How to drive a MCS..... quickly but safely ?

[Perm]

Hi,

Now that I have got my MCS...... I want to get the most out of it.......

Does anyone know of any good books / videos / driving schools that
show you how to drive a performance car safely but quickly on the road ?

....in case you are wondering I am not a boy racer....... just want to get the
max fun out of the car without testing my air bags !!!!


Cheers

Perm

[cheekygrin]

you may want to look at the Institute for/of Advanced Motorists http://www.iam.org.uk/

/me looks around for brg mc.

[RickB]

Agree on going to the track; I haven't found a public road where I can safely drive my MCS anywhere near the limit. I push the car only whre I'm not endangering anyone else in doing so. Freeway on- and off-ramps are where I usually scare myself.

[ayn]

This is an excellent book:

Going Faster! Mastering the Art of Race Driving

[chiph]

You might want to pick up a copy of Drive to Survive, written by former US Rally champion Curt Rich.

Chip H.

[mad brummie]

Quote: Originally Posted by cheekygrin

you may want to look at the Institute for/of Advanced Motorists http://www.iam.org.uk/

/me looks around for brg mc.

sorry cheeky i'm here now, belatedly!!

If you have any queries perm give me a shout i'd be happy to help, i'm quite involved with the Insistute of Advanced Motorists and RoSPA's Advanced Driving arm RoADA.

edit: a book which the police use to train their drivers is called Roadcraft its a sure fire cure for insomnia but will help with driving.

[MINIALEX]

An interesting point about the advanced driving school malarky is that a recent survey showed that drivers who had this training were just as likely to ahve accidents and that it has no real world benefit - i think track day and always drive within your limits the extra bit of speed is not worth the misery when it all goes wrong.

I sound boring i know but i speak from experience!

[Paul]

Quote: Originally Posted by Max

In addition book in for a MINI track day - and get an instructor.

You don't go super fast (90 mph max at Croft) but I learned a lot about my car and my driving ability.

regards

90?! And I wondered why I was finding it hard to stick to the track!

[nonsequitur]

Relevent and specific recommendations depend on where you are located...

The advice above to go through a driving school, with an instructor, is an excellent and proper idea. Instruction is the best "aftermarket accessory" to can buy for your car or for you and you will see the greatest payback from this investment in yourself!

One joy of owning a wonderful car is driving it well, and another is using it to drive on the track quickly.

There are MANY ways to do this depending on your interests and current experience. It can be expensive, but quality instruction and experience does not have to be costly, nor does it have to wear out your car.

A "performance driving school" by a car club in a Track Day, versus Racing instruction, is an excellent way to get rational and qualified instruction together with lots of seat time.

Seat time in your car is a key requirement to learn about your own skills and your car, and to improve your skills. This is very rewarding time because you can experience IMPROVEMENT, one of things humans thoroughly enjoy.

Track days are not fender-to-fender racing, but they are a serious thrill nonetheless. You must know how to drive before you can race anyway so what better way to get experience than in your MINI on a very fast and safe road (the local track).

Car clubs typically welcome drivers with other cars into their events. I've taken our car through the excellent instruction programs run by BMW and Audi. They have club instruction books, qualified instructors, signoffs, and enough events to string together a good program for yourself. I recommend them, and I like the progressive and helpful structure of these programs. In our area, Alfa Romeo, Cascade, and other car clubs organize track days, and we have two good professional schools as well. Most areas of the country do. Each club will have a "personality" that you can check out to see how you might fit in. Some are aimed at more aggressive driving (Porsche, Corvette), while others aim at instruction (BMW, Audi, Cascade). The MINI stands very respectably in any of these crowds because it is interesting, unique, fun-to-look-at, and "quick" (not "fast", just embarrassingly quick!).

Local MINI dealerships, MINIUSA, and many of the regional MINI clubs are putting together track days with instruction often provided by a local professionnal school. We had two events like this one in our area this summer. It's fun to run and learn with people driving the same car you have!

I completely disagree with the notion that this driving instruction and experience has no benefit on the street. I can cite many near-accidents by people in the clubs I frequent, including myself, accidents that were avoided (didn't happen) as the result of more skilled driving reactions.

"Driving Schools" using Search on MINI2 may find local efforts you could join. Here is but one example in North Carolina, USA: http://www.mini2.com/forum/south-east-region/41596-m2c2-org-feb-driving-school.html

Maybe we should flesh out this subject in a dedicated thread to help others find a start in their own areas? Put up some specific questions to foster more detailed answers for you.

[Riccardo]

If you want to learn more about the handling of your car and things like turn in, throttle steer, over and understeer, slip angles etc, I would suggest the 1st Lotus driving school run by Andy Walsh.

Its in North Weald aerodrome (on a disused part of track) and quite cheap if in a group of 4 (£120 each for the day). You will be using a bit of tyre though.

Website at:
http://www.1stlotus.com/

[mad brummie]

Quote: Originally Posted by MINIALEX

An interesting point about the advanced driving school malarky is that a recent survey showed that drivers who had this training were just as likely to ahve accidents and that it has no real world benefit - i think track day and always drive within your limits the extra bit of speed is not worth the misery when it all goes wrong.

I sound boring i know but i speak from experience!

I don't know about that, speaking from my experience before and after doing it, I enjoy driving much more, feel much more relaxed behind the wheel and feel alot safer, because I am now so aware of what is going on around me. My personal opinion is that it does make a difference and I have avoided accidents that previously I believe I would have not avoided.

If the statistics say that advanced drivers are just as likely to have an accident, fine, but i feel much safer having had the training i have had.

The most common preconception is that advanced drivers drive slowly, wrong. We are trained to drive to the road conditions or the speed limit. We are also trained to make best progress when the conditions allow.

All the above relates to public road driving, track driving is a different art completely.

Now I sound a real bore, and I got negative comments from friends and family when I first did it, but they now feel alot happier being in the car with me, and have even gone on to do it themselves.

[Dark Silver S]

I learned quite a bit when I took an EVOC (Emergency Vehicle Operation Course). Although a third of it was chalk talk and a third of it was (very) slow speed ambulance work, one third was in a squad car at speeds between 30 and 60. We "learned" things like sudden stops and emergency lane changes. I came away quite impressed at how well a big old heavy American police issue vehicle can negotiate the twisties. Just think how much fun it would have been in an S.