Operation: Car Make Go Faster

[Reedy]

Ok consider this to be my research diary. And that to be a working title until I think of something better. Which I won't because I don't care.

This for me has been brought on by the competitive slant that has been thrown into the casual track day mix by the recently announced Neova Cup, which I was in the right place at the right time to make it into their promo video last week:
YouTube - ADVAN Neova Cup Promo

My car is at a very nice place atm in terms of performance and practicality so it will take quite a lot to make me want to do anything further to it, but I want to compile a list of mods, costs and reported benefits in order to properly educate myself about where to throw my money next time I feel like I am starting to collect too much of the stuff. Once compiled this should also serve as a good source of information for others that want to tweak this car for use at the track.

Now to kick things off let's start with a mission statement and a list of areas where the car can be improved and expand from there:

Mission: To make everyone who didn't buy an MPS for whatever reason, wish that they did. With the added condition that there are to be absolutely no cosmetic mods that don't also carry CONSIDERABLE performance gains, this includes lowered suspension.

Power:
No Brainer here, DP, Intake and ECUTEK tune have given me all the power I reasonably need without going over the top.
If I wanted more (Which I don't) then I would be looking at Intercooler, Turbo upgrade, Forged Internals, Fuel Pump, Cat Back Exhaust, upgraded Clutch and Flywheel blah blah blah. Everyone knows how to give these cars more power, it's been done to death around here.
One thing people don't talk about much: Race fuel. Look into octane boosters and race fuel for track day shenanigans.

Suspension:
Rear Swaybar:
Done - improved cornering balance of the car dramatically, particularly mid corner and turning in to a lesser extent. Car still power understeers quite badly tho, not sure if that can be fixed.

Springs/Shocks/Lowering: (2) (3) (4) (5) (6)
Looking for input, i've got a feeling that a suspension kit is the next obvious upgrade for me. BUT I know of a LOT of suspension jobs that have utterly ruined cars, from bad geometry to downright stupid tyre scrubbing bullshit. I refuse to ruin my cars ride in the name of a performance gain that does not necessarily exist.
Points of adjustment:
Spring Rate
Compression
Rebound
Camber - Cornering Grip
Caster - Aids turn in
Coilovers with Camber adjustment would probably be the go.
Basic suspension setup: Lower at the front, stock height at rear. Full hard rear, half hard front (anti understeer setup)

Front Swaybar, strut braces:
Any noticable differences with these? A rear strut brace will move the car further towards oversteer, I hear a front swaybar is a good upgrade? It's hard to say if these will have any effect on lap times, however.

Weight Reduction:
I remove the rear seats at the track and strip everything else out.
Running light fuel loads helps as well, I take a couple of 10L Jerry Cans to the track with me, typically I will use about 8-10L per session.
Carbon fiber bonnet - No thanks, carbon bonnets look stupid.

Aerodynamics:
Does the rear wing on the Gen II even do anything? I think it creates more drag than downforce just by looking at it.
Aero mods usually look stupid and provide no measurable benefit. Tread lightly.

Brakes:
Pads: QFM A1RM's are fitted now, more consistent feel than stock pads, stopping power is about the same but they don't fade.
Fluid: I have high quality synthetic brake fluid and have it flushed regularly. This is a must for track work.
Are there discs out there that will help pull the car up faster? From the sounds of it slotted rotors will just manage heat better and don't really aid stopping performance
Big Brake Kits: Grabby stopping power, sacrifices daily comfort.

Wheels/Tyres:
Lightweight wheels, reducing unsprung weight has some performance benefit, exactly how much I don't know. Lightweight wheels cost an absolute crapload tho.
Tyres: Need to use AD08's for the Neova cup, but there's another couple of seconds per lap in swapping to R spec semi slicks.

Can anyone weigh in on 17" vs 18" wheel sizes? Any difference there?

Drivetrain:
New front Diff - Saitek on MSF has done this (7) - Improves cornering speeds but punishes mistakes more. Need to get on the throttle before the corner apex in order to make the LSD start working, done properly and power understeer is apparently eliminated completely. Done wrong and understeer is amplified.
Quaife is the only brand I have heard of, are there any others out there? Particularly ones that can't free wheel.

Servicing:
Proper wheel balance & alignments - Whats a good place that will set an MPS up properly? I am scared to take mine to a generic tyre shop for fear of them treating it like a regular Mazda 3.
Regular servicing matters, caining your car at the track WILL reduce its servicable life. Take care of it and it won't give you any trouble.

Driver Skill
Learn to drive you ham fisted muppet.
Spend some time with driving instructors at track days. I should just swallow my pride and do that next time i'm there. Learning the nuances of a given track helps a lot as well. That comes with practice.


I'll see what other info I can dig out of here and MSF and see how well I can quantify the various mods and filter out what actually improves race track performance without making the car look stupid.



Good Reads:

1. [NSFW] MSF vs 8thGen - FW - Forzda vs the World & Beyond - Mazdaspeed Forums
2. http://www.mazdaspeedforums.org/foru...-plates-82220/ Corksport Camber Plate thread.
3. Operation: Car Make Go Faster Epic Suspension Tuning Compendium.
4. http://farnorthracing.com/autocross_secrets6.html Shock absorber theory
5. http://farnorthracing.com/autocross_secrets18.html Suspension "Not Crap" list.
6. http://www.gofastadventure.com/?tag=willowsprings
7. http://www.mazdaspeedforums.org/foru...tml#post860859 - Post about effects of putting a LSD in.
8. http://www.heasmans.com.au/new_site3/main.html - Suspension specialists, recommended by LW

[SarcasticOne]

pull out rear seats
semi slicks
front brace

ricer mods, more stickers, cannon exhaust tips

[Yeldarb]

Hey Reedy, probably a lot of people are on the same path as you. I've subbed to learn more, I'll be watching comments on tyres, sway bars, rear engine mounts (a no brainer by all reports, but nice to see experiences people are having), how others are setting up their coilovers...this will be a feast of info...

Good Luck on your ricer burning journey. We're all there with you

[luke 3mps]

Reedy go Koni yellows with a drop of only 10-20mm. prob eibach a good choice

[Reedy]

Troy talks a fair bit about Camber and Caster setups. The geometry of suspension tweaks can get very complicated and is something I want to learn more about.

People on MSF are saying -2 camber on all 4 corners for autocross work. Keep that in mind.

[Logan]

Re the wheels, the standard MPS rims are pretty light, as in really light, unless your gonna push a few grand in for some Advanced R's then I wouldn't bother.

Sent from my Nexus S using Tapatalk

[2XS]

More castor on the front will improve turn in. I used a camber top plate (on the front struts) and turned it 90deg to give more castor )layed back towards the firewall) instead of camber.

A front sway bar will balance the car (in relation to the rear sway bar)
If you have power understeer, it won't help much.
A rear brace (depending on size) will increase the effects of the rear sway bar.
Strut braces generally stiffen, obviously. It improves the effects of the work the suspension wants/trys to acheive.

Rip them seats out. The leather weighs quite a fair bit. Remove the spare and as much rear trim that can be easily.
Less weight in the rear stops "lift-off" over steer and controls the suspension more easily.


Some say the MPS has good brakes, I fail to see the light. They really need improvement. Easily warped.
Brakes - Get better branded front rotors. Slotted is a good choice, cross-drilled tend to crack prematurely.
Pads - Get the best ones you can afford, but, balanced front and rear.
Fluid - same as pads, best you can afford.

[Reedy]

Heh, using the camber plate sideways to give more caster is quite clever.

With the rear swaybar tho I think my car turns in pretty damn well. What I want is a bit more lateral grip to get higher cornering speeds. Would I be better off with a bit more camber instead of caster in this case? Ideally I guess a bit of both would be the best but if I had to choose.....

[Logan]

How far are you willing to go, is ripping out seats an option, cause that would ruin practicality...

Sent from my Nexus S using Tapatalk

[Oldhead]

Track time ,(more) . Open the intake ports on your coconut ,we all tend to think we know it all!!!!! (NOT) .
Brakes (pads ,compound and fluid ,rotors ) are an absolute must as Troy stated use the best u can afford. Brake hard late and to be able to put power down /effectively at right point of corner .(practice)
No point in H/P if u cant use it.
Understand the limits of your car (practice) it already has heaps of grunt . From memory u already did quiet well at Wakefield. Confidence and knowledge.
Great thread , hope u get heaps of input.