Tye300's 86

[Tye300]

The next week after joining the 0-400 challenge, I decided to join the last round of Circuit Showdown. My car just passed 15k and celebrated her first year with me, this called for an oil change! I entered the time attack event with some of my 86 club members. This round, the event will be using the whole long track at Clark International Speedway. My previous best time here was a 2:30 before my brake pad upgrade.

Oil Change to Royal Purple 5w-20:






I felt the engine revved easier and ran quieter with the 5w-20 than the HKS Super NA racing oil (5w-40). I did the oil change the day before the event, and I think that the Royal Purple oil performed admirably.

Circuit Showdown Rd 8:
I got to join the series pretty late, as in last round late. I thought I'd just join to have fun and try it out, and if I like it, prepare for the series next year.

Here are some pics:













I beat my previous best lap again with a 2:24. I experimented with some new lines and tried using more of the track to carry more speed through the turns.



The Dixcel Brake pads still performed great, I did not notice any fade, although we were given only a total of 5 laps per session. With the long track, the brakes are given a workout, 180kph-50kph, 140kph-40kph in some parts. 5 laps would have given me some fade using the stock pads, but the ES pads did not. Overall I'm pretty happy with the ES Pads. Maybe next year I'll try out the Z pads.

My best time was good enough for 4th overall in class C, and a podium finish in the 86/BRZ class. Two podium finishes in 2 weeks is not bad! I'm joining another time attack event this weekend and give the car another workout!

[Tye300]

0-400 Round 2 Time Attack

This weekend I joined the 2nd round of the 0-400 Time Attack challenge, hoping to add more points to get the overall championship. I did not do anything new to the car, since it did very well the past three weekends. This week was still at CIS, but we used a diffrent sector of the track which consists of the three esses and the long double apex. It was pretty scary running it in reverse because of the off camber nature of the turns, the rear pretty much wanted to break away everytime. This is a more technical part of CIS, and running it smoothly will net in lower times.

Here is a video of the sector run:
[ame]http://youtu.be/ajVPrZiBGs4[/ame]

Sorry I wasn't able to get an in car video, as I was having problems with the iphone mount.
Here are some pics of the event taken by the official photographer.

Car number 2:




















Glad to get my second 1st place trophy in the 0-400 time attack challenge! I need to address the cars cooling system though. I noticed that when oil temps reach 115-130C and water reaches 100C, the AT employs a safeguard that makes it shift softer and shift by itself when you reach redline. Oil cooler, bigger radiator, thermostat, and a change of fluids should be the next round of mods.

[Tye300]

JC Racing Aluminum Radiator and SARD thermostat Install

My previous post mentioned addressing the car's stock cooling system. I feel this is the way to go mod-wise because not only will it prepare the car for the track while NA, these mods will also be great supporting parts in my upcoming supercharger install in a couple of months.
The stock radiator does a good job if you drive it spiritedly on the street and winding back roads, but you can see its shortcomings on the track. To show you an example, I took some shots of my water temp/oil temp gauge to show you how the stock radiator behaves.
Normally, I would be at 90degC for water and 100-105degC on oil temp during my daily drives.



On spirited drives, water temp usually is at 100degC and oil temps reach 115degC. On the track, water temp goes to around 110degC, and oil temps spike to as much as 135degC. Pretty alarming tracking the car with no oil cooler. I also noticed an AT safeguard that makes the car shift softer when water temps reach 100degC, not a good thing when going for that time attack lap on the track.
Deciding to upgrade the radiator is a no brainer, and I went with the JC Racing aluminum radiator.

















Construction seems nice, fins are good quality, the welds are clean, and the core is three times thicker than the stock one.

Stock and JC Racing side by side:








Install is a PITA! You almost have to remove everything on the front end to get to the radiator.





I also took out the stock thermostat and replaced it with the SARD 68degC cooling thermostat.





The stock thermostat is set at 88degC shown here:



The SARD is set at a lower 68degC here:



The JC Racing radiator is a drop in, with all the stock parts bolting on to it with no problem.

Mounted on the car:



I used Toyota coolant mixed with distilled water:



Testing the car after the install, I noticed that the water temp and oil temp has gone down significantly. Water temps on the street usually sits around 80degC, and the oil temp has gone down too, usually around 85degC.



Temps rise when the car is still, like in traffic, but when the fans kick in, temps go back down quick.

I tried driving it hard and the most I can get is this:



Definitely the radiator and thermostat has given the engine more room to operate temperature-wise. I have to see how this fares at the track. Oil cooler is on order, hopefully arriving ahead or with the supercharger.
I also changed the AT fluid after logging 15,000kms. Dealer was skeptical at me for wanting to change the fluid which was scheduled at 40,000kms. I'm glad I did, because the junk that came out of the transmission was scary. The service reps were surprised how 15,000kms looked like that. Glad I did not tell them I was tracking the car.

I used Toyota WS AT Fluid:

[andrewFT86]

Great mods. Thanks for sharing.

[pearlhatchiroku]

Awesome build dude! Looking forward to that SC with some feed backs=) keep up the awesome build!

[Tye300]

Originally Posted by andrewFT86

Great mods. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks @andrewFT86. I think you need this too since you have a turbo. Oil temps get really scary even NA.

[Tye300]

Originally Posted by pearlhatchiroku

Awesome build dude! Looking forward to that SC with some feed backs=) keep up the awesome build!

Thanks @pearlhatchiroku! I'll definitely document the supercharger install. Hopefully the kit arrives soon.

[andrewFT86]

Originally Posted by Tye300

Thanks @andrewFT86. I think you need this too since you have a turbo. Oil temps get really scary even NA.

Planning to get an oil cooler first, AVO might have one out soon.
Where did you get your radiator?
The AVO turbo kit takes in an extra liter of oil and seems to help keep the car cool enough, for street use.

[Tye300]

Got it from Edward of Hazardboy/Emperor. If you're interested, I can pm you his number.

[andrewFT86]

Originally Posted by Tye300

Got it from Edward of Hazardboy/Emperor. If you're interested, I can pm you his number.

Thanks, kindly PM his number.
My highest water temp so far is 92C with bad edda traffic and late night runs.

[Tye300]

Whiteline & TIC Bushing, Megan Racing Rear Brace Install

In my quest to get the ultimate grip and instantaneous response from my 86, I decided to try out some Whiteline suspension products. The item that intrigued me the most is the KCA434, which is the “Anti-Dive Kit”, which corrects the suspension angle (adding caster) to combat the nose dip when braking into corners. I also ordered the W0509, “Lower Inner Rear Bushing” since I would be taking out the lower control arm might as well change it too. The KDT922 is also a hot product for the rear subframe, so I thought that I couldn’t go wrong with this one too. There has been a lot of DIYs covering these products so I did not make the effort to take some step-by-step pics.



I also installed the Turn In Concepts solid steering rack bushings as some members have been raving about it. For $50, it was a cheap gamble for me.







The only part I was skeptical about is the rear diff brace, as reviews were mixed about it. I figured if I was going to buy an expensive one and don’t like it, I’d be screwed. So I just ordered the Megan Racing one, thinking if I don’t like it, I’d just sell it for cheap. A brace is just a brace anyway.





Installing the inserts took a long time because of the presswork. It also took some time to take the under panels off to get to the steering rack and front lower control arm. The rear parts were a bit easier to install, taking half the time because the press was not needed. All in all, it took 6 hours to install all of the parts.

Front lower control arm with stock bushings:






Whiteline Bushings installed on control arm:






Stock Steering rack bushing:




Installed TIC Steering rack bushing:


Taking the car for a test drive after installing all the parts was surprising. The first thing I noticed as I was backing up the car was how tight the steering feel was. It’s a different feeling from stock, as there is virtually no slop in the rack. The stock was already good, but it felt a little disconnected for me. After the solid bushings, I could feel the road more and the response was awesome. When you turn the wheel, the car just turns without delay.

I’m sure the front bushings also helped, but there’s no way to tell the diff unless I did the installs one by one.

Rear subframe inserts:


Megan Racing Brace:




I noticed the rear parts when I pressed the gas pedal, as acceleration was instantaneous. No delay from the soft diff bushings, no movement from the rear subframe, just a more efficient use of energy as I open the throttle. It kind of surprised me a bit, but I was smiling as I was test-driving, and driving this car made me smile even with the stock parts. I can’t wait to get back to the track and try this out.



I also noticed a bit more NVH, namely I could hear the driveshaft hum when I slow down or release the accelerator. The ride was noticeably stiffer, but not to the point of it being uncomfortable. I have an aluminum driveshaft on order, and can’t wait to pair these mods with that!

[Tye300]

One more cosmetic upgrade! After installing my TRD shifter ring, my inner OCD could not take the weird look of the silver TC switches on the black ring.
After reading about the black switches on this forum, and finding out that the parts are readily available in Australia, I called my best friend who lives in Sydney. Ordering parts from him is relatively easy, as he used to work at a Toyota dealership. Thanks Carlo!



Black and silver:


Black on black:


Installed:


Definitely a cleaner look! OCD on hold for now.

[Tye300]

The third leg of the 0-400 Time Attack/Circuit X series will serve as my shakedown run for all the mods to date from the last round. I have not been to the track since installing all the parts, so this will show how the car behaves with all the new mods. Mods are JC Racing aluminum radiator, Whiteline bushings, Turn-in Concepts Aluminum steering rack bushings, and Megan Racing Diff brace. This will also mark the last time the car will be NA, as I will install the Vortech Supercharger after this race.
Track layout used this round is a combination of both first and second round tracks with a cone on the hill which the driver would make a u-turn to get back to the start/finish line. Essentially the CIS track without the main straight.

Car number 11 today:


The car exhibited a more "flat" behavior during corner turn-in, and powering out of the turns was a bit smoother due to the whiteline subframe bushings. Braking before a corner was also smoother due to the anti-dive kit. The nose dip was considerably less, and the Turn-in Concepts steering rack bushings shown as well as steering was spot on and super responsive. I noticed a bit of push understeer from the last time, but I think more front camber will dial it out. Alignment settings were not changed to see the difference of the parts, now I know some more front camber will be perfect.

In car video. You can see here the car is super flat in turns and steering is responsive:
[ame]http://youtu.be/eKuA9B9i3mw[/ame]

Water and oil temps were down from the last trackday also. Water temp never rose beyond 100degC and oil temps never went past 120degC. The pesky AT safeguard never showed its head and left me alone the whole day.
All these things contributed to a hassle free day and another 1st place finish making it 3 in a row for me in the 2wd class.

Car #11:




As usual, Achilles tires consistenly gave outstanding grip and stability. If you're on the fence on these tires, you should just give them a try!

Up next will be the Vortech build. Hopefully the car's driving balance would be more enhanced than upset with this mod. Install and tuning should be done this week, and I'm planning to do a video on the shakedown run to also done at CIS. Until next time!

Coming soon:

[DarkCard]

Originally Posted by Tye300

One more cosmetic upgrade! After installing my TRD shifter ring, my inner OCD could not take the weird look of the silver TC switches on the black ring.
After reading about the black switches on this forum, and finding out that the parts are readily available in Australia, I called my best friend who lives in Sydney. Ordering parts from him is relatively easy, as he used to work at a Toyota dealership. Thanks Carlo!



Black and silver:


Black on black:


Installed:


Definitely a cleaner look! OCD on hold for now.

I like this, I may have to do it as well.

In for the supercharge upgrade