Spring Mountain Motorsport Ranch, Hunt Course A

[The HACK]

Ignore the telemetry.

The phone mount I had was pretty secure, but it allowed and transmitted some harsh vibration from the chassis to the phone resulting in unusable video whenever I'm on the binders. So I ended up just capturing data.

Shortly before the end of the weekend, I decided to hook up the GoPro(s) for a quick flyer to satisfy my need for self-aggrandizement. Went out in the B group thinking that I'm just going to cruise, lucked out when there's no traffic.

The video counter shows 2:36.3x for the full lap, while the telemetry overlay was from an earlier capture of a lap that was 2:38.13. Those of you astute in observation will probably spot the video and data being out of sync about half way through the video.

I was told that Spec E30 does this exact config in about 2:2X.

Those of you not familiar with SMMR, it's a beautiful Motorsports Country Club located in "lovely" Pahrump about 50 miles north-west of Las Vegas. Framed by beautiful hills and desert landscape, with manicured landscaping, pool and hot-tub, massage tables, and a fully staffed club-house serving gourmet food worthy of the Las Vegas area amenities. Having recently expanded, the "full" SMMR course can be configured to 7 miles long. I believe the Hunt course layout A is ~3.1 miles.

Due to the beautiful desert scenery as a backdrop, and the proximity to Las Vegas and Los Angeles, you may recognize some of the features of this track on various automotive related commercials for high performance cars. Michelin also makes use of this facility, as do Ron Fellows for his Corvette experience and the Radical school. There are condos on site you can buy into as part of your membership package, so you can just store your track weapon of choice in the garages locally, and just fly into Las Vegas, rent a car, drive to SMMR and enjoy the track whenever you feel like.

We (BMW CCA L.A.) are fortunate that SMMR occasionally invite us to use their facilities, and I've come to really enjoy this track, even though this is only been the second time I've been here (well, third if you count that one time I had to drive a stinkin' Toyota Sienna here) and the first time driving the Hunt course. Truly fabulous facilities and world class accommodations. I and two fellow instructors ended up renting 2 condos and stayed on site for the entire weekend.

[Dalko43]

Great video!

Did you have any issues with downshifts, specifically 3-2? How was the gearbox handling that type of driving in general?

[The HACK]

Originally Posted by Dalko43

Did you have any issues with downshifts, specifically 3-2? How was the gearbox handling that type of driving in general?

Nope. Gearbox is great, never had a problem on track in 9+ year of ownership (knock on wood). It's buttery smooth when driven like you stole it.

The few times I had trouble finding gears is when I'm driving on the street leisurely. Combination of the high strung nature of the engine and the very notch-y gearbox almost demands that you drive it like you're pissed at it.

[Dalko43]

Originally Posted by The HACK

Nope. Gearbox is great, never had a problem on track in 9+ year of ownership (knock on wood). It's buttery smooth when driven like you stole it.

The few times I had trouble finding gears is when I'm driving on the street leisurely. Combination of the high strung nature of the engine and the very notch-y gearbox almost demands that you drive it like you're pissed at it.

Thanks for the feedback! The only reason I asked that question was because I had read a lot of forum posters (supposedly owners) claim that there were some difficulties quickly shifting gears (a few specifically mentioned the 2-3 up shift or 3-2 downshift). People had talked about installing new motor mounts and deleting something called the clutch delay valve which had mild success.

I'm sure you, being a Z4m owner, are much more familiar with those online conversations than I am. What are your thoughts on that issue? Is it even an issue to begin with or is it simply the result of a few owners with bad experiences becoming the "new norm?"

[The HACK]

Originally Posted by Dalko43

I'm sure you, being a Z4m owner, are much more familiar with those online conversations than I am. What are your thoughts on that issue? Is it even an issue to begin with or is it simply the result of a few owners with bad experiences becoming the "new norm?"

I'm going to suggest that notch-y engagement into 2nd is almost always there...In just about every BMW I've driven. And I've been driving manual BMWs daily for 15+ years now.

Is it worse on the MZ4? Yes. The MZ4's gearbox seems to be notch-ier than other BMWs I've driven. Once you get used to it, you don't really even notice it. Like I said, I've been tracking the MZ4 Coupe since 2006, and while on track the shifting action is buttery smooth. Especially when you drive it like you stole it.