Auto trannys on track?

[Aricracer]

I was hoping to get a few opinions on this. My younger brother is very excited about attending a track day with me next season. Probably at the Glen. He currently drives a 07 Pontiac G6 with the 170 hp 4 cylinder engine with and automatic transaxle. Obviously, an automatic is less than ideal for track use...but to get him his first track experience, would the car hold up?

My question is, would a day at the Glen next season- in his car (with an instructor) ruin his tranny? I have heard that it will. I have also heard that it won't...

I can't in good conscious tell him it's ok to trash his ride to work for a day at the track.

If he gets hooked, then a trade up for a manual car may be in the cards. But first things, first.

Thanks for any advice.

-Aric

[Chrispy]

Rebecca runs her Saab 9-3 which is the same base platform as the G6 but they have different transmissions. I would think that the main issue with any automatic would be cooling, get the transmission oil temp too high and you are going to start cooking parts and seriously shorten the life of the transmission. I'm assuming that his model doesn't have a trans cooler? If there was at least a way to read the trans temp then at least he could know when to back off.

[Aricracer]

I can double check, but I doubt it has a tranny cooler.

And that's pretty much what i've heard -that it will get cooked using it on the track, and it's not advised.

I've pretty much steered him away from the idea of using that car on track. I am just looking for a couple experienced opinions, so I can give him a definitive answer.

[WillM]

Aric,

Co-driving is always an option. In other words, you and your brother could both be students in the same car, just in different run groups.

It is, afterall, the brotherly thing to do.

[brucesallen]

Hertz

[Stynger]

Dan's car.

[rnoonan]

Hertz

Don't go for one of the convertibles...

http://www.hertz.com/rentacar/vehiclegu ... Collection

-= Rick =-

[breakaway500]

Pretty sad..all those Herts cars are automatics only.. Second on buy Dans car! That Mustang Cobra is fast and unbreakable!

The automatic 4cyl G6 will be fine for a track day,as long as he leaves it in D and let's the ecm do the shifting.Worst case scenario,the ecm tells you the trans is too hot,and he parks it till it cools. It will at least get him a taste of the track.

[John F]

My first track day with COM was with my wife's Honda Accord v6 auto, because I didn't have a full roll bar on the cobra. Didn't hurt the car at all. I doubt he'll be fast enough to hurt it. He will definitely hate waiting for the trans to grab after getting off the brakes and onto the gas. Have him practice left foot braking.

[CP]

Couldn't hurt to flush/fill the trans with a good synthetic (Redline, BG, Royal Purple) before the event.

[bigjim]

Mine may be a bit overbuilt for the HP I am pushing and does have a factory extreme duty cooling, but I have never had it hickup in or after any event, autocross or open track running. I do service it before AND after a hard run. It is electricly shifted so I can choose and stay in a gear as with a manual.

Does the G6 have an efective manual mode?

Don't rule it out for the auto transaxle, it can still be a great learning experiance!

[chaos4NH]

Just my 2 cents:
I tracked a 2002 Nissan Sentra SER with 165hp, and 4 speed auto. Ran it two years. Never a problem (except instructors who seemed to think they couldn't sign me off since I couldn't demonstrate heel-toe. Thanks to Bruce Allen, he signed me off anyway.)

PS: I still don't heel-toe, it is toe (brake) and instep (gas). hahaha so there!

[n1gzd]

My Saab has manual mode (which I of course used) and the car never shifts out of the gear that you select except if you stop (then it will select first gear).
I am surprised that my high mileage ($195k) automatic lasted without any noticable problems with the engine or transmission for 10 days on the track this summer (and lots of Autocross). I did use high performance transmission fluid.

I would only use an automatic if it all you have (way better than nothing), it would be better to get a standard. If you don't, then at least find oportunities to practice heel toe in another car (what I did - went to driving school and practiced in my Midget on the street).

Rebecca

[n1gzd]

I should have added that with that car I found that left foot breaking helped a LOT especially in autocross. But I think that the track is not the place to get used to left foot breaking. I did it all last summer (a year ago) at autocross and on the street before trying it on the track.

Rebecca

[geoffm]

ive ran alot of oval races with autos and no trannie coolers, and never had a problem. it was the guys running the standards that had problems and that only developed after a crash or too, they would break the teath right off the gears