Worried about cooling in lightly modded base GT for casual track days

[MRGTX]

My car is a 2020 GT 6MT base trim (300A?). The mod list isn't anything extreme but I am pondering the Track Night In America events and I would greatly appreciate it if the motor survived and went on to live a long life even after a few events. I don't expect extreme racing conditions but I certainly want to be able to push the car.

In terms of mods, I've added the Ford Performance tune/throttle body/CAI intake, 4.09 final drive ring and pinion, 6 piston brakes, Torsen diff unit, Ford Racing "track suspension" (shocks, springs, swaybars, etc) the Mach 1 HP wheels with MPS4S rubber, and a few other odds and ends. I have forgone the recommended Ford synthetic blend oil for full synthetic and I plan to continue this.

It drives wonderfully and feels plenty strong for my needs...and I've also been pouring money into my Dodge so I don't exactly have much budget left to continue to mod the GT.

How much trouble is a guy asking for with the base GT radiator and no oil cooler?

Are there any must-do mods to ensure that the cooling system can keep up?

Thanks!

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[EFI]

Shift under 6500rpm and you won't have an issue unless its like a million degrees out. Sustained high RPM is where you get into overheating quickly, but short shifting really helps with that.

I know you didn't want to sink more money, but a PP radiator is cheap and is a big improvement over the base one.

Which TNIA events are you going to? I do a few of those during the summer at Thompson and maybe Palmer.

 

[Howitzer]

Base GT? You'll want better brakes that can survive high heat. If you're a first timer, you'll probably be fine either way for now. Maybe at least flush brake fluid with something fresh that has a high dry temp.

Engine cooling, you'll be fine for a while, probably. I still have my base GT radiator and I've been on track when it was mid 90's and the car didn't have an issue...somehow. Saw max CHT of about 216. I do have tracspec side vents which do help get some heat out though. Before the vents, I think I was getting closer to 230 CHT at lower ambient temps when I was much greener.

 

[MRGTX]

Shift under 6500rpm and you won't have an issue unless its like a million degrees out. Sustained high RPM is where you get into overheating quickly, but short shifting really helps with that.

I know you didn't want to sink more money, but a PP radiator is cheap and is a big improvement over the base one.

Which TNIA events are you going to? I do a few of those during the summer at Thompson and maybe Palmer.

Thanks. I'll take a look at the PP radiator!

Keeping shifts under 6.5k is a good tip but it sounds frustrating. This motor begs for revs. Leaving that last 1k on the table probably wouldn't spoil the fun entirely though.

That's cool that you have been to events in our area! Are they as fun as they look?

Palmer, Thompson, and Lime Rock are the three that I can realistically visit and I'd be thrilled to drive any of them. I got to do some paced (but surprisingly quick) "parade laps" at Palmer and I was totally sucked in. That track is a rollercoaster! It was so much fun.

 

[MRGTX]

Base GT? You'll want better brakes that can survive high heat. If you're a first timer, you'll probably be fine either way for now. Maybe at least flush brake fluid with something fresh that has a high dry temp.

Engine cooling, you'll be fine for a while, probably. I still have my base GT radiator and I've been on track when it was mid 90's and the car didn't have an issue...somehow. Saw max CHT of about 216. I do have tracspec side vents which do help get some heat out though. Before the vents, I think I was getting closer to 230 CHT at lower ambient temps when I was much greener.

Thanks! The swapping for the PP brakes was one of the first mods that I did. I kept reading how the base rotor design had screwed up airflow or something that made them roast pretty quickly. So that's taken care of.

It sounds like the tracspec vents made a huge difference! I see you have a link to pics of your car so I'm heading to check those out now.

Dumb question: CHT = coolant high temp?

EDIT: Your car looks perfect! It seems like you've done a lot of great work! I can see how those hood vents are a major improvement over the stock pieces. I don't know that I'm ready to take the saw to my hood...

 

[Howitzer]

Thanks! The swapping for the PP brakes was one of the first mods that I did. I kept reading how the base rotor design had screwed up airflow or something that made them roast pretty quickly. So that's taken care of.

It sounds like the tracspec vents made a huge difference! I see you have a link to pics of your car so I'm heading to check those out now.

Dumb question: CHT = coolant high temp?

EDIT: Your car looks perfect! It seems like you've done a lot of great work! I can see how those hood vents are a major improvement over the stock pieces. I don't know that I'm ready to take the saw to my hood...

haha, thanks! Yeah, the tracspec or race louver stuff is good but definitely requires some dedication since there's no going back. I'll be adding a center vent here soon and upgrading the radiator finally.

CHT = cylinder head temps.

I've built this car from base and it's been a journey (ongoing). If you still have the base belly pan, you'll probably want to swap to the PP bellypan and add air deflectors for the brakes. That will drop you another 100-150F on front brake temps. Not anything needed at first, but they do help a lot.

Biggest thing for your first few outings...just learn and have fun. I highly recommend an instructor if one isn't required where you're going.

 

[nbjeeptj]

Thanks! The swapping for the PP brakes was one of the first mods that I did. I kept reading how the base rotor design had screwed up airflow or something that made them roast pretty quickly. So that's taken care of.

It sounds like the tracspec vents made a huge difference! I see you have a link to pics of your car so I'm heading to check those out now.

Dumb question: CHT = coolant high temp?

EDIT: Your car looks perfect! It seems like you've done a lot of great work! I can see how those hood vents are a major improvement over the stock pieces. I don't know that I'm ready to take the saw to my hood...

Its has been covered a bunch on this forum, but CHT does not equal the cars idea of what coolant temp is. The car calculates the coolant and oil temp based on some algorithm, and does not have sensors for either. You should be fine for a few track night in America events with your base model cooling, and if I were to do it again I would make my first investment in cooling upgrades in gauges for both coolant temp and oil temp, then start other upgrades from there. My car was way off base with the calculated oil and coolant temps and I spent a lot of time and money chasing a problem that may not have been near as bad as I thought. I now have ducting, massive oil cooler, big radiator, and race louvers, and now have too much cooling, in fact unless its above 60deg outside I have to run some tape blocking air flow to the grill just to keep the oil temp at or slightly above 180. Look for the other 2 threads on cooling for lots of debate and good info.

https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/threads/track-time-limited-due-to-high-cht.166499/
https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/threads/the-big-fat-track-car-cooling-thread.53695/

 

[tosha]

Keeping shifts under 6.5k is a good tip but it sounds frustrating. This motor begs for revs. Leaving that last 1k on the table probably wouldn't spoil the fun entirely though.

well, then once you test the limits of yourself and the car in your first event, you are welcome to join us on a journey of trying to keep the damn thing's temps under control: Track Time Limited due to High CHT | 2015+ S550 Mustang Forum (GT, EcoBoost, GT350, GT500, Bullitt, Mach 1) - Mustang6G.com

for the start, if you see CHT's creeping close to or over 230, do a cooldown lap, and then go from there.

 

[Ewheels]

Drive the car as-is for awhile.
Let the car tell you when it needs cooling mods. Depending on how you use the car and your own circumstances, you may not need what other people suggest.

Aim to keep CHT under 230°-235°
Engine oil ideally should stay under 260° but that's expensive to achieve.
Aim to keep engine oil in the green zone. Yellow is OK but not for extended time.
Engine oil degrades after 270° with time so as long as you change your oil frequently and don't stay in the yellow zone for long stints, your engine will be fine.

 

[EFI]

I still have my base GT radiator and I've been on track when it was mid 90's and the car didn't have an issue...somehow. Saw max CHT of about 216. I do have tracspec side vents

That's crazy temps. What RPM do you shift at?

I have a much bigger radiator but no venting and I easily see 235*+ CHTs. You're saying that the smaller rad but with vents drops 20*? Wow I need to get those ASAP.

 

[EFI]

Are they as fun as they look?

Lime Rock is really fun, Palmer is too but it's more so because of the constant altitude changes it is really like a rollercoaster. Thompson is decent but not as fun as Lime Rock.

 

[tosha]

That's crazy temps. What RPM do you shift at?

I have a much bigger radiator but no venting and I easily see 235*+ CHTs. You're saying that the smaller rad but with vents drops 20*? Wow I need to get those ASAP.

vents alone won't give you 20 degree drop, but if you combine them with radiator ducting, you should see some pretty good results.

 

[Howitzer]

That's crazy temps. What RPM do you shift at?

I have a much bigger radiator but no venting and I easily see 235*+ CHTs. You're saying that the smaller rad but with vents drops 20*? Wow I need to get those ASAP.

Right now I shift around 6700-6800RPM - My power is already dead by then with the 15 manifold.

I didn't start recording a bunch of data until more recently, but I can say...at CMP, mid September with IAT's around mid 90's, so I think ambient mid-upper 80's. My CHT hit 216 peak in a later session.

Not sure about a full 20 degree drop (I'd maybe put it closer to 10-15?), wish I had like for like data. But it definitely helped...and that's without a center vent and the base rad. I've definitely seen at least around 225 in similar temps not running the car as hard.

This past December I also ran, and stayed under 200 CHT, but it was also only 50F out.

 

[ihasnostang]

run the defrost lol

 

[ice445]

I'd do the PP radiator and belly pan for the brake duct cooling and you should be fine, lots of good advice above. I put the PP rad into my base car because it sees a lot of high altitude use and it does a great job for the price.

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