Got a track related question? I'll try to answer.

[MrFabulous]

Does anyone have suggestions or opinions on rake? Between this and the suspension thread I think I've only seen it mentioned once (it was a lot of posts to go through) and that was just to say that Robbie's car is lower in the rear than CSG Mikes. Since I'm looking at a minimal drop with softer rates and I don't have scales (yet) I'm open to suggestions. Thanks!

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by MrFabulous

Does anyone have suggestions or opinions on rake? Between this and the suspension thread I think I've only seen it mentioned once (it was a lot of posts to go through) and that was just to say that Robbie's car is lower in the rear than CSG Mikes. Since I'm looking at a minimal drop with softer rates and I don't have scales (yet) I'm open to suggestions. Thanks!

Ooh, something I actually know. Unless prevailing wisdom says otherwise I'd start with a level car and use rake to dial the amount of oversteer/understeer. A higher rear end than the front end will result in some oversteer as the rear is less grounded to the ground for lack of an easier description. A lower rear end than the front will result in the opposite adding some understeer to the setup. Aggressive changes will result in changing your static camber and maybe toe so I wouldn't go adding or subtracting a 1/4" at the track without knowing what that does first.

When I get coilovers I will certainly try throwing a turn or two at the front or back to see how it feels on track between sessions, that kind of thing may be unnoticeable to many drivers but it can show up in the data and lap times, in my experience, tire temperatures never lie, 1/16" of rake adjustment shifted the tire temperature delta front to back ~2-4 degrees F on the little karts when I was a teen.

Again, someone with experience could chime in that the car definitely likes a higher/lower front/rear end, anything more than a 0.XX" rake is undesirable, an adjustment of a 1/2 turn is or is not enough, etc. But in my past it's been a pretty predictable knob to turn, although racing circle tracks tilt was more effective.

As long as you're scientific about it (i.e. you don't make a bunch of changes at once) figuring that stuff out on your own is one of the reasons I love playing with cars.

[DatApex]

Anyone have a lot of experience with ProjectMu brake pads? I've been running NS400s for street, and swapping to RC09s for track (which I have been loving, stock rotors and calipers, stainless lines with superblue fluid as I have a stockpile still.). I'm having a tough time finding any sort of direct comparisons from the ProjectMu line to other brake pads, and how they stack up. Basically everyone else I know is running Carbotech XPsomethings, so looking for a few more opinions from some of the more experienced track guys. The PMU a bit harder to find (and pricey) compared to some of the other options, but from my personal experience it seems like it might be worth it? I've tried pretty much all of Hawk's line (though not on this platform, admittedly) and been very underwhelmed, and I've only ridden in cars with Carbotechs, never driven one.

I'm looking to buy new street pads soon as my NS400s are getting fairly low. I like how I don't really need to re-bed the brakes swapping from NS400s to the RC09s, which is a big plus in my book.

[redlined600]

How bad is rear lift with a muffler delete? Should I put my stock muffler back on for track days or will I not notice.

[CSG Mike]

Originally Posted by redlined600

How bad is rear lift with a muffler delete? Should I put my stock muffler back on for track days or will I not notice.

It's there but unless you're pretty experienced, it will not make a large difference.

[CSG Mike]

Originally Posted by DatApex

Anyone have a lot of experience with ProjectMu brake pads? I've been running NS400s for street, and swapping to RC09s for track (which I have been loving, stock rotors and calipers, stainless lines with superblue fluid as I have a stockpile still.). I'm having a tough time finding any sort of direct comparisons from the ProjectMu line to other brake pads, and how they stack up. Basically everyone else I know is running Carbotech XPsomethings, so looking for a few more opinions from some of the more experienced track guys. The PMU a bit harder to find (and pricey) compared to some of the other options, but from my personal experience it seems like it might be worth it? I've tried pretty much all of Hawk's line (though not on this platform, admittedly) and been very underwhelmed, and I've only ridden in cars with Carbotechs, never driven one.

I'm looking to buy new street pads soon as my NS400s are getting fairly low. I like how I don't really need to re-bed the brakes swapping from NS400s to the RC09s, which is a big plus in my book.

I have tons of experience with PMU.

What specific questions do you have?

[Jack Black]

Are there any parts store brake pads worth bothering with?


I'm not a novice (20+ track days, 12-ish years autox), just haven't bothered to track prep the car and I decided last week to do one of the SCCA track night events. Wondering if there's anything I could pick up locally that would last better than the stock pads.


Thanks!

[DatApex]

Originally Posted by CSG Mike

I have tons of experience with PMU.

What specific questions do you have?

How do you like them compared to other pads? What would be a more or less direct comparison to the RC09s from other brands? Any thoughts on their rotors/fluids/calipers? Everything I see from the company I like a whole lot, just been having a hard time finding first-hand experience on this platform.

I assume you'd be using the RC09s on track, how have they held up for someone like you who knows how to drive?

I've already hit the limit on what I want to mod for power, so I'm looking at brake upgrades next. For header/exhaust with tune on (eventually) E85, are the RC09s going to be sufficient as a track pad or will I need something more?

I've also noticed that after a day of track, the edges of the pads are sort of crumbling away. See attached, is that normal for these?

[CSG Mike]

Originally Posted by Jack Black

Are there any parts store brake pads worth bothering with?


I'm not a novice (20+ track days, 12-ish years autox), just haven't bothered to track prep the car and I decided last week to do one of the SCCA track night events. Wondering if there's anything I could pick up locally that would last better than the stock pads.


Thanks!

Not really; you really should be on a race pad with that kind of experience.

[CSG Mike]

Originally Posted by DatApex

How do you like them compared to other pads? What would be a more or less direct comparison to the RC09s from other brands? Any thoughts on their rotors/fluids/calipers? Everything I see from the company I like a whole lot, just been having a hard time finding first-hand experience on this platform.

I assume you'd be using the RC09s on track, how have they held up for someone like you who knows how to drive?

I've already hit the limit on what I want to mod for power, so I'm looking at brake upgrades next. For header/exhaust with tune on (eventually) E85, are the RC09s going to be sufficient as a track pad or will I need something more?

I've also noticed that after a day of track, the edges of the pads are sort of crumbling away. See attached, is that normal for these?

You're overheating the pads, whether it's from you being too quick for the stock braking system, or a dependence on ABS, I cannot discern.

Do you have any videos of your driving?

[troek]

@CSG Mike i see a very very light amount of that on my project Mu rsf01 track pads around the edges only, is this a concern? i rarely hit my abs for more than a split second now and then.

[CSG Mike]

Originally Posted by troek

@CSG Mike i see a very very light amount of that on my project Mu rsf01 track pads around the edges only, is this a concern? i rarely hit my abs for more than a split second now and then.

If it's edges only, no.

[DatApex]

Originally Posted by CSG Mike

You're overheating the pads, whether it's from you being too quick for the stock braking system, or a dependence on ABS, I cannot discern.

Do you have any videos of your driving?

Only a single session (EDIT: Only a single video, that is, I had about 6 sessions that day). My last event was in the soaking wet so there was a fairly heavy "reliance" on ABS as it was nearly impossible to not have it engage with how wet it was out. That's interesting, though, I didn't know that ABS could cause that kind of pad overheat. I never noticed any sort of fade or lack of bite in the pads the whole day. Here's the vid:

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wDYzXm3eSc"]#Gridlife 2015 - Rain Session Run - 2013 Subaru BRZ - YouTube[/ame]

[Jack Black]

Originally Posted by CSG Mike

Not really; you really should be on a race pad with that kind of experience.

Yeah, normally I would be, but I didn't want to spend close to $500 on something that I may only do once. I haven't done a track day since around 2006, just felt like giving it a try in the new car.