Faster with Better Brakes!

[Sooner1]

It was super straight forward, and pretty easy. The only minor hang up I had was transferring the front brake bypass block bracket over to the new bypass block. It doesn't fit great. You have to start the threads of the bolt first, and then drive it home with a 3/8th's gun. If you can't picture what I mean now then you'll know for sure when you go to install it.

What brake fluid are you going with?

Motul RBF 600
I am sure it is listed above in this thread somewhere but what do you use?

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[PointByPatrol]

Motul RBF 600
I am sure it is listed above in this thread somewhere but what do you use?

I've used Motul RBF 600 and RBF 660, and most recently Castrol SRF. I'm a HUGE fan of Motul products, but I've deviated away from Motul for brake fluid because the Castrol is so much better! Castrol is sold in a 1L bottle instead of a 500mL bottle. The cost is the same! You do not have to flush the Castrol as often and it stands up to harsh conditions much better. In the long run it'll save you money!

 

[Sooner1]

I've used Motul RBF 600 and RBF 660, and most recently Castrol SRF. I'm a HUGE fan of Motul products, but I've deviated away from Motul for brake fluid because the Castrol is so much better! Castrol is sold in a 1L bottle instead of a 500mL bottle. The cost is the same! You do not have to flush the Castrol as often and it stands up to harsh conditions much better. In the long run it'll save you money!

Thanks for the feedback. I already have the Motul in hand so I will use that for my first flush then switch to the Castrol. Did 1 track event with the stock fluid late in the year (picked my car up in September) with no issues - it was misting all day so not very hard on the brakes. Plan on doing just a few track events each year.

 

[PointByPatrol]

Thanks for the feedback. I already have the Motul in hand so I will use that for my first flush then switch to the Castrol. Did 1 track event with the stock fluid late in the year (pick my car up in September) with no issues - it was misting all day so not very hard on the brakes. Plan on doing just a few track events each year.

You'll definitely appreciate better fluid in place of the factory fluid! Nothing is scarier than a soft pedal!

 

[ExiledLakai]

@PointByPatrol Long time track junkie here that is thinking about going down the FL5 Type R path because I have two kids and need a fun car with a back seat.

Based on what I've known of the FK8 and the FL5 I knew the cooling was going to be an issue. I live is the desert and it will always be an issue at SMMR for the majority of the year. My biggest surprise is coming upon your brake usage even with AP kit you have. A few questions, sorry if you have answered them in the past on another thread.

The in car videos I've seen you have the traction control off indicator 'on'. Now is this like some manufactures where even though its "off" its still working the brakes slightly? To my understanding the FL5 has the rears pop to help turn in. I would assume this is still a thing even with traction and stability off. I believe the diff is a mechanical but are the front brakes working to torque vector?

Have you tried the pedal dance(if not already driving in that mode) to see the difference in pad wear and lap time? I've heard the rear brake function is eliminated in this mode which I would prefer in order to control wear. That doesn't help the front wear much unless the +R mode still uses the fronts a little for some reason which hypothetically would be eliminated with the pedal dance as well, which could hurt lap time.

I bring this up because a good friend of mine and I both owned FRS's when they first came out. I would always run in pedal dance/diag mode while he just pushed and held the traction button down for 10 seconds for the factories version of everything off.

I was almost always faster in lap time and my pad wear was literally half have much as his.

I know the type r is heavy but your pad wear is worrisome based on how much I think you track. Which is A LOT but not enough the warrant the brake wear I've seen you go through.

Also Ben I want to thank you for your videos on Youtube. If I pick up an FL5 I'll be rewatching most of them during my own parts install.

 

[PointByPatrol]

@PointByPatrol Long time track junkie here that is think about going down the FL5 Type R path because I have two kids and need a fun car with a back seat.

Based on what I've known of the FK8 and the FL5 I knew the cooling was going to be an issue. I live is the desert and it will always be an issue at SMMR for the majority of the year. My biggest surprise is coming upon your brake usage even with AP kit you have. A few questions, sorry if you have answered them in the past on another thread.

The in car videos I've seen you have the traction control off indicator 'on'. Now is this like some manufactures where even though its "off" its still working the brakes slightly? To my understanding the FL5 has the rears pop to help turn in. I would assume this is still a thing even with traction and stability off. I believe the diff is a mechanical but are the front brakes working to torque vector?

Have you tried the pedal dance(if not already driving in that mode) to see the difference in pad wear and lap time? I've heard the rear brake function is eliminated in this mode which I would prefer in order to control wear. That doesn't help the front wear much unless the +R mode still uses the fronts a little for some reason which hypothetically would be eliminated with the pedal dance as well, which could hurt lap time.

I bring this up because a good friend of mine and I both owned FRS's when they first came out. I would always run in pedal dance/diag mode while he just pushed and held the traction button down for 10 seconds for the factories version of everything off.

I was almost always faster in lap time and my pad wear was literally half have much as his.

I know the type r is heavy but your pad wear is worrisome based on how much I think you track. Which is A LOT but not enough the warrant the brake wear I've seen you go through.

Also Ben I want to thank you for your videos on Youtube. If I pick up an FL5 I'll be rewatching most of them during my own parts install.

+R mode is the only mode that you can "fully disable" the VSA on the FK8 and FL5. The FL5 has a much stiffer suspension in +R mode that some users dislike on track. If using Comfort/Sport/Individual you'd need to use the pedal dance to disable the VSA since the long press won't work in these modes. I always run in +R mode and long press the VSA. I have yet to replace my rear brake pads, but have been through at least 3 sets of front pads. I never turned the traction control off on my FK8 because I was a newer driver and I was scared of how the car would behave without the traction control on. I burned through rear pads constantly on my FK8 because of this.

One of the biggest factors that is contributing to my front pad wear was my choice to leave my brake backing plates on (I didn't want to molest my BrAnD NeW CaR). I've used heat sensitive paint to determine how hot my rotors are getting, and was shocked to find that they were hitting +1400 degrees. This season I will be removing the brake backing plates, and expect this to alleviate the issue. The reason that I expect this is because I had removed the backing plates on my FK8 and would typically only burn through half a set of front pads on a track weekend.

I do not know the programming specifics of having the VSA fully off, and I've read that some believe that it may be active above 80+ MPH (This has not been my experience), and others say that it'll come alive during a total loss of control (This has not been my experience either). In my FK8 it was quite obvious that the traction control was working, you could feel it correcting you in high speed corners, and assisting with sharp turn in. In the FL5 with the VSA off I do not have this sensation, and I've had an unrecoverable spin that I feel VSA certainly could have caught. I have driven the FL5 on a wet track (it was raining and there were puddles all over the place). I left the VSA on for this, and it was active constantly. The nose would start to yaw and the brakes would kick in to correct the car back into a straight line, quite handily I might add.

I'd fully encourage your purchase. Having space for the kids is great, and having a car that transforms into a track car with the push of a button is an added bonus. A few modifications seem to be necessary to keep the cooling in check (especially for track addicts), but not necessarily as necessary for a novice driver, but as skills improve, the car will need to be improved right along with the rising skill level. Hope this helps!

 

[ExiledLakai]

+R mode is the only mode that you can "fully disable" the VSA on the FK8 and FL5. The FL5 has a much stiffer suspension in +R mode that some users dislike on track. If using Comfort/Sport/Individual you'd need to use the pedal dance to disable the VSA since the long press won't work in these modes. I always run in +R mode and long press the VSA. I have yet to replace my rear brake pads, but have been through at least 3 sets of front pads. I never turned the traction control off on my FK8 because I was a newer driver and I was scared of how the car would behave without the traction control on. I burned through rear pads constantly on my FK8 because of this.

One of the biggest factors that is contributing to my front pad wear was my choice to leave my brake backing plates on (I didn't want to molest my BrAnD NeW CaR). I've used heat sensitive paint to determine how hot my rotors are getting, and was shocked to find that they were hitting +1400 degrees. This season I will be removing the brake backing plates, and expect this to alleviate the issue. The reason that I expect this is because I had removed the backing plates on my FK8 and would typically only burn through half a set of front pads on a track weekend.

I do not know the programming specifics of having the VSA fully off, and I've read that some believe that it may be active above 80+ MPH (This has not been my experience), and others say that it'll come alive during a total loss of control (This has not been my experience either). In my FK8 it was quite obvious that the traction control was working, you could feel it correcting you in high speed corners, and assisting with sharp turn in. In the FL5 with the VSA off I do not have this sensation, and I've had an unrecoverable spin that I feel VSA certainly could have caught. I have driven the FL5 on a wet track (it was raining and there were puddles all over the place). I left the VSA on for this, and it was active constantly. The nose would start to yaw and the brakes would kick in to correct the car back into a straight line, quite handily I might add.

I'd fully encourage your purchase. Having space for the kids is great, and having a car that transforms into a track car with the push of a button is an added bonus. A few modifications seem to be necessary to keep the cooling in check (especially for track addicts), but not necessarily as necessary for a novice driver, but as skills improve, the car will need to be improved right along with the rising skill level. Hope this helps!

Thanks for your response. It cleared up a few my thoughts on the platform. I'll know in a week or so if I want to commit to selling the current selfish fun car and do the family fun thing.

 

[JMarcos]

Hi @PointByPatrol - by removing the bake backing plate, do you mean the brake dust shields? I'm just trying to make sure I don't mis-interpret your recommendation; thanks!

 

[PointByPatrol]

Hi @PointByPatrol - by removing the bake backing plate, do you mean the brake dust shields? I'm just trying to make sure I don't mis-interpret your recommendation; thanks!

Yes, the shield. It holds a surprising amount of heat against the rotor!

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