rx8 r3 best mods for track?

[Finalboss]

Hi guys done my first track day in the R3 at the weekend at knockhill and the car was great, I have done many years years of drifting but no grip stuff! It has very basic mods, pettit exhaust, rb dual res decat, d585, mini map, ebc usr discs, ebc blue stuff pads, motul rbf660 and Michelin pilot sport 4 S tyres and it honestly was really good, no brake fade, never went above 100 degrees water temp but I think ive found the tyres as the weak point
Whats the next step as far as handling is concerned, I love the stock bilsteins and the way they ride on the road but I feel the car would benefit from some coilovers such as ohlins or leaving the oem suspension and fitting racing beat arbs or is there any other handling mods that are worth while?

[Goobie]

100% if anything go for front and rear roll bars!

[Finalboss]

I was also thinking about changing to another set of wheels with a more dedicated track tyre, is it worth going down from the r3 19s to an 18" wheel?

[Ainmhidh]

Not personal experience, but I think it is definitely worth it for lower cost and wider choices.

[New Duke]

Yes to proper track tyres. I'd use those Michelin's on a wet track, but not in the dry.

Whether you want 18s for track is entirely down to choice and budget really. You'll find more choice for 18s and they're cheaper as Alan said. 18inch used wheels can be had for reeeeeeally cheap too. The difference in price for one set of 18 inch tyres paid for my track wheels. But if you're flush and you want to stick to 19s and can find the compound you want in that size then an inch won't hurt you on track. Just be very careful with tyre sizing if you can't find the OEM size for either 18s or 19s. You can get away with some sizes for road use that you won't on track. There's more info on abnormal sizing in the tyre thread.

Roll bars first as Goobie said, then maybe reassess the suspension. Improving on the suspension you have costs a lot of money. If you haven't had your geometry done in the past year, I mean by a motorsport specialist, not some garage with a Hunter laser alignment machine, then you should add that high on the list.

[New Duke]

never went above 100 degrees water temp

Why not?

The cooling system is designed to run between 105-115°C, which is why it's pressurised.

Staying below 100°C on track suggests that there's either something wrong, and you're loosing power, or it's being measured in an unusual place in the circuit.

[Lucky 8 Racing]

Anti roll bars. Racing beat are great and whiteline offer one with adjustability which is pretty cool.
18” alloys just mean tyres are a little cheaper and less rolling diameter.

[350matt]

never went above 100 degrees water temp

Why not?

The cooling system is designed to run between 105-115°C, which is why it's pressurised.

Staying below 100°C on track suggests that there's either something wrong, and you're loosing power, or it's being measured in an unusual place in the circuit.

not sure about that Dave
the stat opens at 82 deg C and on the road the coolant outlet ( where the temp is measured) you tend to see 84-94 deg C depending on how hard the car is being driven

yes you can see over 100deg and its not 'unsafe' but its not desirable to run at this temp as it will cost power

[Finalboss]

matt you are correct the thermostat on basically any car opens before 90 degrees, the car can take above 100 but its certainly not desierable.

[mi60o0]

I hit 100 in London easy with the rx8 with out trying hard. Welcome to hot summer say and traffic If I get in mood 110 is not a issue xD

[New Duke]

We're talking about on track though. I guess that's what Dave was specifically referring to. Yeah road use can be different but continuous high revving on track should have you above 100. Unless you're in the gravel

Well over 100 is fine/normal on roads too... if you're driving it right

Edit: M beat me to it

[casey]

Yep, typical track temps 100-110, measured on outlet hose from the engine. Alarm set on after market gauge to 112.

[Goobie]

If you feel the tyres aren't holding up enough to your driving style?, I'd go for a set of Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2! No need to be swapping round wheels etc at the track plus they are a beast tyre anyway.

[Finalboss]

As above, roll bars are a glorious mod - truly transformative IMO.

Tyres and wheels wise, I've done more than my fair share of experimentation - settle in, it's a long post!

Dropping to 18s (or even 17s) can be very beneficial if you plan it out right as it can adjust the final drive ratio of the car - as alluded to by New Duke above. DISCLAIMER - I AM TALKING ABOUT TRACK TYRES AND USE ON TRACK, NOT NECESSARILY APPLICABLE ON THE ROAD

Tyre.png (13.84 KiB) Viewed 1153 times

Above is the comparison between a 225/40R19 and a 225/40R18. The former being the stock size for the R3. As you can see the circumference drops by nearly 4%. This, as a comparison, means that the wheel will take more rotations to cover the same distance; as a result of this it is essentially shortening the gear ratios, which in turn is inversely proportional to an increase in acceleration. It doesn't mean you'll get to 60mph 4% faster or anything like that, mainly because you'll be changing gears more frequently, but it does mean - in my personal experience - that the car will feel more sprightly and more 'zippy' on track. Drop down again to the 17s and you'll find a similar thing but the drop then goes to 7.7% in circumference reduction.

https://tiresize.com/comparison/ This is the website I use and it's really good for playing around to find what works. If you're running stock brakes then a set of 17s will fit, but it'll look a bit odd in the wheel well, especially compared to the 19s.

The other way to go about things is to change wheels for a wider wheel. I use an 9J width wheel on track and this means that I can run 265 width tyres. Jury is still out, having done only one track day with them, but the grip is insane. Only potential downside is that the level of grip outweighs the car's power a bit, so it loses some of the pivot control on throttle compared to a skinnier tyre - but my laptimes at Cadwell were improved on my previous, so they're faster, just not as engaging a drive. As said, only from a single track day, in the dry, though so can't comment much further.

On the choice of tyres, my personal preference would be to get a spare set and go for something you don't mind burning through. Cup 2s are mega, but they also cost mega money... I run Accelera 651 Sport tyres and find them great, I've run AD08R and NS2R as well and find the 651 to be the better of the 3. That being said, the AD08R has been replaced with the AD08RS which I've heard bad things about.

[GreySilver Beast]

The best Mod you can buy, would be Track Tuition though

[warpc0il]

tuning the nut holding the steering wheel is by far the most cost-effective mod to improved lap times.