Track prep my Z06 carbon ...
 

It's getting there slowly but surely. After getting the car two months ago I been waiting for the Xpel clear film to cover the whole car. I normally use Avery nano film but they been having trouble manufacturing it for months and Xpel ultimate has been on back order too. It was a painful wait as my car sit in the garage collecting dust.

Took me two weeks to cover the whole car working couple hours here and there every day. It's really a 2-3 man job and very difficult doing it all on my own. Next will be the OMP HTE seats, roll bar/cage and forgeline GA3R 18" wheels which are on their way. Hope to be on track in 1-2 months. Gordan told me to slowly mod the car as I track ... very sound advice.

http://img710.imageshack.us/img710/1006/pict9180.jpg

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Finally done with applying the clear film!

http://img840.imageshack.us/img840/5979/pict9204.jpg

http://img696.imageshack.us/img696/8683/pict9206.jpg

Stop by Thunderhill on Monday and say hi to Gordan ... the real speed racer!

http://img651.imageshack.us/img651/3913/pict9211.jpg

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1/13/12 update:

More ammo arrived today :thumbs:

LG 1 3/4" long tube exhaust

http://img708.imageshack.us/img708/4489/pict9216.jpg

Forgeline GA3R. These wheels are amazing! 20 lbs front and 22 lbs rear. Even my kids are shocked lol

http://img856.imageshack.us/img856/7815/pict9219.jpg

http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/4479/pict9221d.jpg

http://img515.imageshack.us/img515/6450/pict9222.jpg

Bolts only between the spokes ... to save more weight?

http://img839.imageshack.us/img839/1770/pict9223.jpg

Light weight 3 piece bling! 18X 10.5 front and 18X12.5 rear to fit the ceremic rotors. Sticky donuts coming soon :D

http://img854.imageshack.us/img854/1736/pict9225.jpg

http://img534.imageshack.us/img534/5359/pict9227.jpg

http://img819.imageshack.us/img819/4991/pict9228.jpg

Is that your 997 cup car? If so I'd say you can handle nearly anything you throw at your carbon. if not, I'd say start slow and make sure that every mod to the car makes it better on track.

either way, congrats and have fun!!

That car is freakin sweet! Have fun tracking that!! Wow.

Looking good!

Nice rides! :cheers:

I wish my garage looked that neat.:(

Is that plastic like a wrap? Do you drape it on and then use a heat gun to finish it?

Never seen anyone wrap an entire car in clear bra material. Good idea! You are awarded +10 OCD points.

Very cool! That wrapping must have taken mega patients! It looks great though. Too much for me... :willy:

Yup, that's my GT3 Cup. I know what you are saying about the Cup. It is very difficult to drive and should make driving Z06 feel like a walk in the park. Will slowly mod the Z06 on a needed basis

Thanks :)

Trust me, my garage is a major mess. Will need to major face lift soon. Yes, it is clear film wrap and you do not use heat gun. You just apply and stretch to fit as needed then squeegee the soap water solution out form underneath.

lol

Yes, I am definitely OCD. I also wrap my GT3 Cup and another friend's 996 TT. Wrapping the car makes cleaning a snap after track event. Most dirt and smear just wash right off not to mention lack of rock chips.

http://img202.imageshack.us/img202/5020/pict8700.jpg

http://img28.imageshack.us/img28/1199/pict8797.jpg

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Yeah, it takes alot of patience and time for sure

Looking good Mikymu! I had LG coilovers and swaybars (and CCW/RA1's) on my old C6Z and absolutely loved the way it drove on track. Once you get into the suspension I'd highly recommend Brandon Kraus over at Roger Kraus Racing to set the car up-- tell him I sent you. He did mine and it was the easiest to wheel and most balanced street car I've ever driven on a track.

I actually need to bring my ZR1 over to him as it was the worst car I've ever driven on track (i think the previous owner did some weird tire-saving alignment though... so I'm not hating on the car..).

-mike

Nice work mikymu! Tell gordon we said hi!

Wow, both great looking vehicles! Have fun!

Tim

I'd much rather pay for a re-paint than wrap an entire car! Anyway, gorgeous car. Keep us informed as to how the brakes do for hard core track usage. Still have seen very little feedback regarding that.

Does the clear protection film ever show scratches or "dings"?
I have never had it done because I figured it would eventually show some sign of the above. With paint at least I can polish out any minor damage.

The clear bra cleans up just like paint as far as removing track turd marks goes.

It does get sand blasted right on the nose area.

It does get rock chip marks than cannot be filled in with paint so they stay looking bad.

And you can get rocks penetrating the film and paint (ask me how I know)

But the film can be removed and redone where necessary preserving the original paint :thumbs:

:cheers:
DH

Thanks for the info.

Thanks Mike for the advice. I have always consider Z06 and when we last spoke at Laguna Seca during your GT3 challange race about what Z06 can do on track it seal the deal. I don't know about the Kraus shops but will look into the matter. I normally use a local shop for alignment after deciding what I need. Yes, get your ZR1 tune up for the track :)

Sure thing!

Thanks Tim

I will only reapaint the car if it was in an accident. Clear film minimize every day use wear and test by 99% so your paint looks basically new after 5+ years of use. Will give feedback on the ceremic brakes for track duty

If you have an incident that will cause noticeable dent then clear fim will not be able to prevent the damage. It protect from rock chips, swiral marks and scratches really well and basically eliminate the problem. Yes, you can polish out most swirl marks with ease especially with Xpel and Avery films. They have infused top coats that repel stain and makes cleaning a snap. If someone walk by and try to key my Z06 they will be surprised. It will not leave a mark and I can basically buff out any streaks. There are inferior films just like inferior paints. Venture clear film is garbage. They stain and yellow easily and does not protect from rock chips well. So far my Avery film hold up super well on the GT3 Cup car against rock chips and stains

The brakes are phenomenal for track use. Amazing cold bite once burnished, very very low unsprung weight, 4x the life of iron rotors, 2x the life of comparable iron race brake pads, no fade when hot.

The only down side is the initial cost of entry, and maintenance.

What color is that? Don't think I've ever seen an metallic orange 996. Is it a custom repaint? Factory paint to order option? Looks great :cheers:

A buddy of mine had one of the special edition 987 Boxster Ss that came in Orange, but it was the GT-3 orange with no metallic.

Nice looking car:thumbs: My Carbon Ed is also in the process of being built right now and the first thing that I did was the clear bra too. On mine though I went with RaceTech 4900W seats as it's a dual use car so the head restraint portion obstructs view a little too much. Full compliment of Pfat parts, LG drop spindles etc. etc but I passed on the cage. Once we get a little closer to completion I'll see if we can get the builder to put up a thread on it so you can take a look!

Wow, you have more patience than I. . :D


Let's see some pics with the new rollers on it. Should be landing at your house shortly. :thumbs:

I know the brakes perform, as I have driven on them. I just haven't heard any real world feedback about life expectancy and maintenance costs.

It's a cutom paint color and I don't know the name of the color. Pretty stunning when you see it in person

Sound great. Will you make it out to the track at either Thunderhill or Laguna Seca?

Thanks. Can't wit to get the forgeline GA3R!

Brake pads for Z06
 

I'm currently using Carbotech Xp10 and Xp8 rear. I done 6k miles on the street and 3 track events and so far they hold up very well with DBA 4000 series rotors with no fade at speeds of 130 plus 20 minute sessions at Thunderhill, Buttonwillow and Infineon. Like to mention that Pfadt new Featherlite coilover are amazing for track and street comfort- handling.:rock::rock:

I'm a Nor Cal guy so it will probably be Thunderhill, Buttonwillow & Infineon. When I was younger and thought I was immortal I used to race bikes back when Buttonwillow & Thunderhill were first built and Infineon was still Sear Point but I'm new to running cars on these tracks so I'm sure I'll be a scrub and won't do the equipment justice for a while lol. Either way though I've always felt that half the fun is building the stuff and when it comes to bang for your buck I do not think that you can find a better base to build on than the vette.

I will be happy to help on brake pads if you need. Nice cars:rock:

Out of curiosity, where can you get this stuff and what is the cost? I have been using blue painters tape on the nose and mirrorw, but it looks like crap on a DSOM car...

Hope my ceremic brakes will hold up for track duty so I don't have to do another steel brake transformation ke what I did on my GT3 RS :(

You are still immortal but wiser with age. Hope to see you on track one of these days. I will be chasing Gordon's yellow Z06 either with my GT3 Cup or Z06. It's going to be a fun season

Depends on the film you decide to use. Here is Xpel's website: http://www.xpel.com/
When Avery nano films was availabe I use star shield to order films http://www.starshieldarmor.com/ Since Avery nano is not available you can order 3M film from star shield. There are many other vendors out there depends on your location. Buying bulk (50+ feet roll) can be 3-4 X cheaper than buying them by the foot. I usually calculate what I need and just get one larger size and cut to fit as to save on film cost.

Thanks! I am new to Z06 so will learn what these brakes offer on track ... hope they hold up. That reminds me, I need to change out the brake fluid and coolant to water wetter

i feel dirty asking this in A&R forum, but do you care to share your impressions on xpel film install since it sounds like you used other brands as well?

I did 3M and venture shield pieces before (mostly custom cut for places that got hit on the track), and about to start custom cutting and installing a few pieces on the ACR and decided to go w Xpel this time. Any gotchas/tricks etc specific to this film?

:thumbs:wow, my two dream cars in one garage, I kinda of have the same just they are both 10 years older:lol:

Feel dirty? Why? it's a legitimate question :)

Xpel film is harder to work with compare with Avery. Adhesive separate from the film in large blutches when you have one section sort of grabbing and stretch the other end. it's pretty tricky to work with. Avery is the easiest film to work with. 3M is just tough and very hard to stretch with very bad orange peel. 3M's adhesive also separate and form unsighly blotches when you stretch it. I will do a detail post on clearn fim application 101 and will compare different film quality at that time

Thanks. These are classic racers and been battling eachother hard on the race track around the world. Fun to see them sitting next to each other ... peacefully

Make sure they get bedded in. So far we are on season two of street and track use with our shop ZR1 and the brakes are still going just fine. The bedding process is a very big step that has to be done with those.

More ammo arrived today :thumbs:

LG 1 3/4" long tube exhaust

http://img708.imageshack.us/img708/4489/pict9216.jpg

Forgeline GA3R. These wheels are amazing! 20 lbs front and 22 lbs rear. Even my kids are shocked lol

http://img856.imageshack.us/img856/7815/pict9219.jpg

http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/4479/pict9221d.jpg

http://img515.imageshack.us/img515/6450/pict9222.jpg

Bolts only between the spokes ... to save more weight?

http://img839.imageshack.us/img839/1770/pict9223.jpg

Light weight 3 piece bling! 18X 10.5 front and 18X12.5 rear to fit the ceremic rotors. Sticky donuts coming soon :D

http://img854.imageshack.us/img854/1736/pict9225.jpg

http://img534.imageshack.us/img534/5359/pict9227.jpg

http://img819.imageshack.us/img819/4991/pict9228.jpg

Not to be overly pedantic, but Anthony should know better. :) Bedding is a process done for rotors, burnishing is a process done for brake pads. Bedding needs to be done for iron rotors only: it's the process of transferring some of the pad material onto/into the surface of the iron rotor. Burnishing pads is what you do to prep the pad itself for hot temps.

Bedding material into a carbon ceramic rotor would be very, very bad. You'd destroy the rotor. Instead, follow the instructions in the owners manual for both street and track burnishing the pads. And every time you change the pads, do it again.

jas

Wow those wheel are beautiful. Question. Why'd you go wtih 1 3/4" headers vs. 1 7/8" headers? Most people with the LS7 run 1 7/8".

Do you mean 4x the life of 1-pc iron rotors, or 4x the life of heat treated, good alloy, 2-pc iron rotors?

Sigh, I wanna be rich :o) ....beautiful equipment.....all of it!

Burnishing.......sorry wrong term, you know the saying...do what I mean, not what I say...or something like that. :rofl:


But yes, JVP has a nice sticky about this in the ZR1 section.

That's some very nice jewelry!:cheers:

Cute kids!

Looks like they were waiting for toys for them to come out of those boxes, not something for dad.

Wheels
 

WOW!!! nice wheels...what tires are you running? Hoosier? toyo? Michelin?:rock:

Now thats an arsenal! Congrats.

Thanks. According to LG, 1 3/4" will make more hp and tq for Z06 that do not plan on seeing other mods such as cams, force induction etc. 1 7/8" actually loose power compare with 1 3/4": http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c6-z...xperience.html

http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/cc171/kllrvet/3.jpg

Not rich here ... just work like a dog

Thaks. Love my kids and they can be a handful ... :D

If bank robbery is successful then Michelin slicks ... $2300 a set ouch!
Most likely hoho R6

Yes, still need to prep the brake pads. Waiting for my Z06 to break 500 miles so I can change oil and then really step on it!

Thanks

Beautiful car, can't wait to see it at an event. We didn't meet but I saw you up at Thunderhill talking with Gordon, I was the grey GTR, I also have a Corvette...

Will you be attending the City Tech day on the 22nd?

Don

btw, I did XPEL piece for the bumper last week.

I did not have many issues with adhesive separating when stretching - but I used heatgun when stretching and it helps (a lot). I have a hobby heatgun that can be ran indefinitely without melting stuff or setting stuff on fire, unlike some of the "construction" ones (I have one of those too and I accidentally boiled paint on something with it a couple of times - nasty)

also, "adhesion promoter" (or something like that) chemical they sell is the sh!t and apparently can be used with other films - really helps when the edge of the film is on curved surface.

one lesson learned: applying big pieces in cold weather in barely heated garage - don't do it if you can avoid it. twice the amount of work.
another lesson learned: get a good blade/knife if you want to do custom pieces and cut on the car. i ended up throwing out the one I had from lowes after cutting into the clearcoat on the mirror I used for practice.

Nice setup. They don't drill the center where the spoke is to leave as much material as they can and not weaken that area. Fairly typical on thin spokes.
The rim halves are already drilled before being shipped to Forgeline.

Hey Don

I remember your GTR. Great looking car and fast! Z06 will not be ready for about a month. Still need to do cage/roll bar. 1/22 at TH is T5 bypass? I may do NCRC 1/23 with my GT3 cup

U got skills. I have not use heat gun much on clear film. It dries up the soap solution too fast. I need to get some of their "edge glue" stuff. Sounds interesting

That's what I was told too

:lurk:

Test fit the 18" Forgeline GA3R and they clear the ceremic rotors without issue. Now I just need some tires ...

http://img694.imageshack.us/img694/8793/pict9235.jpg

Wow those are good looking wheels.

Thanks

It's a work of art and super light too! :thumbs: