Ecoboost Mustang on track / road course

Hello all,

So this past weekend I took my Ecoboost mustang out to Road Atlanta for six 20 minute session on track. I figured I'd do a write up here for those curious how the EBM performs on track with minimal mods.

For reference, I am currently running a mishimoto intercooler, pre gapped denso spark plugs, cobb stage 1 93 octane tune, and a steeda front strut bar. I had 19x10 SVE GT350 wheels with Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires. I RAN ALL DAY ON STOCK PADS AND STOCK BRAKE FLUID!!! My car had 16,800 miles on it and is a 2016 with a Cleveland engine.

First off, the track was about as good as you can get. it was overcast in the morning till about noon then sunny with temps between 75-89 degrees throughout. I have never run on Road Atlanta before but have done other trackdays in other cars. I took it easy for most of the day just learning the line and enjoying the drive.

The car performed amazing! Granted I was not going 10/10th's for anything, but it still held up to the heat and speed. I had great turn in and grip pretty much everywhere and the main limitation was 100% the driver.

I will say that if I could redo my prep I would make sure to get new pads and fluid for brakes. I just ran out of time before I could change them, and was worried at first about brake fade. I didn't push them hard at all and never felt any fade from them. I made sure to lift and coast well before corners and was braking early (before the 300 mark going into turn 10a). I was also worried about the engine having heat issues. For most of the day I didn't go over 235 oil temp until the last session when I actually pushed the car for a decent lap, then I hit around 250 and figured why risk anything on my first outing. I got up to 120mph on the back strait and my fastest lap that day was a 2:05.53 (harry's lap timer app).

I feel like with brakes and larger testicles I could get under the 2 min mark which is my future goal. Very please with how it performed and glad brakes and engine held up. Pic below and I'll add more when I get them from my friend's wife's camera.

Nice!!!!

Looks like fun! I've been trying like hell to find a decent track around here that doesn't require membership. Most are Dirt ovals here :(

1 question. I didn't see anywhere where it said pp or not, so sorry if it does, but do you have the 4 pots or 2?

Really good write up, glad to see and hear how these cars do on a road course. The speed sounds good, was there other cars you could compare with that were running. If it is OK to ask, what type of price range for the track time.

Very nice! I'm surprised to hear your brakes didn't have alot of fade on a course like road Atlanta. On my last outing my base 2 pot brakes with factory fluid made it to the fourth session before they were completely gone, and that was Autobahn country club in Joliet IL. If you do upgrade brake fluid look into motul's RBF 600.

p.s. If you were flat out on turn 8 +9 your testicles are plenty large! that straight is horrifying I bet!

Hey, you're the guy that parked right next to me! As I said there, the EB is an excellent track car!

Did you order a picture package?

The best time I was able to track was 1:50.33 and (my 2nd session with an instructor with me). My TrackAddict app kept crashing/freezing except basically that session so I'm not really sure if I did any better. I'd be willing to bet that you could have been taking the turns about as fast as me or faster, I just made up time on the straights being able to get up to 130 mph if I really went for it.

Road Atlanta did not seem to be all that hard on brakes. Slowing down after the back straight is the worst of it and right after that there's a bunch of time and speed for them to cool off before you should really need them again. At least that is my perspective.

If you come to another JZilla event in Atlanta, let me know. I want a ride in the EB.

For brake fluid I have been using Ravenol r325+ Racing Fluid with no complaints. You may consider an entry-level track pad from OPMustang.com (some G-LOCs). Or just upgrade that front to the Brembos, like I think you were talking about. I wouldn't bother unless you really want to shoot for track times and plan to track it regularly.

Ebm said:

1 question. I didn't see anywhere where it said pp or not, so sorry if it does, but do you have the 4 pots or 2?

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It was a non PP so just the 2 pistons. That's part why I was so surprised that they lasted for the 40 laps I put down!!! Getting GT fronts asap now!!!

PJB said:

Really good write up, glad to see and hear how these cars do on a road course. The speed sounds good, was there other cars you could compare with that were running. If it is OK to ask, what type of price range for the track time.

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For comparison: I ran basically dead even with a 2015 model WRX (non sti) that had suspension and brakes done. and held my own against my buddy's track prepped 300zx (non turbo). the 300zx was running full suspension, brakes, and had Hankook rs3's. I was within 2 sec of his best time so I'll take the victory there since hes put about 20k into that car.

I bought it early this year and from memory it was around $260. Totally worth it for the amount of time we got. The people I went through was JZILLA and they were amazing. Super organized and professional. Will be using them again for sure.

PJB said:

Really good write up, glad to see and hear how these cars do on a road course. The speed sounds good, was there other cars you could compare with that were running. If it is OK to ask, what type of price range for the track time.

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Track day pricing is pretty well published on track day company websites. JZilla Track Days events are typically in the $250 range, same with Just Track It. SCCA Track Nights, if nearby, can be had for $150 (but less track time). Some track days with more "premier" (as in, more expensive for some unknown reason) groups can be more for a single day. Some tracks themselves, like The FIRM in FL, will have their own track days and those will tend to be pretty affordable. A great place to track for the first time is Talladega Grand Prix Raceway because it's hard to hit something there if you go off and it'll teach you late apexes, which is a great thing to learn early, I think... it helped me slow down the brain just a hair to plan turns instead of just huffing through them.

wildcatgoal said:

Hey, you're the guy that parked right next to me! As I said there, the EB is an excellent track car!

The best time I was able to track was 1:50.33 and (my 2nd session with an instructor with me). My TrackAddict app kept crashing/freezing except basically that session so I'm not really sure if I did any better. I'd be willing to bet that you could have been taking the turns about as fast as me or faster, I just made up time on the straights being able to get up to 130 mph if I really went for it.

Road Atlanta did not seem to be all that hard on brakes. Slowing down after the back straight is the worst of it and right after that there's a bunch of time and speed for them to cool off before you should really need them again. At least that is my perspective.

If you come to another JZilla event in Atlanta, let me know. I want a ride in the EB.

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I'm glad you saw this! I saw you posted your laps on YouTube. Looked great! Your line was better than mine, more confident on corner entry and you were entering corners faster. Sure thing you can ride along! hopefully by then I'll have brakes set up and an oil cooler to help with temp management.

My lines need work... don't rely on what I did as a proper reference.

.

Garf said:

It was a non PP so just the 2 pistons. That's part why I was so surprised that they lasted for the 40 laps I put down!!! Getting GT fronts asap now!!!

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Wow, that's really good! I'm surprised the 2 pistons lasted that long with how heavy Mustangs are.

I did the GT fronts and left the rear alone. With the right brake pad, there's a pretty significant difference!

I very badly want to test my Mustang on a German race track. Unfortunately my auto insurer made it very clear that under no circumstances am I covered on any race track. :tsk:. Therefore, I utilise the next best thing. The German autobahn . ;)

kwpony said:

I very badly want to test my Mustang on a German race track. Unfortunately my auto insurer made it very clear that under no circumstances am I covered on any race track. :tsk:. Therefore, I utilise the next best thing. The German autobahn . ;)

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I'm not sure about Deutschland. But here in the states we can get additional insurance coverage from third parties. I used a company called Lockton motorsports to get a 1 day policy specifically for the track I was driving on. had I wrecked they would have paid for the cost of my car after my deductible if it was totaled or any damage beyond my deductible. cost me about $200 USD but was well worth the peace of mind.