S550 2018 GT350 Lucky 88 Build Thread Profile - S550 Mustangs

[Hobdul]

This is the Build Thread for 2018 East Bay GT350. Reply below.

 

[Hobdul]

I have meant to write up my purchase and build/driving path with the GT350, but perfect is the enemy of good, etc. so haven't gotten around to it. Time to just jump in.

I've had the GT350 since March 2022 and just did my 20th track day with it, a visit to the freshly repaved Laguna Seca on 7/21 with Turn8 HPDE.

Here's my fastest lap of the day, a 1:42.18s:

It's tough to know at this point how times will compare to the old Laguna surface, although currently the track is a bit greasy due to lack of rubber on it. In my prior visit, last September, my best was a 1:47.02s.

My fastest lap came in what Turn8 calls an "open pit" session in the afternoon. Instead of a 20-minute session, you get 50-60 minutes. They combined the two advance/open passing groups for this, but honestly the track wasn't that crowded. I think a lot of people got in their 15 minutes and then called it a day (it was the last session), which meant I had mostly open track. It was glorious. I hammered on the Shelby for 45 minutes straight, 25 laps, and nothing overheated, brakes stayed strong--I love this car. The Continental ExtremeContact Forces are ideal for this type of session, too.

Here's the full session video:

My car mod list is up to date on the TMO vehicle page. For this track day, I went back to the Contis after running 305/30-19 Kumho Ecsta V730s for four track days. The V730 is a good tire with a bit more grip than the Contis, but I love how the Contis drive and wear, and how it's easier to manage tire pressures. I also got Steeda sway bars installed, with F: medium and R: soft. I think the sway bar change resulted in more grip accelerating out of corners.