GT350 Build for SCCA Nationals

[GT350Keith]

Your son has good taste in cars and football teams he supports!

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[GT350Keith]

Your son has good taste in cars and football teams he supports!

 

[WItoTX]

Your son has good taste in cars and football teams he supports!

Ha, you had the same multi post issue I had! Glad it's not just me struggling today.

 

[kz]

Good luck with installing the wing - remember you'll have to cut out slots in the bottom layer to get there with the sockets - don't know how gucci wings mounts look but the slot for the hole in the rear-facing side of the trunk was major pain in the ass.

Seconding on football team choice.

 

[WItoTX]

Good luck with installing the wing - remember you'll have to cut out slots in the bottom layer to get there with the sockets - don't know how gucci wings mounts look but the slot for the hole in the rear-facing side of the trunk was major pain in the ass.

Seconding on football team choice.

The Gucci wing is hilarious. Wonder if I could get them to sponsor me? A big old Gucci sticker on top...

As for the install, I lined everything up, and have the holes make, just haven't drilled them yet. The way it feels, I should be able to get to the very back nut with an open ended wrench, and of the three holes on the top, one the second most rearward hole I think I can get creative with to get up in there. If not, my plan is to drill a slightly larger hole in the structural ribs just big enough for a socket.

In the install video, it sure looks like he was able to get to it. I will find out soon enough!

 

[kz]

That's neat - I maybe could have gotten there but you also have to be able to put the nut on and no way I could fit my hand in between. I've used step drill and then just cut the slots with the Dremel.

 

[WItoTX]

I had extra time off, and I am at a company with a use it or lose it policy. So I took Thursday off, and used Wednesday night to install my wing, and Thursday to take it on a romp down the highway.

First things. The build quality is top notch, as is to be expected. Installing the wing was straight forward, and even though AJ claims it should take 30-45 minutes in his video, having never installed one before, it took significantly more time. There are two issues. The first is marking the holes. I used painters tape on the decklid, then set the wing on top of it. The issue there is the curvature of the mount makes it such that you sort of have to "feel" where the perfect spot is, then check and recheck to make sure everything is straight.

The result of that process got everything lined up tight to the decklid, so much so, that when I when I washed the car yesterday, water was pooling up between the uprights. I should have grabbed a photo of that.

The second issue was getting my hands into the space between the inner decklid, and the outer layer. There are 8 washers and nuts that reside there, and 4 of them are about a 50 degree angle, meaning you have to balance them precariously, pull y our hand out, grab the nut, then wiggle your hand back in, gently, find the screw blind, then thread on the nut. My solution was to throw some grease on the washer, push it tight up to the decklid where it would stick, then work quick. Again, no photos of that process. Mostly because I was working quickly, before one of those washers fell off and into the interior of the decklid. Which inevitably happened on the last one.

The install is pretty simple, it's not easy though. The final product:

The only thing I may add is some bracing to the forward two wing mounts, something to help spread the wind load out across a wider area. However, they feel pretty stout even with just quarter sized washers.

Second, with my time off yesterday, I dug into the car to check all bolts for tightness following my lucky near brake failure last weekend.

I found a couple loose nuts on the rear vertical links, but otherwise everything was tight. I took some photos simply to have a history of the passenger side front brake line, to validate whether or not it was still leaking. I cleaned it up with soap and water, and went for a ride yesterday to test. My suspicion is the vibration from reinstalling the strut bolts loosened it just enough, and that is where my leak came from. Either way, it's something to pay attention to.

You can see I didn't quite get all the brake fluid (joints on the caliper), but the fluid below the brake line is gone. All and all, driving the car with the wing, there is a new level of composed at high speeds. I was able to get to 120 yesterday, and the car felt more planted and calm than ever. I am looking forward to the next event next weekend, and then the 2024 season, where I will see more track time.

 

[mavisky]

Looks Amazing.

 

[Biggsy]

what a beautiful car man. Something about seeing AJ's aero on these cars does something for me lol.

Sorry if I missed it but which wing element did you end up getting?

 

[WItoTX]

what a beautiful car man. Something about seeing AJ's aero on these cars does something for me lol.

Sorry if I missed it but which wing element did you end up getting?

Good catch, I don't think I said which one. I went with the Fulcrum 14.

I was torn with the one I got, and the Apex 8 since it has the option to go dual element later on down the road, and the DF numbers on the 8 are still at least as good as any other wing with published data on the market right now.

To be honest, the data shows significantly better DF gains than anything else out there in general. Now there are some companies that produce really good wings that don't share their CFD or wind tunnel data, and I know folks have really good results with their products too.

 

[WItoTX]

This last weekend was the first test with the wing. I met with the local Porsche club, and was able to get things sorted out. I didn't record video because I am still getting the feel of the car, and video just makes me lose sight of the bigger picture, rather than let the car tell me what it wants. Run 1, I realized the front shocks were still too soft, and went up 1% with the DSC to stop dive in braking (What I consider medium speed compression) I also went up 1% on low speed compression. The adjustment balanced the car nicely. From there, I was in the lead in my class (X3), by over a second. I ended up 2nd overall, and won the class by 2/100ths, after continuing to push the limits of the car.

I had a scratch 2/10ths faster run, but while exploring the limits, clipped the finish line cone. Live and learn.

As for the wing. I wish I had video'ed. The grip is immense. I was concerned there would be too much rear DF with the wing, and it would put the car out of balance. Not so at all. The sweeper, where I was limited by rear grip to about 56 MPH, I was hitting mid 60's, and the car wanted more. So thanks for that @ajhartman. Excellent product!

All in all, the wing has blown my mind. Hell of an upgrade. I never had the opportunity to run with a spoiler, and I wish I did to compare and contrast. But the wing brings a new level to the whole thing. And I haven't added the gurney yet.

The next event will definitely have video.

 

[Tonymustang302]

Car looks awesome, congrats and keep it up

 

[NightmareMoon]

Welcome to the darkside!

 

[stanglife]

COngrats - I must say.... THat 911 kicked everyones butt.

 

[WItoTX]

COngrats - I must say.... THat 911 kicked everyones butt.

Yeah, Eric is a bit of a freak. He was actually driving a 2018 (I think) 911 Carrera 4S. The AWD, 3500 lbs, combined with a P-car master is always tough to beat.

In all fairness, I should have been in the high 49's. I shot myself in the foot trying to test out different lines and explore the limits of grip. But AWD and just shy of 500 HP is going to be tough to beat any day of the week.

I have more race car excuses if you would like me to keep going.

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