Axis last minute Christmas gift guide.

Are you starting to panic? With Christmas a week away, have you yet to find the perfect present for your favorite petrolhead? Or perhaps you have to atone for the borderline criminal number of days you spent away from your family blissfully burning tires and hydrocarbons. Maybe you want to give yourself a gift. The Axis has some suggestions:

Nothing, bar a Porsche GT3rs on slicks, will make your track obsessed friend happier than a shiny new data and video setup from Traqmate. Analyze your performance depth and make great video all in one convenient easy to use package, what could be better?
Looking for something smaller? Traqmate makes these very cool little shift lights, 100% Stee approved!

But what if you, or your friend, already have a data system and have moved on to a High Definition camera system? Those slick looking videos with data overlay are available for you as well with TrackVision software, another great gift at a lower price point.



Of course you do not want your tracktard friend to die so a great and always appreciated gift are brake pads and brake components from Off-Camber Motorsport. Aluminum racing pedals are also always welcome in the Christmas stockings!

How about arranging for the gift of a trip to that tracktard Mecca, the Nürburgring? Contact our friend Dale Lomas ar RSR Nürburg and he'll set you up.

Now, fellas.... if you want to radically improve your negotiating stance next season let me suggest two options:

First is the, shall we call it, Unlimited Pass: a gift from Kwiat will pretty much guarantee you a large supply of essential slack and happiness come spring.



Outstanding results are also guaranteed with a little Hollywood glamour from Rare Vintage.

Good luck to all in your race for that perfect gift!

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At Watkins Glen this week...

I'm the lone Axis member at the incredible Watkins Glen this week with the Delaware-Valley BMW club chapter, and I learned some stuff after Day 1: 1) cars look cool when it rains, and 2) I learned what can happen when you don't put new brake pads on your E36 M3 track car.

Our friend, who's name we won't reveal but we'll just call him Duffman, found out just how far you can push the brakes on an M3 before hot SuperBlue fluid bursts from behind the piston and onto the ground. His pedal went flat on the Uphill, and when he returned to the garage it made a huge puddle of fluid. Obviously, it drew quite a crowd...



Turns out... his piston went through the backing plate and it used the actual PISTON as a brake pad against the rotor! Check out the pictures of the penetrated, welded backing plate. We estimate temps reached 1600 F in order to spot weld the piston to the backing plate. Luckily, we were able to get Duffman's car driveable in time for the afterparty.

VIR in February...

...Stee has been making the trek down to Virginia International Raceway from NYC for a few year now, he always has a good time and finds semi decent weather to boot. So while we patiently wait for BadBAdM and Stee to do the writeups they promised, I'm putting these couple of laps up.

Stee is driving a BMW M3 CS with TCKline suspension, Brembos on all fours, Performance Friction PF01 pads and new to the mix, Nitto NT01 tires. His best times are in the 2:17 range which I'm told is very respectable. Good show Stee!

Click on the window, the video is large but should stream without too many issues, or follow the download link below.



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Performance Friction Direct Drive Rotors now @ Off Camber Motorsport.

OCM is now making the Performance friction Direct Drive rotors available at a very good price.

I'm a big fan of this product and I've tried pretty much everything you can try short of installing a BBK on the MCoupe. Since I've installed them I've had no issues with brake fade at track days.

Considering the expense of BBK's and the intended use of the car, this product makes a lot of sense. They are available in e36M3 and MCoupe front and e46M3 front and rear fitments.