Norm - Perth DC5R

[Norm]

Lol...so no opinions on which lower arm bar to buy?

[ChargeR]

Lol...so no opinions on which lower arm bar to buy?

I am full of opinions so I think I can spare one to share with you . Don't buy either, lower arms bars have a very poor ratio of dollars spent to enjoyment experienced. I always say this but have you thought about spending the money you would on the lower arm bar on entry and preparation for a track day?

[Norm]

haha ChargeR, the track bug is gonna bite me sooner or later...its just when lol. I dont think I'd want to take it to the track just yet though. Maybe next year when i have 2 months holidays. Out of curiosity, what preps are needed for a track day?

[Norm]

Update - We changed the engine mounts today. It was a really bad choice of day to do it. We didn't have cover and the weather kept going in and out of rain and sunshine. But nonetheless the mounts were taken off and a couple of pics taken including the broken front transmission mount.

Comments on the new mounts. The 2nd gear crunch or hardness has definitely lessened to the point sometimes I think my mind is playing mind games and telling me that its going to crunch or be hard before i shift from 1st to 2nd. Also the transition from changing gears from 2nd onwards has become alot smoother. The car is more responsive and wheel trap or wheel hoping if that is the term has been eliminated. There are slight more vibrations compared to the OEM mounts but definitely bearable and comfortable at idle. I'm hoping these will ease out in the coming weeks. One question I do have though to those people who have changed their mounts, is that upon acceleration from idle I do get a slight ....so very slight clunk sound just before maybe 10-5km/h. Its very subtle but I was wondering whether anyone else has experienced the same problem or issit just a matter of letting the mounts ease in first?








Next awaiting change is the lovely Toda headers which are currently getting cat modified by Adrian over east. Looking forward to put these on.

[RacingInJapan]

Norm,

If you're experiencing a "crunch" when changing from 1st to 2nd you might want to look into the transmission oil. When was the last time you changed it ? What viscosity fluid do you have in there ? Just FYI I change my transmission oil every 3 track visits. What is your driving style ? Do you put your transmission through its paces to the point where the fluid overheats ?

Regarding "wheel hopping", does that happen on an upshift or a downshift ? In either case you're probably not matching your accelerator blip to the rotation of the wheels properly. If you overrev and engage into a gear, if your wheel rotation is out of sync with the engine you'll get the hop. Nothing to worry about !

I see you have a nice little jack there !

Rod

[Norm]

Words of wisdom!. Transmission oil is definitely going to get a change soon. Rod, do you use any particular brand or do you just stick with honda oem transmission fluid?. The "Wheel hopping" only happens during upshifting, but after changing the engine mounts the "wheel hopping" has definitely been reduced. Either i'm just really shocking at changing gears or i've just suddenly improved overnight after changing my mounts.

[RacingInJapan]

I stopped using Honda transmission fluid (the one used in Japan at least) because I was having issues with gear changes under hot circuit time attack. I switched to OMEGA 690 transmission fluid (I'm not sure but i think this is made by an australian company) and never looked back ! OMEGA has the right viscosity to withstand high temperature rises and maintains good lubrication throughout the temp. range. Remember Honda transmission isn't cooled like the engine is !

For oil I use MOTUL 300V exclusively. Don't use Honda's engine oil unless you're prepared to change it after EACH track visit ! Degrades fast especially over 110C oil temp !!

[Norm]

I see, thanks Rod. Will definitely look into it!

[jj17]

ooo see u already done it norm =] nice work ahahah

as for MTF, i use oem honda and have no issues so far.. but i dont drive my car as hard to actually notice anything. never heard of omega either, sounds interesting. shall look into it as well =]

[RacingInJapan]

Guys,

I could only find this info on OMEGA in english http://www.magnagroup.com/ (click on the OMEGA logo), however if you can read japanese there is a wealth of detail on their japanese site http://www.omegaoil.co.jp/motorcar/index.html

OMEGA run about 4 track days a year promoting their brand around Tsukuba and Fuji Speedway. My tuner SEEKER uses this oil exclusively on all his time attack cars. I think it might be a challenge to source it in Australia by the looks of things.

[ChargeR]

Nice work on the mounts! It can be a difficult job .

haha ChargeR, the track bug is gonna bite me sooner or later...its just when lol. I dont think I'd want to take it to the track just yet though. Maybe next year when i have 2 months holidays. Out of curiosity, what preps are needed for a track day?

First time out I would probably recommend the following items just to ensure you are safe and have a good day:

• Replace brake fluid with something more suited to track temperatures. Motul RBF600 is what I use.
  
• Replace the engine oil, again with something more suited to track temperature and duress. I have used 300V in the past like RacingInJapan but I generally use Red Line now.
  
• Replace gearbox oil. I use Honda MTF and change it every track day, as RacingInJapan mentions the oil in the gearbox gets a very hard time so use something good
  
• Check the brake pads and if they are OEM or a street oriented pad I would only use them if they have more than 70% remaining as they will wear heavily and fade. If they are nearly done then replace them with something more track suited.
  
• Besides those items as long as your tyres/suspension are in generally good and roadworthy condition then you should be fine .

[RacingInJapan]

I'd also recommend upgrades to your OEM brake lines. A world of difference in terms of pedal feel and controllability. On top of that a decent 4 point or higher harness. You'd be amazed how much faster you'll be when you feel nice and tight in your seat as opposed to being thrown and pushed around under the OEM seat belt.

Safety items such as tyres, brakes, seatbelts, helmet are the most important, followed by vehicle preservation items such as oils, fluids and lastly comfort/performance items.

Also keep your fuel tank over 60%. Under heavy G's Honda's fuel pump tends to choke a little throwing the car into chaos resulting in an engine stall. Don't want that to happen on a track when you suddenly loose power steering and you're looking at a wall !

[lukits01]

OMEGA is a JDM brand, good luck finding it in Australia, let alone WA
(if you do find some though, I'd like to know though haha)
Motul 300V + Motul gear FF is probably the better ones from the mainstream suppliers around here. Honda OEM oils doesn't handle abuse that well, the gearbox oil performance drops away so fast with every trackday.

wow, is it just me or is that mount snapped?

[Norm]

OMEGA is a JDM brand, good luck finding it in Australia, let alone WA
(if you do find some though, I'd like to know though haha)
Motul 300V + Motul gear FF is probably the better ones from the mainstream suppliers around here. Honda OEM oils doesn't handle abuse that well, the gearbox oil performance drops away so fast with every trackday.

wow, is it just me or is that mount snapped?

Lol..sure has. But its the front transmission one, didn't seem to affect me too much but glad i got them changed. The car feels like awesome now.

I've got definetly alot of things to look into before track work. Let me sort out the brakes and brake lines etc and i'll try to book in for a transmission oil flush and replacement.

Can I ask another silly question, is it much use using like a mugen oil filter incomparison to the oem oil filter? They advertise to be better but should i bother with an extra $30?

[RacingInJapan]

Dont bother with Mugen !
HAMP oil filter from Honda is sufficient enough