mondo

I posted this on another thread, but decided i would make it a stand alone. i'd delete it but i do not seem to be able to. apologies for the spamming of the other thread.

I'm wondering if any of you guys have done roll racing in your E55?

i get my car tomorrow and late next month i will be taking part in a roll racing event. i've never driven an E55 and never done roll racing before, so wondering if anyone has any tips for a complete noob?

from what i know, we will be starting at 50kmh (about 30mph) and the track is just under a 1/4 mile in length.

cheers.

Plutoe

You have way too much time on your hands---use the time to read to your girl friends kids or volunteer for an after school reading program!

mondo

thanks for the advice, but my wife might be a bit upset if i spend time at a girlfriend's house.


fwiw i'm a 50yo man with adult kids who live over 250 miles away from me. I've work hard all my life, many year on shiftwork and like to blow off steam now that I have the time and money to do so. I spent many years volunteering as a coach or administrator and official for my kids sporting teams/clubs and have for many years been the organiser of multiple charity events for a car club I have been a member of since 2009.

The upcoming event is the final round of a club based race series of which i am a team Captain of one of the 14 teams involved. My lovely wife enjoys racing and occasionally jumps behind the wheel herself.

First round was a skid pan motorkhana, second round was a hill climb, third round was a time attack and this round is roll racing. Just happens that my new car will arrive in time for me to take part instead of being a spectator. So if you have any advice on driving in Roll Race, that would be great...

Round 1 -
Round 2 -
Round 3 -

Strigoi

Roll racing is stupid as ****. It's drag racing for people that can't go from a stop.

bizzy247

Is drag racing from a stop for stupid ****s who can't make turns around a road course? No.

They're both organized racing events. If the OP wants to participate in roll racing, must you waltz in here and ***** in his thread with opinions?

Certain people may prefer to race from a roll because it places less stress on the drivetrain...

JoeJErnst

I've never raced like that before, so my advice is purely theoretical...

Sounds like you will need to have the transmission in M mode so you can hold 1st gear up until you punch it. Then, depending on your TCU tune, the car may shift itself at redline or you may need to bump it into the next gear manually. Either way, just lay into the throttle as much as the tires will hold. Traction control on or off will probably be a personal preference after you get a few runs under your belt.

Good luck!

Strigoi

Yes.

No opinion there, that's fact.

Kalashnikov

Congrats on the car and on you having fun with it.

Put the car in Sport mode, hold the speed you will be starting from, and pull and hold the gear shifter stick to the left (minus sign direction). This will put the car in the lowest gear it can maintain at that speed. Smash the throttle and let the car shift on its own at redline.

SICAMG

You will have a good time.I have done all the different track stuff over the years...1/4 mile for 15 years straight ,road racing on 4 tracks and now the roll race stuff. This is an easy event by far and very "soft" on the car since you are already moving. I do the 1/2 mile and controlling heat is the only factor. At our last event some one's record run was 206mph from a 55 mph roll and that's pretty darn fast and looks even better in person.
Next event will be the 1.5 mile where we have some members here..RUSH, clocking 192 mph but also it will give you 1/4 mph and time so it covers everything so to speak. Good luck and PM me for anything else you need to know.

rttadam

Strigoi, thanks for the input! Many of us on here actually love roll racing, outside of the track.... especially on freeways in other countries.
However, since you are a self proclaimed expert I would recommend starting your own expert threads. Onto the OP, hammer down, be safe, and have fun!

Strigoi

Good to know that you're one of those idiots that races on the street.

Infiniti

this is the correct way to roll race an e55/63, M mode will get you in all sorts of trouble. you should deff get a new intercooler pump just to rule that out as something that will slow you down.

one thing that i used to do and its tricky to learn to do is put the car in first gear in S mode, take the car to thirty and as soon as you stab it, click up a gear, it will usually spin first gear for a sec and then throw second gear. After that first click it will upshift itself into third exc. its tricky to learn to do but after so many tries i got it right. if you stab it from 30 in first it will usually spin the tires, fall flat on its face go into second and take off again.

As i am a decent drag racer with over 80 passes in amg cars some i cut 1.7x 60ft on street tires i really enjoy roll racing. less stress on the car, the faster car wins (not the quickest). lets get serious, on anything other than a prepped track our street tires don't stand a chance in first or second gear, at least not mine.

mondo

That's about as American as a comment could get on this thread!!

mate, it's not my preferred type of motorsport either, but it's part of a series involving 4 different disciplines. My favorite is hill climbs.

In previous years we have done drag racing on an airstrip, but this year the people paying the bills want to try something different, so Roll racing it is. None of the 64 drivers from the clubs pay anything to compete, that's all covered by Nulon Oils, the sponsors of the event. I'm having a go because until a fortnight ago i had a FWD turbocharged hatchback and drag racing in that was a waste of time...




thanks to you other guys for your warm welcome and sage advice. the car arrived this afternoon but as it is unregistered, i cannot drive it on the street till it's been given a roadworthy inspection and registered tomorrow. Looking forward to learning about the car and having a little fun.

Hotsauce55

Pay little attention to Stirgoi when he's in a mood. Half his posts have substance the rest are opinion. Guy has admitted to racing on the streets before & driving his bike like an idiot. Maybe he has learned over the years, but has trouble expressing his opinion in a non offensive way at times. I do agree that street racing is not recommended & while many times it ends up harmless, much is at risk for you & others.

Roll racing is easier than drag racing of course, less variables. but so it sitting in a pool vs swimming laps. So sitting in a pool is stupid as *** too.

Enjoy the roll racing, bet its more fun than posting opinions on the internet (like I'd rather be roll racing than typing this garbage)

mondo

don't worry about me, i'm a forum veteran in other places, and actually a moderator on one board too. also ran/run some quite large motor enthusiast facebook groups.

while roll racing is not my preferred motorsport, i'm just looking forward to mashing the go pedal without having to look out for red and blues flashing in my rearview mirror...

SICAMG

Very true ! If you can hit an event that lets you air out the car to 180+ mph at a safe controlled "track" than have at it. Like I said before we had cars cracking 200+ and that is crazy fast for "street" ? cars !!

Strigoi

You summed it up right there.

Sometimes I get bored and like to see what happens when I post things. My opinion doesn't always go over well.

mondo

I have thick skin mate

SICAMG

Whoo hooo !!! Someone just did 244mph in a 1/2 standing start as posted by Joejernst. Never mind a roll start..... Thats flying !!!

principledchiro

This's technique is how my bolt-on 525+ whp (625 brake hp 700 lb/ft. trq., more power on the way, 06 CL55 AMG is able to throw its formerly 4300 lb. (now 4100 lbs. due to ABC delete-now coil over suspension and other items deleted from chassis, light weight wheels, exhaust, etc.) around in a roll; beating even bolt-on: BMW M4 (450 hp), Camaro SS (450 hp), Mustang 5.0 (430 hp), bolt-on Subaru STi (425 hp), MB C63 S AMG (515 hp), Dodge Challenger 392 (485 hp), C6 Vettes (450 hp), Porsche Carrera S4, Audi S4 S5, etc.
It does have a DTK TCU module which make a noticeable difference in higher shift points and red line. If in manual mode, there's a chance you'll hold in the gear too long near red line, potentially invoking the rev-limiter to cut out the motor. Stomping on it in automatic Sport Mode while the rpm is high at 30 mph is your best bet. The trans. may kick down to 1st gear which will bring the full brawn of the stock 500 hp and torque to your aid. Again, a TCU tune helps in wringing out as much the engine and transmission can dish.
This's from a 56 year old 40 years street and highway racing doctor. So long as it doesn't harm you, your family, friends, spectators, etc....Live your desires and dreams!

mondo

cool, so press the button near the shifter till i see S on the dash display, hold the shifter to the left while moving at the speed we need to be going at the start, then mash the go pedal and let go of the gear shifter. correct?

what suspension setting should i be in?

thanks all for the advice.

MTV10

Start in 2nd gear from a 50km/h roll. That will put you right in the middle of the torque band.

SICAMG

Wait....hold on !!! Before you start picking what gear to start in find out what your official start speed is. Our's is 54 mph so the first thing to align yourself with is hitting the start timer at that exact speed. After the first time when the jitter's are gone you will be fine!! Have fun !!!

mondo

afaik it is a 50kmh starting speed. the regs have not yet been released. sadly there was a double fatality over here a couple of weeks ago at a roll racing event so things are still under discussion between the organiser and the regulator.

from what i heard, the car's throttle jammed open and the car ran into a wall at speed resulting in the deaths of both the driver and passenger.

mondo

had a practice at this a few times today on a quiet back road. actually used the cruise control to maintain 50kmh, selected 2nd gear and then mashed the go pedal. worked well.