Project S2000: Part 22 – Testing New Goods and More Intake Mods
Khiem Dinh is an engineer for Honeywell Turbo Technologies at the time of this writing. All statements and opinions expressed by Khiem Dinh are solely those of Khiem Dinh and not reflective of Honeywell Turbo Technologies.
The high lateral G’s enabled by the sticky Nitto NT01 tires did a number on the stock control arm bushings which spurred the decision to go with the Blacktrax Performance/Kingpin Machine spherical bearing suspension setup. Hasport rear differential mounts were installed at the same time to reduce movement between drivetrain parts and the chassis. Buttonwillow is the perfect track to test out the new suspension goods as using the curbing is essential to running quick lap times. Previously, I was hesitant to use the curbing excessively as it would upset the chassis. This was especially evident in the esses with the tall curbing. In the 13CW configuration, the last curb of the esses on the left is taken at high speed and leads onto a short straight; so maximizing speed here is very important. However, before any track day, preparation is required. Plus, I’d run into a new issue while testing the ram air NACA duct at Autoclub that required further investigation.
Fresh Motul 300V oil goes into Project S2k with an OEM Honda oil filter. It had been about a year and a half since I last tracked the car, so fresh Motul RBF600 brake fluid was put in as there’s nothing more dangerous than losing your brakes at the track; squishy brakes suck, fresh fluid = good. To make the brake fluid job easier, I picked up this Motion Pro brake bleeder (part number 08-0143).
Just a little tip while changing the oil, I like to jack up the rear (using the differential as the jack point) to level out the car and get that last bit of oil out of the pan.
The Motion Pro brake bleeder is a simple one-way check valve. Just put it on, open the bleeder valve, and pump away on the brake pedal. Another little tip, I poke two holes in the brake fluid seal; one hole to pour out from, the other to vent. You know, it’s like shot gunning a beer can, you need the vent hole.
The rear StopTech brake pads finally wore down to a thickness of around 3mm so I replaced them for safety. The rear pads wore at a rate twice that of the fronts. The massive StopTech big brake kit on the front paired with my brake ducts are proving to last an exceptionally long time. They are only half worn after all the track days and street driving I’ve put on them. Yes, they are the same StopTech street performance pads originally installed when I put on the brakes. So, maybe I’ll get around to doing some rear brake ducts to help those pads last longer.
