icelatte Posted August 8, 2006 Share Posted August 8, 2006 Right now I'm drivetrain stock. I do 4-5 track days a year. I'm thinking about some exhaust mods and/or Cobb AP to give the car more on the top end when it runs out of breath. My question is how many of you corner-carvers are running engine mods, what are you running, and are you using gauges? What level of added HP are you guys comfortable with for 20-30 min sessions? Thanks in advance for your input. I don't really care to be "that guy" who gets trailered off the track with a blown engine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Th3Franz Posted August 8, 2006 Share Posted August 8, 2006 Cobb Stage 2 Had the car pull timing like crazy during a 15 min. track session on a hot day. I think part of it is the crappy stock TMIC, but I switched to 91 octane map and it was fine after that. I was running a boost gauge for awhile but it's disconnected, so I'll be re-installing that. Eventually I want EGT and oil pressure as well. I think it's most important not to abuse your car's drivetrain while on the track. I take a little more time to shift and not miss gears and rev match. It's a lot easier on the car and it's not racing anyway, so losing a couple tenths doesn't matter. -Franz The end of a Legacy http://www.youtube.com/th3franz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xenonk Posted August 8, 2006 Share Posted August 8, 2006 stock engine.. all I really did was just a Blitz LM air filter and replaced my stock catback section with a straight pipe.. saved myself over 40 lbs: http://img129.imageshack.us/img129/6715/img0547wi6.jpg I also run water wetter as well and I run just the conventional Pennzoil 10w40 motor oil and Redline 75w90 (non-NS) tranny fluids. I just focus more on suspension than power.. it's more fun passing people through the corners than it is on the straights. I really see no point of adding power for just track days, it's not a time trial event either. It's just your casual lapping days. I can be just as fast by running with better brakes, tires, and other suspension parts.. after all, a faster lap time usually means you have a higher average speed throughout the track Keefe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Th3Franz Posted August 8, 2006 Share Posted August 8, 2006 Keefe makes good points. Hell, my first upgrade to this car was to the brakes. It's definitely a lot of fun having boost come on earlier and fiercer than stock, though. I'll be taking my car to Road America in a couple weeks and running it on the track. When I did a simulation of a stock STi in Forza with the same gear ratios, final drive, 7000 RPM red line, sway bar size, normal tires, and same spring rates as my Legacy, I was able to hit 130 MPH on the front straight with enough time to brake for the first corner. We'll see how it is in real life though since I have never been on that track yet. -Franz The end of a Legacy http://www.youtube.com/th3franz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewScooby Posted August 8, 2006 Share Posted August 8, 2006 Keefe makes good points. Hell, my first upgrade to this car was to the brakes. It's definitely a lot of fun having boost come on earlier and fiercer than stock, though. I'll be taking my car to Road America in a couple weeks and running it on the track. When I did a simulation of a stock STi in Forza with the same gear ratios, final drive, 7000 RPM red line, sway bar size, normal tires, and same spring rates as my Legacy, I was able to hit 130 MPH on the front straight with enough time to brake for the first corner. We'll see how it is in real life though since I have never been on that track yet. I'm interested in hearing how it goes at Road America. I am planning on going up there Oct. 21st and 22nd for my first HPDE. I have been to the track for the last 10 years as a spectator and I can't wait to go down the front and back straights at speed. My buddy with an E36 M3 goes over 130 on the back straight with less power than Cobb Stage 2. The back straight is faster than the front(down hill vs uphill) if you stay in it through the kink. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icelatte Posted August 8, 2006 Author Share Posted August 8, 2006 Thanks for your inputs guys, Yeah, I prefer working on the suspension and brake bits as well. I definitely don't utilize 100% throttle on the infield here at Gateway, but down the main straight, I just feel like I might as well be cruising with the radio on as I let up to let the slightly higher horsepower cars by. What are your thoughts on needing to monitor even a stock engine. I remember on one episode of Best Motoring, they did a 20 minute enduro with stock cars and were obligated to slow down when water and oil temps ran too high. Nearly all the cars had to take a breather before 20 minutes was up. I wonder how much it takes to get a LGT too hot in a session. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colatkitty Posted August 9, 2006 Share Posted August 9, 2006 What are your thoughts on needing to monitor even a stock engine. I remember on one episode of Best Motoring, they did a 20 minute enduro with stock cars and were obligated to slow down when water and oil temps ran too high. Nearly all the cars had to take a breather before 20 minutes was up. I wonder how much it takes to get a LGT too hot in a session. I saw that episode too, and was suprised that even stock cars were at the brink of overheating during the 20 minute session. I've ran several events with a protuned stage 2 setup without any problems though... Knock on wood . Did one 25 minute session after I did a 20G turbo swap, but sat out the rest of the day trying to figure out why my car would stall out and not make boost. Figured out later that the increased boost blew out one of my vacuum hoses going into the intake manifold. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilT Posted August 9, 2006 Share Posted August 9, 2006 The extra power of Stage 2 is very nice if the track has any decent straights on it. Depending on the type of event, many "lapping days" only allow passing on the straights and that's where you need the power. Brakes pads are a must, along with brake fluid, the difference is huge. Gauges are pretty useful too, oil pressure and boost are the most popular, oil and exhaust temps if you can find space to mount them. Double Award Winning Legacy GT Wagon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Th3Franz Posted August 9, 2006 Share Posted August 9, 2006 I'm not sure what gauges GOTO Racing uses with their Legacy GT. To my knowledge, they only had overheating problems in Arizona with 110+ degree temps. -Franz The end of a Legacy http://www.youtube.com/th3franz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icelatte Posted August 10, 2006 Author Share Posted August 10, 2006 I may end up just doing an exhaust. It'd be nice to hear my rpms before bouncing off the rev limiter. On my old WRX with exhaust and Unichip, I was seeing EGTs 900C after 10-15 min of track time. I feel like I have a don't ask don't tell policy with my LGT right now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisLock Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 I'm not sure what gauges GOTO Racing uses with their Legacy GT. To my knowledge, they only had overheating problems in Arizona with 110+ degree temps. Gauges are a good idea if you are tracking often, with or without engine mods. We have independent sensors from our motec adl2 monitoring coolant temp, oil temp, and oil pressure, each with alarms set to inform the driver if they stray to far from the norm. They have saved us a few times. Gruppe-S has been tuning us with the COBB AP from the beginning. Great product. But get those sensors on if you plan to start running more than stock tuning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerami1981 Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 not to get off topic, but chris, are you guys supposed to be on TV tomorrow (11th) and if so what channel if you dont mind my asking? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xenonk Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 Thanks for your inputs guys, Yeah, I prefer working on the suspension and brake bits as well. I definitely don't utilize 100% throttle on the infield here at Gateway, but down the main straight, I just feel like I might as well be cruising with the radio on as I let up to let the slightly higher horsepower cars by. What are your thoughts on needing to monitor even a stock engine. I remember on one episode of Best Motoring, they did a 20 minute enduro with stock cars and were obligated to slow down when water and oil temps ran too high. Nearly all the cars had to take a breather before 20 minutes was up. I wonder how much it takes to get a LGT too hot in a session. 20 minute Enduro? :lol: , I run 25 mins sessions all the time! As for the heat, it's the brakes you should worry about, it really depends on how hard you want to push the car. I just drive around 7/10ths to 8/10ths at most. I see no point trying to use ALL of my brakes to the point where I may go off.. Im not out there to race or to see how to destroy my car in a matter of 20 mins. If you plan to drive the car 10/10ths or 11/10ths, yes, you will fatigue the brakes and tires well before the motor thinks about overheating. The GT holds up well even in 95F for my stock motor for 25 mins.. just allow proper cool down of everything. Let the other faster cars go by, catch up to them in the infield and corners. Use the straights to allow the car to cool down, the tires arent doing anything at that point and the brakes are not doing anything, short shift it and save yourself that extra 2000 rpms of motor beating.. if you exit out the corner correctly, you'll end up using a lot of of the lower part of the powerband during a HIGHER gear.. more SPEED, less RPMS Keefe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xenonk Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 The extra power of Stage 2 is very nice if the track has any decent straights on it. Depending on the type of event, many "lapping days" only allow passing on the straights and that's where you need the power. I set up my passes at track-out of a turn and do my passing of setting up the right place in the braking zones or prior to that.. I got plenty of grip and brakes to keep me from going off the track and tuck back in line to continue the session just fine. Keefe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilT Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 I set up my passes at track-out of a turn and do my passing of setting up the right place in the braking zones or prior to that.. I got plenty of grip and brakes to keep me from going off the track and tuck back in line to continue the session just fine. Depends how long the straight is, long enough and the Stage 2 will just come steaming by you again Double Award Winning Legacy GT Wagon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Th3Franz Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 Gauges are a good idea if you are tracking often, with or without engine mods. We have independent sensors from our motec adl2 monitoring coolant temp, oil temp, and oil pressure, each with alarms set to inform the driver if they stray to far from the norm. They have saved us a few times. Gruppe-S has been tuning us with the COBB AP from the beginning. Great product. But get those sensors on if you plan to start running more than stock tuning. Cool. How much does that Motec system cost? I started with a Defi BF boost gauge, but after the control unit got stolen and recovered by the Police, I still have not had it returned to me. But, once I get it back I plan to hook up the boost gauge and get oil temp, oil pressure, and EGT gauges at some point. But, if the Motec system is less expensive and easier to do a stealthy install, I could switch to that. -Franz The end of a Legacy http://www.youtube.com/th3franz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xenonk Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 Depends how long the straight is, long enough and the Stage 2 will just come steaming by you again I'll see how long he can keep up with me with the lesser of brakes and tires and suspension if it's a NASCAR oval or a drag strip, ok, the stage 2 got me there. But I would hate to see the brakes fade after a few laps of all that hard acceleration and top speed. Keefe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xenonk Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 Cool. How much does that Motec system cost? I started with a Defi BF boost gauge, but after the control unit got stolen and recovered by the Police, I still have not had it returned to me. But, once I get it back I plan to hook up the boost gauge and get oil temp, oil pressure, and EGT gauges at some point. But, if the Motec system is less expensive and easier to do a stealthy install, I could switch to that. uh, MoTeC = $$$$$ it's the race stand alone ECU stuff. MoTeC Advanced Engine Management and Racecar Data Acquisition Systems World Wide Directory Motec Engine Mangement Keefe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Th3Franz Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 uh, MoTeC = $$$$$ it's the race stand alone ECU stuff. MoTeC Advanced Engine Management and Racecar Data Acquisition Systems World Wide Directory Motec Engine Mangement haha damn. Standalone ECU -Franz The end of a Legacy http://www.youtube.com/th3franz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisLock Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 haha damn. Standalone ECU We only have the ADL2 data logger and display, but that is admittedly the more expensive part. $16K retail I think. Our ECU is still stock with COBB AP. Our reason for motec is to be able to use it's logging and analysis features. With a minimum of sensors and the accelerometer, you can get a wealth of data on the track, the car, and the drivers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisLock Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 not to get off topic, but chris, are you guys supposed to be on TV tomorrow (11th) and if so what channel if you dont mind my asking? Our race was aired saturday. Today is Rolex. It's always on SPEED. The Cup race should be reaired a few times though, so be on the lookout. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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