James' WR Blue BRZ

[Hoax 21]

Hey guys, I've been a long to a few meets and taken the first few steps on my build journey so thought it was about time I put up a thread on here.

I picked up my 14 plate BRZ from Subaru in Sheffield back in October, I'd been looking for a new (to me at least) for over a year and had driven just about everything on the market.  After a bad experience with a Mercedes dealer on the A45 I was put for a bit, but on moving to Manchester back in August I really started to intensify my search.  I'd had a soft spot for the 86 / BRZ for a long time and seen some awesome builds on line but avoided driving one for a long time,  In the back of my mind I knew I'd probably end up buying one if I drove it. I managed to hold back from buying the first 2 86's I drove but on seeing the BRZ in WR Blue I was hooked.

My first 'mod' if you can even call it that was installing a Brodit Pro Clip phone mount after seeing it being recommended on the forums - I would definitely second that recommendation to anyone who is looking for a mount.  Holds my phone really securely and in a great position.  Makes up partially for the shocking head unit in the BRZ.

 

[Hoax 21]

My first serious mods were a set of TOM'S rear lights and an Eibach lowering package from the guys at Tuned!

The arch gap is, in my opinion, quite large on our cars.  I had been looking at KW coilovers and going for a full suspension set up change, but after meeting Richard and Adam from Tuned! at their opening day I thought I'd give the springs route a try.  I dropped the BRZ off in December and ventured back to pick it up the next day, right away the car looked a lot better.  The 40mm drop did have me a bit nervous about speed bumps but so far I've had no issues.  The handling has been tightened up, turn in feels a lot sharper and body roll has been reduced.  The ride is spot on for me, my BRZ is a daily driver and I can't deal with feeling every tiny change in the road.

The TOM'S rear lights went on the car at the same time and transform the look of the rear end.  The chrome parts of the standard lights don't go so well with the blue paint, but the solid red of the TOM'S really sits well for me.

[Lauren 2259]

Good stuff, James. Did you fit camber bolts on the front and offset bushes on the rear to get the alignment sorted? Just wondered what camber and toe settings you have now as lowering will affect it of course.

I think the Eibach's do hurt the ride quality a bit. I would say you can regain some of that ride comfort with good coilovers though I guess that will be in future plans.

[Hoax 21]

19 minutes ago, Lauren said:

Good stuff, James. Did you fit camber bolts on the front and offset bushes on the rear to get the alignment sorted? Just wondered what camber and toe settings you have now as lowering will affect it of course.

I think the Eibach's do hurt the ride quality a bit. I would say you can regain some of that ride comfort with good coilovers though I guess that will be in future plans.

Just drop links on the front as the originals were on solid, once checked on the aligner its pretty much 0 toe and camber.  Can definitely feel the difference in cornering though.  What toe and camber are you running?

The ride quality is stiffer than standard, I didn't want it to be too stiff as it is my daily driver but for me its totally acceptable and I would be OK with slightly stiffer.  I think I am a bit more sensitive than others to ride stiffness as well.

[S18 RSG 429]

Camber bolts are the way to go. Even if you can only get a degree of negative camber it makes the world of difference.

Recommended settings depend on who you're asking, but as a range which will suit most, ideally 1.5-2.0 degrees negative on the front, and 1.0-2.0 degrees negative on the rear, ideally with slightly more negative camber front compared to rear.

I personally run around -1.5deg front, and -2deg rear, mainly because I am limited with my setup (no camber adjustable top mounts, and no camber adjustable rear LCAs), but even with my non-ideal setup, I can feel the difference between 0 front camber and -1 degree like it's night and day. 

I'd have to dig out my printout to tell you my toe settings, but I'm sure someone will pipe up with an actual answer before I get home, but most experienced owners have settled on similar setups I believe, so I'm sure they'll give you a similar answer to that I would give you.

[Hoax 21]

20 minutes ago, S18 RSG said:

Camber bolts are the way to go. Even if you can only get a degree of negative camber it makes the world of difference.

Recommended settings depend on who you're asking, but as a range which will suit most, ideally 1.5-2.0 degrees negative on the front, and 1.0-2.0 degrees negative on the rear, ideally with slightly more negative camber front compared to rear.

I personally run around -1.5deg front, and -2deg rear, mainly because I am limited with my setup (no camber adjustable top mounts, and no camber adjustable rear LCAs), but even with my non-ideal setup, I can feel the difference between 0 front camber and -1 degree like it's night and day. 

I'd have to dig out my printout to tell you my toe settings, but I'm sure someone will pipe up with an actual answer before I get home, but most experienced owners have settled on similar setups I believe, so I'm sure they'll give you a similar answer to that I would give you.

What kind of difference do you feel with your settings vs a neutral set up?

[TTR 509]

20 minutes ago, Hoax said:

What kind of difference do you feel with your settings vs a neutral set up?

For me personally..... Definitely more lateral grip during cornering, however I haven't particularly noticed initial bite/turn in being any sharper, but from racing I only really tend to notice that when I feel like the front end is driving more than I am 

[S18 RSG 429]

38 minutes ago, Hoax said:

What kind of difference do you feel with your settings vs a neutral set up?

Imagine, with the standard car, when turning (say around a roundabout) and you start to feel the car pushing wide, you turn the wheel more to turn in tighter. In the stock car, you would just understeer and not turn in any further. With a bit of negative camber, you can turn in further, and the car will just grip and grip and grip. Very rarely will you understeer unless driving like a complete clown.

[Deacon 1357]

1 hour ago, Hoax said:

What toe and camber are you running?

I'm on around -2.5 at the front and -1.8/2 at the rear with 0 toe front and a touch of toe in at the rear. This has been the set up I've used for about the last 2.5 years and seems to work well. No noticeable increase in tyre wear either.

[Hoax 21]

I'm going for a neutral set up to start with, see how I get on and build up my own knowledge of set ups before I start to play around with a customised one.

[surrey86 352]

I don't think lots of camber will provide much benefit during the winter months anyway to be honest, especially if you are using the original tyres on slimy roads. You could go more aggressive when it starts to brighten up a bit.

[Lauren 2259]

5 hours ago, Hoax said:

Just drop links on the front as the originals were on solid, once checked on the aligner its pretty much 0 toe and camber.  Can definitely feel the difference in cornering though.  What toe and camber are you running?

As Ross said, you definitely want some camber on there it makes a massive difference. Toe parallel front and rear is okay, it will be lively, but negative camber is worth getting on. I run 2 degrees front and rear and my toe is practically parallel with a very slight amount (1 arc second) of toe in at the rear. 

The added camber gets rid of the understeer. 

You'll need camber bolts for the front and offset bushes (or more expensive adjustable lower arms) for the rear. Good coilovers will ride better than Eibach springs on stock dampers. The car I went in with them in had quite a choppy ride and didn't seem to settle, like it was too much for the stock dampers. So interested to hear how you get on. 

[Rich 378]

I also run around -2 degrees all round, really made a difference to cornering (though I changed to coilovers at the same time, so that might be part of it).

[Hoax 21]

Well time for an update! I've been on the @Tuned UK eibach lowering springs for about a month now and really liking the change in feel of the car.  It's definitely flatter on corners and the ride quality is well within my limits.  It's my first project and Richard at at Tuned has been really understanding and helpful with my questions regarding the suspension set up.  Currently its still very neutral but in the near future I'll be putting some camber bolts on the front and tweaking the rears as well.  Ride height wise, the 40mm drop did worry me a bit at first but I'm yet to scrape it which has surprised me a lot.

Build and mod wise, I've changed the wheels (don't hate me @Lauren) to some 18x8.5 Rota Grid Drifts in gold from @Mike@TD.co.uk I love the look of the wheels now.  There is a slight lateral arch gap for the rear wheels, and I did briefly consider some spacers but it honestly doesn't bother me enough to do anything about it.

What's in the future? Firstly I want to get some track and drift days under my belt.  I've done a bit of research but got a lot of questions so going to put up a thread asking for a bit of advice, work also means its hard for me to commit to things more than 4 to 6 weeks away, but I'm hoping to just go along to some localish track days that aren't full on my days off and put up a thread on here to see if anyone is free to join.

Mods wise I have a few plans for this year.

ICE: I need to change the head unit, its awful in the BRZ and starting to grate on my nerves now.

Cosmetics: Rear spoiler and possible reverse light.  I've been on the look out for a decent rear spoile or a carbon boot with the right kind of ducktail but yet to find one unpainted for a reasonable price or one that is in stock.  Also, considering some cosmetic changes in the cabin to get rid of the plain silver plastic that is around.

Engine: By the years end I plan on either going forced induction or an NA tune with an UEL header, but I'm no longer in a rush to do this.

Exhaust: Hope to get a better sounding exhaust sorted soon, but I'm waiting for a few meets to come up so I can hear other peoples and work out what I want.

 

[Guest]

There a few GT86 owners that are at Oulton Park on the 24th Feb. The day is fully booked up, but be sure to come along if you're free.

[Hoax 21]

1 minute ago, don said:

There a few GT86 owners that are at Oulton Park on the 24th Feb. The day is fully booked up, but be sure to come along if you're free.

I am free that day but didn't find out till after it was fully booked, I might pop down.  Is it free for spectators?

[Guest]

.

[Hoax 21]

2 minutes ago, don said:

I'm in the same boat as you then. It was fully booked up when i tried to book. But i'll be going down to spectate and hopefully blag some passenger rides 

It's free to spectate and £10 for a passenger wristband.

Definitely more likely to come if someone else would be like me, don't want to be like the kid pressing my nose against the glass in a sweet shop

Can we buy a wrist band on the day?

[Guest]

.
 

[Hoax 21]

20 hours ago, don said:

I can relate to that, it's normally me 

You can buy the passenger wrist band on the day, but just a note that it's normally cash only.

 

Event is below for any more info!

 

 

Thanks I was hoping to get to that day too, but I can only commit 4 to 6 weeks before so missed out.

[Mike@TD.co.uk 467]

Looks great James, I think you made the right choice with the wheels they really suit the car!

 

Thank you for using us also  

 

Thanks

 

Mike

[Nicebiscuit 655]

The wheels are great. And you've got to go with that colour on a Subaru, haven't you.

As for the suspension, I had camber bolts fitted when the coilovers went on and the car just doesn't understeer any more.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Lauren 2259]

If you're coming down for passenger rides I'm sure there will be a number of us giving rides on the day. Bring a helmet if you have one as it will save you hiring one. 

[Hoax 21]

21 hours ago, Lauren said:

If you're coming down for passenger rides I'm sure there will be a number of us giving rides on the day. Bring a helmet if you have one as it will save you hiring one. 

Yeah I'm looking at buying one for future use too. Going to order it this coming week

[Lauren 2259]

I'd look to go and try some helmets on before buying. Demon Tweeks is worth the the trip for that. That's where I bought my last one.