How to maximize grip?
 

Hey guys,
Besides stiff suspension and better tires, is there more I can do to increase grip in the rear? My car has been turbo'd, running 255s on a 8.5 wheel and the rear just LOVES to break traction whenever I give it the beans... and sometimes not even full throttle either. Open to hearing y'all out. The price of any mods will just save me on tire expenses. Thanks.

For stop light racing, sounds like you need better tires.

If it’s track/autox alignment settings can help tremendously to control the oversteer, but you’ll only ever have so much grip, I’ve got no problem sliding the rear on stock power on 245 200tw tires on 17x9’s, and there’s no parts or tweaking that’ll change that.

What application are we talking here? Street? Track? Drag? What are your current suspension mods?

For traction you want downforce...and if your rear end is TOO stiff that will hurt traction around a track.

How much WHP are you at? What model tire are you running? Do you care about weather conditions?

By his wording I'm thinking stoplight warrior

Positive traction kit (differential, subframe, and crossmember bushings) helped to fix wheel-hop from my aging subframe and diff bushings

I'm currently running BC Racing BR series coilovers. I will give lowering the stiffness a shot. Not Dyno tuned but I usually sit at 11 psi WOT. My tires are Continental Extreme Contact DWS06.

Yeah well in that case tires are your only option and maybe SOFTER suspension. Get sticky R compounds and don't drive in colder temps.

Sorry posts came in out of order 8 should have quoted. This was in response to stoplight warrior.

Lmao there's nobody to race in my city even if I wanted to. It's just when I want speed up in low gears my grip just says no. It's like a cartoon when they are going fast... But not moving for a second lol

Is there certain tires you could recommend?

Ahh ok, I have the same setup on my 3.6R...DWS06+ and BC BRs. On the street I run them on 25 out of 30 soft. They hook up very well ...but even tuned I have less torque than you...BUT I have about 300 lbs on you which is probably why I don't break traction. Adding weight would work but also kinda counterintuitive...

That's what I'm set at currently. Going to put it to 12 clicks behind full stiff. Should the front and rear be the same?

Either get the MCS traction mod or adjustable traction arms to reduce rear anti-squat. The geometry of our rear suspension is off of the WRX so it is setup for awd not rwd. By tuning out the anto-squat you induce more rearward weight transfer giving you more grip. Also get better tires.

Lastly, I notice you went up a tire size...check the load index vs stock...you might need to take a couple psi out of the tires too.

No I mean I'm 5 clicks from full soft. Still way stiffer than stock. Would not recommend using much different setting front and rear unless you are really testing how it corners that way...

By mcs, do you mean mca? If so, confirm it is this please:
https://mcasuspension.com/gt86-and-brz-traction-mod/

Sheeeeeesh yeah definitely wasn't on the same page there. However I did try it at that setting when I took a road trip and it actually felt softer than stock. So I guess I will have to do some playing around with those dials. Thanks for the help.

Yeah you have all season tires, they’re meant to get the kids to soccer practice, not put power down.

Continental extreme contract sport or Michelin ps4s will be a big step up if you want a tire that lasts ~20k miles for normal driving. If you’re ok replacement more often then that (5k-10k miles) Yokohama A052 or BFG Rival S 1.5 have good longitudinal grip.

Get summer tires, it’s Texas, if there’s snow on the ground your work likely won’t have power anyway.

For my next set of tires, should I keep the front 225s and the rear 255s? That's what the tire shop said would be best so that's what I went with. Would like to hear what y'all have to say.

Makes sense for gas mileage and drag racing I suppose. Square tires mean you can rotate them and spread the wear so they last longer it’ll handle better if you stumble across a corner. On 8.5 I’d stick with 245/40/17 but you do you.

Lol sorry guys I thought I was responding to the WRX forum...Tapatalk notification brought me here....doesn't negate anything I said other than the weight and perception of softness that I referenced. Once you suggested a staggered setup I realized I was lost.

Still before you go swapping a ton of shit try lowering your tire PSI and shock settings.

Yes that is the part I was referencing. Sorry for the confusion.

Are we talking about straight-line grip only? I'm not sure if anybody else has tried it but the Mickey Thompson ET Street comes in a 275/40R17 but the tire will be 1" taller (26" vs 25" diameter).

Stiff suspension does not equal grip.

Sounds like someone needs a day playing in the twisties to dial in the coils. Or an auto cross day where the clock is in play too.

I'll second the all seasons tires are weak. I run them in the winter in the PNW. After running Pilot PS4s or Yoko Advan AOD8s in the summer time, all seasons will always disappoint you. There's no way around it.

And as stated stiffer suspension isn't the answer. A work colleague was really into autox when he had his FRS. He went back to the OEM sway bars because his times were better. He said the stiffer ones felt better in the corners and stayed flatter, but they hurt his times.

Just an example that it's not always the "feel" that makes you faster, its testing and finding it. Testing like this is hard as someone, much like myself, that doesn't go out to autox and such. I just commute and drive the twisty roads once in a while. Hard to time test on public roads.