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Staying within Budget

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Ok, GT350 mod budget is limited but I wanted to add either new lighter wheels to go with the stock tires or add a roll bar with harnesses. I track about 3x year, next event is not this Sept and Oct due to covid19 and other things. I will do some Tail of the Dragon drives though. I was also thinking of some additional suspension mods link Steeda’s toe links, Vertical links and lowering springs. But the car handles very well out of the box and I’m no expert on the track. What it has so far, Steeda’s IRS braces and front G brace, and Vorshlag’s camber plates. Corsa helix for res delete exhaust. Stock shifter. I do move around a bit in the seat and was thinking the roll bar and harness would keep me in place and I could concentrate on just driving. I also use the Simpson Hybrid S HANS device. I will get harnesses to prevent submarining if something happens. What, if any, would you have for advice on which direction to go in? I have been tracking my ‘11 GT for approx 4 years and the GT350 for the past two, but only a handful of events so far.
 

JDee

Ancient Racer
1,797
2,001
Exp. Type
W2W Racing
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20+ Years
5 miles from Mosport
Roll bar/harness are not going to do much without a better seat as well. Even Recaros are limited in what they can do. Really need to consider a race seat, entry level models are inexpensive and provide far more support than factory seats. Bonus ** also much lighter than OEM** to help offset added weight of roll bar. There are significant downsides to a roll bar/harness/race seat install if you are primarily using it as a street car.

IMHO, for the limited number of days you run I would spend the money on good light track wheels (like Apex sells) and R comp tires and leave it at that. These cars have way more ability than the average person can use without adding anything to them.
 
2,198
1,065
Bay Area
Drive it the way it is then go on from there. If you're worried about safety invest in the bar, harnesses, first ext, etc. I would just put lowering springs on it and call it a day. Then lighter wheels. I have springs and CC plates on mine and I am still not pushing the car hard enough to justify other suspension components. I also do have Steeda sub frame connectors to stiffen the body but other than that I see no need for other items for myself. Im have found that I want more DF on the front because my front end gets light on a few turns at my local tracks so I am doing aero and more seat time. Good luck in your adventures and most importantly. Drive the car and enjoy it.
 

Bill Pemberton

0ld Ford Automotive Racing Terror
8,422
8,346
Exp. Type
Time Attack
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20+ Years
Blair, Nebraska
Budget ---- we all end to go off the deep end wanting all kinds of items but the number one mod should always be .... tires! Stickier , and bigger, so rims are second on the list , then serious brake pads ( with hi-temp DOT 4 fluid ). None of this sounds glamorous be we all try the modding game working on the motor, watts links, control arms , sway bars and more , and then some guy pops up with super aggressive brake pads, killer rubber on wider rims and wastes everyone.
Sure he will have camber plates , because they either came from the factory or he/she added them , but all the other stuff is simple plug and play and yet we all get sucked into buying a ton of other things that 20 of our friends tell us to buy and .......

Heh, I have been there but tires are such a huge game changer yet folks constantly will spend a zillion on other things before they really realize the single item to make them go faster was right in front of their face , but they did not want to spend the extra expense over another round air filled rubber device that did the same thing ---- at a slower pace and lower price.

Listen to the wisdom of Blacksheep 1 , because many of us have found Gurus like him over the years and found often the simple solution is also the best.
 
are you near TN in GA...then Dragon makes sense, but don't forget our roads here in GA. If you ever want to meet up some Sunday, I spend a good amount of time up there

I am located in GA. I usually bring the car to AMP, Road Atlanta and the Roval in Charlotte. I plan on going again to a Sept event and SC in October organized by a mustang group there.

Thank you to all for the replies. I am pricing out lighter wheels / stickier tires (Apex wheels especially) and roll bar systems with harnesses and fire ext/hookup. I can’t add a racing seat since it is my daily for now but maybe way down the road. Suspension items will be placed on hold further on down the list. I already use a upgraded Castrol racing brake fluid. I try to get all the fluids flushed at the beginning of the year annually, especially the brake fluid. Question now is what color for the Apex wheels, light silver or Anthracite.
 
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Bill Pemberton

0ld Ford Automotive Racing Terror
8,422
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Blair, Nebraska
You should be changing your brake fluid more often than once a year , along with many other fluids. You will get varying views from many on the Forum , but doubt anyone will agree to one change a year on fluids. I change my Mobil 1 5-50w after two track weekends. I flush the Brake Fluid ( Motul ) after every weekend. Rear end fluid is after two weekends and tranny after three. Granted I am in actual races , but fluids have always been cheap insurance to me. When Woodhouse ran it's Motorsports Division ( getting fired back up based out of our Bentley Store in Omaha) we would often see folks whose fluids were so dark because they thought they could run a fluid timetable similar to running on the street, and their rational was they were driving so few miles -- but those were hard miles. I am assuming you are using Castrol SRF , which is great stuff, but it often leads folks to believe it is a life saver and does not need changing very often. That is not the case and some feel it has some disadvantages and that is up for debate, but long term use without changing is not.

Tires ----- I love the guys at Apex , their rims are stellar for the price and quality service , but if you want sticky rubber get in touch with TireRack ( link on the site ) and even better get in touch with Luke Pavlik ( #4362 ) for the current hot tickets. You will find the Tire Guru for Phoenix Performance, Blacksheep 1 , will offer a lot of his views on TMO , and he knows more about tires than likely anyone on this site!

He is a big fan of Hoosiers, as are many of us, including me, though I have found the BFG gforce R1S DOT Comp Tires give me a longer time prior to getting a bit greasy than the R7s. Now this is based on the tracks I normally run ,which is something often not discussed when talking about effective race rubber, yet a coarse surface track or a baby butt smooth track may favor one tire over another.

Thanks for posting and please take this information on fluids as concern for safety from a fellow TMO member.
 
2,198
1,065
Bay Area
I’ve been thinking on this. Not to hijack thread either. BUT.........Can anyone explain how budget and track car work together? 😛 😛 😛
All I’ve seen is track car gets new parts, fluids, etc and bank account gets smaller. And then when I think I am done, I wake up at at early morning hour and say, ”Oh hey, why not get a new carbon fiber hood so you don’t have to cut out a big hole in the stock hood“. When in all reality, I don’t even really need a huge vent in the hood at all. Or do I? And now I’m going to fall a little deeper down the rabbit hole. Pics will come some day.
 

Bill Pemberton

0ld Ford Automotive Racing Terror
8,422
8,346
Exp. Type
Time Attack
Exp. Level
20+ Years
Blair, Nebraska
Great comment Byron, but the OP did use the proper word, budget, but we all failed to ask what his budget actually is? Could it be 10-15K, who knows , but he did not use the overly general term, cheap, so I commend him for stating he had to stay within some parameters. Now , what they are is a different story.

My budget is how much my wife and I agree on with a 100% fudge factor. Heh, she gets nice Christmas, Birthday, Mother's Day, and Anniversary presents, so it makes it much easier to ask for forgiveness, ha.
 
You're at the wrong forum if you want to stay within a given budget. Where's @Grant 302 anyway.
 
You should be changing your brake fluid more often than once a year , along with many other fluids. You will get varying views from many on the Forum , but doubt anyone will agree to one change a year on fluids. I change my Mobil 1 5-50w after two track weekends. I flush the Brake Fluid ( Motul ) after every weekend. Rear end fluid is after two weekends and tranny after three. Granted I am in actual races , but fluids have always been cheap insurance to me. When Woodhouse ran it's Motorsports Division ( getting fired back up based out of our Bentley Store in Omaha) we would often see folks whose fluids were so dark because they thought they could run a fluid timetable similar to running on the street, and their rational was they were driving so few miles -- but those were hard miles. I am assuming you are using Castrol SRF , which is great stuff, but it often leads folks to believe it is a life saver and does not need changing very often. That is not the case and some feel it has some disadvantages and that is up for debate, but long term use without changing is not.

Tires ----- I love the guys at Apex , their rims are stellar for the price and quality service , but if you want sticky rubber get in touch with TireRack ( link on the site ) and even better get in touch with Luke Pavlik ( #4362 ) for the current hot tickets. You will find the Tire Guru for Phoenix Performance, Blacksheep 1 , will offer a lot of his views on TMO , and he knows more about tires than likely anyone on this site!

He is a big fan of Hoosiers, as are many of us, including me, though I have found the BFG gforce R1S DOT Comp Tires give me a longer time prior to getting a bit greasy than the R7s. Now this is based on the tracks I normally run ,which is something often not discussed when talking about effective race rubber, yet a coarse surface track or a baby butt smooth track may favor one tire over another.

Thanks for posting and please take this information on fluids as concern for safety from a fellow TMO member.

Thanks Bill. I am just taking in the knowledge provided. I always change the oil after each event and right before if it has been some time ago. The others I change once a year due to cost/time factor and I only take it to HPDE’s 3-4x per year. I may change the brake fluid more often now. On the subject of budget. Yes I have a budget to spend on track days and insurance coverage, parts and supplies throughout the year. When you are married (aka to the Boss) and have kids ready for college, then you feel blessed to even be able to do this for a limited amt of times per year.

Further follow up on budget. I would rather not say that amt but perhaps I should have referenced what should be my primary focus on my potential list of items/mods. I am very aware of the best mod will always be the driver mod and I am working on that. But I must stay within my planned budget, unless something unforeseen happens which will affect future budgets.I know tracking the car comes with certain risks as does life in general.
 
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Bill Pemberton

0ld Ford Automotive Racing Terror
8,422
8,346
Exp. Type
Time Attack
Exp. Level
20+ Years
Blair, Nebraska
No need to list the budget , but good term , as it defines what you have to live within. That is why I push tires first ( with solid brake pads ) , as it is the easiest thing to do to go faster. With faster you need better brakes ( aggressive pads can make a big ,initial deal ) and again those things often keep folks within the many budgets.
 

Grant 302

basic and well known psychic
You're at the wrong forum if you want to stay within a given budget. Where's @Grant 302 anyway.
🤔

Staying out of the S550 sub forums helps me stay in budget. 😁

The only advice I’d have here is to increase the budget. I may have bumped my fixed income holdings to that effect. 🤐
 

Mad Hatter

Gotta go Faster
5,237
4,227
Santiago, Chile
My favorite hobby horse... Go with Castrol SRF so you can safely change the brake fluid once a year. Saves lots of $ in the end.
 

Grant 302

basic and well known psychic
I was wondering when Grant was going to start spending the OPs money..

OP’s wheels and tires plan already sounds good to Grant.

Grant does better with concrete numbers for budgets.

Grant is focusing more on spending his own budget in his retirement from retirement. Money and time wise.
 

TMSBOSS

Spending my pension on car parts and track fees.
7,529
5,243
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Illinois
One thing I learned when refreshing brake fluid was this. Color matters. I use a brake bleed bottle. $20.00 of less on amazon. It has a whiteish silicone hose connecting the bleeder to the bottle. As the fluid comes through the tube, watch for color. If there is a brown tint, the fluid got hot. I always have the brown color after and event. I then bleed until the fluid runs clear. I do a few pumps after clear and tighten the bleeder. Check fluid level often. I use SRF also.
Soft pedals and hard walls are a bad combination.
 
One thing I learned when refreshing brake fluid was this. Color matters. I use a brake bleed bottle. $20.00 of less on amazon. It has a whiteish silicone hose connecting the bleeder to the bottle. As the fluid comes through the tube, watch for color. If there is a brown tint, the fluid got hot. I always have the brown color after and event. I then bleed until the fluid runs clear. I do a few pumps after clear and tighten the bleeder. Check fluid level often. I use SRF also.
Soft pedals and hard walls are a bad combination.

one thing i saw in a video is theres always a little left over fluid in the bleeder screw outlet so make sure to clean it out with a dab pencil so it doesnt get on anything painted.
 

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