Toyota GR86, 86, FR-S and Subaru BRZ Forum & Owners Community - FT86CLUB - View Single Post

smbstyle · 06-10-2013, 01:11 PM

So I picked up my BRZ on April 20th, with the intention of having a fun car to drive around town and take to the track. I was looking for a good dual purpose car after having a full race prepped Miata that I raced at regional SCCA club races. I got tired of trailering a car, and wanted something that I could arrive and drive with. Before picking up the BRZ, I was looking at a few other cars; 2013 GT or Boss 302, and C5 Z06. After driving the Mustang on track, I just did not enjoy it; it was way too big and heavy, but had plenty of power. I liked the C5 Z06, but it was getting too old, and I was looking to get something newer with a warranty and that hasn't been beaten to death. On my first test drive with the BRZ, I was sold.

Once I brought it home, (after a good detail) the first step was to get a Clear Bra, after hearing horror stories about Subaru paint and getting damaged by bugs/rock chips. I took the car to AutoPaintGuard of Tampa, who did a phenomenal job, and the price was great. I had the half hood, half fenders, full front bumper and mirrors.

So I read up on the BRZ after I purchased it, mainly here on the forums, and it seemed that the consensus was stock brakes are horrible, so I decided to grab a set of Hawk DTC60's, titanium shims, Motul RBF600 fluid, and also decided to test out the @Touge Factory brake cooling kit (full review to follow). I also decided to wrap the rubberized joints close to the rotor with Summit Racing Cool Tape rated to 1500*, just for reliability/longevity purposes, as I know the rotors can reach in excess of 1200*f on track.

Another thing that I kept seeing was complaints of oil temps and people stating the need for an oil cooler, although I could not find anything on what oil temps people were seeing on track without an oil cooler. I opted for German Castrol 0w30 oil, as I wanted something a little thicker for track conditions, and the GC has been getting great reviews. I changed the oil right before the event at 900 miles, and used an OEM filter.

I also purchased a ScanGauge II to keep an eye on oil temps at the track, and made a custom mount for the steering wheel with some ABS plastic sheet I had.

As I was getting used to the car, I noticed that the gas pedal was a bit farther from the brake pedal than I was used to and comfortable with, so I opted for the Cusco gas pedal, which I purchased from @FT-86 SpeedFactory. The pedal was incredibly easy to install when removing the gas pedal from the vehicle, thanks to the write-up in the DIY section (2 10mm nuts and un-plug the sensor). Once installed, it made throttle blipping and heel-toe much easier. I was also surprised to find that the pedal wasn't slippery at all, as it looks like the smooth aluminum wouldn't have much grip, but it definitely does.

Right now I'm going to see how the car does on track before I decide what is next, but I'm planning on XXR527 with some track tires, Fortune Auto coilovers (but might try the RCE yellows with stock shocks/struts for a bit), sway bars, and for cosmetics; the HT Autos lip kit and 5AD trunk lid spoiler.

I'll keep the mod list below updated as I add/remove/change parts.

Running Modifications List

Exterior:
Xpel Film ClearBra (installed by Ryan Burroughs of AutoPaintGuard in Tampa, FL)
5AD rear spoiler
OEM red-out tail lights
Lamin-X Yellow fog light cover film
Lamin-X Tinted reverse light film

Interior:
ScanGauge II OBDII gauge
Schroth Profi II ASM harness
Agency Power 4 point harness bar
20% window tinting
Cusco gas pedal

Brakes:
Cobalt Friction pads (XR1, XR2)
Touge Factory Brake Cooling Kit
Motul RBF600 fluid
Titanium pad shims

Suspension:
RaceComp Engineering Tarmac 2 coilovers w/ 400lb springs
OEM Crash Bolts
Rubberized joints wrapped in Summit Racing Cool Tape

Engine:
Berk track pipe w/ 4" tip (track only)
HKS drop in filter
Modified snorkel

06-10-2013, 01:11 PM	#1
smbstyle Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2013 Drives: 2013 SWP BRZ Location: Forsyth, GA Posts: 1,008 Thanks: 224 Thanked 681 Times in 302 Posts Mentioned: 26 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	smbstyle's SWP BRZ So I picked up my BRZ on April 20th, with the intention of having a fun car to drive around town and take to the track. I was looking for a good dual purpose car after having a full race prepped Miata that I raced at regional SCCA club races. I got tired of trailering a car, and wanted something that I could arrive and drive with. Before picking up the BRZ, I was looking at a few other cars; 2013 GT or Boss 302, and C5 Z06. After driving the Mustang on track, I just did not enjoy it; it was way too big and heavy, but had plenty of power. I liked the C5 Z06, but it was getting too old, and I was looking to get something newer with a warranty and that hasn't been beaten to death. On my first test drive with the BRZ, I was sold. Once I brought it home, (after a good detail) the first step was to get a Clear Bra, after hearing horror stories about Subaru paint and getting damaged by bugs/rock chips. I took the car to AutoPaintGuard of Tampa, who did a phenomenal job, and the price was great. I had the half hood, half fenders, full front bumper and mirrors. So I read up on the BRZ after I purchased it, mainly here on the forums, and it seemed that the consensus was stock brakes are horrible, so I decided to grab a set of Hawk DTC60's, titanium shims, Motul RBF600 fluid, and also decided to test out the @Touge Factory brake cooling kit (full review to follow). I also decided to wrap the rubberized joints close to the rotor with Summit Racing Cool Tape rated to 1500, just for reliability/longevity purposes, as I know the rotors can reach in excess of 1200f on track. Another thing that I kept seeing was complaints of oil temps and people stating the need for an oil cooler, although I could not find anything on what oil temps people were seeing on track without an oil cooler. I opted for German Castrol 0w30 oil, as I wanted something a little thicker for track conditions, and the GC has been getting great reviews. I changed the oil right before the event at 900 miles, and used an OEM filter. I also purchased a ScanGauge II to keep an eye on oil temps at the track, and made a custom mount for the steering wheel with some ABS plastic sheet I had. As I was getting used to the car, I noticed that the gas pedal was a bit farther from the brake pedal than I was used to and comfortable with, so I opted for the Cusco gas pedal, which I purchased from @FT-86 SpeedFactory. The pedal was incredibly easy to install when removing the gas pedal from the vehicle, thanks to the write-up in the DIY section (2 10mm nuts and un-plug the sensor). Once installed, it made throttle blipping and heel-toe much easier. I was also surprised to find that the pedal wasn't slippery at all, as it looks like the smooth aluminum wouldn't have much grip, but it definitely does. Right now I'm going to see how the car does on track before I decide what is next, but I'm planning on XXR527 with some track tires, Fortune Auto coilovers (but might try the RCE yellows with stock shocks/struts for a bit), sway bars, and for cosmetics; the HT Autos lip kit and 5AD trunk lid spoiler. I'll keep the mod list below updated as I add/remove/change parts. Running Modifications List Exterior: Xpel Film ClearBra (installed by Ryan Burroughs of AutoPaintGuard in Tampa, FL) 5AD rear spoiler OEM red-out tail lights Lamin-X Yellow fog light cover film Lamin-X Tinted reverse light film Interior: ScanGauge II OBDII gauge Schroth Profi II ASM harness Agency Power 4 point harness bar 20% window tinting Cusco gas pedal Brakes: Cobalt Friction pads (XR1, XR2) Touge Factory Brake Cooling Kit Motul RBF600 fluid Titanium pad shims Suspension: RaceComp Engineering Tarmac 2 coilovers w/ 400lb springs OEM Crash Bolts Rubberized joints wrapped in Summit Racing Cool Tape Engine: Berk track pipe w/ 4" tip (track only) HKS drop in filter Modified snorkel Last edited by smbstyle; 02-28-2014 at 09:38 PM.