When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Hi y'all,
Just trying to make sure I got my check list in order before making my way out to the track next summer.
We'll start from the front and work our way back.
Engine-
Rocking the sequential twin turbos. I know these generate a lot of heat but I want to give them a shot before going single later down the road.
Cooling cooling cooling. Will go the Greddy V-mount route which will include the radiator so I think I'm good with that.
I'll most likely not relocate my battery and go with the new JP3 small battery mount with the Odyssey PC680.
Feed hood for some venting. I know there is a pretty big debate on if these even have any benefit but I like the look.
My car is a touring so I gotta get the dual oil-coolers. Having a friend build me a set of 19 row coolers.
Need to get a front strut bar but haven't decided which brand yet and the OEM ones are hard to get a hold of.
Got a HKS down-pipe on the car currently. Maybe get it JET HOT coated or wrapped? Not too sure how much it really helps on the track for heat? or just leave it alone?
AEM water/meth kit with the Sake Bomb tank in the trunk.
Cockpit-
I'm running the center speaker prosport quads. AEM boost, Air to fuel, Water temp, and Oil temp.
Using the Sake Bomb Pedestal and could also maybe run Oil pressure but not sure if that is really needed or not?
Got a aftermarket steering wheel and also a bucket seat.
I'm on the list for the Rogue Motorsports 4 point X brace roll bar and I'll have to buy a harness.
For the ECU I will most likely go with the PowerFC for now since they're a pretty good price on the used market.
Rear-
Sake Bomb tank for water/meth.
Drop in Supra fuel pump and the Sake Bomb plug n play fuel pump relay harness.
Garage Alpha hyper fuel baffle/ surge tank cover.
Stock cat and running the Tanabe Medalion exhaust.
Stock clutch and running Redline lightweight shockproof fluid in the tranny.
Neo synthetic in the diff.
Brakes/Suspension-
I haven't done too much research on brakes but with the low power I was thinking just running a good rotor plus pad combo. Stainless lines and Motul 600 fluid.
I bought the car with coil-overs and I'm pretty sure they are the Fortune 500 but not too sure about spring rates because the fronts have a black spring and the rears have a lime green spring. I wanna maybe say its a 8k/11k combo but not completely sure on it.
Wheels/Tires-
I do have TE37SL on the car. 18s with Hankook V12s.
Not too sure how good of a tire that is for the track but maybe get a Nitto tire after these are toast.
Most of the people I've talked to can't stress about cooling with the car so hopefully I have everything in line.
Any other suggestions and input would be greatly appreciated!
+1, is this a track day or school or what? if its actual racing there will be rules
first thing is that the meth system is probably not going to be allowed, invisible flames are no good... the silver lining is that you don't need it anyways.
if its just a track day/school and you've never gone before just change the fluids, make sure you have newish brake pads, and set the tire pressures to the # on the door jamb.
the cooling thing is real, but even a stock car can do 3/5 laps at 10/10ths. if you're learning the track you probably won't be fast enough to get it hot anyways.
since you have like 6 months to work on the car, the oil coolers are a good idea, and the fuel baffle too
you might sell your coilover set and buy some Ohlins (the dampers on the Ebay junk turn random after a while, sometimes its like you have no shock and sometimes you do?), also align the thing very important.
Sounds like you have it mostly covered, but I would recommend using dual 25 row coolers for track duty. You can never have too much cooling! Tracking on the twins was a lot of fun.
so what exactly is on the car now engine wise? It looks like downpipe, catback? stock ECU?
What kind of "track" driving are you referring to here?
Correct! Just got a downpipe and catback at the moment with stock ECU.
Just track day with school till I get better as a driver.
Originally Posted by j9fd3s
+1, is this a track day or school or what? if its actual racing there will be rules
first thing is that the meth system is probably not going to be allowed, invisible flames are no good... the silver lining is that you don't need it anyways.
if its just a track day/school and you've never gone before just change the fluids, make sure you have newish brake pads, and set the tire pressures to the # on the door jamb.
the cooling thing is real, but even a stock car can do 3/5 laps at 10/10ths. if you're learning the track you probably won't be fast enough to get it hot anyways.
since you have like 6 months to work on the car, the oil coolers are a good idea, and the fuel baffle too
you might sell your coilover set and buy some Ohlins (the dampers on the Ebay junk turn random after a while, sometimes its like you have no shock and sometimes you do?), also align the thing very important.
I'll be doing track day with school for awhile till I get a good amount of seat time.
I was just thinking water/meth just to keep the engine happy and not fail on the track.
Are Ohlins that much better? I thought Fortune Auto make some good coilovers? Hand-built here in the great USA.
I'll be doing track day with school for awhile till I get a good amount of seat time.
I was just thinking water/meth just to keep the engine happy and not fail on the track.
Are Ohlins that much better? I thought Fortune Auto make some good coilovers? Hand-built here in the great USA.
make sure the water/meth is legal, it usually isn't allowed at the track. you also don't need it, its just another thing to go wrong.
Ohlins is way better. although there is nothing wrong with starting on the fortunes.
I've blown two engines on the track. Yes, it's a blast, but be prepared for some extreme conditions. The first engine died from cooling. I was tracking it completely stock, including the pre-cat, and i eventually melted the o-rings. Since then i've upgraded to twin 25 row oil coolers, 99 spec bumper (better airflow), a Ron Davis radiator (i.e. mazdaspeed), meth, relocated battery, larger SMIC, decommissioned A/C and P/S. Engine cooling improved dramatically, but i think i still had high EGTs and eventually warped my seals (low compression). I am now in the process of going single turbo and V-mount with different seals.
Generic comments (not on your specific setup)
Suspension. You really don't need a strut bar. It's worthwhile to get the ride height down to 25", either lowering springs or coilovers. Ohlins aren't necessary, but sounds like they are nice. I'm using Ground Controls and Koni's. They're ok. I also changed all bushes to poly. I really don't recommend this if you want to use it off the track. Go with mazdaspeed bushes if you can afford them. Check your pillowballs. Mine were bad at 60k. The engine mounts also probably need replacing over 60k. If you don't want to replace, you can improve them by installing a Banzai transmission brace. I found Neo oil worked great in the transmission for shifting.
Brakes. Stock are fine for stock-ish power. Don't get drilled rotors. Blank rotors are good. Upgrade the pads though. I find Hawk DTC 60 front and 30 rear are great track pads (a little front bias though). Since mine is mostly a track car, i leave them in, but be careful, they are not good cold and eat rotors. Brake fluid is probably the most important aspect of your brakes. Get a good quality high temp fluid and change it often (with emphasis on changing often). I boiled my brakes going into a downhill 90 deg corner at 70 mph. That was fun)
Tires. I like 17" 255s. You can probably get by with stock rims, but get good rubber. It won't last long though
Safety. if you go with a roll bar, go all in. You will need race seats and harness and you will need a HANS. Keep the stock belts and airbag for the street. It's a little dicey with the bar and seat though. Make sure you pad your bar. If it's more of a street car, than track, don't install the bar/seat/harness. Race car is cool and all, but you really can't mix and match safety gear. It's either designed for the street, or it's designed for the track
And as others have mentioned, if you plan to race, you need to look up the rules on what you can do for the class you race in
Like Tom mentioned. Cooling cooling cooling is what you want. Dual oil coolers, oversized radiator, you have the DP which is a great start, and among the most important of all, proper ducting. These cars run hot with the twins and the main goal is to keep it cool.
Something that hasn't been mentioned: you're getting a power FC - make sure you get it tuned. Consider a datalogit as well. Continue tuning it/monitoring AFR and knock during your track events when possible.
Lots of people will say a PFC is fine with the stock map and that may be somewhat true for smaller mods on the street. Personally, I would never run the stock map hard. You start talking about increasing engine output 50% (low 300's at the wheels) and making repeated WOT pulls on a straight, your AFR's and knock better be under control or you won't be having fun for long.
A fuel pressure gauge with loggable output may be worthwhile too. You can make all the upgrades in the world, but without data you are just flying blind and hoping everything works like it was promised to.
Safety:
You're getting a harness and roll bar... I would get a HANS type device. They're not that expensive and a hell of a lot less than a new neck.
I've blown two engines on the track. Yes, it's a blast, but be prepared for some extreme conditions. The first engine died from cooling. I was tracking it completely stock, including the pre-cat, and i eventually melted the o-rings. Since then i've upgraded to twin 25 row oil coolers, 99 spec bumper (better airflow), a Ron Davis radiator (i.e. mazdaspeed), meth, relocated battery, larger SMIC, relocated battery, decommissioned A/C and P/S. Engine cooling improved dramatically, but i think i still had high EGTs and eventually warped my seals (low compression). I am now in the process of going single turbo and V-mount with different seals.
Generic comments (not on your specific setup)
Suspension. You really don't need a strut bar. It's worthwhile to get the ride height down to 25", either lowering springs or coilovers. Ohlins aren't necessary, but sounds like they are nice. I'm using Ground Controls and Koni's. They're ok. I also changed all bushes to poly. I really don't recommend this if you want to use it off the track. Go with mazdaspeed bushes if you can afford them. Check your pillowballs. Mine were bad at 60k. The engine mounts also probably need replacing over 60k. If you don't want to replace, you can improve them by installing a Banzai transmission brace. I found Neo oil worked great in the transmission for shifting.
Brakes. Stock are fine for stock-ish power. Don't get drilled rotors. Blank rotors are good. Upgrade the pads though. I find Hawk DTC 60 front and 30 rear are great track pads (a little front bias though). Since mine is mostly a track car, i leave them in, but be careful, they are not good cold and eat rotors.
Tires. I like 17" 255s. You can probably get by with stock rims, but get good rubber. It won't last long though
Safety. if you go with a roll bar, go all in. You will need race seats and harness and you will need a HANS. Keep the stock belts and airbag for the street. It's a little dicey with the bar and seat though. Make sure you pad your bar. If it's more of a street car, than track, don't install the bar/seat/harness. Race car is cool and all, but you really can't mix and match safety gear. It's either designed for the street, or it's designed for the track
And as others have mentioned, if you plan to race, you need to look up the rules on what you can do for the class you race in
So far you're the 3rd person to say they've blown 2 motors from tracking haha. I am getting a little scared and thinking of maybe going towards a s2000 for track duties.
I do want to keep AC/PS since I will sometimes have the car street driven.
My car currently has 43k miles so I'll look into new engine mounts soon.
A HANS device will be added to the list for sure.
Not looking to race yet. Just get on the track first and learn the car!
Something that hasn't been mentioned: you're getting a power FC - make sure you get it tuned. Consider a datalogit as well. Continue tuning it/monitoring AFR and knock during your track events when possible.
Lots of people will say a PFC is fine with the stock map and that may be somewhat true for smaller mods on the street. Personally, I would never run the stock map hard. You start talking about increasing engine output 50% (low 300's at the wheels) and making repeated WOT pulls on a straight, your AFR's and knock better be under control or you won't be having fun for long.
A fuel pressure gauge with loggable output may be worthwhile too. You can make all the upgrades in the world, but without data you are just flying blind and hoping everything works like it was promised to.
Safety:
You're getting a harness and roll bar... I would get a HANS type device. They're not that expensive and a hell of a lot less than a new neck.
People are talking about Intec Racing for tuning in Kent, WA which is about a couple hours from me. They start at $600 for tuning so I might go that route but it's a lot of money for tuning esp since I would be evolving with the car.
What brand of fuel pressure gauge do most people go with that has loggable output?
So far you're the 3rd person to say they've blown 2 motors from tracking haha. I am getting a little scared and thinking of maybe going towards a s2000 for track duties.
Here's the deal, tracking a car and especially a FD is not cheap. Make yourself a budget, even if you haven't got into it yet. If you do say 4 weekends a year (32 sessions), budget a set of tires every other season, brakes every 2-3 seasons, an engine every 4 seasons. These may be worst case, but if you know to expect it and you get more life out of something, than you are happy.
I would say get out on a track and don't overly worry about things, yet. You probably won't be driving the car to it's extremes and a couple track days won't kill it. If you like it and want to continue, then you can think about if you want to continue tracking your FD knowing the eventual costs
And there's also the potential for wrecks. You should be willing to accept that as well. When i started, you could get a low mileage FD for $12k. Think i'm now more cautious on the track. There's also insurance, but it's not cheap
How long of a course is it and how many laps are you going to be doing? Does it have long straights where it will be able to really heat up the engine and brakes? Are you going to have an instructor? Or is this just parade laps or something.
What time of year will it be? You said in 6 months, so like march/April? It won't be too hot out then, that helps with cooling.
I'm a little concerned that modding the car and shaking down those mods will cause more reliability concerns than keeping it very close to stock like you have it now, besides maybe adding an oil cooler, especially since you aren't running it in the middle of July. The car could exceed your skill as a driver and suspension mods, if not done carefully could just make the car harder to control.
How long of a course is it and how many laps are you going to be doing? Does it have long straights where it will be able to really heat up the engine and brakes? Are you going to have an instructor? Or is this just parade laps or something.
What time of year will it be? You said in 6 months, so like march/April? It won't be too hot out then, that helps with cooling.
I'm a little concerned that modding the car and shaking down those mods will cause more reliability concerns than keeping it very close to stock like you have it now, besides maybe adding an oil cooler, especially since you aren't running it in the middle of July. The car could exceed your skill as a driver and suspension mods, if not done carefully could just make the car harder to control.
I am in Portland, OR so they have PIR and the Ridge which is a couple hours away from me. I am maybe thinking about relocating to SoCal so Willow springs, Buttonwillow, or Chuckwalla?
Yeah I know what you mean. So I might just run the dual oil coolers for now and get a few very slow runs in to get a feel for everything.
Good call on the not relocating the battery. The rules for battery disconnects are complicated in that they have to disconnect the alternator and the battery, and you have to put holes in the body of the car to run the switch through. Previous owner of my car relocated the battery and I've been trying to find some solution to putting a sealed battery box in with the proper disconnect and hating every solution so far. The Greddy v-mount is a good solution and I may go back to that solution before I hit the track.
Good call on the not relocating the battery. The rules for battery disconnects are complicated in that they have to disconnect the alternator and the battery, and you have to put holes in the body of the car to run the switch through. Previous owner of my car relocated the battery and I've been trying to find some solution to putting a sealed battery box in with the proper disconnect and hating every solution so far. The Greddy v-mount is a good solution and I may go back to that solution before I hit the track.
Be careful, a lot of organizations wont let you on the track with the battery in the passenger's compartment. I've seen more then one person get shut down at Laguna Seca for that.
If you can get an rx8 or s2000 for track duty and keep the FD that sounds great cause then you wont have to cry because you bend an FD.
If you want to track your FD but are super worried about blowing an engine (trust me there are worse things that happen on track as alluded to above) then you can just pull your twin turbos and run Naturally Aspirated with a header.
NA FD is still going to be faster than an RX8 or S2000 on track and you can run stock position Koyo radiator instead of Vmount kit and dont need a Power FC or bigger brake rotors (just change pads).
Plus you can literally pull 100Lbs + off the engine just taking off the twins/related gear.
I used digital draw scale to verify I pulled 47lbs off my engine keeping the twins and doing AC delete and emissions delete/simplified sequentials.
There is a reason the FD RX7 holds fastest Naturally Aspirated chassis time on Tsukuba Circuit.
Awesome suggestions in here and some stuff I would never have thought of!
Originally Posted by saiko88
People are talking about Intec Racing for tuning in Kent, WA which is about a couple hours from me. They start at $600 for tuning so I might go that route but it's a lot of money for tuning esp since I would be evolving with the car.
What brand of fuel pressure gauge do most people go with that has loggable output?
You will probably get what you pay for with tuning. It takes time. My tune has literally been evolving for 3 years into a safer and more powerful tune. A cheap tune might just be a couple WOT pulls and that isn't going to get you 100% of the way there to safety and power. Either way - look at purchasing FC Tweak software. It automates a lot of the reliability/safety tuning and makes the old PFC somewhat more relevant.
I have an AEM pressure gauge with 0-5V output. I like it.
Last edited by alexdimen; Sep 24, 2020 at 09:46 AM.
I actually just this week went to the track and brought my FD for the first time. I'm in the PNW as well, so I went to the Ridge. My takeaways are this:
Can't agree more about prepping your brakes. I was so concerned about the engine that I ignored the brakes and didn't put in a high quality fluid. They performed well at autoX, so I figured they'd probably be OK. Well autoX and a road course are nowhere near each other in terms of what you need for braking performance. My system (stock calipers with drilled and slotted rotors but junk brake fluid) were shot in absolutely no time. I had to start pitting early each session due to fade and of course it was a bit frustrating to not be able to use the car to its full potential (I'm not going to go fast if I don't think I can stop fast!).
I also noticed that my 5W 30 wasn't making the pressure it should once hot (max logged temp was 92*C). Seems like lots of folks use a 40 or even a 50 weight and next time I go I'm stepping it up and seeing how that behaves.
As far as shaking down mods goes, I really am thankful I went to a few autoX's before this event. If at all possible, I highly recommend making sure your car is in top shape and can handle cone work before going to the track. I've had my fair share of issues that I'm happy I was able to sort out on the flat asphalt rather than having to be towed off track!
I guess the last thing is probably known to everybody already but, if your organizer splits run groups into classes, go with a lower class so you can take your time to feel the car out until you're sure of the car and yourself, and don't push yourself or the car too hard until you get that confidence. One of my favorite parts of the whole event was being able to drive home in the car, and not on a flatbed!
Hope you have fun and show some 'Vettes who's boss!
6'2" with a Touring, and I fit fine with my helmet. I'm mostly legs though. Also, I've been tracking my FD for almost 2 decades and I've never blown up an engine on the track. I've been towed off, but it was always something minor, thankfully.
That's not saying that I'm not on my 3rd engine though.
6'2" I've been tracking my FD for almost 2 decades and I've never blown up an engine on the track.
You must not have been driving that fast
Seriously, I never had one "blow up" on the track either. They are good engines and will get you home. The problem is the wear and tear on the seals, both water and rotor. Tracking a rotary will require more frequent rebuilds due to the extreme conditions
And regarding oil, with synthetics you can run a wide multi-weight, e.g. 5w-50. Problem is they get that by using additives that wear out pretty quickly. Generally, the wider the viscosity the quicker they lose additives. 30 weight is a little thin, you may want to bump up to 40. If pressure is still low, it might be the pump. I had my oil passages ported and have high initial pressure (90 psi?) on start up with a 5W-40 oil. Think it's mid gauge (60 psi?) when warm
5'9" Here so I don't think I'll have a problem with head room on the touring.
As for oil I'll be using what the pervious owner has been using for the car which is Shell Rotella T6 5W-40. Should be fine!
I will definitely be prepared brake and tire wise.
Just trying to make sure I got the engine part all sorted out. I do have money put aside for a rebuild but just trying to get as much juice out of the motor as I can.
