Paint damage on the track?

[drroc]

I did an Mtrack day at Thermal two weeks ago, and I was surprised by how much the car got sand blasted when following the instructor car at 120+. I am now itching to take my own car to the track, but I was curious if there is anything I can do to prevent sand/rock damage when following somebody on the track at 100+.

Thanks

[bracer]

Clear film or lots of blue tape. Entire front of my car is clear film

[Mike991M4]

yes, the best choice is a clear bra, but for a simple temporary fix, go to home depot and get carpet protection film. Its the stuff they put on the carpet in new homes so people won't mess it up before sale. Its got a light adhesive on one side and will hold up on the track. It won't look great, but will do the job.

[drroc]

Originally Posted by Mike991M4

yes, the best choice is a clear bra, but for a simple temporary fix, go to home depot and get carpet protection film. Its the stuff they put on the carpet in new homes so people won't mess it up before sale. Its got a light adhesive on one side and will hold up on the track. It won't look great, but will do the job.

Thanks. I'll take a look at it.

[drroc]

https://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&ke...l_1ud9m0g5io_e

Looks like Amazon sells TrakkTape

[Mike991M4]

I would get some of that for the small areas and the carpet stuff for the big areas.
https://www.homedepot.com/b/Search/N...tialmax&NCNI-5

[MaX PL]

The worst decision I made in owning this car was not getting a clear bra day 1.

Track days have destroyed by paint, windshields, and even a wiper.

Nerver again will I make this mistake. Hate the idea of having a film over the paint but hate the look of my paint now even more.

[OhioRiderAaron]

At a minimum, get a clear bra for the front bumper. If you can afford it, get the whole front clip covered. Good for daily driving and for track use. However, I think the most over looked element here is the windshield. After a handful of track days the windshield can look like sandblasted mess.

[IrvineTim]

Originally Posted by MaX PL

The worst decision I made in owning this car was not getting a clear bra day 1.

Track days have destroyed by paint, windshields, and even a wiper.

Nerver again will I make this mistake. Hate the idea of having a film over the paint but hate the look of my paint now even more.

yes, but you avoided an even worse decision that many owners of this car make, and that is, NEVER taking this car to the track!!!

At least you got to enjoy the beast!!! Play time is never cheap!!!

[NOLATom]

XPEL the whole car. I did a European delivery in an M3 in 2016 and after about 4K miles, there were over a 100 paint chips. Because of that, I had my next M3 covered with just 2 miles on it. I track it and have had numberous chunks of rubber hit it and rocks and there is zero damage. I have had one rubber mark on my hood about 2 feet long that lefts scratches in the film. I cleaned it and after sitting in the sun all of the scratches went away. Best decision I have ever made.

[Nothing]

I have a clear bra across the full nose of the car, mirrors, a-pillar and even part of the CF roof. I asked them to wrap the corners as much as they could and even then I have a fat chip off the fender from CMP last weekend.

The clear bra will help a lot and you will see the places where the impact occurred but luckily it will protect the car from most things. Rubber clean up is easy as well.

There are some areas that you need to pay special attention to that no one ever told me. Either clear bra these areas or buy Trakktape for track days.

Lower running board behind the front tires
Replace the stock rear quarter panel film with a larger section
Rear lower bumper area behind the wheels
ALL the fender arches. Do this as an every track day precaution. I'd go so far as to put door ding guards on there and I wouldn't even care what people thought. This will matter a lot of you're running wider/stickier tires.

[ano0oj]

Originally Posted by MaX PL

The worst decision I made in owning this car was not getting a clear bra day 1.

Track days have destroyed by paint, windshields, and even a wiper.

Nerver again will I make this mistake. Hate the idea of having a film over the paint but hate the look of my paint now even more.

Thanks for the heads up...buying an M4 for my fiance within the next 9-10 months. I'd get her something more practical(slower), but I NEED a track car. Will put this at the top of my priority list of "mods".

[DBACE]

Originally Posted by ano0oj

Thanks for the heads up...buying an M4 for my fiance within the next 9-10 months. I'd get her something more practical(slower), but I NEED a track car. Will put this at the top of my priority list of "mods".

So, not saying it will happen, but are your sure about this? If you split up, you are going to miss the car. Especially if she lets you take it to the track.

[IrvineTim]

Originally Posted by drroc

I did an Mtrack day at Thermal two weeks ago, and I was surprised by how much the car got sand blasted when following the instructor car at 120+. I am now itching to take my own car to the track, but I was curious if there is anything I can do to prevent sand/rock damage when following somebody on the track at 100+.

Thanks

The windshield takes a beating also. I would put a film on that as well.

[C-Mu]

Originally Posted by Nothing

I have a clear bra across the full nose of the car, mirrors, a-pillar and even part of the CF roof. I asked them to wrap the corners as much as they could and even then I have a fat chip off the fender from CMP last weekend.

The clear bra will help a lot and you will see the places where the impact occurred but luckily it will protect the car from most things. Rubber clean up is easy as well.

There are some areas that you need to pay special attention to that no one ever told me. Either clear bra these areas or buy Trakktape for track days.

Lower running board behind the front tires
Replace the stock rear quarter panel film with a larger section
Rear lower bumper area behind the wheels
ALL the fender arches. Do this as an every track day precaution. I'd go so far as to put door ding guards on there and I wouldn't even care what people thought. This will matter a lot of you're running wider/stickier tires.

100% agree with everything here. I’ve got a clear bra on the entire front and still get some pretty nasty scuffs. My last time out I hit something and have a huge scuff on my headlight, fender and mirror. Never saw anything on the track but heard the impact. I tape most everything facing forward and down low even with the clear bra. The green 3M automotive masking tape works well. I’ve tried Track Tape a few times my it’s a bit of a PITA to install and the edges come loose pretty quick.

[nicknaz]

honestly, you just have to accept some scuffing and marks as par for the course

My car has clear film in the all the areas mentioned, and got a rock chip in the middle of the hood right above the film, and the bumper cover behind the rear wheels looks somewhat sandblasted

Do whatever you need to in order to feel comfortable taking it to the track in the first place, and then accept it won't be enough to prevent all damage and just have fun