.grimace
Senior Member
- First Name
- Byron
- Joined
- Nov 9, 2017
- Threads
- 49
- Messages
- 1,796
- Reaction score
- 1,348
- Location
- Reno, NV
- Vehicle(s)
- 2021 Honda CTR, 2022 Range Rover , 1990 CRX SI
- Thread starter
- #1
Having just got the 2 year anniversary email for my CTR and deciding to keep the car for a few more years I figured I should start a timeline of it if anyone is interested and to keep track myself. I bought the car new 11/7/17 and have gone through a ton of mods and changes and have put it back to stock to sell it, then decided to keep it and modify it again so I've got a mix of power mods and suspension mods to compare track times from.
Firstly new off the showroom floor!
Kept it stock for awhile and did my first track day at Thiunderhill with it 100% stock, can't find photos of it but managed a 1:34.XX which is pretty slow but I was learning the car and such.
Went to some local Autocross events where it crushes DS. Got first in class and top PAX every time it went out talk about a cheater car. I can only image the people who are into this and get 19" NSX wheels and a 265 RE71r
Next up I went for a set of 18x9 +50 TE37s and some 265/35/18 Federal RS-RR tires, they're definitely loud but work well for the money. (Hankook tires on here before I changed them out)
Took it back and managed a 1:28.7. This is where I really started having some issues with overheating. With sticky tires and a 100% stock car if you're pushing it you can really get the temps up fast.
Decided to get Hondata, a Greddy oil cooler, PRL intercooler, PRL intake and a larger eBay grill and see how that helped my overheating. I think any cooling added from the grill and oil cooler was ruined by the added heat from the tune but who knows.
I was able to come back to Thunderhill west and run a 1:27.9 with this setup but was still overheating maybe even faster than before! I was pretty discouraged to say the least but it was a hot day so I gave the car the benefit of the doubt.
I came back one last time with a track night event hoping it'd be a bit cooler. Before doing this I removed the camber guide pins, got it re-aligned and changed out the transmission fluid to amsoil as well as got a magnetic drain plug. I was able to get down to a 1:27.5 but still overheating (see a theme here?)
The tires were getting pretty worn at this point after a couple track days (I did 1-2 others not mentioned here as I didn't PB) and some autocross/ daily driving as well. Took them off and went with a 255/35/18 for the VTEC club series at Buttonwillow this past July. Talk about a mistake! I also bled the brake fluid for Castrol SRF, I normally used Motul 600 but was recommended this so I tried it. Even for being a cool day the car kept getting hot so fast I could barely get a hot lap in there.
For my first time ever at Buttonwillow it was good and bad. I got a 2:06 but my best laps were ruined by traffic and getting put in the wrong run group. My best 2:06 lap a guy spun on the last corner and I had to slow and go around him and the dust. I think that would've been a 2:03 or 2:04? Either way it was a fun day there other than overheating.
After driving 7 hours each way to maybe get 8-10 laps in with no traffic or overheating I was over this car. Time to return it to stock and sell it. I had my eyes on a friends k24 atom who backed out, I then found a red F430 but luckily a bad PPI kept me from buying it. With my CTR 100% back to stock I wasn't sure what to do.
This car isn't my daily driver so after that frustrating Buttonwillow event I put it to stock and it sat for almost 2 months I didn't even drive it while looking at other cars to replace it. I finally went out with buddy who has the white s2000 to talk cars and snap some photos. Driving it again that night reminded me of how much I enjoy this car, even compared to my V8 F150 or 911 C4S it is a blast to drive, plenty of power and such a useful car with the 5 door layout. I decided to keep the engine 100% stock and try a suspension and aero approach.
Since I had sold off the wheels that was my first step, the Wedssport TC105x had just been released so I went with that in a 18x9.5 +45 and a 275/35/18 RS-RR. Simple tire had them on sale for $110/ piece shipped so I couldn't pass them up. Back to a loud tire doh!
I got the Eibach sport line springs and eibach rear camber kit as well as the hard race front lower ball joints to really dial in my alignment. Sadly the lower ball joints didn't get here in time for my alignment appointment so I installed everything else and got it aligned. With the lowering springs and front guide pins removed I got -1.8 degrees of camber upfront and went with -2.2 in the rear. Once I get around to installing the lower ball joints I should have around -2.8 up front.
I took the CTR back to Thunderhil west for the Hot Hatch Challenge and got to meet a lot of the Nor Cal CTR owners there. Had a good competition with one of them and came home with a first place win! Ran a 1:27.5 (I was 4 one thousands quicker than my previous 1:27.5) and this was with a 100% stock motor.
This brings me to its current state. I thoroughly destroyed the brakes at the last event I went to. The front felt warped and lurched and the rears were down to 1-2mm left. I went with Girodisc front rotors, some new rear blanks and Winnmax W4 pads front and rear. So far I have only got to bed these in and mess around on twisty roads but I'm pretty excited to get these out on track next year as well as add those front ball joints for some added camber.
I've forgot a lot of small stuff along the way like the 22mm Whiteline rear sway bar, EVS front tow hook and some interior changes. I had also bought a catted PRL downpipe, front pipe and turbo blanket I never installed because I was so frustrated with it. Nothing that I think really affected the performance. With the car able to run the same 1:27.5 with no bolt ons I'm excited to get some stuff done over the winter and see how fast it can go. Anyways I'm missed a LOT of stuff I've done to the car and photos but wanted to start it now and might add stuff in as I remember it.
This is my 1:27.5 with stock suspension and just power mods. I didn't get a video of my last trip there but I've changed my lines in a few turns and think I've got a sub 1:26 in the car as is. If you watch the video I caught the red s2000 at the end and lifted early. I think my PB with power mods and stock suspension would've been a mid 26 or so but I guess I'll never really know!
Firstly new off the showroom floor!
Kept it stock for awhile and did my first track day at Thiunderhill with it 100% stock, can't find photos of it but managed a 1:34.XX which is pretty slow but I was learning the car and such.
Went to some local Autocross events where it crushes DS. Got first in class and top PAX every time it went out talk about a cheater car. I can only image the people who are into this and get 19" NSX wheels and a 265 RE71r
Next up I went for a set of 18x9 +50 TE37s and some 265/35/18 Federal RS-RR tires, they're definitely loud but work well for the money. (Hankook tires on here before I changed them out)
Took it back and managed a 1:28.7. This is where I really started having some issues with overheating. With sticky tires and a 100% stock car if you're pushing it you can really get the temps up fast.
Decided to get Hondata, a Greddy oil cooler, PRL intercooler, PRL intake and a larger eBay grill and see how that helped my overheating. I think any cooling added from the grill and oil cooler was ruined by the added heat from the tune but who knows.
I was able to come back to Thunderhill west and run a 1:27.9 with this setup but was still overheating maybe even faster than before! I was pretty discouraged to say the least but it was a hot day so I gave the car the benefit of the doubt.
I came back one last time with a track night event hoping it'd be a bit cooler. Before doing this I removed the camber guide pins, got it re-aligned and changed out the transmission fluid to amsoil as well as got a magnetic drain plug. I was able to get down to a 1:27.5 but still overheating (see a theme here?)
The tires were getting pretty worn at this point after a couple track days (I did 1-2 others not mentioned here as I didn't PB) and some autocross/ daily driving as well. Took them off and went with a 255/35/18 for the VTEC club series at Buttonwillow this past July. Talk about a mistake! I also bled the brake fluid for Castrol SRF, I normally used Motul 600 but was recommended this so I tried it. Even for being a cool day the car kept getting hot so fast I could barely get a hot lap in there.
For my first time ever at Buttonwillow it was good and bad. I got a 2:06 but my best laps were ruined by traffic and getting put in the wrong run group. My best 2:06 lap a guy spun on the last corner and I had to slow and go around him and the dust. I think that would've been a 2:03 or 2:04? Either way it was a fun day there other than overheating.
After driving 7 hours each way to maybe get 8-10 laps in with no traffic or overheating I was over this car. Time to return it to stock and sell it. I had my eyes on a friends k24 atom who backed out, I then found a red F430 but luckily a bad PPI kept me from buying it. With my CTR 100% back to stock I wasn't sure what to do.
This car isn't my daily driver so after that frustrating Buttonwillow event I put it to stock and it sat for almost 2 months I didn't even drive it while looking at other cars to replace it. I finally went out with buddy who has the white s2000 to talk cars and snap some photos. Driving it again that night reminded me of how much I enjoy this car, even compared to my V8 F150 or 911 C4S it is a blast to drive, plenty of power and such a useful car with the 5 door layout. I decided to keep the engine 100% stock and try a suspension and aero approach.
Since I had sold off the wheels that was my first step, the Wedssport TC105x had just been released so I went with that in a 18x9.5 +45 and a 275/35/18 RS-RR. Simple tire had them on sale for $110/ piece shipped so I couldn't pass them up. Back to a loud tire doh!
I got the Eibach sport line springs and eibach rear camber kit as well as the hard race front lower ball joints to really dial in my alignment. Sadly the lower ball joints didn't get here in time for my alignment appointment so I installed everything else and got it aligned. With the lowering springs and front guide pins removed I got -1.8 degrees of camber upfront and went with -2.2 in the rear. Once I get around to installing the lower ball joints I should have around -2.8 up front.
I took the CTR back to Thunderhil west for the Hot Hatch Challenge and got to meet a lot of the Nor Cal CTR owners there. Had a good competition with one of them and came home with a first place win! Ran a 1:27.5 (I was 4 one thousands quicker than my previous 1:27.5) and this was with a 100% stock motor.
This brings me to its current state. I thoroughly destroyed the brakes at the last event I went to. The front felt warped and lurched and the rears were down to 1-2mm left. I went with Girodisc front rotors, some new rear blanks and Winnmax W4 pads front and rear. So far I have only got to bed these in and mess around on twisty roads but I'm pretty excited to get these out on track next year as well as add those front ball joints for some added camber.
I've forgot a lot of small stuff along the way like the 22mm Whiteline rear sway bar, EVS front tow hook and some interior changes. I had also bought a catted PRL downpipe, front pipe and turbo blanket I never installed because I was so frustrated with it. Nothing that I think really affected the performance. With the car able to run the same 1:27.5 with no bolt ons I'm excited to get some stuff done over the winter and see how fast it can go. Anyways I'm missed a LOT of stuff I've done to the car and photos but wanted to start it now and might add stuff in as I remember it.
This is my 1:27.5 with stock suspension and just power mods. I didn't get a video of my last trip there but I've changed my lines in a few turns and think I've got a sub 1:26 in the car as is. If you watch the video I caught the red s2000 at the end and lifted early. I think my PB with power mods and stock suspension would've been a mid 26 or so but I guess I'll never really know!
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*picture borrowed from a friend as he had to remove his brake duct*
