chimchimm5

iTrader: (9)

This would be my first ever track day and I've NEVER autox yet. Why the heck would I ever consider doing this? Because my friend is an instructor there and after running with me at Lemans Karting (and I beat him), he feels I'm ready even though I've never done it. My plans have been to autox for the last year but with family obligations they just haven't happened yet.

So the deal is, the track day will be with UnlimitedLaps.com. Of course, it's not a race, and I'd run with a green group, and we'd have instructors and very strict passing rules. So, assuming my friend is right and this monkey (me) has enough skill to not kill/main/damage me, my car, and everyone else on the track, the next thing to consider is my car.

I have a stock 2006 WRX wagon that has 3000 miles on it. It's my everything car. Daily driver, commuter, family car, weekend fun car. (See? WRX and wagon... makes sense right?) What do I need to do to the car so I don't have problems on track day? I'm NOT worried about turning fastest lap times. I'm more worried about not smashing into a wall because my stock brakes faded.

The only non-stock thing I have are 17x7 Kosei lightweight rims wrapped in 215/45/17 Goodyear F1 GS D3 tires. Stock alignment. Stock everything.

Help?

meilers

Heh, I have the exact same rims and tires. Great choices!

Strut bars, front and rear, GOOD ONES. Whiteline or Cusco. No eBay fakes. Install them properly, do not preload the bars -- keep them totally neutral.

Whiteline rear sway bar, on the middle hole. No endlinks, no mounts -- keep them stock. I find the upgraded endlinks are way too stiff and fight the actual movement of the bar on a hard turn.

Driving gloves -- not a joke. Your hands will sweat, get some gloves. Good ones!

Stock brakes are fine if you are going to do only one pass. Two or three runs, you will get heat issues. StopTech or PowerSlot replacement rotors, Axxis Ultimate or Hawk HPS ($$$!) pads. SS brake lines are overkill, IMO, but they look nice.

Right now this is about $1500 worth of mods; if you want power, you should add another $2200 to that (turboback exhaust, ECU tuning on an AWD dyno, up-pipe) but all this will jeopardize your warranty. Just stick with suspension mods IMO

chimchimm5

iTrader: (9)

Thanks for the response!

Yeah, I've decided on Whiteline for a quickrelease rear strut bar (I got wagon). You think the front one helps? I was planning on going Happy Motoring fender braces. I'm planning on both Whiteline sway bars too, but not necessarilly just yet.

What makes the StopTech and PowerSlot rotors better? Do they have better cooling vents or something?

What about the brake fluid?

excel

iTrader: (2)

the tires you have will definately be alot better than the junky stockers

Cody8675309

iTrader: (3)

All you "need" is to swap in track-worthy brake pads on the front and make sure you have fairly new brake fluid. I run Porterfield R4S (street pads) on stock brakes for everything from Reno/Tahoe's cold winters to track. They are a little slippery when freezing cold and I can get them to pad fade after about 10 minutes on a very brake intensive track (Reno Fernley Raceway). But my goal is a car that can do anything...

I also run ATE fluid (alternate between the blue and the gold) and SS brake lines as well, but you don't "need" those. With only 3K miles, the stock fluid *should* be ok unless you go nuts.

Whatever you do, don't do what this n00b did on his first track day.

http://www.seccs.org/forums/showthre...light=hey+cody

chimchimm5

iTrader: (9)

Can I swap pads back and forth? The bad thing about this car beng my everything car is that my family appreciates the civility of the stock stuff (like the pads and suspension), and honestly when I'm commuting in traffic, so do I.

What I'd really like to do is swap in a more fade resistant pad for the track, and put the stockers back in between track days (which would be FAR between). Now, I know that the pad and rotors mate and bed themselves to each other, but I'm wondering if swapping back and forth simply means another period of mating, even if deposits of the other pad is on the disk. Afterall, the pad material does wear itself down.

The other thing I'm wondering is, don't I need to change BOTH front pairs and back pairs at the same time and to the same type of pad in order to preserve the designed in brake bias? On my previous car, I upgraded the front disk pads and had to leave the rears because they were drums. The sudden highly stopping friction of the new pads biased the braking towards the front, so much so that ABS would quickly be activated. (And tire wear revealed worn bushing and control arms problems, but that's another story.)

Cody8675309

iTrader: (3)

You bring up a good point. The racing pads will need to be properly bedded in. When you go back to the stockers, you may need to prepare the surface of the rotors somehow.

The best solution (but not the most time/money efficient) would be to keep an extra pair of rotors for the race pads and swap the rotors whenever you swap the pads.

I changed all 4 pads to the R4-S's for this very same reason. Our cars already are overly front biased in respect to the brakes. While most racing pads do have a higher friction coeficient, perhaps you could find one that resists fade but isn't that much more grippy. :?:

If you can afford it, you may want to consider racing pads and an extra set of rotors on all 4 corners. I went for the aggressive street pad route because I'm just at the track to have fun, not set any records...and I'm cheap.

meilers

Do not put on a front sway bar. IMO it cancels out the effect of the rear sway bar; think about how AWD cars deliver power, and you realize you WANT power to shift to the inside wheel. AWD cars put on the gas much earlier in the apex than RWD cars.

Whiteline stuff just rocks, period. Hold any of their parts in your hand with a competing part and you'll realize what I am talking about. Also, they are cheap, cheap cheap.

I like the powerslot and stoptech rotors for the same reason: $90 a wheel, cheap and effective. Price them against JDM rotors, eBay junk knockoffs (DO NOT BUY) and "name" rotors such as Brembro, Rotara and Wilwood.

I've got no comment on fender braces, never driven anything with them installed. The front strut bar made an IMMEDIATE improvement, I noticed it the first turn I took (which was at slow, legal speed). Again, make sure anything you install is installed CORRECTLY; a strut bar with too much preloading (pressing outward, instead of sitting neutral) will give you no help, as will a sway bar set too tight or brake pads that throw off the F/R bias of the car.

subie OCD

iTrader: (11)

What is your budget?

ride5000

a upgraded front sway bar makes a HUGE improvement in total lateral grip in the front end by reducing the tendency of the front wheels to lose negative camber due to body roll.

Pelican_Racing

iTrader: (2)

It's your first track day and you want to mod all this stuff on your car?

Just take it out there, stay out of trouble, enjoy yourself and then decide what you want to "improve" for your next track day.

Usually it's the driver. On the WRX, I'd also say the stock brakes suck. Car mods are a slippery slope, and the cost-to-benefit ratio isn't that great. Or maybe I'm getting old.

I have a wagon too, but no more track days for me with the "family car".

-Hong

VRT MBasile

iTrader: (17)

dude, get lots of sleep, make sure you have EVERYTHING you need a few days in advance, and look over the track map. Also, tape the track map to the dash of your car.

Pelican_Racing

iTrader: (2)

Wow, first time I've heard that advice. THill is pretty easy to remember. You'll get it after two laps.

There is a REALLY good track walk-through online if you search for it. I think it was originally written by some Mustang folks. It takes you through the racing line turn by turn. Very useful for your first time out.

-Hong

VRT MBasile

iTrader: (17)

when I did a track day at Laguna Seca a bunch of guys had the map on their dash. How many turns does THill have? I'd still suggest doing it...first time out you'll probably be a little nervous and have a big ol' brain fart

Pelican_Racing

iTrader: (2)

Everyone should know Laguna Seca by heart!

-Hong