First drive

[FastFrog]

I made it to a track, mostly uneventful aside from loosing a mirror to an aggressive traffic cone and spinning out on a downshift
Still so much to learn about driving, maintenance and last but not least safe pit exit. It was a blast and for now my plans for converting it into a simulator are on hold

Thank you all so much for your help and advice.


https://youtu.be/iJk20xBvqpE

[provamo]

you had REAL fun

[mikey]

Good deal! Tip on downshift, do them rapidly all at once at the end of the braking zone. Less chance of upsetting the car balance.

[Jorma]

You shouldn't be driving that car without the head surround.
Mike M.

[Fred Michael]

You MUST get at least 6" lower in that car for your own safety. DO NOT take it out again until you get your helmet below the roll hoop,
The car will handle a 6'3" driver with the pedals adjusted properly and a proper seat.
The car will be easier to drive when you are going faster and using the downforce.
Do not preload the shift lever on downshifts, let it return fully. You need about a 30% blip on downshifts to make the gear shifting smooth
The oil temp MUST be above 160* or the ECU will limit the rpms and that makes driving the car difficult

[FastFrog]

You MUST get at least 6" lower in that car for your own safety. DO NOT take it out again until you get your helmet below the roll hoop,
The car will handle a 6'3" driver with the pedals adjusted properly and a proper seat.
The car will be easier to drive when you are going faster and using the downforce.
Do not preload the shift lever on downshifts, let it return fully. You need about a 30% blip on downshifts to make the gear shifting smooth
The oil temp MUST be above 160* or the ECU will limit the rpms and that makes driving the car difficult

good advice Ill likely need to get a new seat molded, any preferred products you use for that?

ps: what is a blip?

[Fred Michael]

We use Bald Spot seat kits for ours but we have an in house person to do the molding. You might call Bald Spot in Indy and ask them who used their kits near your location. It requires a person outside the car, preferably someone who has done it before.

You must blip the throttle to match revs on downshifts to minimize drive train shock that could lead to locking the rear wheels and spinning the car. You can use the heel and toe technique if you are a right foot braker or if you are a left foot braker just use your right foot to raise the revs about 30% on your downshifts.

A proper seat will also allow you to use the headrest as it is designed. Please tell me that you have a HANS device or equivalent and are using it properly

[FastFrog]

You must blip the throttle to match revs on downshifts to minimize drive train shock that could lead to locking the rear wheels and spinning the car. You can use the heel and toe technique if you are a right foot braker or if you are a left foot braker just use your right foot to raise the revs about 30% on your downshifts.

Interesting, I though the ECU on these cars blocked downshifts above certain rpms and did not require Clutch. sounds like you prefer to clutch and maintain rpms just under that limit by keeping throttle at 30% or did you remove the downshift rpm limit?

I found in my run that I get more consistent upshifting if id lift just a tiny bit just as I shift, do you find the same or do you upshift with no lift?

[Farrout48]

SpeedSeat is an excellent product. Find somebody locally who has experience in doing seats. Failing that, Jody can meet you somewhere and do the seat for you. They are an apexspeed advertiser. Well worth the cost. Jody will find your proper seating position and get you comfortable in the car.

[tige00]

Yes please get lower in the seat and use the head surround, also please use a hans, and on track with sedans is also not a very good idea, your scaring us, we know your excited but safety comes before all

[Jamesbe]

Interesting, I though the ECU on these cars blocked downshifts above certain rpms and did not require Clutch. sounds like you prefer to clutch and maintain rpms just under that limit by keeping throttle at 30% or did you remove the downshift rpm limit?

I found in my run that I get more consistent upshifting if id lift just a tiny bit just as I shift, do you find the same or do you upshift with no lift?

You don't need the clutch. But upshifts should be able to do without lifting but really only at full throttle so putting around will require a lift.

Downshifts are not protected, you can go into any gear at any speed. You don't need the clutch for the downshift you do need to press the throttle quickly to get the revs up to match the speed of the wheels when you hit the next gear.

It's harder to drive these cars slow than fast. They need to be moving fast with hard throttle and brake application to keep the balance smooth.

It sounds like you should find an hpde instruction day and learn in a standard car first.

Sent from my SM-G955W using Tapatalk

[Lotus7]

(unwanted advice deleted per request)

[FastFrog]

Fastfrog
The PFM does NOT need a throttle breathe on upshifts if its ignition cut trigger is working.
However, as a beginner I'd be curious if you are at 100% throttle on accel and upshifting?
As pointed out previously, your car has ZERO downshift assistance or protection.

Usually when I'm up shifting its because I believe I have maxed out that gear and so I'm "flooring the throttle" but as you said I'm a beginner so I'm sure I often misread the rpm sound and shift early but still at full throttle the exception is when I'm purposefully short shifting.

[lowside67]

Usually when I'm up shifting its because I believe I have maxed out that gear and so I'm "flooring the throttle" but as you said I'm a beginner so I'm sure I often misread the rpm sound and shift early but still at full throttle the exception is when I'm purposefully short shifting.

Sound is not a good indicator of when to shift on such a high revving motor - try to train yourself to use the shift lights.

-Mark

[TimH]

Last time I checked sim racing has an extremely low risk of death or permanent paralysis. Not so a powerful and fast open wheel car unless you take reasonable precautions like full personal safety equipment, proper fitting to the car, and awareness of what you're doing. "..what is a blip?" is about the most alarming thing I've read in some time. I no longer recommend you go to a formal open wheel racing school until you've done some track time in a street car. There are HPDE events frequently no matter where you live.

As for the seat, you don't want to waste big $ on a custom seat until you've done a few sessions with adjustable padding (and maybe cheap 2-part insulation foam) to find the exact right position. Your first try is almost certain to be a bit off, which you won't learn until you start pulling some lateral g.

[FastFrog]

Last time I checked sim racing has an extremely low risk of death or permanent paralysis. Not so a powerful and fast open wheel car unless you take reasonable precautions like full personal safety equipment, proper fitting to the car, and awareness of what you're doing. "..what is a blip?" is about the most alarming thing I've read in some time. I no longer recommend you go to a formal open wheel racing school until you've done some track time in a street car. There are HPDE events frequently no matter where you live.

As for the seat, you don't want to waste big $ on a custom seat until you've done a few sessions with adjustable padding (and maybe cheap 2-part insulation foam) to find the exact right position. Your first try is almost certain to be a bit off, which you won't learn until you start pulling some lateral g.

Not sure if you paid attention to my rant but the PFM was actually the 4th car I drove on the track that day and I Intend to drive more in those as well, it has been stated and quite true that safety was lacking as I wanted to try this out before investing a lot of money into making it a hobby, I have decided to do more of this so now I am working on what I can to make it safer. And yes ill prob try something like adjustable padding or DIY seat foam kit before investing in a custom seat. My list of priorities right now are.

1. Adjust my seating position so that I will fit with the Head surround in the car.
2. Get a neck brace {Hans device}.
3. More track time in this and other cars.

PS: I may take a course to get a SCCA license primarily to get access to more track day events but for now I'm not planning on any formal training beyond advise from the experienced racers that I'm going to that track with, one of which raced on a professional level in open wheel cars.

[Jamesbe]

All sounds good, good luck to you!

I do HIGHLY recommend an HPDE school VS a race school VS no formal training.

Racing school teaches racing not really car control, they kind of expect you know this by then.

No formal training is like jumping into the NFL / NBA / NHL after you watched a youtube video on how to swing a bat / throw a ball etc.

Driving isn't easy unfortunately.

[Greglab]

Wow, that is a lot of car for first time formula car driver. The PFM is an outstanding car, I think the best formula car on the planet -- powerful, great brakes, lots of grip (both mechanical and tons of downforce), pretty reliable, and tough. Wonderful car. However, perhaps you want to start with a FF, FM or FC to learn how to control the car and most importantly carry speed thru the turns. There is so much to learn, it is a fun road, but the PFM should be near the end of your journey. I guess you can do it, but for sure do as the others have said with seating position, head surround and Hans. I have a Speed Seat in my car and would highly recommend that. Try to get your nose even with side of cockpit, it is low. Also a good formula car school like Bertil Roos would be great for you, the 5 day school. And again, rent some lower HP cars and learn to carry speed, drive like a momentum car and learn car control skills. Kind of like learning to ride a 125 MX bike before moving on to a 250 or 450. Driving a car with low HP teaches you a lot about how the drive properly. Cannot hide the mistakes with HP. The PFM on throttle is a mind blower, everything happens so quickly, need to stay ahead of car, so I think both school and rentals and track time are needed to let your drive car near it's potential safely. It is a safe car, just a lot of car!

Good luck, have fun with it, it is a great journey, notwithstanding a pretty expensive journey...