im pumped!! a new 2 mile road course is opening up about 20 minutes from my house. My dad refuses to let me drive his stock car at the dirt track, so this will be my first experience with high speed racing/driving (autox doesn't really count).
i just have concerns about the car. will it survive 20 minute high speed sessions? i've done no work on the engine/drivetrain, that is all stock. i've done suspension and wheels and tires. i was also going to redo the brakes (it'd suck to lose the brakes at 120mph). my plan is to get steel-braided lines and either ebc green pads or hawk hp plus. after doing the brakes, will the car survive these track outings, being stock?

 

i donot think that you will have any problem on the track.

 

Yeah I agree, the car should do fine. Just make sure the cooling system is up to par!. I.e. hoses, belts,and the radiator!.

 

Yeah, watch the cooling system!

However the stock brakes are plenty good... by the time you get back up to speed, the brakes will have cooled off. Once you start makin' more power then you gotta worry about your brakes fading!

You also will destroy street tires... find some used R-compound tires and use the for the track... TRUST ME street tires will not handle the abuse.

 

gotts love havin four wheel vented disc brakes!

 

that is always a good reason to keep around the stock wheels.. have your nice 15 or 17inch ones with your regualar tires, and then keep around the 13s for outocross ones.. changing wheels is always easier than changing tires.

 

Do GSL-SE's have vented rear discs? All the other models have solid rear discs as far as I know.

 

gsl-se's have ventet front disks, but i am not sure about the rear.

all other models (that have disks) are solid all the way around.

 

Huh, I thought all the models had vented front discs. I know mine does and it's not a GSL-SE.

 

hmmm. perhaps i am mistaken then.. i will have to check on that.

 

Correct. SE' are the one with Vented REAR as well, not to mention bigger discs at all 4 corners.

 

i think i'll replace at least some of the brake stuff, better safe than sorry, even if im not makin that much power.

i currently have a set of used bfgoodrich t/a R1s size 205/50-14 that were used at a few autocrosses, and i just got (yesterday) some new kumho ecsta v700s (235/45-13). i was planning on checking out how each of these sets of tires handled the track.

 

I had no problems with a ported 12A and stock dime-sized front discs (with cheap NAPA pads) and falfunctioning drum brakes... it'd still stand the car on end at the end of a straight

I think part of it too is the tires... with good tires you don't need the brakes as much because you can carry more speed into a corner.

 

I'd suggest while working on the brakes you may want to go ahead and put in brake fluid with a higher boiling point. I forget how the brake fluid naming works, but I think DOT 4 boils at a higher point than the DOT 3 stuff and I think 3 is normally what is in street cars. I think 5 is even higher. It couldn't really hurt, and it isn't very expensive. And trust me it sucks boiling your brake fluid at the track (especially on your first session of the day, don't ask me how I would know this). One advantage of the 7 though is that it is nice and light. Not as hard on the brakes as my other car.

 

Oh good call! I forgot all about that... I was using synthetic DOT-4 brake fluid too. Valvoline, dry boiling point 502deg, wet point 343deg. That stuff is wonderful, and it's pretty inexpensive too.

I have several unopened 1-quart bottles laying around 1 quart is more than enough to completely flush the system.

 

i forgot to mention that, but yeah, i was definitely going to put in higher temp brake fluid if/when i get new lines.

am i correct that the general consesus is that the stock brake pads, lines, and fluid will be ok at the track? im still leaning towards getting all the new stuff.

 

DO NOT USE DOT 5 FLUID IN A SYSTEM DESIGNED FOR DOT 3/4...

DOT 3/4 are Ethelyne Glycol Based.

DOT 5 is silicone based. It also is not Hydroscopic... Moisture that somehow finds it's way into the brake system will not be absorbed by the DOT 5 and will boil during braking or corrode the insides of the brake cylinders/calipers.

Try dripping some water into a cup of brake fluid, or some brake fluid in a cup of water. (DOT 3/4) You'll see what I mean. It displaces moisture.

You will need to replace the calipers, cylinders, and hoses, as well as flush the steel lines with alcohol if you want a reliable DOT 5 setup.

 

what type of break fluid do you guys recommend then?

 

You could clean the lines out, but its very difficult. After cleaning it all, be sure to dry it out with compressed air liberably. DOT 5 is awsome since the fluid is better designed for longevity and to thermo exposure.

IF you plan to sustain high speed, you should change your oil and filter right before. Fresh oil that doesn't have much gas absorbed will provide better pressure when really hot and lube better.

 

I'm using stock brakes with Hawk HP+ pads and Motul 600 Racing DOT 4 fluid (dry boiling point 585 degrees). I haven't tried my car on the track yet (the backroads are my racetrack lol) but I can tell you that this setup is absolutely phenomenal compared to the stock pads. I can lockup easily at pretty much any speed, and it makes me wish for better tires (I have 205/60 Toyo Proxes H4's). I used to fade the stock brakes under high speed braking, but I haven't been able to fade these so far. In short, I think you'll do fine with a similar setup, and I strongly recommend the Hawk HP+'s.

 

do the hawks dust or squeel much at normal speeds?