Ricky's Dual-Purpose Track Car/Commuter Build

[Wrecky_Flowers_]

Hey y'all!

My name is Ricky (some of you might know me as Wrecky...), and I'm picking up my brand new '22 BRZ Premium tomorrow. I figured I'd start this build thread ahead of time because I'm going to be digging into the car pretty much immediately.

A quick intro: this is my first Subaru/Toyota product, but not my first sports car. I've had an AP1 S2000 since 2010, and I've put around 110k miles on the car in that time (at least 20k on track). I bought that car used while I was overseas serving in the Navy, and spent my college-age years daily-driving and tracking that car. I really enjoyed it in during that time because it only had very basic mods like coilovers, a sway bar, exhaust and bucket seat, as well as the typical track pads and square wheel/tire setup. The car was largely bomb-proof and gave me a ton of thrills/mile. I swapped in an F22C to replace the F20C in 2017, and with that the car started to become more modified and more serious in terms of performance. It lost the ironclad reliability of before, mainly because of errors on my part or freak parts failures, and thus I spent less time driving it and more time working on it. No bueno. That car is currently undergoing a K-swap, and will (hopefully) make around 280-290whp when it is all said and done later this year. Here are some photos:










I've been missing the simple, low-stress sports car life since the S2000 has become more of a project. My daily driver is a '19 VW Golf Alltrack, which is fun for a daily but it's no sports car. For a while, I considered buying a totally-stock S2000 just to have as an antidote to my project car, but once the values of those went through the roof it quickly removed itself as a viable option. Additionally, my commute is 60 miles each way, and predominantly spent pounding up and down I-95 - the absolute last car I want in that scenario is cramped, loud convertible with a crappy stereo and virtually no amenities. Maybe I'm getting old...

I'd always looked at the FR-S and BRZ as great cars, but lacking in power to the point where it's hard for me to get excited about them. When the 2022 BRZ was revealed, it seemed that all of my previous subjective criticisms had been addressed, and the car was just a large step forward when compared to the last generation in terms of outright performance and livability. I also happen to think the car looks fantastic (and even better still as a Toyota), more athletic than the car it replaces while not being overly aggressive. When the reviews started coming in raving about S2000-levels of straight line performance, but with the livability that makes a car a good companion day-to-day, my mind was quickly made up that I needed to have one.

Like many, I really wanted a Limited 6MT. I was set on white or WRB. I got lucky while calling every dealer within 1500 miles for about the 20th day in a row and found a Premium 6MT at MSRP at Subaru of Little Rock with about $1200 in accessories added to the price of the car. Being honest with myself, I figured the only things from the Limited trim that I would miss would be the upgraded stereo and the swiveling headlights, so I didn't mind spending less on the car I needed instead of the car I wanted. I was able to negotiate that to include only the accessories I actually wanted - things like the STI short shifter, dimming mirror w/ homelink, cargo organizer and trunk liner, etc. - and when my car's delivery from the railhead was delayed at the last minute, they offered to pay for my travel expenses as well. If anyone is reading this, and is in the market for a new BRZ, I cannot recommend Subaru of Little Rock enough. They've been super transparent and very easy to work with, and ultimately I got the car and accessories I wanted at MSRP.

I pick the car up tomorrow, and then the drive from Little Rock to Miami begins. I'll be able to knock out the engine break-in on the drive home. The plan is to do an oil change, flush the brake fluid out with RBF 700, and maybe do a couple other small things before the car's first track day on June 4th (next weekend). To say I'm excited would be a gross understatement.

Here are some pics of the car the salesperson sent me:

[RedReplicant]

Ah, yes, another S2000 (s2ki) convert. Love it.

[villainous_frx]

Very nice! Following to see where this goes.

[jdmblood]

Dammnnnn Ricky...

We gonna be twinning now in South Fl.

Congrats man.

- Fernando

[Wrecky_Flowers_]

First Impressions:

I picked the car up this past Saturday at Subaru of Little Rock. The whole process took me less than an hour - they knew I was going to be driving back to Florida immediately, so they didn't waste any time. All in all, it was a totally painless process.

The first leg of the trip took me from Little Rock to Atlanta to crash at my friends place. The drive itself was pretty uneventful, but it gave me a few hours to get acquainted with the car. Having never test-driven the car before, I was genuinely shocked at how comfortable and compliant the ride is on the base 17" wheels and Michelin Primacys. I noticed a few peculiarities, such as how the cruise control that tops out at 90mph and the slightly aggravating elbow pad situation, but overall I am very happy with the car as a highway cruiser. Coming from the S2000 world, I am happy with the dramatically improved aero over that car - passing people at speed was really without shifting from 6th gear, and the wind noise is pretty tame for this type of car. I will definitely need to upgrade the speakers in this car soon, though.

First photos of the car:




Humming along through the deep south:


After about 9 hours straight of driving, I made it to my buddy's house in Atlanta:


Until reaching Atlanta's city limits, I had been doing between 80-90 pretty much the entire way from Arkansas just cruising with traffic. Again, I was very surprised to arrive at my friend's house and still feel pretty energetic, not exhausted as I'd expected. Compared to an S2000 or a Miata, this thing makes an outstanding road trip car purely on noise and comfort alone. I was also happy with the amount of space inside the car to be able to stretch out when needed.

The next day, I finished the drive down to Miami. I crossed the 1000 mile mark on the odometer around Ocala, so the next time I stopped for gas I opened it up for the first time... holy hell, I was not expecting this thing to be so quick. My experiences with the last car in various forms had set the bar pretty low, so I was (again) very surprised with how quick this little car gets up to speed. Finally, an affordable sports car that is at least as fast as a 15 year old S2000! The engine likes to rev, and heel-toe downshifting is a blast, however the amount of rev hang during shifts is a tad irritating. I'm hoping that a tune (whenever they become available) might help alleviate that.

Crossing the 1000-mile mark:


Home after nearly 1,200 miles:

[Wrecky_Flowers_]

Originally Posted by RedReplicant

Ah, yes, another S2000 (s2ki) convert. Love it.

Thanks! Yep, ANOTHER S2Ki convert, although I'm still on that forum. The build thread for the S2000 is still alive and kicking... ish.

Originally Posted by villainous_frx

Very nice! Following to see where this goes.

Thanks!

Originally Posted by jdmblood

Dammnnnn Ricky...

We gonna be twinning now in South Fl.

Congrats man.

- Fernando

Fern! Sitting in your car at the track is ultimately what helped me decide to buy one of these, so thanks! Looking forward to seeing you out there...

[Wrecky_Flowers_]

A day after getting home with the car, I took it by my shop to immediately start tearing into it. This should go without saying, but it is sooooo nice working on a brand new car compared to the older Honda junk I'm now used to

My buddy came by to help me out, and he brought his Z3Moupe with him. Naturally, pics were in order lol:





The first mod, officially, is replacing the stock driver's seat with a proper bucket. The stock seats are find for daily duty, but I always miss the connected feeling you get with a true fixed back bucket. I'd been planning on throwing the Recaro Pole Position out of my S2000 into the BRZ since before I'd even found a car, so getting that in was the first order of business. I used a Bride FO seat rail, although I found the side brackets to be too narrow for my wideboi Recaro lol. I ultimately mounted the Recaro side brackets to the Bride rails. It works, but the seating position is a bit high for my taste, and I may have overdone the recline. I'll need to work on this more. I'll be using the 3-point belt with the seat, and I currently have no plans to install harnesses.





I used a really neat little piece from Brad's Hacks that incorporates a 2.2 ohm resistor into a 3D printed plug in order to defeat the airbag light. It was literally as straightforward as plugging it into the yellow airbag plug. Here's the link if anyone reading this is interested: https://bradshacks.com/product/airbag-simulator/



In addition, I removed that heinous "vortex generator" that the car was ordered with, and I installed JDM clear sidemarkers to replace the amber units - both things should be mandatory in my opinion, lol.

An ideal two-car solution:




Took the car into work this morning for the first of many long commutes. Even with the Recaro, I was very happy with the level of ride comfort and refinement out of the base package. Coilovers, wheels and tires are part of the master plan, but it's going to be really hard to justify the move when the car is this nice to live with. I'm sure my tune will change once I've taken the car on track...

So far, I don't think I could be much happier with my purchase. For the money, I cannot think of a sports car that is remotely as well-rounded. I need to change the oil and brake fluid before my first track day, and I REALLY need to do a mild paint correction and ceramic coating ASAP. That will be a job for the weekend.

In the meantime, here are a few pics from this morning:

[Wrecky_Flowers_]

Not much in the way of updates so far. I ticked over 2000 miles on the car this weekend, and I'm starting to really love this thing. Even with the Recaro, it's a shockingly comfortable car to me.

Anyways, I installed a delrin shift knob from KillerB Motorsports last week. I prefer a light, accurate gear shift over a heavy knob that robs you of feel, so this was a no-brainer for me as the stock knob is fairly hefty. This knob definitely lets you feel what's going on as you're changing gear, and seems to be the perfect size and shape for my hand. At $39 or whatever it cost, it's a cheap mod that (in my opinion) improves the driving experience without sacrifice.



I installed the Recaro with a bit too much recline initially, so first order of business this weekend was to correct that. Although the gangster lean might look cool, it meant that I was craning my neck just to see out of the windshield, and it had me wishing for a neck pillow on my commute haha. Eventually I'd like to switch to another rail (possibly PCI?) that mounts the seat lower as the combination of the Bride FO slider with the OEM Recaro side plates locates the seat a bit too high for my tastes. For now though this is fine, and it suits the use case for the car as a daily/commuter.



I also confirmed the car is happy to do donuts at the drop of a hat... Very critical consumer information.



Lastly, I gave the car its first wash and wax since picking it up in Arkansas last weekend. We're experiencing love bug season in the southeast so, naturally, the car was absolutely disgusting and covered in bug guts by the time I got around to washing it. I also noticed that the paint was in pretty bad shape, owing to the weeks of sitting outdoors exposed to the elements at various shipyards and railheads during its transit from Japan to the dealer. I ended up clay-barring the entire car, doing a light polish and coating everything in Collinite insulator wax for now. The plan eventually is to do a full detail and ceramic coat in a few weeks when I have the time, but for now regular washing and maintenance will do fine. The paint on this car is very soft but higher quality than what I was expecting.







I have my first track day coming up, so I've ordered track pads and brake fluid for the car. I also have SPC camber bolts for the front to install. My hope is to do the pad swap/fluid flush this weekend, along with the car's first oil change and maybe installation of the camber bolts if I can schedule an alignment in time. More updates coming soon!

[Wrecky_Flowers_]

The first track day in the car will be this Saturday at Sebring, so I'm getting the car ready tonight.



Originally, the plan was to run Ferodo DS1.11s on the front and rear, but they have been out of stock everywhere and I wouldn't have gotten them in time. Counterspace Garage, who I'd initially ordered the Ferodos from, was able to get me a set of their CSG pads for me to try instead in enough time for me to get the car ready before the weekend. Usually, If I'm engaging the ABS at all, something is going horribly wrong with my lap haha. I prefer using moderate brake pressure in brake zones and trail-braking into corners instead of just standing on the brake pedal in each brake zone, so I was looking for a pad with minimal compressibility, a sharp initial bite but with the modularity I desire throughout the pedal. Based on that, and also that I would be sticking to street tires for now (more on that in a second), CSG recommended I try their C1 and C11 pad compounds, as they are (allegedly) exactly what I'm looking for. They were a bit pricey, but over the years I've learned that you tend to get what you pay for when it comes to brakes and brake pads. Based on the feedback I've read from others on this forum, I have no doubt that these will be up to the task. Thanks again to CSG for the rush shipping and the guidance!



In combination with the CSG pads, I'm going with Endless RF-650 brake fluid. I have personally never run this in my cars, but it comes highly recommended by quite a few racers I know and I've always wanted to give it a shot. I'm looking for a rock-solid pedal and as much feedback from the brakes as I can get, so the expectation is that this stuff will deliver the goods. CSG was nice enough to throw a couple extra bottles in with the order on the house as a thank you for going with their pads. Customer service leaves an impression, and so far CSG has been great to deal with. Unless these pads and fluid blow total ass, I will probably be sticking with them and CSG in the future in large part due to how this first encounter went.

In addition to the pads and fluids, I've also procured a new set of OEM 18" wheels and tires from the Limited trim to serve as my track wheels. I am planning on staying on the OEM suspension for now until these tires are burned off and it's time for something sticky. I like the idea of getting to know the car in it's purest form before I start throwing mods at it. With my S2000, I bought the car before I was into track days and so it was already on aftermarket suspension, wheels and tires when I took it to my first HPDE event way back in 2014. I've since gone through seven different coilover setups, as well as countless wheel and tire combinations on that car without once trying it on track bone stock. It's one of my very few regrets with that car that I intend to rectify with this one. The original 17s with the Primacys will remain as my daily set of wheels and tires - the car rides so nicely on them that I'd hate to give that up. They will occasionally get used on track as well... for science.



Compared to an S2000, this thing is hilariously practical. Loading the wheels into the car was a bit tricky the first time, but once they're in you have plenty of space for tools, spare parts, and whatever else you'd need to bring with you to a track day. The fold-down seats are a stroke of genius by Subaru and Toyota, obviously a carryover from the last generation. I'm happy to keep them and not do a delete like many have purely for the practicality they offer in a pinch, as well as their role in attenuation of road and exhaust noise.



I've found the Recaro rails mount the seat higher than most aftermarket rails, however as I've driven this thing 120+ miles a day over the last two weeks I've realized that the seating position is ideal for navigating traffic and not bumping into parking curbs. I still may get that PCI sliding rail but I'm happy with the seating position for now.

[alpine]

Originally Posted by Wrecky_Flowers_

The first track day in the car will be this Saturday at Sebring, so I'm getting the car ready tonight.



Originally, the plan was to run Ferodo DS1.11s on the front and rear, but they have been out of stock everywhere and I wouldn't have gotten them in time. Counterspace Garage, who I'd initially ordered the Ferodos from, was able to get me a set of their CSG pads for me to try instead in enough time for me to get the car ready before the weekend. Usually, If I'm engaging the ABS at all, something is going horribly wrong with my lap haha. I prefer using moderate brake pressure in brake zones and trail-braking into corners instead of just standing on the brake pedal in each brake zone, so I was looking for a pad with minimal compressibility, a sharp initial bite but with the modularity I desire throughout the pedal. Based on that, and also that I would be sticking to street tires for now (more on that in a second), CSG recommended I try their C1 and C11 pad compounds, as they are (allegedly) exactly what I'm looking for. They were a bit pricey, but over the years I've learned that you tend to get what you pay for when it comes to brakes and brake pads. Based on the feedback I've read from others on this forum, I have no doubt that these will be up to the task. Thanks again to CSG for the rush shipping and the guidance!



In combination with the CSG pads, I'm going with Endless RF-650 brake fluid. I have personally never run this in my cars, but it comes highly recommended by quite a few racers I know and I've always wanted to give it a shot. I'm looking for a rock-solid pedal and as much feedback from the brakes as I can get, so the expectation is that this stuff will deliver the goods. CSG was nice enough to throw a couple extra bottles in with the order on the house as a thank you for going with their pads. Customer service leaves an impression, and so far CSG has been great to deal with. Unless these pads and fluid blow total ass, I will probably be sticking with them and CSG in the future in large part due to how this first encounter went.

In addition to the pads and fluids, I've also procured a new set of OEM 18" wheels and tires from the Limited trim to serve as my track wheels. I am planning on staying on the OEM suspension for now until these tires are burned off and it's time for something sticky. I like the idea of getting to know the car in it's purest form before I start throwing mods at it. With my S2000, I bought the car before I was into track days and so it was already on aftermarket suspension, wheels and tires when I took it to my first HPDE event way back in 2014. I've since gone through seven different coilover setups, as well as countless wheel and tire combinations on that car without once trying it on track bone stock. It's one of my very few regrets with that car that I intend to rectify with this one. The original 17s with the Primacys will remain as my daily set of wheels and tires - the car rides so nicely on them that I'd hate to give that up. They will occasionally get used on track as well... for science.



Compared to an S2000, this thing is hilariously practical. Loading the wheels into the car was a bit tricky the first time, but once they're in you have plenty of space for tools, spare parts, and whatever else you'd need to bring with you to a track day. The fold-down seats are a stroke of genius by Subaru and Toyota, obviously a carryover from the last generation. I'm happy to keep them and not do a delete like many have purely for the practicality they offer in a pinch, as well as their role in attenuation of road and exhaust noise.



I've found the Recaro rails mount the seat higher than most aftermarket rails, however as I've driven this thing 120+ miles a day over the last two weeks I've realized that the seating position is ideal for navigating traffic and not bumping into parking curbs. I still may get that PCI sliding rail but I'm happy with the seating position for now.

W.O.W.!!!

[Wrecky_Flowers_]

Originally Posted by alpine

W.O.W.!!!

Damn dog, what happened to Flo?

[Wrecky_Flowers_]

First track day went well! Car needs a bit more front camber and an exhaust that is audible with a helmet on (noise box in the dash doesn't count!) and it will be perfect for how I'm using it. I'm also considering an oil cooler, as the oil temps seemed to get to 250 and stay there, but I don't know for sure because the gauge isn't too descriptive. Wish we had the numerical readout like the 86!

I'll add my impressions of the car on track later, but for now here are some photos:

[Petah78]

It will be nice to hear from another S2000 owner how they compare. Thanks.

[Wrecky_Flowers_]

Ticked over 4000 miles in three weeks. Swapped the daily wheels and brakes back on the car and gave it a thorough scrubbing this weekend.