[flipm3]

When I was last at Gingerman Raceway, I didn't have time swap my street pads for a dedicated track pad. So went through the event with my Hawk HPS brake pads. To say the least, I obliterated those pads and had to take it easy for the remainder of the event. I have been looking into getting a fairly competent and quiet street pad for awhile now. A lot of people have been recommending the StopTech Street Performance brake pads. I decided to pick up a set considering they are fairly affordable to replace my crumbled Hawks which I swore to never buy again. I also decided to flush out my nasty ATE Super Blue with some Motul RBF600. Unfortunately the ATE Super Blue loves to stay in my lines, so it may take a few flushes to completely rid of that bluish color.

Modifications:
StopTech Street Performance Brake Pades
Motul RBF600

Pros:
1. Very quiet
2. Low dust
3. Good initial bite

Cons:
1. Still a street pad so it won't have the stopping power of track dedicated pads

Some other updates:
I am back out of the country for the next few months and am starting to plan out what I want to finish during the Winter down time. Fortunately, I now have a Honda Civic EX Coupe to daily for the winter :rulaiz: So I can actually get a good amount of work done.

I really want to tackle the whole cooling system along with an Inspection I and Valve Adjustment. I have been discussing things with VS Motorsports and they keep telling me to get a Bimmerworld Radiator since I'll be tracking it often this summer. I noticed that a lot of serious track guys still do well with a complete OEM system.

My goal for 2012 is to make sure that my car is 100% reliable, so another area I want to address is the VANOS. Purchasing full VANOS rebuilds is insanely expensive, so I am looking into various parts to replace to make it more robust. Although it may not be a common point of failure in the big scheme of things, seeing it pop up often on the forums is slightly frightening.

That's pretty much it for now. I still have my Evolve CF Airbox awaiting it's production, but I probably won't install that until Spring time. There are a few more dyno runs I want to accomplish prior to converting to Alpha-N.

If you guys have any other recommendations or suggestions on preventative maintenance, feel free to let me know. I promise that 2012 will have much more exciting updates. :thumbsup2: