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That looks like a fun track. too often I get stuck on the shitty Thunderhill East out here, because I fall for a sale on a track day and I go out and I'm cursing in the car, saying why TF did I sign up for this shitty track again? I would love to do one like the pitt here...
Sonoma is my home track. I just waste time and money going to THE. point being, it's my dream to travel to different tracks around the country.
I'm well aware there are legendary tracks in mid California that I haven't been to yet, so I would start there.
that track does look fun. I dont know how you do it in heat like that. I shut it down from May-October. I considered getting a cool suit but the Z and tires overheat too easily, not worth it. My oil temps were in the 250 range in December lol
I guess that's the function of running a boosted engine. I was wondering how hot it gets for you. My oil temps were actually ok, it was coolant temps reaching 210 degrees (that's what I have my warning light set to) that were cutting my sessions short. Well, that and my right leg being roasted alive from the exhaust heat.
Time for upgraded wheel studs and I had to order new open end nuts as well, since the longer studs would prevent my existing nuts from seating correctly
That's a good upgrade. I can't recall if the wheel hubs have to be removed. I think there's a cut out where the studs can slide through. but, pretty sure the brakes have to be removed to get to it. I used a 1/2 in socket and one of the old lug nuts to seat them. you definitely don't need advice, just sharing. :-)
went to order new tires and the Goodyear 3Rs are still sold out everywhere. The choices seem to be Toyo R888s, RA1s, RRs or new Rs. I've tried R888s before I wasn't impressed with them, they didn't seem consistent and wore out way too quickly. The RA1s are long lasting but don't provide quite the grip I'm looking for. I'm leaning towards either RRs or Rs. Has anyone tried to Rs yet? They are suppose to be a replacement for RRs with better grip and similar lifespan.
I did the arp studs as well, so much better. I'd caution aluminum lug nuts, I ran those for a while but they seemed to stretch and never stay tight. Check out the Maxxis victra RC1 R2 compound, I have been running them for years and they are awesome and pretty cheap.
I'm still using summer tires. 🤣
but I do like the Yoko Advan Apex. it's a holdover from my street/track stage. I haven't gotten enough track time to wear them out properly.
also ordered solid steering rack bushing from Z1, I think it's a new product just released. At $100 it's a no brainer to get more accurate steering feel
I installed the solid bushings from GK tech. they look similar to those but the Z1 pieces look a bit stronger. I can't tell the improvement because I replaced the steering end links at the same time and together the result was amazing. No slop at all. almost like it reduced the steering ratio.
Installed the studs today, took about an hour per wheel. On the front wheels I had to remove the calipers, rotors and caliper carriers to get enough space, but on the rear removing the calipers, carriers and parking brake components didn't leave enough space. I didn't want to mess with the axles so I decided to drill an access hole in the parking brake housing on each side to get enough space to install the studs. If it was a street car I'd worry about mud and dirt getting inside the parking brake thru this hole, but on a track car it's fine. At least next time it'll be an easier job. The stud tool works fine, but it did come apart on me about half way thru the job and ai had to chase all the ball bearings all over the floor and reassemble it. So a bit of a junky tool.
got the solid steering rack mounts installed. No major surprises, install went smooth. I froze the bushes to make pushing them into position easy then tapped the bottom one in, the top one I had to use a long screw to push the bushings in since there was no room to swing a hammer.
nice! I didnt have any issues with my ARP studs in the rear. I wonder why you had to drill a hole, they must be super long. I like the steering rack set, Im gonna have to try that.
