Track forum general chit chat.

[Kelse92]

Originally Posted by Adrian g.

Looking for input on what else I should consider doing, as far as suspension goes. Car is a 2013 DCT coupe with 29k miles, if that matters and around ~200 lbs removed. Still street driven from time to time, when the weather is nice.


Suspension mods so far:

- MCS 3-way adj shocks with remote reservoirs. 600f and 900r springs
- Vorshlag camber plates
- Eibach adjustable front sway bar. Rear is OEM for now.
- Hotchkis adjustable (front) sway bar end links
- GAS monoballs in the front tension arms.
-> Ride height is 25.5" from ground to highest point on the front fenders with a 265/35/18 Cup2 tire.


I do plan to replace the rear subframe bushings with solid ones and add an adjustable rear sway, at a later date.

At this point, I'm considering buying Turner Performance tie rod ends, to eliminate bump steer -> https://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-5...-tie-rod-ends/

Should I think about anything else on the front that is worth doing?

Personally, car sounds well-setup with what you've got. Just start playing with your shocks settings and swaybars and see what you might need from there.

[LeveragedTiger]

Originally Posted by Kelse92

Personally, car sounds well-setup with what you've got. Just start playing with your shocks settings and swaybars and see what you might need from there.

Let them find an excuse to spend money! Haha

[tsk94]

Originally Posted by Adrian g.

Looking for input on what else I should consider doing, as far as suspension goes. Car is a 2013 DCT coupe with 29k miles, if that matters and around ~200 lbs removed. Still street driven from time to time, when the weather is nice.


Suspension mods so far:

- MCS 3-way adj shocks with remote reservoirs. 600f and 900r springs
- Vorshlag camber plates
- Eibach adjustable front sway bar. Rear is OEM for now.
- Hotchkis adjustable (front) sway bar end links
- GAS monoballs in the front tension arms.
-> Ride height is 25.5" from ground to highest point on the front fenders with a 265/35/18 Cup2 tire.


I do plan to replace the rear subframe bushings with solid ones and add an adjustable rear sway, at a later date.

At this point, I'm considering buying Turner Performance tie rod ends, to eliminate bump steer -> https://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-5...-tie-rod-ends/

Should I think about anything else on the front that is worth doing?

While doing solid subframe bushing I'd do solid diff bushing as well. Also upgrading all the rear arms to spherical ones like SPL or Ground Control will be an improvement and even more alignment adjustability.

Those Turner tie rods ends will be good, or the ones from SPL. You have the monoball front tension arm but you could still upgrade the front rear arm to a spherical arm from SPL.

[kyippee]

Curious question - those of us with Slon DCT bottom pans.. is it easy to do service, such as a transmission filter replacement? It's stuck on, so is it a ton of work? Thinking ahead and I don't want to kill the shop with a long job

[roastbeef]

Originally Posted by kyippee

Curious question - those of us with Slon DCT bottom pans.. is it easy to do service, such as a transmission filter replacement? It's stuck on, so is it a ton of work? Thinking ahead and I don't want to kill the shop with a long job

i read a DIY somewhere on here and it didn't seem like that big of a deal, but it also didn't seem like something you would do often, especially if you had something like a slon pan installed in recent years.

[Ximian]

Originally Posted by roastbeef

i read a DIY somewhere on here and it didn't seem like that big of a deal, but it also didn't seem like something you would do often, especially if you had something like a slon pan installed in recent years.

The Loctite gasket on there makes it a big deal as it’s not going to be easy to remove quickly. You need something to breakdown the adhesive so you’re not warping the pan trying to prying it apart.

I used some of the 574 on trim pieces after some tile work on the floor in the house and it’s been sticking very well.

[kyippee]

Thanks Ximian - yea was thinking about the loctite...

Bartledoo did you run 295/30/18 Nankang AR-1 on 18x10 wheels? I'm thinking of throwing my 18 heatcycle set onto my extra 18x10 wheels for just slower driving.

[///Mobbin]

Curious if anyone is running the "Element 50" fire extinguisher in their car? I'm considering throwing one in my glove box, also considering a passenger seat mounted Halotron 2.5lb.

[Adrian g.]

Originally Posted by Kelse92

Personally, car sounds well-setup with what you've got. Just start playing with your shocks settings and swaybars and see what you might need from there.

I've been experiencing some high speed understeer, on track. I'll be at MSR on Friday, without the rear wing and I've also softened up the front sway bar. Will also try adjusting shock settings... I'm sure there is a solution, but I just haven't found it yet.

Originally Posted by tsk94

While doing solid subframe bushing I'd do solid diff bushing as well. Also upgrading all the rear arms to spherical ones like SPL or Ground Control will be an improvement and even more alignment adjustability.

Those Turner tie rods ends will be good, or the ones from SPL. You have the monoball front tension arm but you could still upgrade the front rear arm to a spherical arm from SPL.

So, that's what I'm trying to figure out currently... what, if anything, is necessary and/or worth doing. I do notice some bump steer driving the car on the highway, so I think I will move forward with the Turner tie rods ends. As far as replacing the other links, I do not know if I necessarily need more adjustability, and I do not want to add parts just for the sake of adding parts unless there is a valid reason to do so.

[dparm]

Originally Posted by ///Mobbin

Curious if anyone is running the "Element 50" fire extinguisher in their car? I'm considering throwing one in my glove box, also considering a passenger seat mounted Halotron 2.5lb.

You do not want an ABC-K extinguisher for a car fire. Those chemicals are corrosive to aluminum and it will destroy the engine bay.

You're better off with the Halotron (or similar) extinguisher. I use a Safecraft one:
https://safecraft.com/product/model-pb2/

Bear in mind that a 2.5 pound unit is still pretty small and unless you catch the fire very early, it will quickly overwhelm what a small handheld can do. Car fires spread insanely fast. Consider an installed system if you are truly concerned about a car fire. The Lifeline systems are only about $400 and you can install it yourself in a few hours.

[///Mobbin]

Originally Posted by dparm

You do not want an ABC-K extinguisher for a car fire. Those chemicals are corrosive to aluminum and it will destroy the engine bay.

You're better off with the Halotron (or similar) extinguisher. I use a Safecraft one:
https://safecraft.com/product/model-pb2/

Bear in mind that a 2.5 pound unit is still pretty small and unless you catch the fire very early, it will quickly overwhelm what a small handheld can do. Car fires spread insanely fast. Consider an installed system if you are truly concerned about a car fire. The Lifeline systems are only about $400 and you can install it yourself in a few hours.

Good point on the duration of the 2.5lb unit but don't think I'm quite at the point of wanting to do an installed system yet.

Check out the Element - LINK

They claim a 50-second discharge time, longer than a 2.5 could do, they also claim to be "Clean and Eco-friendly: No mess, non-toxic, non-corrosive, environmentally friendly." It seems a lot of off-roaders are carrying them now and some track folks as well. I don't see much info on Halotron vs Element though.

[DRLane]

Safecraft are really attractive but twice the price of Amerex. I plan to install a full system, for ~$500 it's smart insurance.

[Bartledoo]

Originally Posted by kyippee

Bartledoo did you run 295/30/18 Nankang AR-1 on 18x10 wheels? I'm thinking of throwing my 18 heatcycle set onto my extra 18x10 wheels for just slower driving.

Yea 18x10. The photo below shows how they fit the wheels.

[//steve\\]

This car doesn't seem underwhelmed running just a 10" rear wheel?

[Bartledoo]

Originally Posted by //steve\\

This car doesn't seem underwhelmed running just a 10" rear wheel?

I would say 10" is too small for both front and rear. I need to test fit some 11" wheels this off season and then stop being cheap. Corvette owners complain to me about tire overheating running stuff like 295/305 slicks on super wide wheels on their "heavy" car and I'm just like uhhh.

[Move Over]

I'm looking for a quick answer as to coilover ride height for 100% track use. I've got an alignment this afternoon. I just put some heavier springs on which raised the ride height a bit. I'm at 13.5 all around *hub to bottom of fender*

I have all the measurements for the e46, but cannot find my notes on E90 anywhere. Let me know, thanks!!

[Adrian g.]

Originally Posted by Move Over

I'm looking for a quick answer as to coilover ride height for 100% track use. I've got an alignment this afternoon. I just put some heavier springs on which raised the ride height a bit. I'm at 13.5 all around *hub to bottom of fender*

I have all the measurements for the e46, but cannot find my notes on E90 anywhere. Let me know, thanks!!

I'm around 13.5" f and 13.25" r

[Kelse92]

Originally Posted by Move Over

I'm looking for a quick answer as to coilover ride height for 100% track use. I've got an alignment this afternoon. I just put some heavier springs on which raised the ride height a bit. I'm at 13.5 all around *hub to bottom of fender*

I have all the measurements for the e46, but cannot find my notes on E90 anywhere. Let me know, thanks!!

My car is currently at 591 Front and 570 Rear in mm.
ZCP standard ride height is 600 front and 584 mm or 23.62/22.99in
This is fender to the ground which is how the BMW specs were measured. I am guessing e90 specs may be diffrent than e92 but not sure by how much.

[tsk94]

I'm at ~13" F and ~12" R

Willing be lowering the front 1/4 to 1/2" for next season though..

[Kelse92]

Originally Posted by Adrian g.

I've been experiencing some high speed understeer, on track. I'll be at MSR on Friday, without the rear wing and I've also softened up the front sway bar. Will also try adjusting shock settings... I'm sure there is a solution, but I just haven't found it yet.

Softer front bar should help a bunch, which reminds me I actually need to soften mine up tonight/tomorrow lol. Play with some shock adjustments too and see. I'll be out there Friday as well!

[Move Over]

Originally Posted by Kelse92

My car is currently at 591 Front and 570 Rear in mm.
ZCP standard ride height is 600 front and 584 mm or 23.62/22.99in
This is fender to the ground which is how the BMW specs were measured. I am guessing e90 specs may be different than e92 but not sure by how much.

This measurement is tough because of tire size, I'm running a 280/650/18 all around, so that puts me taller in the front and shorter in the rear than the GTS.

[tsk94]

Originally Posted by Adrian g.

I've been experiencing some high speed understeer, on track. I'll be at MSR on Friday, without the rear wing and I've also softened up the front sway bar. Will also try adjusting shock settings... I'm sure there is a solution, but I just haven't found it yet.



So, that's what I'm trying to figure out currently... what, if anything, is necessary and/or worth doing. I do notice some bump steer driving the car on the highway, so I think I will move forward with the Turner tie rods ends. As far as replacing the other links, I do not know if I necessarily need more adjustability, and I do not want to add parts just for the sake of adding parts unless there is a valid reason to do so.

They solid arms are an upgrade, without a doubt. The adjustability is an added benefit but not the primary reason I suggested getting the arms. They have zero play compared to the stock arms which flex and deflect under load. The GC set is quite reasonable for all 3 rear arms.

What phase of the corner is the understeer? If it's mid corner then softening the sway bar will help. Entry understeer will be tuned out with the shocks (sway bar will still help though).