We've done two track days now with the new aero and the car just didn't feel properly balanced so it was time to address that before we head to NJMP next weekend.
I was running 13kg/11kg Swift springs on Sakebomb Garage Ohlins FPSport coilovers and with the added rear downforce that made the car a bit pushy so I had the rear springs swapped out to 13kg as well for a square setup.
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| 13kg Swift springs for the rear - Z65-203-130 |
I've also been chasing this very bad clunking sound from the car especially after a track session. It got so bad that it would do this whether it was hot or cold even just driving forward a few feet. I initially thought it was the spherical bearing in the top hat of the shocks but it actually turned out to be worn out and rusty sway bar end links. The collars that prevent the bar from going left and right were also cracked and loose. Karcepts revised these in later bars from aluminum to steel to prevent this form happening. Thankfully Karcepts came to the rescue here and got my order for replacements to me super quick! The bar itself wasn't looking so hot so SJF took it all apart to clean the rust off and regrease where needed.
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| cracked sway bar collar |
The diff wasn't sound too hot after the last event so I knew it needed a fluid change so while the car was with SJF, I had him change the diff fluid as well new Carbotech XP10/XP8 brake pads as well as fresh Centric blank rotors. I normally run Stoptech cryo slotted rotors and have them ordered but 2 of the 4 rotors are backordered so I'm using the basic blanks to get by for now. I also got a new set of 245/40R17 Bridgestone Potenza RE-71RS tires all around mounted and finally ditched the Continental Force tires I've been running. While the Contis were a consistent tire, they aren't really the same speed as the REs so it was time to go. I also usually run 255 tires all around but because these tires are wide, the 245 actually fits better on a 9" wide wheel. I'm curious how this will affect handling and it will also shorten my gearing a little bit more too.
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| 245/40R17 RE-71RS |
Lastly the car went in for a new alignment. I'm going with a square camber setup of -3.0 all around. This the max camber up front even with my offset joints since I don't run the car really low like others. Toe is 0 degrees front and 0.12in total toe in the rear. For some reason I'm maxed out at 3.9 and 4.4 degrees of caster up front. This might be due to where the spherical bearings are positioned in the arm so we may have to revisit this in the future. This is pretty low for an S2000. It should be over 5 degrees of caster. For my records, the shock settings are 25 clicks from full stiff (counterclockwise) in the front and 13 clicks from full stiff in the rear.
Also noting that I had SJF fabricate a wall mounting bracket so I can hang my splitter on the wall when I'm not using it. It's super slick.
Maintenance Update:
Mileage: 66,503
- 1 qt Redline 80W140 GL5 Gear oil
- New Carbotech XP10/XP8 brake pads
- New centric blank rotors all around
- Swift 13kg rear springs
- New front and rear sway bar endlinks
- New front and rear sway bar collars
- 245/40R17 RE-71RS tires all around
