continued from above - last one
MCS Internal Singles (TT1), Coilover Shocks for S197 Mustang:
http://www.vorshlag.com/product_info...roducts_id=582
I won't bore you with
too much "salesy stuff" here, as you can go to the link above to learn more about these singles. But I gotta mention a few things. MCS shocks are all built and assembled in the USA, and made from parts sourced from Western Europe or the USA. Very robustly built, with a feature that allows the single adjustables to be converted to double or triple adjustables with remotes, or even double-adjustable "internal" shocks, with just some parts changes (housings are interchangeable). This makes for a truly upgradable shock family. Vorshlag is
stocking several car models in the MCS TT1 shocks and has ordered the new TT2 models for a few cars as well. You can read more about the various shock brands and models we sell here on our Vorshlag Shock Page, linked on our website.
Further Mustang Development
We have some more changes in store for our 2011 GT, as I have hinted at on Facebook and in some forum posts. Our current tire package barely fits the OEM fender contours, but I want more mechanical grip for this high weight / high power package we run in TT3 (we are at the higher end of the class 9.5:1 weight to power ratio). The 315/30/18 is a bit squeezed on the 18x11" front but fits very well, and is slightly stretched on the 18x12" rear. Ideally I'd like to have more tire width.
The Hoosier 315mm front, 345mm rear looks like it fits, but it rubbed terribly out back
The goal is to use the 335/30/18 front and 345/34/18 rear. I've tried the 345 Hoosier on the rear before, on the 18x12" rear wheels we have now (see above), but it rubbed inside and outside. Now this was before we had the Watts Link and the Whiteline rerouted swaybar, so those later updates might
help out back. But up front, we are simply out of "fender real estate". The front 18x11's already poke out just a hair... and there's not 3mm of inside wheel room left, and we already run -3.5° of camber up front to help with tire to fender clearance.
We also want to to be able to run two tire compounds in a given NASA TT weekend, with the harder Hoosier R6 used for a majority of the laps for a given weekend (to learn the track, get base settings dialed in, just to "have more fun" and get more seat time!) and then switch to the A6 tires for one magic lap per day... but
only if needed. Remember that TT Arms Race I talked about in my last post? We need to get away from running on the A6 compound. Right now we're just not getting many laps out of a set of A6 tires, but they are worth some extra time - once you know the track. These super short lived tires are a poor choice for
learning a new track or to test with, as they fall off quickly. To get more laps we've switched to a 315/30/18 Hoosier
R6. That's the set that arrived today, and what we will use at Hallett...
To be able to run both compounds in the same day without a frantic and expensive trackside tire dismount/mount/balance, we've ordered another set of 18x12" Forgestar F14s. They were able to make them in less than a week (they like us!) and we are having them powder coated in Dallas, to make our June 22nd event deadline. We ordered 18x12" wheels for the front, too. Yes, all of the extra width is outboard, so this will widen our front track as well as make the tires "poke" out past the fenders by a huge amount.
This requires another solution: front flares. And wider front bumper cover. We're going to try to get as much of this done before Hallett as we can, then finish the other front aero mods we have planned over the summer (there aren't any NASA Texas events in July-August). Once these tires are gone we'll order up the 335F/345 rear, and likely flare the rear fenders as well. Shh... don't tell Amy, who doesn't want us to cut the rear fenders! The front fenders can un-bolt so we can "save" her OEM front bumper cover and front fenders. There's a lot more in store, but I don't want to spoil all of the surprises.
Above are the weights for the GT500 rear 13.77" dia rotor (left) and caliper (right)
The rear brakes on the 2011 GT are getting upgraded. We're going from the OEM 11.81" diameter rear rotors to the 13.77" rears (and calipers and brackets) from the 2013-14 GT500. Hopefully this will add a little more brake bite. We will test it at Hallett and report back. We also have some mods planned for my black 2013 GT, which just came back from the paint shop (Heritage Collision in Sherman, TX). All of the hail damage that came on this car is now repaired, and it looks 100% perfect. Every panel was touched, and the aluminum hood had to be repainted, but you can't tell anything was ever dinged before. The same set of D-Force 18x10" wheels we used on this car briefly are going back on with some 295mm street tires, then we're going to upgrade the wimpy 13.2" front brakes to 14" Brembos (see below), using a kit we're putting together (see below) with the best parts we can source and/or make.
Upcoming Vorshlag S197 front brake upgrade kit, shown with the unmodified OEM dust shields
This front brake upgrade kit will consist of new OEM Ford Brembo calipers, a choice of Carbotech brake pads, Vorshlag brake lines, Centric 14" rotors, Vorshlag brake duct/backing plates made for 3" brake hose (using the proper tubing size for actual 3" hose, so you don't have to cut it open the hose - like on most kits - not yet shown), and all new OEM bolts and mounting hardware. Will post up more when that kit is done.
That's a 2011+ Mustang Brembo 4 piston caliper next to a Gen I Cadillac CTS-V Brembo 4 piston caliper. Massive difference in size and weight. Just wanted to show that "not all 4 piston Brembos are the same", and that the OEM 4 piston caliper used on the S197 Mustang is
one big mutha! The added size and heft (8 pounds vs 5 pounds) give the Mustang caliper more stability, more heat capacity, and uses both larger pistons and a larger brake pad. The "V" caliper is going on a 4th gen Camaro in our shop, and it just happened to be here for comparison at the same time as the Mustang unit. These are both dwarfed by the 6-piston Gen II CTS-V caliper we have coming for another project, though.
As a teaser, here's the list of new Vorshlag products for the S197 that are currently in development:
- 14" Brembo Front brake upgrade kit with cooling ducts
- 14" GT500 Rear brake upgrade kit
- A proper oil/air seperator kit for the S197 5.0L Coyote
- A diff fluid catch can kit for 8.8" S197 Mustangs
- A bolt-in S197 seat bracket with slider and harness mounts for various Cobra side-mount seats
- Tremec Magnum XL 6-spd swap kit for S197 5.0L Coyote
- Production run of stainless braided/Teflon lined/Brake Quip sourced, better brake flex lines for the S197
Will talk more about each item as it is completed and released.
Next Events?
The next NASA Time Trial event scheduled for the 2011 is at
Hallett in Oklahoma June 22-23. Then the following Saturday the 29th we have
another Five Star Ford ECR Track Day planned, where Amy is driving the 2011 and I
should be driving the 2013 GT. Trying to continue our testing that we've done at this track using the 2013 GT, where we went from "nearly bone stock" (just on 18x10" wheels and 295/35/18 NT-05s) and ran a 2:07, then added AST double adjustable coilovers (4200RR) and some Carbotech pads and dropped a whopping 4 seconds to run 2:03 laps... on the exact same wheels and tires. Now we'll have the same suspension and tires but just an upgrade to the 14" Brembos + ducting... will be interesting to see if we can go any quicker, or if this just allows more hot laps before we have brake fade. I will post up the results after June 29th. The 2013 GT will likely be sold immediately following that ECR event, which I will post about here, of course.
This update already went way too long, so that's all for now...