Daily Driver + Autocross/Track Car build on a Budget

[ToyoburuBRZ]

Gave her a good wash this weekend



Attending my first track day this coming weekend at Toronto Motorsports Park. I ordered some Project Mu HC+800 pads which I was hoping would be in for the track day but apparently they are back ordered until late september.

Looks like I will be running stock pads for the rest of track/autocross season.

Plan is now to stock up on parts over the winter to be ready for fall.

[ToyoburuBRZ]

I attended my first track day this past weekend at Toronto Motorsport Park (Cayuga). This was the perfect track for my first track day. It was basically wide open besides the pit wall at the last corner. This made me more comfortable to push the car.



Track/Driving Experience:
I got four 15 minute sessions. My car is still basically stock performance wise - with the exception of the 2.5" nameless header back. I drove with the car in VSC Sport Mode. I wasn't quite comfortable turning TC all the way off for my first track day. However, I did find like I was fighting the TC every now and again.

Likes:
The stock suspension performed great. With some more experience and with the TC turned off I know there is more available from the car. I did notice it did have a tendency to understeer. On the track, I am okay with this as I prefer slight understeer over oversteer.

Dislikes:
BRAKES - They faded within 10 minutes of each track session.
Tires - although the stock tires aren't terrible (I have driven on worse), I know the stock car can handle some tires with more grip.

Rotor after the track day:


Here are a couple videos from the track day. I welcome all constructive criticism on my driving. I WANT TO LEARN AND BE BETTER!

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts-9RNrdyv8"]BRZWorld Track Day August 2014 - Part 1 - YouTube[/ame]

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbTuZ5a9eA0"]BRZWorld Track Day August 2014 - Part 2 - YouTube[/ame]


To do:
Brakes - pads, rotors, fluid, stainless line
Tires - something with more grip

[drewbot]

Damn, keep forgetting about the BRZWORLD lapping days. I'm jealous

[ToyoburuBRZ]

Originally Posted by drewbot

Damn, keep forgetting about the BRZWORLD lapping days. I'm jealous

There is another one already set up for October 4th/5th weekend. Unfortunately I won't be able to make but I also don't think my brakes can handle another track day... especially since I am doing an autocross this weekend.

[ToyoburuBRZ]

Was at a racetrack yesterday helping my old FSAE team with some testing and a huge storm rolled in. I could only think of one thing to do:



Edited a bit -

[ToyoburuBRZ]

Picked up some Motul Gear 300 for the trans and diff as well as a Kartboy rear shifter bushing. Hoping to do the fluid swap and bushing install this week.

[ToyoburuBRZ]

Went to another autocross this weekend. Still the same setup. Really need to fix that understeer. I think some crash bolts to get a little more camber in the front will help a lot.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTNswxol8v0#"]WOSCA Sept 2014 - YouTube[/ame]

[ToyoburuBRZ]

Today I finally had time to do a fluid swap on the trans and diff. After much research, I decided to go with Motul Gear 300 for both items. Most people find that there is no difference having a friction modifier in the diff such as what is used in the Gear 300 LS. When using the same fluid for both, it will also save you about $30 or so. 4L was plenty to do everything.



Obviously doing this job on a lift would have made it a lot easier, but on a set of jack stands it was still fairly easy. Motul adds the convenience of a spout to their bottles so you do not to buy a feeder to add fluid.

I still found that I was unable to get all the fluid out of each bottle when filling as there just isn't quite enough room to tilt the bottle high enough. I had about 0.25L left in each bottle without struggling to get a little bit more out. This was not a problem as I just put all the remaining fluid into one bottle to finish off the job and I still had about a half litre left.

After reading through a lot of articles, many people noticed A LOT of metal shaving on their drain plugs for both the trans and diff. For me, I wouldn't say that there was an excessive amount. In the trans there was barely anything and in the diff there was certainly a lot less than what I had seen.

Trans:


Diff:


I was also able to get my Kartboy rear shifter bushing installed. In all my years working on cars, this had to be the easiest install I had ever done. With the car already in the air, it was all of 15 minutes to do the install while lying on my back. Probably would have been closer to 10 if I had a lift.

Thoughts:
With the rear shifter bushing and fluid done, it was immediately noticeable in the shifting. Shifting was a lot smoother - especially into second. I now have no hesitation when it comes to downshifting into second.

Of course though, I want more. Improving shifter feel and removing slop is so easy and cost effective with this car why wouldn't I. Further down the road I will be getting the positive shift bushing from Whiteline as well as Mtec springs.

All-in-all, money well spent!

[ToyoburuBRZ]

This past weekend I was able to go to Grand Bend Raceway for a full day of tracking. The track layout was fantastic!

Unfortunately, on my 5th session of the day, my front left pads were gone. Lost braking heading into a corner followed by the sound of metal on metal.

I will be replacing all pads and rotors this week for the winter and be upgrading in the spring.

Pics to follow later this week!

[Jonsey]

Great build thread, keep it up.

[ToyoburuBRZ]

So after a full inspection of the car with my main focus on the brake system, I needed to do a full brake system job. My front pads were down to the metal and front rotors destroyed. The rears weren't terrible but very low on life so I decided to replace them all at the same time. The brake fluid had turned black in the reservoir so I did a full system flush.

Since winter is on the way, I bought OEM pads and rotors. This will now become my winter setup and I will be buying performance pads and rotors in the spring along with stainless lines.

As for the fluid, I went straight for the high temp fluid so I do not need to do a full flush in the spring as well. I was hoping to get Project Mu but I needed to get this work done soon so I opted for Motul RBF600 as I was able to get the fluid that day.

I love working on this car - it is super easy. I was able to do all four corners and fluid in less than 3 hours including time to raise the car take the wheels off and do the reverse at the end. I was in no rush and I ensured every bolt was torqued to spec.

Some pictures of the abuse I applied to the front brakes:

[ToyoburuBRZ]

We are getting our first snow of the season right now and the winter tires are on. Now time to stock up on parts over the winter to be ready for spring.

The big question: RPF1s in 17x8+45 or 17x9+35

Other parts I am expecting to have by spring:
RCE yellow springs
Front camber bolts
Whiteline rear camber bushings
Steel braided brake lines
Performance pads and rotors (TBD)

If you have an opinion on my wheel size I want to hear it!

[ToyoburuBRZ]

I did a little black friday shopping and picked up the @Raceseng Signature shift knob plus reverse lockout. The quality of these parts is phenomenal. Everything fit together perfectly.



The installation process was very easy. The extra weight of the knob has significantly improved shifting feel.

I had been eyeing up some of the Raceseng knobs for a while now but I was always worried about the knob getting too hot or too cold being stainless steel. These new knobs with the delrin cover are perfect.

[ToyoburuBRZ]

Finalized list for the spring:

Enkei RPF1 17x9+35
Hankook Ventus RS3 V2 245/40R17
Racecomp Engineering Lite Package (springs, camber bolts, camber bushings)
Project Mu HC+800 brake pads
DBA Slotted Rotors
Stainless Lines