How dare a Swift run the track?

Swift has a nickname in Guangdong, which is called "Pigeon". It is impossible to verify the origin of this name, but it can be seen that the first great god named like this knows the characteristics of this car, which is small and flexible.

A one-ton hatchback car with a 1.5L engine in its early 1 horsepower is fast, but in urban roads where it is impossible to drive fast, Swift's advantage is reflected, and sometimes it runs faster than a high-powered car.

The car is light and small in size, which is a good foundation in itself. With a little basic upgrade, there will be obvious changes. Running a mountain or a small track like Tianma, you can find happiness and achievements without spending too much money just by upgrading tires, shock absorbers and brakes.

So the day after he got the car, Rut Jun couldn't wait to participate in Tianma's track day activities, which may be the fastest and safest way to get to know a car.

Nowadays, fewer and fewer people are interested in cars. Some people may buy a car without knowing whether it is a front-wheel drive or a rear-wheel drive, or even a few cylinders.

Even so, it's very important to know your car. Once you break through the limit and have an emergency, at least you don't have to be too nervous and in a hurry. It's best to save it. If you can't save it, try to reduce the loss.

It's not difficult to participate in the track day.

Unfortunately, in many people's cognition, it's far from our common people to participate in the track day. In fact, many people are now promoting this safe and legal culture of playing cars. There are no special circumstances, and there are track days almost every weekend.

the first step you need to do is to find this kind of WeChat official account, such as playing OneCar. Just click to fill in the information and pay the money, provided that there is a track in or around your city.

There are more and more racetracks in China. There are Shangsai and Tianma in Shanghai, and there are Shaoxing, Wuyi, Ningbo and Jiangsu Wanchi International Raceway beside them.

there are five large-scale racetracks in Guangdong, namely Zhaoqing, Zhuhai, Huizhou, Qingyuan and Dongguan, as well as Beijing, Tianjin, Chengdu and Ordos, and there are about 3 large and small racetracks that meet the competition requirements.

There is no car type restriction for registration. A super sports car or a grocery cart will do. No one will stop you from driving a Wuling Hongguang. On the contrary, it is the most beautiful boy in the audience.

I ran the most intimate Tianma in Shanghai, and the expense of this article is only Tianma as an example.

Tianma is a kart-like track with a total length of only 2.63km. It is the most "pocket-sized" certified F4 track in China, with 8 left turns and 6 right turns.

The surface looks quite simple, and there are not many complicated hairpin bends and fast high-speed bends. In fact, there are some ups and downs and inclinations, and it is also challenging and fun to run.

▲ Schematic diagram of the track sent by the organizer, with suggested gears on it

Some time ago, I met a discount festival in early summer, and the cost of running for two hours was 7 yuan. 6 yuan was a member, 9 yuan was normal, and the VIP only needed 7 yuan.

You don't need to run fast to join the club. You just need to pay an annual fee of 1,5 yuan a year. After that, the renewal fee is only 1,2 yuan, which is very cost-effective if you run the track every month.

However, regardless of membership or discount, don't forget to buy 3 yuan personal insurance every time you run the track, or you won't be allowed to leave after paying several hundred dollars.

Please note that this insurance covers people, not cars. Once the car crashes, the organizer and the insurance company will not claim compensation, and each car will be repaired.

after completing the registration and payment, remember to make a thorough inspection of the vehicle, tire, brake oil, brake pads, engine oil and working conditions, and then run away when it is safe.

what I did this time was very undesirable. I didn't take it back for maintenance and inspection, and I didn't know how the previous owner treated it. Fortunately, Swift survived a round of track tests without any problems.

By the way, this small track in Tianma is allowed without helmets. If you drive hard, it is always safe to prepare one yourself.

Precautions for getting off the track

After arriving at the track on time, the first thing to do is to sign in with your driver's license and collect materials, including license plate, sticker, guide and GPS timing module. Remember to return the license plate and GPS after the event.

▲GPS timing module

Followed by drivers' meeting to introduce the basic situation of the track and some matters needing attention.

Even if there is no speed limit, white line, yellow line, solid line and dotted line on the track, many people come purely for the purpose of missing cars, but the track is by no means a place for you to drive around indiscriminately. Don't say that you are responsible for something and affect the safety of others.

there are some rules that must be observed-remember the speed limit of 4KM/H in the pit. When leaving the pit, don't press the white line except observing the cars coming from the rear, otherwise 5 yuan will be fined, and 1 yuan will be the last race.

Then there is the light for observing the track. Green means traffic, and red means slowing down and returning to the pit. It is not necessarily an accident on the track, but it may be that it is time for halftime, and the second half will start after a 15-minute break.

in addition, they suggested that the tire pressure should not be too high, and it is better to lower it by .3-.4Bar. On the one hand, the contact area between the tire and the road surface will be improved; on the other hand, the tire temperature and tire pressure will naturally rise after several laps, and the track also provides tire pressure release service.

You might as well add more oil. This is because you brake again and enter the corner, and the whole car bears a lot of centrifugal force, which pushes the engine oil to one side, resulting in insufficient lubrication on the other side. Adding more oil is beneficial to relieve it.

in order to enjoy the track for the longest time, the flying lap should not exceed 5 laps and the cooling lap should not be less than 2 laps, and the two laps should be alternated, so that the water temperature, oil temperature and brake pad temperature of the whole car can be maintained in a relatively healthy state.

Otherwise, you should run 8 or 9 laps with all your strength. When the water temperature comes up, the brakes will be soft, so you must stop in the maintenance area for a while to dissipate heat. Running down like this for two hours in one afternoon may take more time to stop than a sports car. What is more serious is that the car is too hot and burns directly.

▲ Open the hood to dissipate heat in time

At the same time, it should be noted that all the cars on the field run together, not that there are no groups in the race, but the flying circle and the cooling circle are also based on personal circumstances, and there are bound to be fast trains and slow trains on the field.

Just like others drive modified cars and performance cars such as 86/BRZ, GK5, AMG and MX-5, it is normal for me to drive an original Swift.

when you see a car coming from behind, you don't need to brake to slow down. First, turn on the right turn signal to signal the rear to overtake. At this time, just step on the brakes properly. Overtaking by the other side is just a matter of stepping on the accelerator.

In addition to reducing the speed, the cooling circle takes the opposite route to the flying circle. It's embarrassing that others run slowly in the cooling circle, and Swift has to use 8% of its strength to overtake it.

As for walking, you need to practice more. Running karts and driving simulators is a good way to practice, and the price is much cheaper than getting off the track.

Or follow the master and see how they handle the curve, but remember that their car is better and the braking point is later, otherwise others turn around and you rush into the bobo pool.

Say a few more words. Don't be afraid to get off the track just because your skills are not good. Many people also start from the basics.

don't feel embarrassed when you rush out of the track. In fact, people who drive fast and are good rush out more often.

▲ scar is the badge of a racing car?

There are some old drivers flying in the street, thinking that they are very skilled. In fact, a fast track is a real hero. Normally, you are stuck in traffic jams on the road, not because of how good your skills are, but because of the right timing, you just stepped on the brakes.

The cost of getting off the track once

Finally, most people pay attention to the cost. The registration fee and personal insurance are 73 yuan, which is indispensable. The cost of consuming materials such as tires, brake pads, brake oil and engine oil depends on your driving method.

If you fight your way into every corner again and again, use up every centimeter of buffer, and you don't want to come down until the broadcast is over.

after running down the track this day, the tires were flat, the brake shoes were gone, the brake oil contained too much water, the oil was diluted, and the fuel tank was almost empty. The price of replacing all of them depends on the model and the materials replaced.

If you take the attitude of experiencing it, you can change the brake oil, brake shoes and a box of gas money at most, and it will be less than 1, yuan. I think it's very worthwhile to play this once every few months.

▲ Replacing the original brake pads

It's like running a mountain in Shanghai, and only going to Changzhou, Ningbo, the round trip fare, catering, fuel and accommodation are not cheap, which is almost close to the registration fee.

how can I put it? It's more like sightseeing. If you chop one or two corners occasionally, you must follow honestly when there is more traffic on holidays, which may not be pleasant.

the track is different.

Especially when you leave the pit and officially step into the stadium, it means that you are absorbed in driving. No one or anything will bother you again during this time. What you should pay attention to at present is only the track and driving.

Listen to the roar coming and going in my ears, carefully handle every line, and quickly finish braking and downshifting before entering the corner. Even if the speed is not fast, I feel happy and happy from the heart.

▲ When you are tired, take someone else's car to see how you run

No matter how powerful your skills are, there are inevitably too many uncontrollable factors such as scruples and legal restrictions, and no matter how intense you drive, you can't play to the extreme like a track.

furthermore, the street rushing out may cause irreparable losses, while the track rushing out, as long as safety measures are taken, generally nothing will happen.

At the maintenance area, a group of people are discussing and studying how to drive, how to change faster, how wide tires to use, how many degrees the inclination is, and what the shock absorption K value is before and after. It is really interesting for everyone to chat together.

▲ The happiest thing is to communicate with fellow riders on how to refit

Not to mention street driving, there is no such atmosphere for refitting parties, and I don't care about posture or anything. The most important thing is technical exchange, and I have a deeper understanding of cars and driving.

if you don't want to build your own car, or if this car usually has the need to transport your family, I'm afraid it will be too bumpy and noisy.

There is also a racing car rental service now. It costs about 2, yuan to rent a thoroughly raced Ling Shuai and Swift, which sounds more expensive than renting a Porsche, but this money buys a higher-level experience. Civil cars and racing cars are completely different worlds.

as long as you don't crash, you don't have to worry about the later loss and expenses after you have a good time. Besides, other people's cars are always the fastest. You always have concerns about driving your own car. What should you do if it breaks down? If you want to drive home, you can't drive to death.

renting a car doesn't have these problems at all, so it's over.

Happiness is the most important thing

To be honest, the moment of saving money is very painful.

But from the moment you started, you felt that a thousand dollars can't buy me happiness. You couldn't help laughing when you ran for a few times. A few hundred dollars is nothing, so you can save money by paying attention to it.

Through this track day, I have a deeper understanding of Swift. The original factory is simply a lovely little garbage. What should be strengthened in this aspect of control? What is the specific modification plan? Let's talk about it in detail in the next article.

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This article comes from the author of Chejia, car home, and does not represent car home's standpoint.