HR361 - 2017 GT350R - The Story

I like the color combo a lot very eye catching

Tomster said:

While I had the whole rear of the interior apart, I decided to replace the CRAP factory rear speakers with Harman infinity REF6522IX 180W reference speakers. The speakers pictured below in the box are for the doors, which will be another update down the road.....

All I can say is Wow! what a difference in the sound.

I first got the idea from reading a post by @torque124 http://www.mustang6g.com/forums/showthread.php?t=80057 . All of his suggestions were spot on. Everything from the speakers, to the wiring adapters, to the housing adapters made the job a lot easier than without.

I had some adhesive neoprene laying around and decided to use it in lieu of the weather stripping that was provided with the speakers. I cut it to size to adhere to the adapter housing (4 hole industry standard speaker to a 3 hole ford proprietary mount).

The adapters are pretty decent quality. They appear to be very similar to the mount that the factory speaker sit upon from the OEM assembly

Who wants to mess around with cutting and splicing wires from factory harnesses to add aftermarket speakers? Metra (who also makes the housing adapters) makes a wiring harness adapter to simplify the installation

The result is a installation that was not only easy, but sounds excellent!

I couldn't believe the difference in the sound...... Yes, I know its a track car, but man oh man, if you are going to have the speakers installed with a stereo, why not improve the quality exponentially with just a very modest investment? Thanks again torque124 :cheers:

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I was thinking of upgrading my speakers too...but I can't find them. lol. when I have to have tunes, I bring along a little bose bluetooth speaker and, no, the sound is not great.

Daytona is right around the corner. I installed the Schroth 4 point harness for both the drivers seat and the passengers seat. I used Cooltech belt loops as described in a previous post.



The installation was very straight forward with one exception. The inboard plastic trim pieces that cover the aft rail of the drivers and passengers seats could not be removed without taking all 4 seat bolts out and maneuvering the seats for access.



Why an engineer would design a trim piece that would require (almost) seat removal to access a screw is beyond me. I could have just taken a dremel to the trim piece, but that isn't my style. I do things right.

So out came the 4 bolts that held the seat down, I removed all 4 aft trim pieces, and then installed the cooltech belt loops.



Note the orientation of the belt loops. The outboard loop fits perpendicular to the rail as it should. However, the inboard loop will not fit perpendicular and as per the instructions, I had to install it facing aft to not interfere with the seat.

Anyway, the end result is as follows



Next up are the Vorshlag camber plates and the MGW shifter early next week.

^^Looking good Tom! Just got update on COTUS and it’s moved delivery to the 5th. I may still come down early and then have more time at the track and area in general. I really like the mods you’re doing and planning on doing the same before spring is here.

Comfort said:

^^Looking good Tom! Just got update on COTUS and it’s moved delivery to the 5th. I may still come down early and then have more time at the track and area in general. I really like the mods you’re doing and planning on doing the same before spring is here.

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I'm around Jason. 1-3 at the track. The 4th, I have specialists coming to re-mount a chimney cap that got blown off during the last hurricane. I have a flight physical on the 7th. Otherwise, my schedule is open.

Tomster said:

Daytona is right around the corner. I installed the Schroth 4 point harness for both the drivers seat and the passengers seat. I used Cooltech belt loops as described in a previous post.

Next up are the Vorshlag camber plates and the MGW shifter early next week.

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Any negative with HANS device on 4-point harnesses?

Do most tracks require the anti-submarine capability of 5 or 6 point or are they content with 4-point?

TDC said:

Any negative with HANS device on 4-point harnesses?

Do most tracks require the anti-submarine capability of 5 or 6 point or are they content with 4-point?

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The SHR flex uses harnesses that are 2-3" wide. My schroth asm has 3" wide shoulder harnesses. Schroth says they are compatie, however the inboard portion of the harness won't fit into the channel of the HANS. As long as the outer portion of the harness is tucked into the channel, you are good to go.

As for the sub belt, the asm can incorporate a sub belt into the system. I chose not to because I do not wish to cut the seat and drill a hole in the floor. Some tracks do require the sub belt. As schroth explained to me, a sub belt can be added to this system and hooked up to the factory seat to pass a tech inspection. They pointed out it wound be the most optimal or correct system, but it will get through a tech inspection.

It was explained to me that the 4 point setup is the best way to go if you don't want to drill the floor. When I purchased the setup, I was assured that the SHR flex is 100% compatible with the 4 point asm.

Today, I installed a set of caliperfexion caliper studs during a vorshlag camber plate installation.

You can read about it in the following thread http://www.mustang6g.com/forums/showthread.php?t=94398

As many of you know, I recently had a track day weekend at Daytona. It went very well. There were a few issues that popped up, but were quickly resolved. First, on day one, I had the oil pressure sensor loosten up a bit and ooze some oil. I realized the situation after my first session on day one of the event. A dipstick check showed that I only lost a half quart of oil. I was able to get it into the dealer and have the sensor torqued to spec and away I went to catch the last run of the day.



The weekend was good and I still havn't gotten around to edit all the gobs of video that I collected. I managed to put a video of the last session together. This was a good run, but I had to cut it short for a brake lining change. It wound up that the inner pads wore slightly faster than the outer pads which had the brake wear indicator.

Anyway, here is the first of several videos

First full lap 2:07
Second lap 2:15 for obvious reasons
Third lap 2:07
Fourth lap 2:06
Fifth lap PIT (the brakes were done)
HUD was set to 7500 RPM

[ame]

Post track day brings all the usual maintenance hassle to replace all the consumables (brakes, oil, transmission fluid, differential fluid, and an overall cleanup).

The car cleaned up real nice. Many of you know that I had the whole car wrapped in Xpel. To further protect the car, I used Trakk Tape, which left the Xpel, let alone the paint perfect. The car looks like it has never been to the track.



I changed the oil just like I noted earlier in the post during my first oil change, but with one exception, the belly pan was on this time. I figured out a trick which might help others during their oil changes to avoid making a huge mess. I recommend jacking up the drivers side of the car and removing the left front wheel. Drain the oil from the pan, and then remove the oil filter access door. Using the space in the wheel well, the oil cartridge is easily accessible. loosen the cartridge and then place a funnel below it to catch the oil as it flows from the cartridge.



The bottom of the oil catch pan was remarkably clean. Usually, you see some sediment on the bottom of the pan, but it was remarkably clear.



The filter showed no visible signs of contamination as well. It looked very clean.



I always send off a sample to Blackstone labs to get an oil analysis. Today the canister went off and I hope to have a report by next week.



Another item that was accomplished yesterday was brakes. I replaced the front brake pads. I inspected, cleaned, and lubricated (with brembo caliper lube) the front calipers. I had the front rotors resurfaced within specification (min spec 34mm as stated on the rotor). The actual rotor thickness after resurface was 35mm vs the 36mm factory width. All parts were cleaned and the appropriate areas lubricated then reassembled.

An example of a rear caliper BEFORE... (yes, I already started to back the pins out before the photo)



AFTER...



You can see the lube points (the brembo lube is gold colored)



And the varous parts that were cleaned of all debris



The only things left to do as of now are to get the transmission fluid and the differential fluid changed. When my friends lift becomes available, I will be taking care of that ASAP

Tom I assume you were on stock pads? Any damage to the dust boots after fading the pads?

Any oil consumption after track time? I was just curious to see if you had a chance to check the oil level.... before dumping it.
Thanks

DocWalt said:

Tom I assume you were on stock pads? Any damage to the dust boots after fading the pads?

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No, not at all.

Entering the bus stop, I felt an unusual vibration and decided to knock it off. It was the last session of the last day and I figured just pit. I took a quick look at the wear indicators and found that they were close, but not at the limit. I limped home and put her up on jack stands the next day and found the inside pads wore faster than the outside pads. Not a big deal. Again, the end of a track weekend always involves a brake job. I took the rotors off to be resurfaced and I already had a set of replacement pads in anticipation.

So no big deal, except that I had to cut short a session after I put the deadbeats in my rear view mirror.

H6G said:

Any oil consumption after track time? I was just curious to see if you had a chance to check the oil level.... before dumping it.
Thanks

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The car has not been consuming oil. I was monitoring the oil level closely after what happened to the oil pressure sensor. I have always been an old school guy who checks the oil when it is cold before starting the engine. Under those conditions, I never saw the level fluctuate.

However, the manual states to bring the oil temp up to operating temperature and then shut the motor off. Then wait 15 mins and check the oil level. If it falls within the normal range, do not add oil.

So, my observation was that under track conditions, the oil level did decrease to just under the full indicator (the hole). I would approximate maybe 1/4 of the range from top to bottom. I did not add oil. The oil level was consistent time and time again under the recommended procedure. I never had to add oil during the three days of driving. However, the dealer did add some oil when the oil pressure sensor was serviced. How much? I don't know. It is insignificant because that was after only my first run on the first day.

So it seems that I have a very good engine. My oil analysis from my first oil change came back with excellent results. See the below report

Oh, before I forget.... Who's the chick in your new avatar?

Tomster said:

No, not at all.

Entering the bus stop, I felt an unusual vibration and decided to knock it off. It was the last session of the last day and I figured just pit. I took a quick look at the wear indicators and found that they were close, but not at the limit. I limped home and put her up on jack stands the next day and found the inside pads wore faster than the outside pads. Not a big deal. Again, the end of a track weekend always involves a brake job. I took the rotors off to be resurfaced and I already had a set of replacement pads in anticipation.

So no big deal, except that I had to cut short a session after I put the deadbeats in my rear view mirror.

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Awesome. Seems like fairly reasonable wear considering how hard Daytona is on pads.

Thanks!

DocWalt said:

Awesome. Seems like fairly reasonable wear considering how hard Daytona is on pads.

Thanks!

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I had a conversation with [MENTION=22413]Optimum Performance[/MENTION] about this issue as well as fluids for changing the transmission and differential. I plan to use a different pad next year. As much as I like the stock OEM pads, you are correct, Daytona is especially hard on them decelerating from the front stretch to the inside course. The bus stop isn't easy on them either.

Anyway, waiting on some data ensuring that BG fluids meet or exceed ford spec for warranty purposes. Until then, the fluid change is on hold.