Toyota MR-2 and Lotus Elise - Who got punked?

Set It Up Right
What you can learn from our time at the trackWhile both cars performed well during this test, each were limited by their set-ups. Here are some basic tuning tips that will make most cars perform better at the track. Just keep in mind that a car set up for the track will often be less stable during braking and cornering. It will also be more sensitive to varying surface conditions. Therefore, they should really be trailered to and from the track, or at least driven cautiously on the street.

Alignment: A basic four-wheel alignment is a must before taking a car on the track. If the car has adjustable ride height, it should be corner balanced as well. Remember, manufacturers typically set up cars to understeer, so they are more predictable and safer on the street. Adjusting the camber and toe beyond these factory settings can make it corner better, at the expense of this predictability.

Camber: Looking at the lateral g telemetry from the circuit test, you can see the cars spend most of the time cornering at close to one g. Adding negative camber will increase the outside tire's contact patch, therefore increasing its grip. This will allow the car to carry more speed through the corners and onto the straights. Typically, two to four degrees of negative camber is optimal.

Toe: Adding toe-out to the front tires will cause the car to turn in and perform quicker transitions from one direction to the other. At the rear, decreasing the amount of toe-in will help the tail swing out in the bends. This lets you get on the power sooner to accelerate out of the corners. Most cars want less than one eighth of an inch of toe-out in the front and zero to an eighth of an inch of toe-in at the rear.

Suspension: The single most common problem we run into while testing tuner cars is the suspension being too low and soft. G loads on the track are much higher than on the street, compressing the suspension to a point where it runs out of travel and bottoms out. This not only accelerates wear but makes the car unpredictable and dangerous to drive. Track cars need relatively stiff springs (with dampers to match) or the ride height needs to be set high enough to avoid this condition. Of course, there is much more involved with suspension tuning than this. But if you can at least keep it from bottoming out, you'll be off to a good start.

Brakes: These get pushed hard and frequently on the track. This wears them out and also creates a lot of heat. At the very least, the brake fluid should be bled to remove any bubbles and pads should be checked for wear. Hard-driven cars should use upgraded pads and fluid designed to work at higher temperatures. Cars using race tires will benefit from larger rotors and calipers due to their ability to dissipate the additional heat created by the extra traction.

Tires: Nothing will affect your car's performance on the track more than the tires. The wider and softer they are, the harder the car can corner, brake, and accelerate. But they must match the suspension and the brakes. If you don't have a stiff racing suspension and upgraded brakes, the car will be better balanced without racing tires. Once at the track, you'll be able to fine-tune your set-up by adjusting tire pressures. Decreasing the pressure in the front will promote oversteer and vice versa.

These are the basic concepts behind setting up a car for track duty. Keep in mind that with each advantage there will be some sacrifice. Negative camber takes away grip on straight-line acceleration and braking. Toe-out makes the car wander on the straights. And both these mods significantly increase inside tire wear. Also be aware that these changes will make driving on the street more difficult. The car will be more prone to spinning if the driver is abrupt with steering, throttle, and brake inputs. But if driven smoothly, the car will ultimately get around a track faster.