1st trackday in FR-S
 

I drove my FR-S on track yesterday at Thunderhill....it just crossed the 1000 mile barrier

http://www.gotbluemilk.com/web120720/11/index.html

I only took it out for 1 session, drove my racer the rest....my experience is mostly race cars, nearly exclusive for the past 5 years....

My impressions:

1: Power......good with excellent response...not over whelming at all...chassis could take more, but the response is excellent..torque is surprisingly good....it makes redline shifts optional vs mandatory for good lap times...

2: Transmission: Also excellent....no complaints at all....the triple cone synchros really work....same for the clutch...heel-toe downshifting helps, but with synchros this good its not a big deal....

3: Suspension: Balance is excellent....being a street car it is a bit on the soft side, with too much "bounce"...but that is normal...

4: Brakes: Good intially, but suffer from fade....I think this is due to my driving in "sport" mode, which uses the brakes for stability....but this is an easy fix with proper pads-fluid

5: Tires: in short HORRIBLE....no grip at all and they squeal like crazy....while I managed a decent overall lap time my peak G forces were sad (I used Harry's lap timer for data logging).....the peak G forces were just over 1.25g......which I guess isn't bad for a street car on crap tires...my racer is well over 1.5g on slicks...

6: traction control: EXCELLENT....beyond words really.....Toyota-Subaru hit it out of the park with this....sure it cooks the brakes a bit for an advanced driver, but for a novice its superb....worlds better than the system I drove in my E92 M3 or C6 Z06.....it works, but its intervention is very subtle where you can barely feel it, literally if it wasn't blinking at you on the dash you wouldn't know....for a $25k car this is a substantial feature....

Overall.....its nearly the perfect drive to the track and have fun car....simple brake upgrades (pads-fluid) with proper tires would make this car seriously formidable.....in an ideal world adjustable coil overs that you could "turn up" when you change the tires is ideal..... While I have quite a bit of experience at Thunderhill (its my home track where my shop is) I still consider myself a conservative driver....my best lap time at Thunderhill over the top was 2:18....for my 100% stock FR-S....with about 1/4 tank...with proper brake pads and real tires it will challenge spec Miata times...I also set the fuel consumption gauge when I was on track..... 7.7mpg...which isn't bad really.....but oddly the same as my 4.7L V8 928 racer? For giggles my E92 M3 got 6 mpg...which I found out is the lowest it would read....so it was less...The ZO6 was worse at about 5.... a friends 993 twin turbo....1.5mpg

Do you plan on tracking again with the FRS?

if you ask my "wife" then the answer is NO......but I probably will at some point when my racer breaks down and I have lots of seat time left :party0030:

OMG!!!! Thanks for sharing this. I love to see reviews from people who own and track stout cars like the E92, and Zo6's. These are the reviews I have been dying to hear. Thanks again!

T-Hill is an awesome track! So jelly! :happy0180:

Sounds like you could use a brake upgrade, but PLEASE just shut off the traction control and stability control (everything) on the track. You will have
better brake life and a lot more fun. Once you learn to do without it, you will be annoyed if you forget to shut it off.

I agree....since it was my 1st time out in this car I thought I would give it a try......while it did work very well....I will not use it again....I have enough seat time in front engine-rear drive cars with ZERO traction control-abs-stability-nada..... My current racer is a 1979....the car does what you tell it....just like I think the FR-S will with a decent driver...:burnrubber:

Agreed... Very helpful post!

Yeah love the post, Trying to get the money to go to Thunderhill. But since it seems like the brakes are such a weak point, i'm think about waiting till after i change those to go to a track event.

Along with brake pads and fluid, would stainless steel brake lines be something just to do since i'll be changing the fluid.

I'm not very automotive knowledgeable and i'll do a search later but is the stock brake fluid not good and what should be put in if replaced.

While I did experience siginificant brake fade it was NOT from boiling fluid...trust me I KNOW what that feels like....:confused0068:

It was classic pad fade.....pedal is still firm and high, you just gotta PUSH much harder to make it work & even then it sucks....slow down for a couple laps & its back to normal

I'd buy new pads.....any Hawk should work & fresh fluid (say ATE super blue or gold) isn't a bad idea.........don't get the stainless lines either....save the $$$ for another trackday....

Even then......if you are new to the track and have ZERO on track experience.....just come out and drive....generally speaking for your first several trackdays you aren't really pushing the car that hard....it takes a bit of experience to get your confidence up where you are pushing the car hard....

Brakes are so stiff >