Tristor

Howdy All, You've probably seen my posts on the Facebook group, I also have a build thread over on FT86 Club Forums. I have a 2017 Subaru BRZ in Crystal White Pearl purchased new off the lot in December 2017 that I've been building for the purpose of driving on track and on the back country roads here in South Texas. There's some fantastic twisty roads here in Texas once you get a few hours outside of the city that deserve a properly built sports coupe. I'm also lucky that South Texas is home to multiple well maintained road tracks, including Circuit of the Americas. Typical country roads here are 2-lane state or county highways with 70mph speed limits and 25-30mph caution speed rated corners, great fun for hooning. My upgrade plan is intended to keep the car looking as stock as possible externally as limited by required modification for aerodynamics and weight reduction. I'd like it to be a bit of a sleeper, even after we get the power adders. There will be no stickers or stupid huge vinyl banners on this car Current Mods Installed: Cusco Front Strut Bar w/ Master Cylinder Brace Cusco Rear Strut Bar K&N air filter Modified Stock Airbox Snorkel Perrin Inlet Tube Shrader Performance Rear Seat Delete ( -27lbs ) Stripped Rear Interior and Trunk ( -43.6lbs ) Perrin Wing Riser Kit AP Racing Sprint BBK in front ( -20lbs unsprung), OEM rear brakes CSG Spec C2 (Front) / CSG Spec C1 (Rear) brake pads (track usage) Carbotech 1521 brake pads (street) Spiegler stainless steel brake lines Hard Brakes Titanium Brake Heat Shields Volk Racing ZE40 Time Attack Edition (18x8.5ET44) ( -11lbs unsprung ) Yokohama Advan Neova AD08R 225/40R18 ( +11.9lbs unsprung ) CSG Spec Racing Lug Nuts Jackson Racing Dual Radiator and Oil Cooler CSF Aluminum Radiator Filler Neck Samco Radiator Hoses APR Carbon Fiber Cooling Plate Stark Performance Automatic Transmission Cooler Fumoto Quick Engine Oil Drain Valve PTuning Lightweight Battery Tray and Shorai LFX36L3-BS12 Battery ( -27.2lbs ) PTuning Windshield Washer Reservoir Relocation Kit (-6.3lbs) TRD Door Stabilizers Whiteline KCA434 and W0509 Front LCA Bushings (+0.5 degree caster) Whiteline KSR210 Steering Rack Bushings Whiteline KDT925 Differential Cradle Bushing Inserts Whiteline W63414 Trailing Arm Bushings Whiteline KDT922 Rear Subframe Bushing Inserts Verus Engineering Side Marker Replacement AIM Solo 2 DL w/ Mount SPL Parts Titanium Series Rear LCA SPL Parts Titanium Series Rear Toe Arms w/ Eccentric Lockout RCE Tarmac 2 coilovers w/ 400/400 springs Vorshlag High Caster Camber Plates (Front) Vorshlag Spherical Shock Mounts (Rear) Motorsport Tech wheel spacers (various sizes depending on alignment specs) STI JDM Engine Mounts STI JDM Transmission Mount Torque Solutions Driveshaft Center Bearing Solid Bushings Fluids and Filters: AMSOil Signature Series 0W-20 motor oil AMSOil Absolute Efficiency Oil Filter (EA15K20) AMSOil Signature Series coolant AMSOil Severe Gear 75W90 Gear Oil (in diff) Redline D6 ATF Castrol SRF Brake Fluid Parts Waiting to be Installed: APEX ARC-8 17x9 +42 BRZ-spec wheels STI JDM Fog Light Bezels w/o Fog Light Holes Planned Upgrades for later: Suspension: SPL Parts Titanium Series Rear Trailing Arms RCE hollow sway bar set (front/rear) w/ SPL Parts adjustable endlinks Exhaust/NA Power: CSG-Spec ACE A-350 w/ double ceramic coating JDL Ultra Quiet Front Pipe CSG x MXP Touring86 Cat-Back Delicious Tuning Flex Fuel Kit Mk1+ EcuTek-based tune for 93 AKI and Flex Fuel Here's a few pictures from the last few months: And a video of my best lap during my last track day (I had extended work travel and needed cooling mods to get back on track, next one is already scheduled for the 18th of August): Thanks for welcoming this Yank into your UK-focused group. Cheers

Just a quick update, I've got the suspension tuned in and everything installed. Went to the track on Easter Sunday, and by the end of my 3rd session I was 3 seconds faster than my previous personal best lap time, so I am very happy with the car and my own progression as a driver. I'll be at the track again this weekend, weather permitting. Car has significantly changed in how it feels on track, so I had to completely relearn the rhythm, but once I got it there I must say the car feels very good. I have JDM STI motor mounts, JDM STI transmission mount, solid driveshaft center bearing bushings, and have done every single bushing in the suspension with Whiteline replacement hard poly bushings. Rear LCAs and rear toe arms were replaced with the SPL parts arms, and I now have the RCE Tarmac 2s installed, everything is dialed in. My alignment was basically perfect for the tires and track, confirmed by the pyrometer. Current alignment: Camber: -3.2F/-2.2R Caster: +8 degrees Toe: 0F / 1/16th inch R Cold Tire Pressure for track: 31 psi

Yes, very much so. On video from outside the car during runs you can see the doors flex. This flex is reduced, and road noise is also quieter during street driving. It's pretty clear to me that this chassis is pretty strong and stiff from the factory, and needs little bracing. All the slop in the chassis is at bolt holes due to the design to ease manufacturing processes. If you eliminate that slop, all the torsional forces in the chassis get directed into the weakest point, which is the door. I didn't have the door stabilizers last year on track, and my door on the passenger side moved in alignment from where it started (confirmed from photos). I'm working on finding a decent body shop locally (harder than it sounds, most body shops are scammy trash) that can re-align my passenger door now that I've got the door stabilizers in. If I was prepping one of these cars for track only use and had the funds, I'd start by stripping it down to nothing, taking everything out, and having the chassis stitch welded, a cage welded in, installing the door stabilizers, replacing every subframe bushing with PBMs, all suspension arms with heims, and using spoon rigid collars in the subframe when I reattached it to the chassis. I'd probably also do braces/locks on the steering rack and the diff cradle, and do solid mounts for the engine and trans. The stiffer you can get the chassis and drivetrain, the quicker weight transfer occurs, the smoother it happens, and the more effective your dampers are at keeping contact between the tires and the tarmac. It also minimizes power loss from slop. Performance driving is only really about three things, which is managing tire temperature, managing tire grip, and managing weight transfer. That's it. If you do those things correctly you'll be fast.

I've picked my camber settings mostly track focused. I don't really "daily drive" at all since I work from home, but even then, I rarely drive unless it's spiritedly and for fun. I'd run more camber than this, but I want to start here and see where things are for the tires I'm interested in using a pyrometer on track before making any more alignment adjustments. All the bushings are in except the rear subframe inserts (Whiteline KDT922) because when I opened the package it had 1 extra of one part and was missing 1 of another part. Everything else went pretty well though, only took ~9 hours of work in the shop drinking beer with my helper to get it all done. Having access to a lift, a pole jack, a shop press, air tools, and a torch helped speed things along a lot. Having a fridge full of beer probably slowed things down a bit. But all in all, it went well, and the car feels great. I'm doing an alignment check on Monday with a buddy who works at a dealership, but it seems to track straight and no adjustable arms were installed yet and no adjustments were touched, so it should be alright. Next Saturday, if all works out, I'll be doing the coilovers and arms, but I won't get to enjoy them until quite a ways later because I start work travel next Sunday and need to get a proper performance alignment before going HAM. Yep, I'm aware the arms are aluminium and only the socket cap screws which lock the adjuster are titanium, but they call it "Titanium Series", so, I do to.

I haven't updated this thread in awhile. Quite a few things have happened since the last update, suffice to say I'll be in the shop this weekend and part of next weekend (assuming Vorshlag sends me a correct top nut for the rear strut mounts). Here's what's been done since the last update, and here's what's ready to go on as soon as I get my top nut: Installed: CSG Spec C2 Brake Pads (Front) / CSG Spec C1 Brake Pads (Rear) Castrol SRF Brake Fluid ARP 3" UHL extended wheel studs all around CSG Spec Racing Lug Nuts TRD Door Stabilizers PTuning Windshield Washer Reservoir Relocation Kit Awaiting Installation: Racecomp Engineering Tarmac 2 (7k/7k) coilovers Whiteline WEK001 and WEK002 bushing kits SPL Parts Titanium Series Rear LCAs SPL Parts Titanium Series Toe Arms w/ Eccentric Lockout Vorshlag High Caster Camber Plates (Front) Vorshlag Spherical Shock Mounts (Rear) Verus Engineering Side Marker Replacement Kit Wheel Spacers from Motorsport Tech APEX ARC-8 17x9 +42 BRZ-spec wheels My plan of the moment for track alignment is -3.2 degrees camber in the front, -2 degrees camber in the rear, 10mm spacers in the front, 6mm spacers in the rear with 17x9 +42 wheels w/ 245/40R17 tires (Toyo Proxes R888R). I think this is where I want to start out on track this year while I'm waiting on take-off slicks to come back in stock to buy. I've got full sets of 5mm, 6mm, 10mm, and 15mm spacers so I can play around some with alignment settings and still flush out my wheels. I'll updated my OP too. All the Whiteline bushings go in "tomorrow" (it's after midnight as I'm writing this here).

It looks like I forgot to update my thread here, but I did update the one over on the US forum. So just a quick recap: 1) Had an AutoX on 10/13 and a track day on 10/14, was semi-dry to wet for both events and on shot tires, managed to have a fun time at the AutoX and learn a few things, on my track day I got back to a consistent 1:40ish lap time and dipped into the 1:39s despite track conditions and tire condition. My instructor says my line is now near perfect some of the time, I just need to improve on consistency and then start increasing speed, primarily by learning to trail brake better and using throttle steer/lift-off oversteer to increase momentum through particular corners. 2) New tires, Yokohama Advan Neova AD08Rs. These are 200tw and already feel much gripper than the PS4S, but are heavier. Won't get to be on track with them until after the first of the year. As a season closer I did a full inspection of the chassis, suspension, driveline, and underbody and torque sealed all the fasteners. I also swapped over to Carbotech 1521 pads for street use, swapped my diff fluid for AMSOil, and bled my brakes. I also leak checked all my fittings and the thermostats from my aftermarket transmission oil and engine oil coolers. Everything appears to be in tip top shape for the stuff that matters. I identified that I was missing one of the brake pad back plates in the rear, and that one rear fender liner is torn, and I broke the stupid cardboardesque transmission tunnel cover in the process of removing it. 3) Currently beginning mental prep for getting properly serious about learning how to tune my chassis and how to drive on track next year. Right now I'm planning between 12-15 track days next year, more if I can schedule it in with work. Have got a budget laid out that lets me get all the exhaust and suspension bits and goodies I wanted, including higher quality than OEM fasteners for when I get around to installing everything. In addition I'm budgeting for a second set of wheels and three sets of take-off Conti racing slicks, as well as a set of rotors and two sets of track brake pads. If I can squeeze it, I may also be starting in on quality carbon fiber body panels for more weight reduction and a further interior tear-down. As part of all that I'm also doing research on suspension geometry tuning and learning how to use SusProg3D and working on a model of the suspension in the car, as well as continuing to seek advice from experts. At the beginning of 2020 I'm expecting to begin considering which organizations and class spec I want to target for competing, as nothing I'm doing up till then should affect things too much for my likely targets. Anyway, that's basically the update. As of now there isn't much likely further to report until some time in February next year.

Here's the video of my first session yesterday. Other two sessions I haven't gotten figured out the overlay stuff yet. Dash cam records video in 10 minute or less segments and the timing doesn't align with the data logger, so it's a pain. Anyway, my spin is in the video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Y8ahyBhz7k

Yeah, I have just shy of 5/32nds left on them, which is in that range and they still work fine on the street but are definitely beginning to give up braking grip on track. I noticed this especially coming off the straight into turn 4, where I need to brake from 92mph to around 35mph to make the corner, and in turn 7 where I need to brake from around 96mph to 30mph to make the corner. I'm going to do one more track day on them to keep the variables as close to the same to understand my own driving skill improvements (hopefully improvements), then I'll be swapping them to the AD08Rs and get myself back on track in November maybe but December certainly. To clarify, I am on stock suspension currently. I am not going to replace the suspension until next year, that particular combination (RCE T2s + sways) is being DDed by a lot of folks here in the US by backing off the stiffness of the dampers a bit from the recommended starting settings provided by RCE. I anticipate it'll be a little stiff on the street, but tolerable considering I don't commute to get to work so the car mostly is a weekend toy + grocery getter. Those dampers are custom valved to match the springs, so should be fine as they're specifically intended as a high-quality entry to track coilovers that can be dual-used.

For those that haven't seen my updated over on the US forum, I went on track yesterday. Here's the same update. Well my track day yesterday was pretty successful. I also have one scheduled for next Sunday as well. It'd been over a month since the last time I'd been on track and since then they'd repaved part of it and the course had very slightly changed. On my 2nd lap of my very first session I lost my balls exiting turn 2 where they'd started repaving because I thought I was going to overshoot track out and I did the worst thing possible and lifted resulting in a spin and me going off-track. Good news is that I didn't hit anything and my car was fine and I was able to continue the remaining sessions of the day. My first spin and off-track incident and it took me this long, so I was a bit embarrassed since I thought I was already past that and I'm always very smooth and careful with my steering. If I'd kept in the accelerator I would have made the turn. That turn continued to plague me for the entire first session, resulting in my average time on my first session being a full 3 seconds slower than my average time from my last time on track. I was able to get it together in my second session and return to an average time that matched my previous average, but for the whole day that was the best I ended up doing. I'm hoping that having two track days only a week apart will help me to retain my feel of the rhythm of the track better and I can eek out at least another second off my average lap time next Sunday. Also, Harry's Lap Timer failed to record video again, however this time I /explicitly/ know I enabled it. I'm not sure what happened. I do have video from my dash cam this time around since I had hardwired it to get rid of loose power connection that was an issue last time I was on track. I'm still trying to figure out how to get things working in Dashware to output a video with overlay. Once I do I'll embed one here from YouTube of me doing a spin. The tire pyrometer was very helpful, I found out I was overpressure for the optimal point on my tires by around 1-1.5 psi depending on the tire. I waited 3 hours after my last session to let the tires cool and took a cold pressure reading and noted it, so I can start from the same cold pressures next Sunday and then use the pyrometer to adjust. I'm hoping that'll get me closer to optimal to start off with. I also still have tread left on these, so I'll be going one more track day on these Michelin's but I will say they had several moments yesterday where my braking distances didn't feel right and I think they're underperforming how they were in the beginning by quite a lot, especially on braking. I'm looking forward to getting the AD08Rs on and then taking it back to the track to see if I can pick up a second or so off grippier tires.

Well, I had a blast this last weekend with a run around Twisted Sisters. I was with a mix of other cars, most of which had coilovers, but without even pushing it was able to maintain a comfortable lead. Even on stock suspension and sport tires, the BRZ is a very capable car in the twisties that puts nearly everything else out there to shame. Texas is experiencing a butterfly and moth migration currently, so I did my part to protect plants from the coming caterpillar problems. Texas Butterfly Massacre: All Clean!:

They just refer to them as "Titanium Series" so I do as well. I understand that they're just aluminum with titanium hardware. They are definitely pricey, but I consider it worth it to have strong local support. If at all possible I always buy as local to me as I can. If I encounter any issues I can literally take my car directly to them to have a look, I can actually have SPL do the suspension install as well, although there is a race shop that's a partner of theirs called Winding Road Racing in Austin I'll likely have do the install.

I finally worked out what I'm doing with suspension, and I updated the first post with my plans for next year. Next up will be suspension and exhaust. I've consulted with several suspension experts and that's how I arrived at what I'm getting. SPL Parts is based in Austin just an hour or so away from me, and there's a top grade race shop in Austin down the road from them that I'll like have do my suspension install, alignment, and corner balancing. For the exhaust and flexfuel setup I'll do it all myself.

Quick update here, I installed the PTuning lightweight battery tray and a Shorai LFX36L3-BS12 4.8lb battery today. Looks like I'm still not going to be able to make it to the track this weekend, but I am eager to get some more seat time in and also to wear out this set of tires so I can get some AD08Rs or some other 200tw tire. The lightweight battery setup cut about 27lbs off the front and should help offset the extra weight from the engine oil cooler and transmission fluid cooler I installed. I've also got a windshield washer reservoir to install which will help cut weight and make space for brake ducts in the future. I've updated the first post in this thread and here's some photos.

Howdy All, A company on the East Coast of the US is liquidating their stock of King-Meiler Tyres because they didn't sell. I can't seem to find anything out about this brand here in the US, no reviews, nothing. But they are a European company and I'm hoping maybe the more EU/UK heavy group here has some comments on these. I can get a full set of 225/40R18 VR2NK R7s for $485 shipped to my door, so that's super cheap for R-compound tires. On the other hand, I know nothing about this brand and I'd just as soon spend double the money for something that's a known quantity since I don't want a tire issue ending my track day or my life. Anybody know anything about these? Are they any good?

No video because I'm a knucklehead and forgot to enable video in Harry's LapTimer. But I had a successful day at the track on Saturday and managed to cut 4 seconds off my previous best lap time going from a 1:43.86 (as shown in prior video) to a 1:39.88. I was consistently holding around a 1:40 all day. I'm thinking my tires have maybe one more track day in them and they're shot... incidentally I just found out about a company trying to liquidate a stock of King-Meiler Tyre Extreme VR2NKs, and they have the R7 compound in 225/40R18. I'd like to get R compound tires a try, although I'm not certain I want to try this cheapo brand.

Yep, unfortunately this is the case. That's why I'm planning to cut the factory hood to install vents instead. Not only is it cheaper, I think it looks better too. I can get something good in carbon fiber that weighs less than factory, but for quite a lot more money than Seibon. I may do it eventually, but it's not going to be for a long while, just not a priority. I think if I get top-quality US fabricated carbon fiber components it'd only cut 30 pounds total off the car (that's replacing the roof, hood, and trunk) and would cost me close to $4000 before installation (which is complicated for the roof). I'd rather invest that money in other areas on the car right now. As an example for around the same money I could put in top-grade carbon fiber racing seats which cuts almost 70 pounds of weight on the car ( stock driver + passenger is 82.8 pounds, 2x T2s is 13 pounds installed ).

I've added some weight in the front actually, because I'm running a half-quart more oil and an oil cooler. Probably going to end up adding some more as well. I'm planning to compensate for weight balance (as well as get some more space for future brake ducting) by replacing the windshield washer reservoir with a smaller one, getting a lighter weight battery, and doing a few other things. The stock reservoir when filled to the top fill line is 15 pounds!!! I'm looking at the PTuning windshield washer reservoir relocation kit, which should cut around 10 pounds of fluid weight as well as losing another 20 pounds by switching to a Braille lightweight battery and battery tray. As you'll note they're in my list of planned changes this year still. I'm hoping adding hood louvers will help with cooling and also provide a slight amount of front-end downforce as well to help compensate. More major changes for the front are a bit more difficult, since this is where a lot of the structure required for crash protection on the street is. If I were to go full racecar though I'd be redoing the entire front structure which would be able to cut quite a bit of weight, but I'd also need to fully cage out the car including building a sub-cage for the engine bay if I did that. We're not quite there yet. I could move the lightweight battery to the trunk though which would also help with balance. While not as far into the front, I am planning on removing the stock seats and seat airbags, jumpering them out, and installing a harness bar and two lightweight (carbon kevlar) race buckets with harnesses. I may get a custom half-cage fabbed for me locally instead of the harness bar. I'm still evaluating my options because I want to keep the car street legal and safe for highway use, which in Texas means that I cannot wear a helmet while driving on public roads while in an enclosed space. If I can't wear a helmet, that means I'm not doing a full cage. If I'm not doing a full cage that means I need to keep the front and side impact airbags. If I have to keep the airbags that cuts a lot of options for weight reduction in the front. Since I don't like the idea of my head looking like a watermelon during a Gallagher show because an illegal immigrant love-taps me on the freeway, caging the car out and not wearing a helmet to drive on the street is a complete non-option. Unfortunately that's a South Texas reality. So, the only way I cage it out is if I go track-only and buy another car for use on the street.

Here's some old photos. Originally with the rear seat delete installed I had reinstalled the side panels and C pillar covers, but I got tired of taking them back out and just left them out. Most of the NVH in the car comes from underneath anyway. Here you can see I carefully put everything back into the trunk when installing the strut bar and cut the carpeted mat to fit snugly. Anyway, same story. I got tired of taking it all out to go to the track. Very specifically because of how I cut the carpeted mat it requires me to unbolt the rear strut bar to completely remove the carpeted mat and with the strut bar bases in place, it is difficult to remove the side plastic trim. In the end I got lazy and just left it out to keep the weight reduction all the time.

Yep, I figured at the end of the day it's all about power to weight ratio and reducing unsprung mass as much as possible. The rear seat bases weight 6.2 pounds each, the 1-piece rear seat back weighs 15.0 pounds, the rear plastic panels weigh 3.0 pounds each, each rear floor mat weighs 0.4 pounds, the c pillar covers weigh 0.5 pounds each, all of the hardware for the rear seats and seatbelts together weighs 11.25 pounds. The Shrader Performance Rear Seat Delete weighs a shade over 19 pounds when installed (most is the center steel bracket), so I figure around 27 pounds cut by doing the rear seat delete. In reality it's more because when I go on track I take out the rear panel and both seat well covers, but just cruising down the street it helps NVH especially since my trunk is bare. The carpeted trunk liner weighs 2.4 pounds, and I also had the all-weather rubber mat over it which weighed 3.8 pounds. Underneath is the spare tire, spare tire mounting hardware, and two foam inserts which hold tools. The spare tire with its foam liner and hardware weighs 25.8 pounds, the tools and foam together weigh 5.8 pounds. The plastic trim together in the trunk weighs around 5.9 pounds, which comes up with the rest. This photo showed what my trunk looked like during my initial stripping to install the rear seat delete and rear strut bar. I don't have a better photo right now, but basically it's the same except that you can't see into the cabin because the rear seat delete has a carpeted chloroplast panel that goes where the seat back would have gone and clips into the rear deck and there's a rear strut bar installed. I also put the plastic lip and trunk latch hardware back into place, which is why it's not counted in my weight reduction figures. Obviously I need to be able to close my trunk I zip-tied the inside trunk button thing onto a convenient hole in the sheet metal so it wouldn't flop around.

Howdy Lauren, Yep I've been keeping an eye on your build as well. I'm going to do two more track days with instruction and then see where the next step is. My goal right now is primarily to focus on things that allow for weight reduction, but a little extra power wouldn't hurt, so I'm thinking a full exhaust and tune might be a next step. That should let me cut some weight, get 20-30hp in gains, and why not. For the suspension I'm still split and haven't yet made a decision, there's three different coilover systems I'm considering and I currently have some active correspondence to try to understand what is the right choice for my use case. Right now is seems very likely I'll end up with RCE Tarmac 2s, which are improved KW Clubsports. In either case, when I do the suspension I'm going to replace all components in the suspension at once with lightweight components that enable full adjustability. Then have my alignment tuned at my local performance alignment shop. I'll of course also add the appropriate bushings and bracing to stiffen things up on the chassis otherwise. I hadn't yet considered modifying the final drive, but that's a good idea. I haven't touched the diff yet, but depending on how temps play out over the next couple of months I may be adding an oversized diff cover to allow it to hold more fluid and cool itself better, in the process it wouldn't be too terrible to swap the FD gear. Not sure I want to take that on yet though. Meanwhile, I'm doing as much driver mod as I can. I've lost 28 pounds (2 stone), and I've been to multiple tracks and sought instruction at each now. It's pretty likely suspension will be next up on my list, but I may go ahead and do the exhaust (or hell, both at the same time). In either case there probably won't be any more part mods until into next year when I get my next tax refund

Just got my new 2017 BRZ Limited yesterday. Here's me picking it up at the dealership: