S197 Building A Track Capable 3v Mustang Build Thread Profile - S197 Mustangs

[Cal]

Chapter Six: Taking Temperatures Seriously



Post track day modifications, Round 2:

• Flluidyne Radiator
• Setrab Oil Cooler, Mishimoto sandwhich plate adapter
• Oil pressure, oil temperature and water temperature autometer gauges
• Hankook RS4 Tires

Track of the day: Streets of Willow



This was a huuuuuge step for the car. Or, at least I thought.

The good:

• Oil cooler worked great. Oil temperature worries were (and have no longer been) a thing. Ever.
• Having actual gauge readouts was invaluable.
• Hankook RS4’s seem to grip just as well as NT01’s in everything except braking. RS4’s are more prone to getting greasy+sloppy than NT01.
• My previous findings with the braking system being adequate were now rendered false. Car was plagued with inconsistent brakes as I became a better driver.

The bad:

• Engine coolant temperatures are still an issue. Bigger radiator+distilled water did not solve my cooling issues. I could feel the car heat soak and die off towards the end of sessions and as ECT temps rose.

I got a LOT of track time on this setup. I got 8 track days and 4 autocross events out of the RS4’s, G-loc pads and centric blank rotors. On this setup, my new top times were:

Streets Of willow: 1:29.3

Buttonwillow: 2:05.1

Big Willow: 1:37.1

Laguna Seca: 1:47.0



Final notes on this setup:

In hindsight, this was an incredible setup to learn on. The lack of grip from the small 255’s meant that the car was playful, and great for teaching driving dynamics. The coolant system, although undersized, was usable even in hot summer months. Anyone who is interested in tracking their car, this is the bare minimum that you must modify IMO. You can be PLENTY fast on this setup, all while being reliable, having a low consumables cost and increased safety+reliability from using mostly OEM parts. I recommend anyone who is new to performance driving to KEEP their car setup like this for at least a season.








I know this is an older post but great stuff, I’m heading in that direction. First track day hopefully soon