Track advice
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Senior Member
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 432
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From: Kildeer, IL
2004 E55
Track advice
I posted this in the Route 66 Raceway thread but it'll be overlooked due to Jim's great run. However I do want feedback so I'm making this thread. Last night was my first time bringing the beast to the track and I now know it's not as easy to get a clean launch with these things as I thought. Couldn't get out of the hole smoothly if my life depended on it. My best run was a 12.530 @ 114.68 mph with a neck-breaking 60' of 2.110 My 2 other runs I had 2.0 60's but worse times. I think if I can shave .2-.3 off that 60' I should run a 12.0-12.1 What are some good techniques to get a better short time? I had the suspension raised and in comfort mode, the tranny in sport mode and T/C on. I tried brake torquing to ~1400 rpms and tried rolling into the throttle and still managed to have the T/C cut power for that brief second when the wheels broke loose 
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From: Naperville, IL/Chicago
2008 CLK63 Black Series 2012 C63 Black Series 2014 SLS Black Series
Hey, thaks for posting that vid of my run.
12.5's are not bad for your first time at the track, especially considering you only got to make 2-3 passes. That is not enough time to lear your car and how to launch/drive it. Hell, i have made probably 30 passes in my car and I'm still learning it. You saw some of those guys last night with blowers and slicks on their cars struggling to make 12.5 passes. Your 12.5 pass was probably in the top 20 percetile of the cars running in our class last night and it was by far the largest class/group. Most of those cars were running high 12's.
I'm sure my car is totaly different than your but I turn my T/C off on all my runs. T/C cuts too much power off on my car, but I would wait for some answers from some other E 55 and E63 guys, I don't want to speak for them since I have no clue about your cars.
Are you heading out to the L.E.T event at US 41 on Saturday? You should think about it, there are only going to be 20-25 guys goign and you can make as many passes as you want. Contact ChicagoX or AMG Jerry for mor info. I also think there is a thread in this section.
Good Luck
12.5's are not bad for your first time at the track, especially considering you only got to make 2-3 passes. That is not enough time to lear your car and how to launch/drive it. Hell, i have made probably 30 passes in my car and I'm still learning it. You saw some of those guys last night with blowers and slicks on their cars struggling to make 12.5 passes. Your 12.5 pass was probably in the top 20 percetile of the cars running in our class last night and it was by far the largest class/group. Most of those cars were running high 12's.
I'm sure my car is totaly different than your but I turn my T/C off on all my runs. T/C cuts too much power off on my car, but I would wait for some answers from some other E 55 and E63 guys, I don't want to speak for them since I have no clue about your cars.
Are you heading out to the L.E.T event at US 41 on Saturday? You should think about it, there are only going to be 20-25 guys goign and you can make as many passes as you want. Contact ChicagoX or AMG Jerry for mor info. I also think there is a thread in this section.
Good Luck
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Joined: Dec 2006
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From: Indianapolis, IN
2012 JDM
Assuming you have followed ChicagoX's directions, here is what I specifically did when I had my E55:
-Get good rear tires (PS2's in 275mm width worked well for me)
-Do a burnout to warm them up a bit.
-I left traction control on, tried to modulate throttle as if it was off though.
-Do not brake-torque, just roll on the throttle.
That got me a 12.1XX E/T in my second EVER 1/4 mile run. (not second trip to the track, second run) After you get good and used to it and build some confidence in what you are doing, try it with TC off. I never got that comfortable with my E55, but now I am used to the dynamics of it all, so I never use TC anymore in my M6.
That's what I did...
-Get good rear tires (PS2's in 275mm width worked well for me)
-Do a burnout to warm them up a bit.
-I left traction control on, tried to modulate throttle as if it was off though.
-Do not brake-torque, just roll on the throttle.
That got me a 12.1XX E/T in my second EVER 1/4 mile run. (not second trip to the track, second run) After you get good and used to it and build some confidence in what you are doing, try it with TC off. I never got that comfortable with my E55, but now I am used to the dynamics of it all, so I never use TC anymore in my M6.
That's what I did...
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From: Texas
2003 CL55
What tire pressure did you run and what kind of tires? Did you do a good dry burn out to heat your tires up and did you go around the water box?
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E63 Biturbo, UPD Cold Air induction kit, UPD performance crank pulley and UPD adjustable rear suspension with ride height adjustment.
CL55 UPD Cold Air Boost kit, UPD 3000 stall converter, UPD 77mm SC clutched pulley and beltwrap kit, Custom long tubes, UPD crank pulley , UPD suspension kit, UPD SC pulley, Aux. HE, Trunk tank w/rule 2000 pump, Mezeire pump, UPD 5pc idler set, Aluminum rotor hats.
www.ultimatepd.com
instagram @ultimate_pd
facebook.com/ultimatepd
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Joined: Dec 2005
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From: Ann Arbor
'03 SL55
12.5 is terrific for the first time out!
The drag race sticky has some good advice: https://mbworld.org/forums/w211-amg/236339-drag-racing-how.html
Rolling into the throttle seems to help the most, taking about one second to reach full throttle. Pre-loading the transmission seems to cause the ECU to cut power and makes the car launch slower.
Good luck on your next runs!
The drag race sticky has some good advice: https://mbworld.org/forums/w211-amg/236339-drag-racing-how.html
Rolling into the throttle seems to help the most, taking about one second to reach full throttle. Pre-loading the transmission seems to cause the ECU to cut power and makes the car launch slower.
Good luck on your next runs!
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'03 E55, Range Rover Sport Supercharged, Ducati 748R
start with 1/8 tank of gas or less. run recommended pressures in your street tires, or at least close. i use 36psi in my toyo t1r's. decreasing air pressure in our heavy cars does nothing to soften the sidewall on low profile radials and only serves to distort your contact patch. i run 28-30 in my mt d/r's to prevent contact patch distortion because of the heavy weight of our cars and have found that to yield the best results. suspension should be in the comfort setting and if your car is lowered use the raise button to reduce negative camber and increase the contact patch. put the trans in manual, turn esp off, and do a DRY 2-3 second burnout, just long enough to slightly heat the tires and clean off any debris. as you're finishing the burnout, allow the car to move forward before the tires to stop spinning. put the trans back into sport before you stage. launch should be from idle rpm. do not trans brake as it is my belief that the ecu does not know what to do with simultaneous accelerator and brake applications and will limit too much power right off the line. if the track is hooking, you should be able to mash the pedal quickly, just short of a stomp, and knock off consistent 1.7x 60ft times. if the track isn't hooking you may have to mash slower but you still should be able to keep it in the 1.8's.
Last edited by chiromikey; Aug 27, 2008 at 04:29 PM.
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From: NJ
2005 E55
if the track prep is not good, there is nothing you can really do. Drop the rears down to 25 lbs. (I know Chiro isn't a fan of that, 
) Do a burnout in the water box (controversial but it works for me.) Make sure that you have at LEAST 1/8th a tank of gas. I prefer just over 1/4 tank.
Set the suspension to C and the transmission to S.
Find the groove at the tree. If it is prepped well, you can hear the sound of the tires and VHT sticking to one another as you roll up.
Forget the green light. You are just trying to get your launch right. If you are too focused on getting out of the hole, you will screw up your launch.
when you are ready to leave, roll hard into the throttle but only after you are fully off the brake pedal. Don't slam it. Get it to the floor within 1.5 seconds of releasing the brake. Hang on.
) Do a burnout in the water box (controversial but it works for me.) Make sure that you have at LEAST 1/8th a tank of gas. I prefer just over 1/4 tank.Set the suspension to C and the transmission to S.
Find the groove at the tree. If it is prepped well, you can hear the sound of the tires and VHT sticking to one another as you roll up.
Forget the green light. You are just trying to get your launch right. If you are too focused on getting out of the hole, you will screw up your launch.
when you are ready to leave, roll hard into the throttle but only after you are fully off the brake pedal. Don't slam it. Get it to the floor within 1.5 seconds of releasing the brake. Hang on.
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Out Of Control!!
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From: San Diego
2015 S212
the squat helps to avoid bounces and slips.
I agree so much with chiromikey. Here is the only thing I did different. First, I ran drag radials (BFGs) so i definitely did burnouts. How you do one has EVERYTHING to do with your 60 times. I run my car in dyno mode, so no traction control. I get in the water, hold the brake and slowly add gas as I modulate the brake. I try to get the tires to slowly pull and go into a spinning burnout. If you just spin them out, you may not get enough energy into them. If you are running Z rated tires, then it is likely best to do a small burn anyway, since they have a wider temp range. Anyhow, once the tires are spinning nicely, I slowly modulate the brake to let the car walk out of the water (keep the wheels smoking) and into the swept area. Then, just like at the start of burning, I try to slowly bring the wheels to a halt. This again helps to apply more heat but more importantly it gets that layer of melted goo off.
On a nicely prepped track, you can almost just mash and go. the car feels AMAZING when that happens. If the track is dirty, then you will have to rein in those 500 horses.
I agree so much with chiromikey. Here is the only thing I did different. First, I ran drag radials (BFGs) so i definitely did burnouts. How you do one has EVERYTHING to do with your 60 times. I run my car in dyno mode, so no traction control. I get in the water, hold the brake and slowly add gas as I modulate the brake. I try to get the tires to slowly pull and go into a spinning burnout. If you just spin them out, you may not get enough energy into them. If you are running Z rated tires, then it is likely best to do a small burn anyway, since they have a wider temp range. Anyhow, once the tires are spinning nicely, I slowly modulate the brake to let the car walk out of the water (keep the wheels smoking) and into the swept area. Then, just like at the start of burning, I try to slowly bring the wheels to a halt. This again helps to apply more heat but more importantly it gets that layer of melted goo off.
On a nicely prepped track, you can almost just mash and go. the car feels AMAZING when that happens. If the track is dirty, then you will have to rein in those 500 horses.
