Pure Motorsport: JDL Turbo BRZ Track Build

[ATL BRZ]

In the flesh...





Time to load up this pile of parts and get the car on the lift ASAP!

[chanomatik]

I just hate their font and how functional the calipers look. It's almost like the calipers are OEM colored, but then the font and yellow logo try to make them appear to be aftermarket. I'm all about looks, though. I'd sacrifice performance just for something that looks cohesive. I'm still learning a lot from your mods though, and I'll always appreciate that over any personal taste of mine that may differ from your own.

[ATL BRZ]

Originally Posted by chanomatik

I just hate their font and how functional the calipers look. It's almost like the calipers are OEM colored, but then the font and yellow logo try to make them appear to be aftermarket. I'm all about looks, though. I'd sacrifice performance just for something that looks cohesive. I'm still learning a lot from your mods though, and I'll always appreciate that over any personal taste of mine that may differ from your own.

This is kinda long so I apologize in advance but they did a great job of explaining the looks/finish.

Most aftermarket calipers come in a painted finish, whether they are red, black, or gold. The painted finish is for corrosion resistance and appearance.

Unfortunately, for all of the compliments pretty gold calipers generate, there is an associated price if you drive the car in a track environment. That price is the chipping, flaking, fading, color shift, and general decimation of the finish in a fairly short period of time. We’ve seen painted OEM and aftermarket calipers go from the as-delivered color to a nasty shade of brown in as little as one weekend. While this is typically worn as a badge of honor among our more hardcore customers, let’s face it…they still look terrible. More importantly though, all of those bits of paint end up in places they’re not supposed to, which I’ll get to in a minute.

Why does this happen? Heat. Paint and powder coat cannot adequately handle the temperatures that calipers hit when run on a track. Powder coat also has some notorious issues with shrinkage. The powder coat layer expands and grows when the caliper is heated. When it cools however, the powder coat doesn’t necessarily shrink in step with the caliper body itself. What’s left is a loose shell of finish hanging limply on the caliper body. That shell then cracks and falls to pieces.

Paint can also have similar issues depending on how it is applied. If you were to line up a few aftermarket calipers from the same manufacturer, you would likely see that the painted finish on each of those calipers is slightly different. Some have a thicker coat, some thinner, slightly different shades of red, etc. Painting is to some extent an art form, and must be performed in a tightly controlled environment. If it isn’t, you’re always going to see variation. A thick coat makes the part look soft around the edges, and is prone to cracking off in the same manner as the powder coat described above, leaving the underlying finish exposed. A part without enough paint will look uneven, and will not protect the underlying aluminum particularly well either.

In addition to problems with cracking, flaking, and uneven application, paint and powder coat also experience extreme color shift when heated. Red becomes maroon or black, gold becomes brown, and black just gets uglier.

Now let’s take a look at some real racing calipers.

The caliper we're using in our Essex Competition Brake Systems is the AP Racing CP8350. This caliper was designed to be ultra-lightweight, stiff, and durable under all track conditions. The finish we chose is a hard anodizing. Hard anodizing is the business under track conditions.

When raw aluminum reacts with the oxygen in the air, a hard surface film develops on aluminum which prevents further degradation. The process is called oxidation, and you can think of it like rust. The anodizing process leverages this natural phenomenon, and takes it a step further to produce an extremely hard protective layer of aluminum oxide on the aluminum. It does so by running an electrical current through an acid bath, and dying it to the desired color. If you want to know more, Google it.

The result is a finish that is far more appropriate for racetrack use. Anodizing creates a uniform surface that is much more abrasion resistant than paint or powder coat. That means if you ding an anodized caliper with a box wrench when bleeding it, a big chunk of the finish isn’t going to chip off into your hand. While anodized calipers will still exhibit minor color shift, it will take a lot more heat to get them to change, and they won’t change as dramatically. They will go from semi-ugly grey, to a semi-ugly grey-brown (see below). In short, they’ll look like the race calipers they are. More importantly though, you aren’t going to have bits of anodizing sticking to the sides of your pistons.

Please do keep in mind however, that every yellow AP logo is hand painted on the caliper. It will degrade over time, particularly if you slop brake fluid all over it. Our customers asked us for something with at least a little visual punch and some brand recognition, so we had to offer them this token. Also keep in mind that an anodized finish is not designed to be driven through road salt.

[chanomatik]

Exactly my point! Pure function. haha I was suspicious of powder coating calipers because of the heat issue. I was told that STI uses a special paint on their Brembo calipers so that they start off silver and then transition to gold through use.

It's amazing how much some of us are willing to sacrifice for what we want. Usually the ugliest things are the most efficient and generally less expensive since money isn't wasted on making them look attractive. Unfortunately my BRZ is too beautiful to be tainted by such functionality!

Thanks for the good read. Very informative and logical.

[ATL BRZ]

Originally Posted by chanomatik

Unfortunately my BRZ is too beautiful to be tainted by such functionality!

That one got me good, lol

[chanomatik]

Hey, I'm honest enough to admit that pretty much everything I've done to my BRZ has been for looks. haha Living in Alaska, I don't have the same opportunities available open to me for racing. Also, I'm just entirely too committed on weekends to autox, plus the scene up here is... I dunno, I just don't feel like investing in dodging cones. I've watched multiple events over the years and was passenger in my own BRZ last year for an event. It was cool, but I'd rather not spend all my money racing. If there were more readily available track events, I think I would've gone a different direction, like buying a BRZ Premium with nothing added to it.

Anyways, enough about me, let's talk about you! Maybe I missed it, but do you have the underbody aero panels?

[ATL BRZ]

Originally Posted by chanomatik

Hey, I'm honest enough to admit that pretty much everything I've done to my BRZ has been for looks.

Your gurney flap and studded snow tires are very appreciable functional mods

Originally Posted by chanomatik

Maybe I missed it, but do you have the underbody aero panels?

Originally when they were only available through JapanParts I had no interest since the shipping costs were crazy. Now that they have part numbers state-side I've considered getting them especially since SubaruPartsWarehouse keeps sending me discount codes. Did you put them on yours?

[chanomatik]

I think I'm gonna go with Nokian Hakkapeliitta R2 studless snow tires this winter at 225/40R18. I'm making plans to move to the East Coast next year and I don't want to worry about removing studs. It would be smarter to wait until next Spring to move, but I REALLY want the adventure of driving from Alaska to Jersey during the Winter in my BRZ.

Reading up on it, apparently driving through Canada during the Winter is perfectly fine and many people have done it several times. The worst part is making sure you top off your gas at EVERY available gas station, whereas in the other seasons you can skip gas stations. That's true, because I did that all the times I've been through there (three times, all Summer).

Anyways, having non-studded snow tires I think would make life easier, because even if I went late in the Winter, I'd be more prepared for any weird weather compared to rocking Summer tires and trying to go in the Spring like I did last year in my BRZ driving to the states. The R2 tires apparently handle amazingly well on ice and deep snow, but suck in standing water, which is perfectly fine since I'm not driving them through Georgia rains.

I've wanted the underbody aero panels since they first became available, but I have had to ask myself: Why? They seem much more purposeful for track. I guess I've considered them for "protection" from random road debris, but I don't really run over things. The car is low enough to the ground and I look far enough ahead and distance myself between enough cars (and the BRZ is small enough) that I've managed to maneuver around everything except broken, tire puncturing kitchen utensils next to my work place for the past 41k miles and 20 months. I don't think they help with fuel economy at all. And they're not really a "bling" item since no one will ever see them. I think they'll be added to my list of things that I'd reconsider purchasing once I'm out of Alaska.

How many miles have you accrued currently?

[ATL BRZ]

Originally Posted by chanomatik

I'm making plans to move to the East Coast next year and I don't want to worry about removing studs. It would be smarter to wait until next Spring to move, but I REALLY want the adventure of driving from Alaska to Jersey during the Winter in my BRZ.

Sounds like a fun experience! Good luck to you!

Originally Posted by chanomatik

I've wanted the underbody aero panels since they first became available, but I have had to ask myself: Why? They seem much more purposeful for track.

I've been asking myself the same thing but for a track application. I'd rather put that money into the big nasty FT86SF/Hancha front splitter and putting the under panels at the bottom of my list. I'm more interested in generating downforce than reducing the CD by .01

Originally Posted by chanomatik

How many miles have you accrued currently?

As of this moment just under 9500. I might just make it to my 2 year delivery anniversary (July 31st) with less than 5k miles per year, lol. Kinda sad but at the same time the limited miles I've been putting on the car recently have mostly been hard track miles.

[ATL BRZ]

First set of photos from Road Atlanta with Peachstate PCA 5/31 and 6/1

[ATL BRZ]

Second set of photos from Road Atlanta with Peachstate PCA 5/31 and 6/1

[ATL BRZ]

Third and final set of photos from Road Atlanta with Peachstate PCA 5/31 and 6/1/14

[Roxy86]

beautiful pictures!

[GTHachiRoku]

Originally Posted by ATL BRZ

As of this moment just under 9500. I might just make it to my 2 year delivery anniversary (July 31st) with less than 5k miles per year, lol. Kinda sad but at the same time the limited miles I've been putting on the car recently have mostly been hard track miles.

Holy crap, I thought I was fairly low at 8k in my first year! I've now passed you, with this last weekend's trip to Savannah I'm at 10.5k.

I can't imagine how different your car will feel with the suspension and brakes. You should just go ahead and throw on the JRSC while you're at it