport Comp 2s and I was having a hard time finding their limits on the street. So, I grabbed my helmet, my driving shoes, some cash(125 bucks) and a big bottle of water, and running late, I got there 2.5 hours late. It was only drizzling and I was regretting leaving the Miata home. I got over it, and ran 3 sessions, 35 laps, 46 miles, and loved it!
The Mazda2 in the wet with the BFg Sport Comp2s was only 2-4 seconds per lap slower than the Miata in the Dry on RE-11s. Why? Because the tires are really good, and they work better with the OEM suspension than the Advan Ad08s did. And because I love racing in the rain, and I passed an M3, a BRZ, a Mustang. They were new at the track but not new to track days. The Mazda2 has so little power that a small indulgence on the throttle after the apex does little to mess up the line. And a FWD uses a different racing line in the wet than a RWD.
I did run the RT Data Logger and was a bit slower than the Miata. On 14 lap session I did not get lapped by M3s, Mustangs, FRSs, nor other cars. The DL showed 0.8-1.1 Gs in corners on wet surface. The surface was actually good enough for r-comps and the Rivals would have done great.
If you do get a chance, go race your Mazda2 in the rain, you will love it. In my first session I forgot the AC on and the ATC off and I did high 1:32 laps . With AC off ond ATC off I managed low 1:32s. Most drivers in my group asked about mods and were surprised to hear that it was all stock. Better to drive a slow car fast...
That being said, the tires got a bit of graining, meaning that if you want to do track days, you should run Extreme permance Summer Tires or R-Comps but you then need B-Spec suspension at least. Trail-braking is tough sometimes because stability system saves you, but overall this is a fun car. Today I drove to work w/o any problems.