I’m thinking of taking a basic car racing course along with a friend and would love some input.
My questions:
-Is my car appropriate to use? 2002 BMW 530i, straight 6, Steptronic 5-speed tranny (can drive in automatic or shift clutchless) and dynamic stability control.
-Max 161 speed
-6.1 seconds to 62mph; 7.1 to 100mph
-I assume I’d need to put high performance tires on her (?) Current tires are mid-range performance (low profile, but not fancy)
It would be worthwhile to see a link to the class you’re looking at taking.
Generally speaking, a real racing school will require a race-prepped car. Roll cage, five or six point harnesses, fire suppression, fuel cell, all that. A non competitive, instructed track day is more likely what you’re thinking of, and in that case you should be fine as-is. Only reason to swap the tires at this point is if yours are significantly worn.
We haven’t looked at schools yet, but you are correct in that we’re looking for “instructed track day,” not NASCAR 
Tires are mid-range performance and brand new.
Cool. Your tires will be just fine. My cite: I’ve done a number of track days. The guy I remember has looking like he had the most fun at any of them was sliding around a Honda Element on stock economy tires.
LOL! Now I’m reassured that the BMW will be just fine 
yeah, most of them just require you run tires with a UTQG of 200 or greater. they basically don’t want some dick showing up with race-compound tires and handing everybody their asses.
I think you’re talking High Performance Driver Education (HPDE), not actual racing.
The particular school you’re attending can tell you about any particular requirements they have. You’ll probably need a helmet, so if you are tall(ish) you may have clearance problems with the sunroof (that’s why people who are looking for “track rat” BMWs want ones without sunroofs). You’ll want to try out various helmets for fit and comfort before buying one, if there is a race shop nearby. Be sure to get a car helmet (Snell SA rated) and not a motorcycle one (M rated) as some groups insist on that.
You’ll have a fun time. Whether or not it becomes addictive depends on the person involved. Take a look at this video (turn down the volume first as there’s a lot of wind noise as this was shot in an open car [Ariel Atom]).
If you (or an instructor) are driving your BMW close to the limit, you may need a brake job (pads & fluid) afterwards. When you finish a track session and pull into the pits, once the car stops put it in park and do not keep your foot on the brake, or you can get material from the brake pads stuck on the rotors which will cause vibration when braking later on.
All of the above assumes a car in a good state of repair (decent tires, recent fluid changes, no history of overheating, etc.). You will also want to remove anything that isn’t bolted down from the car - aftermarket GPS, toll pass, coin holders, etc. Again, the event organizer can tell you their rules (they probably have a stock fact sheet that they’ll send you). There will likely be things you don’t think of on there, so review it to avoid disappointment - for example some groups insist on long-sleeve non-synthetic shirts.
Two final pieces of advice:
You may want to tape (painter’s tape) over your headlight lenses if there is any chance of gravel on the track - particularly if you have Xenon headlights (BMW doesn’t sell the lenses separately from the [hideously expensive] light assembly here in the US).
Consider track day insurance from someplace like Lockton Affinity. Regular insurance almost always excludes track coverage. At some events (usually real races, not HPDE) insurance companies have been known to wander around and collect VINs and license plate numbers. Some people temporarly put something over the VIN plate visible through the windshield (but see my comment on loose items above) and remove their license plate(s) and put something else on (a friend has a sign shaped like a plate that says “404”, for example). Your BMW likely has a barcode sticker with the VIN under your rear license plate.
Lastly, no discussion of track days would be complete without this hilarious YouTube video titled “Flat Out”.
A problem with using stickier tires than factory is that it may subject your car to higher G-force loads than the other components of the car can handle, notably the oiling system on street cars without dry sump oiling. Basically if you throw it into a long corner, all the oil in your oil pan gets thrown to one side, the oil pickup doesn’t pickup oil and the resulting oil starvation could cause serious engine damage. The factory specced tires take this into account and will allow the car to slide before that point is reached.
The automatic transmission could in theory suffer from the same problem, although I’ve never heard of such a thing actually happening.
I’m no expert but this seems far-fetched on a number of levels (though I understand the point you’re making). Do you have a cite?
Just do a search for “slicks” and “oil starvation”. I’m not sure what you find so far fetched about it, very high performance cars(Corvette Z06, 911 GT3/Turbo, etc) and full on race cars have dry sump oiling for a reason.
I don’t have a formal cite but used to be deeply involved in the Lotus community and did many track days. As I recall, the Lotus Elite/Exige had oiling issues in long, high g left handers. There were also fuel starvation issues in similar turns once you got below half a tank of gas. This only applied to the guys with significant tire and suspension upgrades, but it was real. I stayed relatively stock, so this never happened to me. Those cars have a Toyota engine, so it’s not some weird oversight in a custom built motor.
Tire and power upgrades without equivalent suspension upgrades can also present problems. Guys running slicks or near-slicks were overwhelming the inboard read toe link attachment point. I broke the rear toe link myself, and I can attest that things get really hairy when a rear wheel suddenly develops as much steering freedom as a front wheel.
Lastly, I do recommend looking into insurance. Used to be my insurance company would cover instructed outings, but no longer.
When I got my novice license, there was a guy there that somehow had to take the class as a formality as his racing license expired or wouldn’t transfer. He trailered in his fully race-prepped 911 and turned just enough hot laps to get the sign off.
I was the fastest guy in the class other than him and he would lap me every third lap. Was intimidating, but my instructor said it was good practice for real racing. I was going to get my ass handed to me so I might as well learn to watch for faster traffic in a simpler environment that required point-bys.
Yeah, they’re not going to care about the treadwear rating of your tires. It’s a driving school, not a race.
I attended an HPDE event for newbies a couple of years ago through the National Auto Sport Association. You have to be a member to do their events, but it’s only $45 a year, and the individual fees for events are reasonable as well. If you decide you like it and want to keep doing it, you can also volunteer at events, which will get you discounts for events you want to drive in.
For the class I took, I didn’t need anything special - I drove my 2004 Mazda3. We did have to pick a racing number and use tape to put that on the car. They supplied a helmet for me, and the cars are checked out by their technicians before going on the track. We had a classroom session where the rules, flags, etc. are explained and then off you go. You have an instructor in your car who coaches you - he gives you an earpiece that fits in your helmet so you can hear him.
As you advance through the HPDE ranks, obviously the rules and requirements change. Check out the NASA site, there’s lots of good info there and the people are really friendly and helpful.
Here’s an example of the event I attended - the Hyperdrive.
I’ve seen schools call out tread wear ratings. As jz78817 said, some places use that to weed out people coming in with DOT slicks.
Ok, I haven’t seen this, but I’ll believe you that some do. Why would they care? The only result is that the folks on the DOT slicks will have spent more money, had to switch tires at the event or trailer the car, and learned to work on a more finicky tire. It’s not like it’s a competition where the cars are strictly classed, and there’s scoring.
I’m talking most specifically about beginner-only events. Not open track days. I would guess the thinking is that complete beginners benefit from exploring the limits, and it’s safer and more educational when the limits are relatively low.
I once took an evasive driving course–it was really fun. I learned a bootlegger’s turn, for instance…The first thing the instructor said was, “You’re lucky not to learn this in your own car.”
If I hurt my BMW I would be very, very, very sad 
However, as many have pointed out, this is not NASCAR training. Thanks for all the advice!