Civic Type R at the track, goods and bads! Let's share our experience.

Code Monkey

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Did 4 sessions at Road Atlanta yesterday. Bone stock car, best lap time was a 1:42.97. Coolant temps were at 3/4 with outside temp 64 F.

Should be able to shave off 2-3 seconds with proper race brake pads. I had to brake way too early into 1, 6, and 10A and was only hitting 135 mph going into 10A.
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revvhappy

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Were you at Road Atlanta yesterday?

There was a white and a black CTR at the Just Track it event. I have some video with the white one passing me on a straight.
 

harko226

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Can anyone that has tapped oil temp and pressure gauges into their cars link me to the sensors and gauges they used? I'd really like to start monitoring these things so I can track what cooling mods are actually doing to help or not. Right now I just have the ebay front grill and the HKS oil cooler. Thanks!
 

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Ran Buttonwillow CW13 on 12-21-19. Best lap 2:05:10 on lap 5 in the second session. Ambient temps were quite cold, around 50F so it was perfect for the car. Didn't really experience any overheating! Can definitely get down to the 2:03's I think with more commitment.

Mods:
Motegi MR924 Wheels
265/35/19 Federal RS-PRO Tires
HKS Oil Cooler
Aftermarket Honeycomb Grill
PRL Front Pipe
PRL HV Intake
Stock brake pads

 


ApexEight

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Yes the gas gauge is terribly nonlinear and slow to update when on track. Despite knowing this and fuel starvation issues I still almost ran out of gas at VIR last weekend. Luckily I didn’t end up in limp mode. Day one was heavy rain, so a great day to learn balance and control. Second day was about 50 degrees overcast but dry and I managed a 2:17.6 on RE71Rs. I switched out to front Powerstop rotors and F/R Powerstop track day pads which seem to be working well. Almost no squeal in street driving and no fade or problems on track, no post-track shudders or grinding. Granted, it wasn’t as hot as the mid 90s temps I ran at CMP. The right rear pad took a bit more wear than expected because I had stability on for the rain. All in all pretty happy with the way the brakes and tires did this time out.
So you daily and track the Powerstop pads and front rotors? Any updates on how you like them in both situations? Noise and dust levels? Are you a 10/10ths track day guy?
 

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Ran Buttonwillow CW13 on 12-21-19. Best lap 2:05:10 on lap 5 in the second session. Ambient temps were quite cold, around 50F so it was perfect for the car. Didn't really experience any overheating! Can definitely get down to the 2:03's I think with more commitment.

Mods:
Motegi MR924 Wheels
265/35/19 Federal RS-PRO Tires
HKS Oil Cooler
Aftermarket Honeycomb Grill
PRL Front Pipe
PRL HV Intake
Stock brake pads

Steering inputs are really smooth though I don't recommend shuffling the wheel that much. I'd highly recommend having an experienced buddy or coach sit with you because there's a lot of little things that add up to a lot of lost time here.
 

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Steering inputs are really smooth though I don't recommend shuffling the wheel that much. I'd highly recommend having an experienced buddy or coach sit with you because there's a lot of little things that add up to a lot of lost time here.
I was just about to comment about shuffling hands too. Line looks okay, but keeping hands at 3 and 9 and just let your arms cross over might help a bit with shuffling. Takes time to get used to but you'll notice worlds of difference in your driving if you only move your hand right hand to shift.
 

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Steering inputs are really smooth though I don't recommend shuffling the wheel that much. I'd highly recommend having an experienced buddy or coach sit with you because there's a lot of little things that add up to a lot of lost time here.
I was just about to comment about shuffling hands too. Line looks okay, but keeping hands at 3 and 9 and just let your arms cross over might help a bit with shuffling. Takes time to get used to but you'll notice worlds of difference in your driving if you only move your hand right hand to shift.
Appreciate the feedback from both of you!

Just wanted to note here that I hadn't been to Buttonwillow since 2015 in my old Subaru and have been consistently racing in Rallycross since then, so my on-track skills are a bit rusty, although I had done Streets and 3 AutoX days prior to this track day.

Also - The M3 in front was gutted, with roll cage, seat/harness/wheel, BBK and running 100tw tires, I was impressed to be keeping up!

I will try to not shuffle as much next time, but it certainly will attribute to more arm fatigue as R-Mode steering is heavy.
 

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Has anyone tried tracking without the metal underbody plate to see if it would reduce temps? I know it's there for aero and protection, but I'm interested to see if it'd help cooling. Could just reinstall after the track day. My only concern is that it could create a bunch of turbulence and rip out the plastic panels or something.

I think removing it combined with removing the plastic engine cover, adding a side-mount oil cooler, eBay grille, and turbo blanket could be a good combo. Maybe add the center TrackSpec hood vent too, but cutting up a hood is scary. Or maybe a slightly less effective alternative could be removing the rubber strip along the cowl? Could also reinstall after the track day. I just feel like the radiator has no room behind it to move air and it's right by the turbo, so hood vents and/or removing the cowl could help.

Edit: Just had another idea. What about in conjunction with removing the rubber strip by the cowl, removing the aluminum rain duct underneath the hood? That way the stock hood scoop could help evacuate more air out the back with the cowl strip removed. Doesn't look like it can be reinstalled though. Looks like it's riveted in and would have to be drilled out. Or maybe it can clip back in? But even then Idk how secure it'd be without the rivets.
 
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Has anyone tried tracking without the metal underbody plate to see if it would reduce temps? I know it's there for aero and protection, but I'm interested to see if it'd help cooling. Could just reinstall after the track day. My only concern is that it could create a bunch of turbulence and rip out the plastic panels or something.

I think removing it combined with removing the plastic engine cover, adding a side-mount oil cooler, eBay grille, and turbo blanket could be a good combo. Maybe add the center TrackSpec hood vent too, but cutting up a hood is scary. Or maybe a slightly less effective alternative could be removing the rubber strip along the cowl? Could also reinstall after the track day. I just feel like the radiator has no room behind it to move air and it's right by the turbo, so hood vents and/or removing the cowl could help.

Edit: Just had another idea. What about in conjunction with removing the rubber strip by the cowl, removing the aluminum rain duct underneath the hood? That way the stock hood scoop could help evacuate more air out the back with the cowl strip removed. Doesn't look like it can be reinstalled though. Looks like it's riveted in and would have to be drilled out. Or maybe it can clip back in? But even then Idk how secure it'd be without the rivets.
I've removed the hood seal by the cowl but haven't really measured temp differences. Removing the engine undercover and plastic splash shield is also a good experiment (see pic below). I'll do some tests with these three items intact/removed and measure temp differences (if any) when the weather gets better since I've some time to kill. But will only conduct these tests during canyon runs as I don't track the car.

Honda Civic 10th gen Civic Type R at the track, goods and bads!  Let's share our experience. 1586760403314
 

ApexEight

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I've removed the hood seal by the cowl but haven't really measured temp differences. Removing the engine undercover and plastic splash shield is also a good experiment (see pic below). I'll do some tests with these three items intact/removed and measure temp differences (if any) when the weather gets better since I've some time to kill. But will only conduct these tests during canyon runs as I don't track the car.

1586760403314.png
Is the splash shield a paint to remove and reinstall? I only mentioned the metal tray because of how quickly it comes off but I do think there would obviously be a greater benefit in removing it all.
 

CTR88

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So you daily and track the Powerstop pads and front rotors? Any updates on how you like them in both situations? Noise and dust levels? Are you a 10/10ths track day guy?
Currently the Powerstop pads and rotors are dailies. No real issues, did get a little delayed shuddering of the fronts this winter but seems to have improved. A little dusty but on the black rims not as big a deal. Pretty quiet pads for daily, rare minor squeal only at end of braking. I’d consider myself pretty close to 10/10s on the track and I think I could get two weekends (4 days) out of the pads.
 

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Has anyone tried tracking without the metal underbody plate to see if it would reduce temps? I know it's there for aero and protection, but I'm interested to see if it'd help cooling. Could just reinstall after the track day. My only concern is that it could create a bunch of turbulence and rip out the plastic panels or something.

I think removing it combined with removing the plastic engine cover, adding a side-mount oil cooler, eBay grille, and turbo blanket could be a good combo. Maybe add the center TrackSpec hood vent too, but cutting up a hood is scary. Or maybe a slightly less effective alternative could be removing the rubber strip along the cowl? Could also reinstall after the track day. I just feel like the radiator has no room behind it to move air and it's right by the turbo, so hood vents and/or removing the cowl could help.

Edit: Just had another idea. What about in conjunction with removing the rubber strip by the cowl, removing the aluminum rain duct underneath the hood? That way the stock hood scoop could help evacuate more air out the back with the cowl strip removed. Doesn't look like it can be reinstalled though. Looks like it's riveted in and would have to be drilled out. Or maybe it can clip back in? But even then Idk how secure it'd be without the rivets.
Ive tracked without the belly pan and it made no noticeable difference in temps. It hurts aero performance and MPG on the street
 

ApexEight

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Ive tracked without the belly pan and it made no noticeable difference in temps. It hurts aero performance and MPG on the street
Yeah, I've reconsidered my approach and have boiled things down to 4 mods, and nothing else, no removal of undertray, valve cover plastic, cowl rubber lining, rain duct, none of that.

1) eBay grille
For increased airflow to radiator.
2) 2020 radiator
For cooler water temps. Haven't gotten any track results yet (thanks, COVID), but there is a guy I found on FB that has one and has measured improvements on the street. There appears to be more fins in the 2020. See pic below.
3) Side-mount oil cooler
For cooler oil temps and greater oil capacity.
4) Legit hood vents
For increased airflow behind the radiator and to reduce engine bay temps. Race Louvers makes the most functional vents I've ever seen. Highly recommend their YouTube channel for a bit more info. I'm looking at this model, specifically: https://racelouvers.com/scca-t2-t3-stu-center-hood-louvers-pair-16w-x-11-5d/

These four mods directly impact water and oil temps and airflow into and out of the radiator and engine bay. While I'm not as concerned about heatsoak, these should help alleviate that as well.

A second stage could look like adding an aftermarket catted downpipe (don't want to go catless for practicality reasons) with some sort of heat insulation, and maybe a turbo blanket, but I'm not sure the blanket's effects are what I'd want.

Honda Civic 10th gen Civic Type R at the track, goods and bads!  Let's share our experience. Screenshot_20200425-232931
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