Gen2 Tracking upgrades for GT350

[armphoenix]

So I have a big upgrade with all necessary internals to make reliable 1000whp, driving as my daily. That is huge for straight line races.
Track performance is however a different story, obviously. The additional upgrades I have helping is lighter wheels (Signature wheel), wider tires (Toyo r888r 305/325) and aero (AR front splitter that dropped the clearance by about 1.5” and a rear diffuser). I see a lot of discussions on upgrading the suspension for better track performance but I wanted to approach this holistically and ask the community to help with a general question:

Given I have a budget of $30k, what upgrades should I make to improve track performance of the car and since I am not competent doing the upgrades, what businesses in Seattle area you recommend who could help with that?
I want to avoid making radical changes that would impact the comfort of daily driving, e.g. changing anything in the interior, weight reductions that would force me to compromise something else etc..

P.S. I know the biggest gains will come from me becoming a better driver

 

[5.2 liters of democracy]

Uve def blown more than a voodoo

Your motor letting go is going to be the sweetest day of my life Tony. We both know it's coming. I may have to help it along when we hang out.

 

[Tonymustang302]

Im dyin laughin. I’ll have a smile on my face when i happens

 

[CobaltFilly]

I'd look in AJ Hartman for your aero. He has wind tested his stuff and tracks his GT350 to balance the car properly with suspension. Plus his customer service is way better than others. He will respond even if he is at the track. (when not driving or fixing something)

If you want to try a coil over set up I have a brand new set that Im willing to let go for 500 plus shipping. Its a GC system that you can still use the magride with. With my set up and skill I shaved 3 seconds off my time at Sonoma. And still don't have my camber dialed in.

Honestly that 1000 HP is going to be your biggest issue. Most track cars don's have that much power, nor do they need it.

We have people here with 306 RWHP and they are a lot faster than guys with 500 RWHP.

Best of luck.

OH and seat time and you have too much power for that suspension and unbalanced aero set up

I appreciate you mentioning us under powered track stangs

 

[5.2 liters of democracy]

I appreciate you mentioning us under powered track stangs

There are tons of 350s out here and to me the most interesting mustang out there is gentleman named Bill running his turbo 4 cyl. I believe he's on here as well. It's so much lighter on the nose than some of the big ol' V8s. I love cars that run different powerplants from the norm. AJ's SN95 comes to mind too. Such a cool build.

 

[byronj]

I appreciate you mentioning us under powered track stangs

Of course, you guys need some love as well. Now ill mention there is one here that has a stock engine and well over 100K on it.

 

[CobaltFilly]

There are tons of 350s out here and to me the most interesting mustang out there is gentleman named Bill running his turbo 4 cyl. I believe he's on here as well. It's so much lighter on the nose than some of the big ol' V8s. I love cars that run different powerplants from the norm. AJ's SN95 comes to mind too. Such a cool build.

I feel like one of the only 6 cylinder S550s out there sometimes.
Proving em wrong, getting seat time to prove driver over power any day.

 

[Tonymustang302]

My track coach told me on the first day

‘’You’ll feel fast til u get passed by a miata”

 

[armphoenix]

I'm gun shy about the Gt350 engine.. you said you have the components to go for 1K horses. I hope so. The general rule of thumb with the stock engine is to not mod it, don't tune it, don't mess with it, maybe even shave about a grand off the rpm limiter to make it last.

It’s already tuned by Fathouse Performance and is done right.

 

[armphoenix]

So many great suggestions and response from tue community, thanks a lot!
I should have mentioned that on the track, I turn it to 650hp (integrated with drive modes) so I agree too much power useless on the track.
It’s a stock engine still but I agree, it’s matter of when..
I believe AR is also tested in the wind tunnel and Curtis is also tracking with his gear in. He has a wing for the track too, and he is local, so I will check his wing design out.

Seems like some low hanging fruits I can immediately start looking at:
1. Light hood, at least vents
2. Change tires to F1
3. Camber plates
4. Sway bar?

At some point look at forge wheels, suspension setup, bunch of upgrade suggestions I didn’t even understand.

And as I acknowledged from the beginning, seat time

 

[PatrickStapler]

‘’You’ll feel fast til u get passed by a miata”

Isn't that the truth...they wear us out on the technical tracks. Daytona though...entirely different story....

 

[Tonymustang302]

I believe AR is also tested in the wind tunnel and Curtis is also tracking with his gear in. He has a wing for the track too, and he is local, so I will check his wing design out.

@armphoenix he absolutely does not do any real wind tunnel testing. There are well documented pictures of billy johnson and chuck from middletons wings exploding on track alomst killing them at 150mph. I would never run his wing for a safety stand point. I sold mine the same day i heard about the failures.

Go try this with an archetype wing. Thats AJ standing on the very edge of his on a carbon fiber trunk mind you.

Archetype is stuff for parking lot warriors, not real track cars


Billy johnsons test car

I know 3 more whose wings did that

 

[5.2 liters of democracy]

Even if the wing hadn't failed, there were issues with the design of the uprights causing air flow issues prior to the revision with the higher uprights. As far as I'm aware, there were no changes made to the upright design other than to make them taller. I've also heard the chassis mount also leaves a lot to be desired, including one failure during install.

Your best bet is sticking with companies like AJ and APR imo. AJ also has tremendous customer service.

 

[CobaltFilly]

I feel AJ Hartman's Aero is far and above APR's, and obviously anything is better than Archetypes due to fail rate/safety issues.

Go with AJ, skip out on the other two. That is what I will be doing later on. And what I have been warned as well.

 

[mavisky]

Your best bet is sticking with companies like AJ and APR imo. AJ also has tremendous customer service.

I'd throw Verus into the same bracket as APR. Nine Lives also leads the budget side of things.

 

[5.2 liters of democracy]

I feel AJ Hartman's Aero is far and above APR's, and obviously anything is better than Archetypes due to fail rate/safety issues.

Go with AJ, skip out on the other two. That is what I will be doing later on. And what I have been warned as well.

Oh I definitely agree there. APR is great intro aero. The offerings from places like AJ and Klaus are definitely higher end and will perform better.

I'd throw Verus into the same bracket as APR. Nine Lives also leads the budget side of things.

I've heard only positive things about those these guys as well. I don't have any experience with them, but I know they know what they are doing. Verus has some seriously wild aero builds on some cars. It also looks badass which is always a bonus.

@armphoenix


Billy johnsons test car

View attachment 97598I know 3 more whose wings did that

That is an absolutely horrendous failure. I can't imagine how shocked and annoyed the owner must have been after spending that much on the wing.

 

[blacksheep-1]

To me, aero is a pretty straight forward deal, just copy the Gt4 car, all the work is done for you.
If you go your own route AJ is the go to guy IMO.

 

[CobaltFilly]

To me, aero is a pretty straight forward deal, just copy the Gt4 car, all the work is done for you.
If you go your own route AJ is the go to guy IMO.

View attachment 97617View attachment 97616View attachment 97615

I will be doing this then. Probably least amount of drag, and @blacksheep-1 has the best advice.

blacksheep, where can I get these aero components, do you know?

 

[Tonymustang302]

I will be doing this then. Probably least amount of drag, and @blacksheep-1 has the best advice.

blacksheep, where can I get these aero components, do you know?

U gotta talk to Dean at Kohr Motorsports and if after a year or 2 of him promising to send them, you may get them . He’s known for this amongst a bunch of us….super busy guy.

 

[CobaltFilly]

U gotta talk to Dean at Kohr Motorsports and if after a year or 2 of him promising to send them, you may get them . He’s known for this amongst a bunch of us….super busy guy.

Aha I have heard of his busy-ness

 

[byronj]

@armphoenix there is a reason a lot of us are referring AJ and not your local guy. I'm a proponent of supporting local and smaller businesses but there is a saying. Do it right and do it once.

I can tell you of the other guys splitter failing and on a friend car, taking your money and not delivering from months, and lack of customer service.

If you want a GT4 wang though, MMR has one that is pretty solid. I have one on my shitstang with the middle sized uprights. I am still sorting out the front aero but at 0 degrees AOA the care is still balanced with the R splitter and canards.