[Bugeater]

I replied to the SPEC poll thread, but figured I would start a new one that had the specific topic heading:

I put in the stage 3 SPEC Hybrid 3 weeks ago. New version. Kevlar/Organic hybrid. I will have around 1,000 miles on it by tomorrow. I am taking the car to VIR Virginia International Raceway to see how this car performs on a 3.3 mile roadcourse...I'll give ya'll a report then if you want it...

So far the clutch feels good. Oh yeah I opted for the lightweight flywheel too. Chatter is obvious outside the car but I think everybody already knows that. As for durability of the clutch, we shall see.

Bought from Ben at Rogue. Nice guy. Total I believe was 1750 or thereabouts.

By the time I get back I should have about 1,500 miles on the clutch/flywheel combo, with 200 miles being hardcore track time if weather permits. I hope the stock brakes hold up (Stock hardware with race pads, complete brake fluid replaced with superblue and powersteering as well, and stainless lines)


POST TRACK WEEKEND.

Clutch and flywheel now have about 1,600 miles on it. They also have 2 days and eight hot sessions around VIR fullcourse. Just got back (225 mile trip) home and everything is fine. Clutch/flywheel worked flawlessly. My issues started out as a VERY BAD brake shutter that took 3 full sessions to go away. I originally thought it was a warped rotor, but ended up most likely being the conversion of street to race pad. Hawk HP10's.

By the second day I had no issues, and simply enjoyed flogging the car to the limits of the brakes, suspension and tires. Some observations:

1. Stock braking is not too bad. I honestly didnt expect the car to stop as well as it did for its weight, and stock pilots. I did get brake fade with the Hawk HP10's after awhile, but they held up pretty good. Overall an "OK" pad. Not great bite, but decent. I have not had the wheels off to check wear on the pad or rotor. Can anyone confirm or deny if the PFC 01's have a pad that fits our stock caliper? Its basically the best pad out there for the track.

2. Dinan Stage3 Koni suspension is not a poser mod. Its a little soft (anyone know the spring rates?) but its very compliant over gators and doesnt let the chasis unsettle in less-than-perfect transitions. Its a very good compromise street to track. I was on firm setting. I had the shop dial in -1.9 front, -2.2 rear camber. 6.0 castor with .20 total toe. My feeling is that I could/should have dialed in more camber up front. Anyone agree/disagree?

3. Pilots are probably not a good choice for track use, but not unusable if you want to go have fun. They will keep you out of trouble, but do go away quicker (push) each session if you run multiple HARD sessions in a day. I felt that 42 pounds hot was a decent pressure with ambient outside temps around 50 degrees.

4. The UUC shifter that is installed in my car has a dead spot left of second gear!?! Is this normal? What I mean is that There seems to be a place right below reverse that you can "attempt" to put the shifter in, left of second. Under quick downshifting manuvers I tried to put the car in second and missed the gate to second and hit this deadend....New to me.

5. The stock LSD is decent for high speed sweepers, but a variable lockup or quaife would be nice for powering out of slow, tight exits. First gear in the M5 (which I really like) really necessitates a quaife type unit. Probably a mod for hard-core track rats, or guys that want everything offered the car. Is there a swap out there from another model/year that can be used?

Im not sure of all the issues of the previous SPEC clutches, but I dont seem to have any. Keep in mind I only have 1,600 miles on mine, but I did baptise it by fire.

My car has 87,000 miles on it. Bought it 3 weeks ago knowing the clutch was fried. The Dinan mods were obviously done by the previous owner. Pretty **** impressive car to flog it like I did and have it perform so well. THEN drive a couple hundred miles home! Whenever I get a little nitpicky about some of the performance aspects I had to tell myself to quit comparing it to my racecar...900 pounds lighter, on Hoosiers, and with a power/weight ratio of about 7. Once I put it in prespective I just shook my head and smiled. Really was amazed at the performance of this sedan. :M5thumbs:

Hope some of this helps....Sorry for the obnoxiously long post!

 

[Bugeater]

Hey guys, sorry for the late replies. My work blocks this IP for some reason...?

MPRESIV,
I am unsure the part numbers, but you could get them from Ben at Rogue Engineering. The Invoice does not show a part number, simply "Aluminum Flywheel and SPEC Hybris 3". Their number is 201.444.8150 Good luck!

Edp,
The stage 3 suspension came with camber plates that allowed more front negative camber, and I am under the impression that I could dial in a fair amount more...someone correct me if I am wrong! I know Redshift personally, and was lucky to get a ride-along with his better half while he was out flogging his new toy. BTW, I though the ground control setup he had was comparable to the Dinan setup in ride stiffness, compliance, with a little more rebound. He too recommended dropping the rear camber and putting whatever the plates would afford me in the front. I think he is right.

gsfent,
Clutch chatter. I read some other people's posts on raising the limiter to 900, so I experimented and tried to hold rpms around there or higher...around 900-1100. I personally still had some chatter even at 1100. It was reduced but not removed. I dont know how much reduction was evident from outside the car since I was holding the gas pedal down! I agree with you on the rear camber...

Motatti,
Yes and Yes. 240mm and Billet Flywheel. I *can* adjust camber, I believe you cannot adjust castor (in the rear).


** Anybody know anything about my UUC shifter issue? (see original post)
Or other pad choices for stock calipers?


Thanks everyone!

 

[Bugeater]

Busy thread...

MIB,
I can only comment on the clutch chatter from inside the cockpit with a raised idle. I did this in my driveway, parked, holding a steady rpm. I did this at 900, 1000, 1100 rpms. I still could hear chatter, although it was reduced. Its not rocket science. Your right, I care less about the noise than I care about pure performance, but may chip the car down the road. The reduced chatter will be a positive side effect of chipping as I would do it for other reasons.

As for the clutch thoughts, I did note to "keep in mind I only have 1600 miles on the car". I very well know it doesnt conclude much other than the break-in miles and some good beating afterward it has managed well. You will use a clutch on-track more agressively than on the street, especially in a car that is not a racecar where clutch pressure and engagement is much higher/harder than the M5's soft "benign" pedal. PS- If you can rev match every shift on-track with this car's clutch setup and not get some slippage, your definately better than me!

Bri,
April is too early for me especially your dates cuz I am having surgery on my go pedal foot april 1st, and will probably be getting out of a cast that weekend! My next event will be in the Viper for the SCCA races the weekend of May6-8!

Front camber: I definately have it. Keep in mind I inherited the suspension from the previous owner so he may have done something to get more but I highly doubt it. I have the history of alignments performed on this car and the last one was 1.9L 1.7R Fronts...I didnt like the rest of the setup so I had the alignment changed based on some searching on this forum on Dinan stg3 setups. I didnt like that spec so I upped the front camber and dropped the rear to 2.2...I read somewheres that 2.5 was recommended. So I asked for 1.9 up front on both wheels and they did it. Have the printouts, but dont have a scanner at home....

Dave,
Thanks for all the pad history and info! I got my track pads from Dave Z. He did help alot! I said PFC01's werent available, but was hoping that someone would prove him wrong (never hurts to ask).

DSC on? How the hell could you track a car with it on? I forgot to turn it off one session and didnt get past turn 1 without it going crazy. I thought the car had a problem with the motor. Lol.

I hope someone can shed some light on the camber mystery, and Rob I'll give you a call - got your PM.