New Jersey Motorsports Park: Thunderbolt

[sleepe]

I did 2 hpde's last season at Thunderbolt.
I plan to return this season as well.

My question is about fuel and oil starvation.

Does this track have long enough sweepers to cause either?
Would the addition of the Moroso pan and phil's or frank's fuel pot
be necessary for hpde?
My Elise has oem oil pan and no fuel starvations countermeasures.

-Robert

[lotus69f2]

I have raced at NJMP. THe track as depicted in your post is innacurate, in that it leads one to beleive that there is one giant track. THeir intention from the outset was to have two tracks that could be linked together for big events. That is what is pictured. But the cross links do not exist - as far as I know.

THere are two separate tracks Thunderbolt and Lightning - named for WWII era fighter planes. Thunderbolt is the bottom portion of the trackmap you providied. Lightning is the top part.

On Thunderbolt (left pic) there are several sweeping turns. Turn 3 is very fast and turn 4 is even faster. The last turn onto the front straight is flat. THe section they call the octopus - depicted on the right of the pic is slow but loads the car up on first the left, then the right fo a fair amount of time.

On Lightning(right pic) - which if you turn the inage 180 degrees looks like male genitalia - has onlt one spot that is likely to cause oil starvation. That is the head of the penis, though the track people refer to it as lightbulb. It is the long carousel turn depicted in the right sside of the picture. This is probably the most likely place on both tracks to cause a problem.

Whether you need to worry about it and how to address it is someone elses bailiwick.

[Bavarian Motorist]

Originally Posted by lotus69f2

. That is the head of the penis, though the track people refer to it as lightbulb.

Watch out for the dick head...

['Nova]

Will be there in a few weeks with ACNA, and like you my Elise doesn't have anything but stock configuration. If I have any problems, I'll post back here.

[coulthard fan]

Another data point for Thunderbolt: last weekend I was getting fuel cut in the middle of long left sweeper before the main straight (turns 9/10, the "octopus", "New Jersey Devil", or whatever you want to call it). Conditions were dry, about half a tank of gas, and I was on Toyo R1R's (near R compounds) doing laps in the 1:39s. I had to take it easy through there and fill up the tank to avoid the problem. I can't imagine how bad it would have been on my sticky tires.

No oil starvation because I have a Moroso oil pan.

[macdady2424]

I'm all stock and had no problems on Thunderbolt. But since I'm a nooby, I'm not sure how far from the limit I was.

The Lightning track has a banked turn. I guess if you're high on the turn and going really slow with a low tank you could starve it. Kinda like the post were everyone stopped on the side of the slanted highway and couldn't start their cars back up. Guess I'll find out sooner or later.

[coulthard fan]

Originally Posted by macdady2424

I'm all stock and had no problems on Thunderbolt. But since I'm a nooby, I'm not sure how far from the limit I was.

I'm pretty far advanced from a nooby track driver at this point, and some of you here know first hand that I was at (and then over) the limit at Thunderbolt last weekend

Originally Posted by macdady2424

The Lightning track has a banked turn. I guess if you're high on the turn and going really slow with a low tank you could starve it. ...

No problems on Lightning - the banked turn you are talking about is a right hander, and fuel starvation is happening primarily on left handers. I've done Lightning many times with no problems... except for slow moving Z06's

[dmh]

I'm at NJMS park almost weekly coaching or instruction. I rarely see any Elise's or Exige's except for Certified Lotus (Glen) who is at Lightning today or Moreen who purchased Shinoo's car. Which organizations do you guys/gals choose to run with?

(Quick lap times for pretty much stock S cars with some suspension tuning on R compounds are sub 1:14 on Lightning and 1:29 on Thunderbolt, no chicane.)

[coulthard fan]

Originally Posted by dmh

...Which organizations do you guys/gals choose to run with? ... (Quick lap times for pretty much stock S cars with some suspension tuning on R compounds are sub 1:14 on Lightning and 1:29 on Thunderbolt, no chicane.)

SCDA is there next Monday and Tuesday and I and many other Loti have run with them in the NorthEast
Trackdaze is there this Saturday and Sunday
EMRA is there July 12th
Those are the organizations I have on my calendar as being at NJMP in the next month, and as of right now I'm likely to only do the EMRA time trial.

I just did Thunderbolt for the first time last weekend and it was run with the chicane at turn 3... hopefully the track officials won't make every organization use it. The 2nd apex curb there is nasty!

[Rainier]

Originally Posted by coulthard fan

... (and then over) the limit ...

Hope you didn't ding the car.

I'll be at Lightning on Sunday for the first time.

[dmh]

Originally Posted by coulthard fan

SCDA is there next Monday and Tuesday and I and many other Loti have run with them in the NorthEast
Trackdaze is there this Saturday and Sunday
EMRA is there July 12th
Those are the organizations I have on my calendar as being at NJMP in the next month, and as of right now I'm likely to only do the EMRA time trial.

I just did Thunderbolt for the first time last weekend and it was run with the chicane at turn 3... hopefully the track officials won't make every organization use it. The 2nd apex curb there is nasty!

The last SCDA event had 3: mine and two novices. This weekend Trackdaze is on T-bolt (I've never heard of them), NASA Lightning (50 cars or so today, 1 Lotus -- Glen). Trouble is that it is FD weekend and who with little kids really ought not to be with them? SCDA has an issue in that they are following a busy weekend at T-bolt which is never seems to be good no matter the track. It's why country clubs are closed on Mondays! Regroup...
I'll be at T-bolt driving and instruction, not coaching, on the 10th-12th and 23rd. Hope to see you there someday...

[coulthard fan]

Trackdaze is a VW centric group that is an offshoot of NASA Mid-Atlantic region, such that your "status" with NASA carries over to their events. Jon Felton, the NASA MA time trial director, is one of the organizers. https://www.trackdaze.com/ I don't have a definite plan to do any events with them this year but I'm sure I'll see you out there at NJMP or some other East Coast track at some point.

[dmh]

Originally Posted by MyElise

Don -

Bring that hot shoe up to an SCDA event at LRP. There are plenty of Lotus' there, even a couple of sub 1 minute guys occasionally.

Lime Rock I'll take Pocono North over it . Simply put, there are too many superior race tracks within reasonable distance of north central NJ to bother with going to LR any more. Especially with the track sharing arrangement.

[dmh]

This is a dangerous pass time! Today How about the purple Lotus in the green group with white stripes and PA plates who lost it in a rather big fashion? Ashley Novak, the instructor, thankfully is ok.

[CRP66]

Originally Posted by dmh

This is a dangerous pass time! Today How about the purple Lotus in the green group with white stripes and PA plates who lost it in a rather big fashion? Ashley Novak, the instructor, thankfully is ok.

Yup - that was me.
Looked worse than it was!

[Rainier]

Anyone going to Thunderbolt this weekend? I'll be there Sat.