qcar

I'm going to the track on Sunday in my stock 03 S55 for the first time. My friend recommends using a half a tank of 100 octane.

I've heard racing fuel may slightly improve performance, but my question is, can it do any harm to my stock engine?

Thanks,
qcar

Corsa9000

No harm with higher octane, only lower octane level will damage the engine. Have fun at the track, drag racing or road course?

qcar

Thanks for the info. I burned through a full tank of 100 octane in one day.

FYI - I went to a well-run driving school at Willow Springs, CA raceway set up by the BMW Club in LA, which welcomes all makes of cars. It's about a 2 mile track with 9 turns and 2 straights.

It was real fun and my S55 performed beautifully. It's no track car, but for its size the BMW guys (and my instructor, who also drives a GT3) seemed pleased with the S55's handling. Of course, it made a good impression on the straights. People in the pits approached me later and said they could feel my car's thunder-like rumble in their chests as I passed by at 125. And I have a stock exhaust.

What I like most is knowing that my car is rock solid under extreme (for me) driving. I came off the track, got on the freeway and it drove home smoothly and quietly, like I had just come from the grocery store. It's as if the car was yawning, saying "is that all you've got?"

-qcar

TMC M5

The only thing to watch out for is that some race fuels are slightly leaded...which can cause some problems in the cylinders if you run it too often.

Tom

Corsa9000

qcar,

I knew you would have fun tracking your S55. As to the 55 engine, it is a solid piece of engine technology. I have done the AMG Challenge series a few times and these cars perform flawlessly being pushed around the various tracks all day.

Can't say the same for other makes though.

kevinpuri

This is the essence of motor sporting with Mercedes Benz and AMG. Beautifully said!

Kevin

Viet_Amg408

how did your brakes hold up?.. mine doesn't want to stop after it gets hot..

qcar

My stock brakes, which were 2 months old, worked perfectly. One thing I did learn from a friend is to loosen all the lug nuts and retighten them in a star pattern at 85 pounds before hitting the track. This prevents rotors from warping and/or lug nuts from failing from the intense heat.

One of my lug nuts was put on so tightly by the guy who did my brakes that I broke two socket extenders removing it.

-qcar