Saturday was another autocross with Reaction Motorsports in Fort Smith Arkansas. It's about 1 1/2 hours from home, and some big ditches to swallow cars. This was my second time running with the group, and managed another 2nd place in class. With two events in the bag I'm currently in 5th place overall for points. Next year I may try to get to more events and place podium for the season.
Turnout for this event was lower turnout than the last, with only 3 cars including mine in Sports C Mod. Luckily we still had some close racing. The format is 4 runs in the early hours, and then 4 in the afternoon. An average of your best time in the morning with your best time in the afternoon decides the winner. I managed to get a 66.66 in the morning, and a 66.64 in the afternoon. If I could do a better job on the two tight 270 degree turns the times would be considerably improved. I'm still rubbing under full lock with the chassis loaded. Anyway, a few tenths was all that separated me and the Miatas. I'm pretty happy with that. I forgot to upload video to the Youtubes, so I'll get that up later this evening.
9-28-19 REACTION TIME SHEET by hatchethairy, on Flickr
2019 points standings by hatchethairy, on Flickr
I had the 360 cam mounted to the roof when these photos were snapped. Kinda looks like a periscope or snorkel.
Untitled by hatchethairy, on Flickr
Untitled by hatchethairy, on Flickr
Friday morning started off great until it didn't. A few miles from work I started to hear a clicking sound from the passenger rear. I knew either a rock was stuck in the tread or worse. It was worse.
Untitled by hatchethairy, on Flickr
It was a 1/4" bolt about 3" long. First tire shop just saw the photo and said no way. A buddy of mine was certain it was patchable with a vulcanized plug/patch, so I pulled the bolt from the tire and quickly drove to the shop next to my work. They patched and plugged without issue. That means I was able to autocross Saturday.
Untitled by hatchethairy, on Flickr
Weather was great. My brakes felt a bit off. They haven't felt right since my last trip to Hallett. Also there was some more rubbing since they put some tight 180 stuff on the course again. I've got to address both of these issues seriously.
Sunday I got a minute to look at the brakes. I bled every corner, and pulled the front pads to see how things were bedding in. Terrible. Huge gouge in the middle of the pads, part of the material has crumbled away. They look bad. I put the pads with about 7mm left back on until I can get a game plan in place. I think it's safe to say I cooked these. Oddly though it's the outside pads that suffered the worst.
Untitled by hatchethairy, on Flickr
Untitled by hatchethairy, on Flickr
Untitled by hatchethairy, on Flickr
Untitled by hatchethairy, on Flickr
Untitled by hatchethairy, on Flickr
Untitled by hatchethairy, on Flickr
Untitled by hatchethairy, on Flickr
That sucks with the brakes. I take it your sliders are nice and free to move but with those pads being new (and thick) was there enough slider travel for the caliper to release the pads on the outside, it looks like they were dragging and getting hot.
Adam
In reply to adam525i :
I honestly don't know, but agree the outsides were seeing considerably more heat than the inside. The pins were greased and sliding properly when I installed them, but something just isn't right. The pads didn't have to be smashed on to the rotors when installing, they slid on like any other pad I've installed before.
I'm kinda planning a 2 part attack on this. Remove slider pins and clean thoroughly before new grease is applied. Cleaning will include the slider pin bore as well to remove old residue.
Track pads. I'm trying to decide what I want to try first, but Project Mu Club Racers, Ferodo DS1.11 or DS2500, or Carbotech XP10.
I'm trying to not go overboard with cooling mods as it seems all the products I have collectively should be able to handle the heat. Maybe the Yellowstuff just isn't a good fit for me.
Also, what are the odds that both outside pads effectively show the the same groove and paint boiling? Both insides show the same pad crumbly spots in the same spaces too.
I ran into the problem I described with my Legacy on my last pad change so that's why I bring it up. I had replaced the sliders with aftermarket ones which were moving nice but the head where the caliper bolts to was a few mm thicker which meant the caliper couldn't travel as far to the outside. Everything thing went back to together well and spun easily until the wheel was bolted on which straightened the rotor that little bit and pushed it against the outside pad, I could still spin the wheel but with effort now and a quick test confirmed it was an issue. I ended up shaving those few mm off the heads of the slider ends in my case which solved the problem for me.
Just something to look at when when you're installing your new set of pads.
On pads I've had good luck with the discontinued Hawk Street/Race (DTC-30 compound) and now the Powerstop Track day spec pads which are very affordable through Rockauto, Jegs, Summit etc (5% off with rockauto discount code) in my BMW which is similar power and weight with similar tires to yours on brake intensive tracks like Toronto Motorsports Park (Speed Academy track if you watch their videos).
Adam
Last Sunday may have been my last autocross for the season. We lucked into some great weather, and a good turnout. It's been a little sparse lately for whatever reason with headcount, so it was nice to see a healthy amount of friends show up and play on the asphalt. I think I got second in class against a really quick feller or three. The course was fun.
Got to run a buddy's Rotax two stroke kart for his last run. I spun a couple times. Lots of fun to drive, but really challenging.
I also drove another buddy's car. It's a virtually stock BRZ. I've never actually driven a stock 86, so it was eye opening. The lack of power was mind bending, especially the dreaded torque dip. The chassis is so soft and squirmy too. There's been a few days or weeks where I wonder if I should have just started with a stock car. After driving the BRZ I felt more confident in the modified purchase than ever. I love my car. It's so much more precise and the power is right on tap. Maybe not peel the skin off your face fast, but quick and responsive to input.
My car is still rubbing like mad on the front under heavy compression and tight turns. I am starting to mess with the rebound and compression settings on the KW v3s, but I'm kinda lost on what I'm doing. Doing as much reading as possible on the subject. Trying to figure out a good place to test the car properly while tuning settings.
Today I've got an early day off work. I plan to raise the car at least a 1/2" and get the alignment close enough. Tomorrow I'll take it to a shop to check my work and tweak if necessary.
I want to chalk the inner fender liner somehow to see exactly the spots it's rubbing. Right now there is no way to discern what's new and what's old.
I found rotax carts totally counter-intuitive. In case your buddy didn't tell you...Rotax cars usually have locked rear-axle. If you lift mid-corner, you understeer. If you brake (rear brakes only) you can snap oversteer. Commit to the throttle and drift out of corners...and it works. That's how it was explained to me before my first track session on a rotax and it proved to be true. It was absolutely terrifying for me. I can't imagine the people in the session ahead of me who looked like they'd never even been on a go-cart before.
I test-drove a stock BRZ and was underwhelmed. The torque dip felt like my NA 2.5i Saabaaru (9-2x/impreza). NIce torque betteen 3-4k RPMs, then it just falls off a cliff. It didn't seem to me like something bolt-ons could really fix.
In reply to Hoondavan :
It's definitely different. The biggest issue was gearing on this one, and lack of experience with this type of cart. The course was too tight to get on the pipe, and as soon as you did it was time to slow down. I was able to drift it through a couples spots without issue, but we have a transition from asphalt to concrete that throws you for a loop. I honestly don't think I would want to run one for autocross, maybe some spec track style stuff.
What's weird for me is my FRS had this torque dip when I got it to some extent. I don't remember it being that terrible because the 318is was never a powerhouse. Maybe the louder exhaust made it FEEL faster than it was? Either way, I couldn't at this point imagine going back to that type of torture.
Oh yeah, another project update! So I didn't end up raising the suspension. The more I looked at where my tire is rubbing, I realized it won't make a difference. Like mentioned before by rothwem in the thread, spring pre-load won't do me any good for clearance. After a little reading, I found out that the KW v3 coilover spring rates were softened at some point. Turns out I got the soft springs, and I've been riding on the front bump stops quite a bit. Like a lot.
Early rates were 343/400 and I'm on 230/285. The dampers can handle more spring, and most recommend 400 square for most applications. After pricing out springs, I'll have roughly $300 in just a rate change. Not terrible, but not great either.
On the other hand I could buy a used set of RCE Tarmac 2's for a little under $2k that are basically KW clubsports with special dampening rates and spring rates ranging from 400, 500, and 600. They are more geared towards track/motorsport use, and universally loved by all. I think option B is the way to go.
Untitled by hatchethairy, on Flickr
Untitled by hatchethairy, on Flickr
Goner
New Reader
10/15/19 9:28 p.m.
Nice car and and even better driving!
In reply to Goner :
Thanks!
I'm still learning how to drive at it's full potential, but at least it makes me look good.
RCE Tarmac 2 coilovers with 500/500 springs are purchased and will be here soon. Would be nice to have them before the Southern Express Rally, but don't know if that's gonna happen. They have a set of Vorshlag cas/cam plates attached to them, but I'll keep my Raceseng ones. These will get sold off with my KW v3s when I get it all swapped out.
9kk0F60 by hatchethairy, on Flickr
88IcOqT by hatchethairy, on Flickr
qGked6b by hatchethairy, on Flickr
RBsscJo by hatchethairy, on Flickr
I didn't realize you had a thread in here! Just finished the whole thing, doing great. Really makes me miss my BRZ, hopefully the Gen II won't disappoint and that's likely what I'll get. Watched your laps at Hallett, this may not work for you, but it worked for me in the Miata and it goes against the "popular" lines. And this advice works in both directions in my experience.
If you can hug the inside of 4 instead of late apexing and maintain the same exit speed, or at least not going out that wide, you can save some time. I don't like the double-apex line through 10, I stay out and late apex it, again, the same either direction.
Give it a try the next time you're there and see what the data tells you.
In reply to z31maniac :
I welcome any tips or criticism you may have. Funny you mention turn 4 like that though. I kept thinking I could keep it tighter and shorten the distance but my first HST the instructors really wanted to late apex on it. I need to work on turn 10 a bit. I've done single late apex, and found often times the double gives me better exit speed. I'm up for trying it either way though as I've mostly focused on the double so far. I also need to brake less into 1 as I'm probably 10 mph slower through there than I should be. Hopefully weather holds, and I can make it out to the November 23rd HST. I'm really excited to get some more seat time in. Next spring I'm hoping to start rubbing pennies together for a Jackson Racing Supercharger kit. Also looking at a clutch type LSD diff.
In reply to captainawesome :
I think you're definitely right on 1, I don't remember CW, but CCW in 1 Apex speed was 73-76 in the Miata.
But that's also hammering the curb like I wouldn't in my street car. We would take so much in 1, the goal was to have the middle of the driver seat over the curb.
In reply to z31maniac :
My top speed into 1 from the logs I think was around 67. I have to work on braking later/less there for sure. I'm topping out at roughly 87 before braking, so simply lifting and a slight brake will probably be good enough. I haven't been hitting the curbs too hard yet as I'm not quite to that level.
All in all, I feel pretty good about my progress considering I don't have much time on track. My biggest focus has been to stay aware of flag stations and make sure I'm not holding anybody up. Getting some time in A group was great as I was able to string some lines together with good speed.
Next year is gonna be good I think for development. Me and a buddy are renting the track in June for the day, plus I plan to hit up a couple private days and HSTs if schedule allows. Heartland is on the to do list as well.
So last night I installed the RCE Tarmac 2 coilovers and rotated the bad tires from the rear to the front. I then took the car in today for an alignment to see what happened.
I felt like every bump on the planet was trying to steer me into traffic, and it was at it's worst in the wet. On course it wasn't terrible until things got a bit damp simply because there aren't a terrible amount of bumps large enough to upset the chassis. Nearly spun out a couple times once the track was wet, and decided to call it quits. It was a white knuckle drive down to Dallas, around Dallas, and back. I thoughy the rear subframe had torn some mounts, the tie rods were toast, control arm mounts were torn, or just any of the worst case scenarios. Now that I got my alignment specs back, I'm not surprised at all by the behavior, just frustrated I didn't have it aligned before we left on the trip.
I'll post up some Cresson track videos when I get a moment. I love that track more than I thought possible from just two 30 minute sessions in the dry. Best time so far was a 2:45.16 with so much more time in it. I was overbraking a lot as it's a big track to learn in less than an hour. Can't wait to go back.
10-28-19 alignment by hatchethairy, on Flickr
Looks like video embed is back. Here's some footage of Cresson MSR. Feel free to critique. I'll post up winter plans and what's on the way soon.
So I sold the KW v3 coilovers and Vorshlag camber plates for $1000 to help recoup some costs for the Tarmacs. I probably could have got more, but wasn't too confident on how many miles these had. Someone got a good deal I think.
I then bartered for a set of street wheels and tires. They are new gold Ambit re02 18x9.5 with Federal rsrr up front and Dunlop Sportmaxx rear. Not ideally what I wanted, but a buddy was putting them up for grabs, and the price was right. Stoopid heavy rims compared to my Enkeis though. Like 5-7 pounds more than mine I think. Haven't put them on a scale to check but it's silly the difference. Part of the deal with the Ambit wheels was trading my stock header/overpipe for an ECUTEK tuning kit in prep for a future supercharger. Foreshadowing.....
Then I kinda went a little wild for early Christmas presents to myself.
A used Ace A350 header popped up on the Facebooks, and I couldn't resist. If you aren't familiar, it's basically the holy grail of headers for the 86, but it costs some serious coin compared to almost all others on the market. More than I would have liked to be honest, but I have already kinda jumped into the deep end with this car, so why not.
Untitled by hatchethairy, on Flickr
A couple days later a well priced Kraftwerks supercharger kit fell in my lap. I really wanted to get the Jackson Racing kit, but this was just too good a deal to pass up. There are some issues that have popped up with the Kraftwerks kit, but hopefully I can make it work. Belts snapping was a big issue, but I think that was due to improper belt tension for the most part. Once I get it in my hands I'll make an assessment on whether it will be worthy of an install.
75588218_10156659338298244_2779638757354110976_n by hatchethairy, on Flickr
Awesome write up thus far, I'm looking forward to seeing how the supercharger works out for you.
Supercharger kit came in and it's exactly as advertised. They originally were equipped with a smaller 20mm belt system, which if tensioned incorrectly snapped more often than not. Since the kit requires regular tension checks, there are quite a few that see belt failures. I originally wanted the Jackson Racing kit for this reason alone, but I'm a sucker for a deal. Over half off a new kit was my cost, and it included a good sized oil cooler setup plus larger injectors. Unfortunately the oil cooler kit isn't thermostatic, so I plan to assemble a better thermostatic sandwich plate, or just plumb in a Derale switch to work with what I got. I'm leaning towards the cheapest option.
Back to the previously mentioned 20mm belt system. The kit I have is the smaller size, but I figured if I just kept an eye on it, this would work just fine, just carry a couple cheap spare belts. Well one of the pulley bearings that came with my kit is done, so I looked up the 30mm upgrade kit through Kraftwerks and saw the $419 price tag. It replaces quite a few brackets, all the pulleys, and of course a new belt. I copied the part number and searched in the old fashioned Googles. First shopping option was an unbelievable price of $164.97, as it was the last in stock listed through Kraftwerks as the distributor! SCORE! As soon as I purchased this one, the price jumped back up to $408.81. Hopefully it's exactly what I ordered, I'll find out for sure Monday. I also bought a spare 30mm belt for $30 shipped on ebay from Canada.
So the punch list of items needed to get this kit in action is as follows:
ACE a350 header install
Recharge the K&N filter
Rotrex SC oil
SC oil filter
thermostatic valve/switch and fittings
repaint IC brackets, IC, and charge piping
ECUTEK license
Delicious or CSG remote tune
DRIVE
Oh, my throwout bearing started making noise on cold startups, so an Exedy stage 1 clutch will be next on the list, and possibly a Verus clutch fork. So basically I've drained my wallet.
track kit by hatchethairy, on Flickr
