First Track Mods?

[GT_Roadcourse_Newb]

Hi folks,

I just got a '16 GT Performance Pack/Recaro. Happy camper!

However, after having tracked a dedicated track car, the GT feels like im floating on pillows and there is a ton of performance to be had without impacting street driveability.

I was thinking the following 2 upgrades a nice bang for the buck:

http://performanceparts.ford.com/part/M-FR3A-M8
http://www.americanmuscle.com/bmr-irs-lockoutk-kit-black-1516.html

Also, I am a bit tentative about the stock tires; they do not report whatsoever (no sound / squeal before breaking loose) so I am willing to throw the tires in the garage and remount the stock PP wheels with Bridgestone Potenza RE 71A http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Bridgestone&tireModel=Potenza+RE-71R&sidewall=Blackwall&partnum=835WR9RE71R&tab=Sizes

in (255 & 285) / 35 / 19

This is assuming the factory PP wheels are just fine for the road course. I do not really feel like having to swap wheels at the track (bad back).

Anyone know if I can fit 285s on the rear with the lowered stance of the Track Handling Pack?

After suspension and tires I was thinking Wing. I dont understand how spoiler delete is part of performance package I guess they didnt want the axle ratio to reduce the MPG figures?

Anyhow, I welcome any comments and suggestions on how to get her Roadcourse (more) ready. Cheers!

John

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[tyshenry]

Hi folks,

I just got a '16 GT Performance Pack/Recaro. Happy camper!

However, after having tracked a dedicated track car, the GT feels like im floating on pillows and there is a ton of performance to be had without impacting street driveability.

I was thinking the following 2 upgrades a nice bang for the buck:

http://performanceparts.ford.com/part/M-FR3A-M8
http://www.americanmuscle.com/bmr-irs-lockoutk-kit-black-1516.html

Also, I am a bit tentative about the stock tires; they do not report whatsoever (no sound / squeal before breaking loose) so I am willing to throw the tires in the garage and remount the stock PP wheels with Bridgestone Potenza RE 71A http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Bridgestone&tireModel=Potenza+RE-71R&sidewall=Blackwall&partnum=835WR9RE71R&tab=Sizes

in (255 & 285) / 35 / 19

This is assuming the factory PP wheels are just fine for the road course. I do not really feel like having to swap wheels at the track (bad back).

Anyone know if I can fit 285s on the rear with the lowered stance of the Track Handling Pack?

After suspension and tires I was thinking Wing. I dont understand how spoiler delete is part of performance package I guess they didnt want the axle ratio to reduce the MPG figures?

Anyhow, I welcome any comments and suggestions on how to get her Roadcourse (more) ready. Cheers!

John

The RE-71R's are not going to give any more audible noise before letting go than the PZeros, infact, even less. In general more performance oriented tires(softer) are going to give less notice than harder compound tires. This is true all the way up to slicks where not only will they not give audible noises, but the breakaway characteristics will be much more sudden and dramatic.

With that said, you dont want tires that squeal, it's annoying. That shouldnt be what you are using to gauge the limits of the car anyways as thats what you butt is for.

The RE-71Rs are a VERY sticky tire and will not last long when daily driven. They are the tire I run for auto-x and tracking, but I have a dedicated set of wheels for tracking. Also, how well they are going to hold up to a 20 min track session is yet to be seen. There are reports of them getting torn up with heavier cars. I will find out this coming Tuesday.

And about the other stuff, I'd personally go a different route with suspension as the FPP isn't all that aggressive from what I've heard. I'd rather wait and go with Koni's or an entry level coilover.

You will have no problem fitting 285's on the rear.

A spoiler is definitely not necessary and your money would be much better spent elsewhere.

 

[GT_Roadcourse_Newb]

Thanks tyshenry, I appreciate the post.

Id sure like to hear how the 71As work for you.
I am a fan of the tires, but from the older (and light, as you point out) track car ...If they dont get abnormally shredded, Id love to use them.
And I am glad to pay more cash to avoid wheel swaps and only use 71As only. (If my back goes out, its worse than losing 4 tires :doh

The PZero's are currently absolutely SILENT (!) and thats suprising.
Maybe theres some dealer spray coating making that happen for test drives?
Or perhaps the tires still need to break in? (only ~450 quite easy miles)

...Hope after a bit the tires do make some sound - as I am totally green in the car, I would like my first few sessions to have the benefit / handicap of the audio feedback, had hoped that the factory tires would be perfect for learning

Also, thanks in particular for the comment about the suspension package, I had wondered if it would end up being too compliant for the long run.
And that I can fit 285/35/19 & spoiler is low on the priority list. Cheers!

 

[Competition Orange]

They're RE71R's, not A's... The 200TW tire.

 

[SteveW]

Hi there,

I'm more of an autocrosser but have taken my car out on a road course a few times already this year. I have RE71Rs on it and don't think they are the best track day tire. They are super grippy but if driven at the limit for more than a few laps they get greasy. I also wouldn't want to pinch a set of 285s on 9.5" wheels for track use.

I would look at Hankook RS3v2s, Dunlop ZII SS, Pilot Super Sports, the new Firestone Indy 500 and so on.

For a well developed suspension that just works go with a Roush V3 or KW V3 double adjustable coilover type kit and Steeda bars front and rear. Also, get a set of 19x10 wheels with 275 or 285/35/19 tires and you'll be happy. Trust me!

 

[Competition Orange]

MPSS are known to chunk too on track...

 

[Optimum Performance]

I always thought the P-Zero's communicated very well. I can let you know how the BFG Comp 2's work after tomorrow. But I'm no expert.

These are 285/35-19 BFG's on 19X10's. Putting that on a 9.5" rim is questionable IMO.

 

[bam2002]

You will need Camber plates. The front tire outer edges will get destroyed without them. I ran my 2016 GT PP car 100% stock at sebring and it did well except for the front tires.
It now has been upgraded. Front Brake pads from porterfield. Roush 3 way Coil overs.
Steeda IRS anti hop kit.

We will see how it does the next time out.

 

[tyshenry]

MPSS are known to chunk too on track...

What he said. MPSS are not a good track tire.

And in reference to the above post about camber plates, I have run with stock amount of camber and haven't had issue. The outer edges definitely will wear a bit, but if you aren't over driving and plowing into the understeer, you should not be tearing tires up.

 

[AnelBHF]

Hi folks,

I just got a '16 GT Performance Pack/Recaro. Happy camper!

However, after having tracked a dedicated track car, the GT feels like im floating on pillows and there is a ton of performance to be had without impacting street driveability.

I was thinking the following 2 upgrades a nice bang for the buck:

http://performanceparts.ford.com/part/M-FR3A-M8
http://www.americanmuscle.com/bmr-irs-lockoutk-kit-black-1516.html

Also, I am a bit tentative about the stock tires; they do not report whatsoever (no sound / squeal before breaking loose) so I am willing to throw the tires in the garage and remount the stock PP wheels with Bridgestone Potenza RE 71A http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Bridgestone&tireModel=Potenza+RE-71R&sidewall=Blackwall&partnum=835WR9RE71R&tab=Sizes

in (255 & 285) / 35 / 19

This is assuming the factory PP wheels are just fine for the road course. I do not really feel like having to swap wheels at the track (bad back).

Anyone know if I can fit 285s on the rear with the lowered stance of the Track Handling Pack?

After suspension and tires I was thinking Wing. I dont understand how spoiler delete is part of performance package I guess they didnt want the axle ratio to reduce the MPG figures?

Anyhow, I welcome any comments and suggestions on how to get her Roadcourse (more) ready. Cheers!

John

Congrats on the new car. I just recently installed the ford handling pack and would absolutely recommend it, just make sure to go with the stiffer sway bar setting. I do agree that there is more agressive suspensions out there, but that doesnt mean that it will be better at the track. OEM is the way to go. I had a couple of track days last year and the stock tires held up pretty good for about 5 minutes. I dont think the p-zero is a terrible tire, however 255 on the front on a 3800 lbs car is a joke. If you are a serious about tracking you need a 285 square setup. I just bought the kumho ecsta xs tires and am waiting on the project6gr 19x10 wheels to come in. The ecsta xs is a very agressive tire at a very low price only downside is that its not very good in wet conditions. I think its a fair tradeoff considering the price of the tire. Never had experience with bridgestone 71re, but heard from other people that it doesnt work well with heavier cars. You can go 285 in the back with stock wheel, but I wouldnt recommend it for the track. Stock wheels are pretty heavy too. I think for serious track driving you need 19x10 square setup or 18x10 apex wheels which are even lighter. I went with 19's because of looks. I am also confused with the spoiler delete and am looking into getting the gt350 track pack spoiler.

 

[GT_Roadcourse_Newb]

I always thought the P-Zero's communicated very well. I can let you know how the BFG Comp 2's work after tomorrow. But I'm no expert.

These are 285/35-19 BFG's on 19X10's. Putting that on a 9.5" rim is questionable IMO.

Nice!! What suspension mods?

Do you happen to have a picture from front / rear or any pix that give an idea of how close the tires are to fenders?

I'd like to hold out hope for RE 71Rs 285/35/19 all around or maybe 265/285 staggered. (I'm a huge fan of the tires from the s2000, they remind me of R7s ...taking one cooldown lap in the middle of the session wouldn't be SO horrible and ideally I might drop some weight off the car eventually, perhaps this will be impactful)

How were the BFG Comps 2 ? Where did you run, please share vid / info if available please and thanks!

 

[Budwise]

MPSS's not good for the track?

They're probably the best mix of street tire and track tire you'll find. I've never experienced or even seen them chunk and this is from personal experience on my car as well as friends cars. Are they a R-Comp? No. But they're damn good and for a novice driver I'd recommend them without hesitation. There's a reason cars like 911's, Z06's, GT350's, etc come with them OEM equipped.

If you want to get more serious but lose the streetability or wet performance then I'd start looking at 200 treadwear tires like RE11's or 71's or the BFG Rival S or maybe even down to the Toyo R888's. Of this group the RE11's are probably the next step from the MPSS's and still are decent in the wet and for DDing (I DD RE11's).

Also, definitely go squared not staggered for road course work unless you don't mind understeer. Although 285 will be a little wide on 9.5" rims in the rear and definitely too big on the 9" fronts. I'd look at investing in a set of 10" rims that are squared so you can rotate.

 

[Norm Peterson]

MPSS are known to chunk too on track...

Can you narrow that down a bit . . . perhaps to whether they might be overly sensitive to overheating when ambient temperatures are higher or from wheelspin on corner exit?

Or are they perhaps sensitive to wheel width in relation to tire size?



No sign of chunking in any of my 285/35-18 MPSS's after more than a few track days, but there isn't any track time over maybe the low 80°'s in that because I wouldn't last the day myself.

The MPSS is pretty darn good rain tire, if that matters any.


Norm

 

[NightmareMoon]

From what I can gather, if you run the MPSS brand new and get them real hot for a while at the track, they can chunk. They have layered design, which gives them better traction later in their life, but it can chunk if you run them hard too soon.

Reports seem to indicate that If you put a bunch of heat cycles through them on the street first (maybe 2k-5k miles), and then start tracking them, the MPSS should be ok. They need to harden up a bit first.

 

[GT_Roadcourse_Newb]

The MPSS is pretty darn good rain tire, if that matters any.
Norm

The Michelin Pilot Super Sport?
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Michelin&tireModel=Pilot+Super+Sport

300 AA sounds like a yellow flag is it one of those freak tires that grips great for the wear?

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