Back in the saddle......LOVE MY FD
 

After 6 months with out my baby and tracking some daily driver type FDs it was so nice to get back behind the wheel...........seriously this car is the BEST!!!!

Thanks for sharing, love seeing videos like this. Can you republish without the music? LOL. :)

Opps @ 2:38

No oops, the pass didn't give him a good line so he managed.

That is a great race track and looks fast and flowing. Got a few tips for you to improve your driving . Don't shuffle your hands when turning in the turns place them before you turn in to corner and some times you will nearly cross your arms going through a turn. another thing you are doing is changing gears in or while just turning into turn this is upsetting the car and making you loose control slightly and see saw on the wheel ,you should be in the gear you want for that turn before you turn in and as you turn in should be on the gas pedal as well with both hands on the steering wheel. The main secret in driving fast is to be smooth with all things as you drive If you are smooth with braking, gear changes and your steering you will drive faster and in more control and do it easier .
I am not trying to be a smart ass , I am a race license tester and trainer in Australia with 25 years experience as an instructor and raced cars here for 35+ years .

Nice driving man!

Must be the best feeling in the world getting back on the track, nice driving Fritz..

Thanks for the tips. I'll work on being smoother :icon_tup:

Here's another one with no annoying music following a friend in his 996 GT3.


yep that's a tight corner and you don't want to track out (ideally you should have both tires planted square on the inside gators/curb to setup for the next section) so I just let the car rotate into place.

:icon_tup:

Kai,
Seriously these cars are magical, few things in this world can compare to tracking a nicely prepped FD :D

Fun video to watch. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks Dave!

Wanted to add that in the 2nd vid the tires were completely done, all four tires were corded which is why I slowed down and gave up the fight on the vette (that car was a BEAST).

Is it just me or is the aspect ratio a bit off? Squashed and stretched?

Thanks for sharing, and nice driving. Never heard anyone say anything was wrong w the ole shuffle steer before.

Have you posted mod/setup info for this car anywhere?

X2, I'd like to see you document this car on the forum a big more Fritz. You know there are more forum areas other than the classifieds! :) I say reverse build thread this car.

Fritz in your opinion, how important is the GT wing for overall stability? While I am building my car for a track oriented setup, I just cant stand the look of them. Have you had any experience with the 99spec or something like the FEED spoiler? I know they will in no way give anything close to the downforce or stability of the GT wing but do they help at all? Im having a custom front undertray/splitter made and have a rear diffuser and plans to streamline the underside openings as much as possible, but just cant bring myself to bolt a GT wing to the car :(

Yep the aspect ratio sucks. Probably something I could easily fix on my gopro but I'm technologically challenged.

Regarding the preset/shuffle steer you should visit the p car forums, if those hands aren't at 10 and 2 you are in serious need of driving lessons :lol:

I'm pretty sure I have my mod list in my thread in the racetech section

Bottomlline: approx 350 rwhp and 2900 pounds with me in the seat (I'm 150)

https://www.rx7club.com/race-car-tec...285107/page62/

Notice the BMW race car in the vid keeps pointing me by thinking I'll just blast past him, everyone thinks this car has way more power than it does which is why if I'm slowed down a little bit it really effs up my lap time :(

At some point I'll start a build thread but it's a really simple car compared to most in that section.

I don't know the #s but it's a decent wing.

99 spec is also OK

Serious track guys today are running airplane wings so my wing is tiny in comparison to most of the guys I see at the time trials.

When starting out it's all about learning to carry speed, being smooth, etc.... the wing won't do anything until you learn to drive which typically takes about 5 years of 10 weekends a year or more to really get a handle on it.

Rarely does anyone just get in a car and start going fast it takes lots of time and work, all the track mods are just jewelry until you learn to get the most out of all those parts and the FD is a pretty fancy piece of equipment all by itself even when comparing it against todays cars so you have to be badass driver to drive it stock much less heavily modded with another 100 to 200 HP :eek:

Which is why i wont change anything major in my suspension until i physically understand and can feel what im changing and why I'm changing it.

Love the vids! Makes the itch for a dedicated car to hit the tracks with that much harder to ignore. I'd love a bone stock RX8 R3 with tires/brake pads to beat on for a while:icon_tup:

Jason

Thanks, I love making them :)

I like the RX8 plan :icon_tup:

When I started out I'd drive any and every FD I could get my hands on from bone stock to track prepped single turbo cars which was a great learning experience.

Basic setup/mod list
 

Brakes:
Front: Brembo GT kit with PFC front pads: Used to run 01s but they are hell on rotors so I'm leaning more toward 06s (may not make them anymore) but my understanding is the 08s are good but either 6s or 8s are slower than 1s so as always it's a give and take scenario. Update: just tried the PFC 08s and they work well.

Rear: 99 kit with Hawke blues.

To lay down a good time I'd go with PFC 01 front and DTC 60 rear but both crack my rotors sooner than later.

Susp: Tein super racing coilovers (794 springs at each corner) and I really like these because they are durable and work well. Not the very best but by no means junk either and very economical (approx 3k). Tri point front bar .188 wall thickness currently set in the middle with the oem 93 bar out back. 93 bar is thicker than 94 or 95 and is the perfect rear bar IMO it may also be hallow because it feels light. M2 toe links but ran stock for years until they developed too much play.

Wheels and tires: SSR comps very light approx 16.5 pounds (shame they are no longer made) 17x9.5 plus 42 with 275 40 17 hankooks or Hoos however Pete just informed me that Hoosier is now making a 275 35 17 which will go on next because I'll be able to lower my car 1 inch which is HUGE!!!!!. Tried the A6 and found no improvement over c71 but not fair to compare because the alignment was off and the driver was tired (up late having a trans installed/no sleep).

Engine:
Med street port and otherwise stock. I may use the soft seals on the new build. Update Jonathan of eccentric performance GAVE me some soft seals to try out and so far so good. I need EP and PFS stickers on the car :D

t04r turbo running 9 or 10 psi boost at this time but may crank it up once i get the diff sorted out. Diff is overheating and leaking constantly. Diff cooler along with cage redo will take place at piper motorsports in the next few weeks.

Driveline: 4.4 carbonetics 1.5 way diff, stock trans with trans cooler. Diff is overheating and needs a cooler and should have one by the next event. B&M short shifter

Upgraded PPF extra braces welded all over the place

Fuel: Apexi BNR fuel pump in a late model jdm gas tank (improved baffles) with 1300 secondaries and 550 primaries (pump not wired to battery still has stock wiring)

PFC tuned by PFS est power at 350 with boost at 9 or 10 psi (currently shows 379 on PFS dyno but his dyno is not a heart breaker but a smile maker)

RE big vmount with custom ducting water doesn't go over 90c and air doesn't go over 55c.

Dual 25 row oil coolers with custom ducting

Aero: GTC front bumper and rear wing and I just added knock off REA rear diffuser. Plan to add a larger GT wing at some point.

Interior: Custom piper motorsports cage going in soon, Race tech halo drivers seat, recaro profi passenger seat, boost/fp/oil and water temp gauges.

I need pix of all this stuff Fritz. :)

Fritz,

You may already know this but GReddy makes a Diff cover for the FD with bungs for a cooler. Also it has more fluid capacity. The LACK OF ENOUGH FLUID in itself is the biggest contributer on why the fluid overheats. The cover alone may solve the issue without adding a cooler but makes adding a cooler simple regardless.

Btw I send you a fun video in your email :)

This is awesome. Love these videos

Yep, I have the greddy cover which was on Carol's old diff and is actually why it won't stop leaking.

Usually the stock diff overheats and starts leaking but then I can tighten the drain bolt it will seal. With this damn greddy cover I can't get a seal on the drain bolt and two different shops have tried to get it to seal with no success :( Likely the cover is getting hotter than the stock cover because of the extra fluid and the aluminum/threads versus steel bolt contract at different rates and the bolt won't seal.

The cooler is the answer. Every time I drain my diff the fluid is toasted.

Will check email and get back to you :icon_tup:

Thanks!

Glad to see the big red beast back in action, have fun out there bud!

Nice vids Fritz, always nice to see an FD getting pushed on track :icon_tup:.

Noob question fritz, but how do you actually know that your diff is overheating? Do you touch the cover after a couple of runs around the track?

Also your ping and ring at 4.4 must have greatly improved your acceleration in the mid range of the car correct but did you loose a lot of your top end?

In your videos the cars around you seem to be always at a stand still... :)

Andrew

It's breaking down/thinning out and leaking out of every diff on any FD I take to the track.

When I drain it, it's that nasty dark stinky fluid that has been over heated.

A lower rear end is great through all the gears (cheap power/torque). At some point I'll also put in a lower 5th to help acceleration in 5th gear.

PS The diff gets super hot so no way can you touch it even after 20 minutes of cooling down.

Thanks for the info!
Andrew

Nice Vids! what do you like running for your alignment specs with your setup? thanks

If your diff temps are that hot you need an oil cooler and electric pump to keep the temp down and save your diff

Very happy for you Frtiz. Awesome video. When watching you I always feel like I am watching something that is playing at 2X speed :)

I think you described your driving as a teenager on Red Bull, with the twitching and constant moving. I call it flat out fast as I clocked a few of your laps at the 2:04 or so mark. Good stuff. Weird not seeing Oak Tree.

1/16 toe (total) front, 5.8 caster, 2.4c

zero to a little in the rear 2.4c

Thanks for the tip :icon_tup:

Thanks man!

Yep, my wife actually came up with that one. However as you know the car is in a constant slide from start to finish of every corner and without the quick open, open, open of the wheel (twitching) it would spin, if it's in control you are not going fast enough if it's out of control it's just right :nod: Of course I can be smoother (have better balance) which is the catch 22 of going fast or it's hard to go fast and be smooth etc.....I'll repeat; you will NEVER get fast without the car being out of control and it's really difficult to be smooth with an out of control car, suffice is to say being smooth is really easy if you sunday drive it and you'll look like a real pro behind that wheel (in an endurance race lol) but your lap time won't be as impressive.

For a 2.03 lap check the 3:30 mark (start finish line on the back straight for the south course which was a fairly open lap) forward to 5:33 :icon_tup:

This is an example of a pro driver in a car and it's anything but smooth. One of my favorite drivers:

Fritz, maybe you could try some liquid Teflon on that diff cover drain plug?

Here is a problem. 9.5 wide wheels and 275 width.

Wheels 101
1) Wheel width is the most important thing for speed.
2) rigidity is more important than weight.
3) Fit tire with a slight stretch to improve mechanical grip.

You are leaving a TON on the table in terms of speed with your wheel selection.

Right now you are muffin topping your tires and having poor response/mechanical grip.

I would run 275/35/18 on a 17x11 wheel. +45mm offset. weight, doesn't matter all that much as long as its under 23lbs.

You will be SO much faster. Based off the width difference, I am guessing about 1.5 seconds on a minute lap.

Another good tip :icon_tup:

I of course have 12 SSR comp 9.5 plus 42s LOL

I did try the 275 35 17 hoos but other things were off like alignment etc... so it wasn't a fair test/comparison.

As far as I know those are the only tires in that size and they are $$$ at 300 plus each. Just bought 8 c51 275 40 17 for 179 each (on sale because they are old from 2010 but seem ok).

No doubt with some cash invested I could improve my lap times :nod:

PS I also don't think a 17 x 11 plus 45 would fit under the car? The setup I have now is really tight.

I know blueTII fit a 18x11 with +45mm offset with stock rear trailing arms. He is running a 295/30/18 tire with rolled fenders front and rear.

The Optima challenge winner last year was a 65 Vette running 315/30/18 tires on 18x12 wheels, the tread width on those are 11.7" and he put them on a 12" wheel. He beat the whole field with a 65 vette;)

the tread width on a hoosier 275 is about 10.3" or so, so you could run a 10.5" wide wheel and do pretty well.

Brian Hobough won the challenge with his Vette, he also has a camaro that wins autoX events and he runs massive wheels on that as well. The key is the wheel width and stretched tires, he has his cars dialed in.

I understand, big wheels and tires are a huge piece of going fast :)

At one time I ran the standard 18 x 10 285 30 18 but the tires are 500 more. Too bad Hankook doesn't make that size.

Still can't figure out how a 17 x 11 plus 45 will fit either front or rear but especially front. A 17 x 10 plus 50 is a tight fit.

Just a note.

A "9.5" wheel is a measurement from inside bead to inside bead. Typically, you want to run the tire on the widest wheel you can within it's published range (9" to 11" for a 275/40/17), but 9.5" is the standard rim on which most manufacturers mount a 275/40/17" tire to publish measurements.

Hoosier shows a 10.3" tread width on that tire, so the tire will (does) sit pretty square on a rim that's actually more like 10.5" to the outside of the rim. Not optimal, but certainly not "mushroom topped" or problematic.

Finding a nice, light 17x10.5 or 11 wheel with the right offsets wouldn't exactly be easy. And I wouldn't say weight doesn't matter—there's a big difference in how a car feels and how the shocks work on a car with a 16 vs. 23 lb wheel. And, there's a diminishing return if you can't lower the car or set it up like you'd like to keep it from rubbing.

Yep the setup I have isn't complete muffin top but it's certainly not ideal.

One thing all us car builders/track guys can relate to is every decision we make is giving up one thing to get another even if it's just dollar bills :lol:

I think I could fit a plus 50 10.5 and will look into it. CCW can basically make anything you want you just have to pay for it hehe.

Currently I'm having the cage redone (already wasted 2200 there) and a diff cooler installed so budget is already extended/blowing up.

Any wheel sponsors out there :D

just wanted to add a small tidbit on the wheel situation . Like Fritz I went with a 17inch wheel instead of an 18 because the price on the tires is a whole lot better in that size LOL , But Finding wide wheels in 17s is quite difficult . I also ended up with a 9.5

BUT this is just my observation .. SEAT TIME > 1 inch of wheel .

Need to watch this vid when I get home.

Rate of thermal expansion for Al is roughly 2x that of Carbon Steel. I would be afraid of tightening the steel plug (if it's taper thread) while hot because when the aluminum cools down it will shrink more and there may be some very high stresses induced in the cover. Don't want to crack it!

If the cooler doesn't do the trick (I can't imagine it wouldn't) one complicated option would be to have the diff cover tapped for straight thread, turn a groove in the head of a hex head plug bolt and use a viton o-ring. I thought about an Aluminum drain plug, but Al on Al might have issues with galling/losing threads.

Yes, it is the standard width measured. but you want to basically stick to the wider range of the widths. A good rule of thumb is a wheel width, bead to bead, to be wider than the tread width.

Michelin engineers make this claim in their porsche presentation.

Slide 34 and on
www.cb-racing.com/PilotCup_Presentation.PPT

they are basically saying that running a 245/40/17 tire on a 9.5 wheel will provide less understeer, more grip from a mechanical stand point and provide better feedback and turn in.

Urge designs who sets up s2000's and their findings.

URGE designs



From Yokohama themselves
Custom Performance Tires | Yokohama Tire Corp.

High Performance Wheels


Wide Rims

If you're opting for high-performance tires, you'll probably want to include some new wheels to enhance both appearance and performance. To assure the right fit, you'll need to make sure that you've got the proper replacement wheel size, dimension and load-carrying capacity.

Narrow Rims

Result in an improvement in ride quality, but may sacrifice some of the tire's ultimate performance capability.


Increase your vehicle's stability, steering response and cornering capability. A Yokohama quick tip—use a rim width which is 90% as wide as the tread width of a performance tire for street driving. This will provide a good balance between performance and ride quality.

Mid-Range Rim Widths

Provide a balance between handling capabilities and ride quality. The wheel's width influences handling and ride quality. Always choose a rim width within the range of the tire's acceptable rim width specification.

Great info, will apply it at some point :icon_tup:

Just dropped the car off yesterday for the cage redo and diff cooler so hopefully that will do the trick.

Cool idea on the drain bolt and will definitely use that idea if it coninues to leak despite the cooler. One thing is for sure though the leaking is directly related to the fluid heating up and thinning out. I've yet to have one leak the 1st session out.

Nothing will make you faster than seat time and obviously the greener you are the more it pays to just drive and continually push your limits :nod:

With that said though these cars are 20 plus years old so they do take serious prep for even a beginner to safely go to the track but IMO stuff like coilovers, wheels, tires, brakes, turbos etc...etc... should take a back seat to simply going to the track and DRIVING!

Fritz, what fluid/viscosity are you using?

75 140 synth

Most the TT folks around me (and myself included) are using something heavier, like Amsoil 250:

AMSOIL Severe Gear® SAE 250

Might be something to try.

75-90? I'd like to give this a shot as well:icon_tup:

hah , I would guess you are quite a bit passed the whole green thing , and could probably make use of 1/4 inch of more contact patch ! That CCW idea actually sounds great! in the long run I think it would be cheaper to pay more for a wider 17 wheel . then go with an 18 and pay more for tires ! :icon_tup:

Definitely couldn't hurt but once the cooler is installed I should be good to go with 75 140