aozora

EXE weigh bridge day - Feb 13 2010


I was always curious to see how much the S2k weighed... and here are the results.

Estimated weight with full tank - 1240kg.
Massive props to Shaun from the EXE-Crew for organising the day so well

This is with spare tyre removed and an empty boot. But still had fire extinguisher... so considering the mods I've done, I'm happy with the weight unless I go all out on weight reduction with carbon fibre bits everywhere - I think the money could be better spent elsewhere.

Track day preparation...


After a lot of research - here's what I ended up using that's available here (the US guys use similar but Mobil 1 diff fluid).

Engine oil - Motul 300V 10w40
Gearbox oil - Redline MT90 gearbox oil 75w90 (2 bottles)
Differential oil - Motul 75w90 non-LSD oil

Finally had an alignment done at Traction Tyres in Rowville to the Amuse specifications provided to me (to see what the fuss is all about ) and the rear definitely felt more planted (it was quite tail happy before but controllable!).

Here's what I was running previously! I was quite shocked when I read the sheet... but not really. My own stupidity for not getting an alignment sooner was to blame really.

Rear...
Camber Left: -1.6
Camber Right: -2.3
Toe Left: +7.7
Toe Right: -3.5

Front...
Camber Left: -1.2
Camber Right: -1.2

I had bought a set of second hand ABS sensors from Japan but unfortunately they did not make it in time

aozora

Track day #3 - On the run track day - 8th March 2010

I was excited as about this day but... wet weather on the way up truly dampened my spirits (Get it? Damp? Ha..). The insane downpour the night before was very dangerous to drive in but... kept me awake
Getting closer to Benalla where I stayed for the night, I heard a tapping sound... thinking it was just water I didn't think much of it.

Until I found my precious CF lip lip was... severely damaged.
Nothing a cable tie can't fix


And so I went off for my first session... in the wet.



Basically ended up playing with Kenny (EXE-Crew) - was good fun. Although I couldn't put down any decent times it definitely gave me a good feel for the car (lock ups and sliding included).

As the day went on, the track dried up... and my times went down.
Low 1:50s... then high 1:47s... to 1:47.7 to... finish on a 1:47.5



My front lip lip clearly about done

To say the least, the day was frustrating somewhat... the car kept under-steering and to my own fault, kept locking up going too fast into some corners. The car just didn't carry as much speed as I like into the corners (I have a preference for slight over-steer on entry...). I played around with my lines, but considering my times were very consistent I was content but still hungry to go faster...



My girlfriend's shot of me after my last session (left early... didn't want to get stuck in traffic).

The drive home quite frankly - was absolutely stupid. Car was hydroplaning everywhere in the rain but again, kept me awake from the adrenaline (stupid I know).
Got home and decided to pull off the lip... but while under the car I noticed this...


Duh Ben. That's why you're understeering everywhere.
I didn't bother to check my tyres... these were promptly replaced with a second hand pair that Johnny from OTR helped me out with again (was very poor after that track day ).

My precious lip's last shot...

aozora

Post track day...

My ABS sensors finally arrived and I've yet to put them in...

One strange thing I noticed was a nice puddle forming in my boot. Then I remember Vu mentioning that when they did the respray, there were no tail light gaskets...


Ta da...


Also ordered some clips that I broke when stripping out the engine bay.

I've since installed the gaskets and used silicon to further ensure no leakages.
Result? Success. Boot is quite dry now Although the tail lights has some dirt in them so I'll have to remove them and clean it out... as well as realign and fit them properly which may require some drilling and metal work.

I also ended up selling my old APEXi N1 exhaust in light of news that my shipping container should be arriving soon!
It will be missed at WOT... the droning on the freeway... not so

Hmm maybe I should take it easier haha...
Might look into getting a Cusco roll cage because....

1. It's a daily/weekend car not a full race car
2. It won't cost me thousands
3. It looks somewhat standard

Only downside is the roll over protection is questionable... but I've seen photos to suggest that it does the job. Members on the S2ki forums call them crushco though... hmm...

Container arrival - 28/4/10

Container came in! And boy what a headache. Even though they were personal items, you can't declare used car parts as personnel effects (this makes custom clearance a lot simpler) and so... because they didn't fall under this category, a full customs declaration was required.

The items had to be listed and value listed for GST purposes. Not only that but Quarantine almost always wants to check out used car parts and potentially clean them. From what I've heard, it's a load of bs and just a way to make extra money. I heard of parts being sent over and cleaning was required but when they checked the item, they weren't cleaned at all??

Luckily in my case cleaning was not required (mostly body panels). I used a broker, paid for Quarantine inspection and GST on all the goods... for just landing in Australia cost just over a grand. If you do decide to bring things via partial container LCL, it's alot cheaper to split between friends

The process is quite long winded and I would somewhat recommend against doing it by yourself... request the assistance of an importer to do it for you. It's alot easier... trust me.





Unfortunately due to the cost of importing all the items and abandoning my Onevia project, by the time most of these arrived, I will probably end up selling them...! All except...



The Amuse R1 Titan.
2.3kgs of insane craftmanship. If you ever inspect an Amuse item in person you will be absolutely amazed at how much attention to detail and pride they take in their products. The welds are very clean and despite the weight, is quite solid (Duh Titanium).

UNFORTUNATELY... during the shipping, the tip was beaten a bit and I need to find somebody who specialises in Titanium to straighten it out.

I have still yet to put this on my car... but I can't wait as it brings my car one step closer to the "idol" S2000 that started it all

aozora

First defect - 6/5/10

While on my way to gym - weaving through traffic a bit I noticed a car doing the same. Not too worried as I wasn't speeding - I kept going.

That car pulled up behind me and as usual, followed for a minute before the lights came on. Normally police don't give S2000s a second look for defects and I hoped it was just a breath test/licence check. Wrong...



- My right indicator was blinking too fast
- Ride height (Not by much...)
- Tyres (JUST above the tread wear groove)

I think the Dandenong TMU were just short of meeting their revenue target this month as I saw a few more people pulled over around the area later.

Anyway...
Indicator was fixed (the wrong globe types were in both indicators but the wiring rearranged to accomodate) by replacing the items with coil type filament wedge globes.

Ride height is not a problem to change...

Tyres are to be organised soon...

Also found there was a windscreen chip - but have booked with Windscreens O'Brien to get this sorted through insurance free of charge.

And then obviously paying for the RWC...


ABS dramas continue...



Finally got around to replacing the sensor.
DTC code 13 shows that there's a short in the Front-Left wheel sensor. I replaced it... but the error still appears even after clearing it.

When I have more energy I'll measure the voltage at the ABS control unit and diagnose from there.


Long overdue update - 10/08/2010

Been a long time since I last updated...!

Car was returned back to stock.
See exciting pic.



But this wasn't enough to get RWC...
- Needed to put guard liners back in
- Wheel studs were sticking out and were supposedly a road hazard (I think if you're getting that close to the wheel, you're kinda already screwed)
- I bought brand new Federal 595S tyres with thanks to Vu... 255/40/17s all around... but wheels were also "sticking out" so that ended up being a waste.
- Ride height was still too low even after multiple adjustment attempts, ended up biting the bullet and putting stock suspension back in.
- Gauges were a safety hazard?
- Apparently the different sizes of my tyres weren't road worthy... even though they were the factory Honda recommendations. Showed the guy the manual and that was all good...

Drove around stock for a while but... couldn't hack it and things changed.... obviously taking measures to reduce what I could be defected for...

Ordered some stickers in from Honda as after the car was resprayed, they were never replaced.




Nothing all that exciting...

Went up to Lake Mountain and took this pic.



Tip to low cars... don't take the small windy roads with uneven road surfaces =\

After some deliberation and impulse ordering... I got a mail order Bride...



Hehe. In light of some of the things I wanted to do to the S2000, I also picked up a EG5 Civic Si for 1.1k unregistered off ebay to use as a daily. Pics and more things to come...

aozora

Autosalon 2010

I know I know... but I've always wanted to do it ahha.
So here comes the rice...

AP2 headlights!


Front bar and bonnet getting resprayed... (Gf's sister's cat thought my bonnet was so comfy that it would stretch with claws out...)



Looking a bit naked... (Thanks again to Vu/DT Panels for letting me steal his tools during this install )


Mounting the old HID ballasts to the new headlights.


New headlights mounted and new HIDs fitted.



Flat JDM amber side indicators...


Amuse still not installed but...!


Downforce rear canards... for AP2 but made to fit AP1


Amuse exhaust installed... which was actually really annoying because it was so tightly fit to the chassis, it was difficult to get the exhaust hangers on it :| But very good fitment.


Fitted!


Sexy Bride Stradia Sport installed.


Rear canards fitted... imo completes the side step thingy



Absolutely fubared cf front lip... refitted with a million screws


And finally.... ta da!

aozora

Track day preparation...

Whiteline front swaybar. Increase stiffness of +50%?
AP1s are quite well known for their oversteer habits. With a stiffer front swaybar hopefully this evens out.


Also while installing found something bad... whoops?

The other side was fine, but looks like they're just getting old and maybe I should raise the car a bit <_<

Whiteline front swaybar installed...


RANT.
I use to be a big fan of Whiteline products until I had some issues with an adjustable front swaybar for my S13 with the links constantly "clicking"/knocking against the mounts. Called up Whiteline and their only solution was to get the "heavy duty" links. Nice marketing. But that was the only problem so not huge, just had to keep an eye on it every now and then.

Fast forward 2-3 years and I bought this sway bar.
Trying to install it...
- One of the Swaybar bush mounts were off by 3-4mm so I spent a good hour or so bashing it into alignment with the mounting holes.
- BOTH control arm to swaybar link holes were under sized. Spent over another hour just filing it down so I could get the link to fit through.
I don't know if their swaybars are still made here or in China... I'm suspecting the later or they've just hired a few monkeys to do their work.
Fairly disappointing... didn't bother complaining/returning it because I had taken so much stuff off and it was too close to the track day to wait again for potentially another botched kit.

In other news - a week later I find out Eibach make adjustable swaybars for the S2000. Fml.

Not track worthy but...

Single exhaust cap on special from the US!

Installed pic...


Did an oil change and a few checks here and there...

aozora

Track day #4 - EXE event


Props to Vyets for a mad shot.

Only managed a 1:47.9 for the day. Was fairly dissapointed... but the car itself felt a lot more manageable.
I'm putting down the time difference to the tyres... was using Advan AD07s last track day to the belts and was constantly hammering the times down with each session.
This time was using Federal 595s, although wider (255/40/17), just did not seem to be able to carry the same sort of speed. To do some proper analysis, I think Racechrono would be helpful... oh and obviously some better tyres.

Did make a slight alignment change to my preference, neutral toe in front, and slightly less camber all around which may have been a bad choice...

Of course, awesome day by EXE as usual. Look forward to the next one with little patience...

aozora

Some ricey things...

My take 2 daily!

...which has been sitting for most of it's life.
EG5 Si which I picked up for about 1k unregistered. Good buy... but had a buckled rim and a few small things here and there needing a fix.
But came with...
- Remote central locking/alarm
- EK4 VTiR rims (Since changed to DC2 rims because of an unrepairable buckle)
- Old school Alpine headunit
- Recently tinted!

Now to get off my @ss and get it registered...

After a talk with Vyets and complaining that Enkei don't sell rim stickers... I got sent an eBay link for... these.


While not liking Enkei's RPF1 center cap offering, I did some research and found that Honda Accord center caps fit the Enkeis (They're both Enkei rims after all...)


Sanded them back and sprayed them with "Blaze Blue" spray can paint from Autobarnz bro.


And the final product...


Color of the center cap is slightly off but close enough.


Roll-bar!
While the exchange rate was good, Vyets and I took advantage of this and ordered roll bars from the US. Specially Hard Dog from Bethania Garage (Yes I know... the name...).
Very awesome finish/build quality from initial inspection. Still have yet to install it.



Again this had to be shipped via Air. And again.... import is a b!tch. You would've thought I would learn from my previous experience.
The declared value was under 1k which technically makes it GST exempt/import tax free. But no. The value/exchange rate at the time of purchase is no longer valid. In order to basically make more money, the Australian government decided that at the time it LANDS, the current exchange rate applies. This bumped the value of the roll bars JUST over the 1k mark and cost us a good couple of hundred in tax. F%&*'s sake.

In other news, I bought ANOTHER set of ABS sensors cheap from Japan and still have to install/test.
I did some testing on all the wiring and there are no loose connections/shortages etc. It all points to the sensor so fingers crossed... failing all this - I'm just going to order a new one.

aozora

No track day for you...

Due to travel commitments I can't make the next EXE track day
So... in the mean time, like always... I've been gathering small bits and pieces.



Ordered alot of small bits and pieces from the US. Note: US Honda prices are MUCH cheaper. Banjo bolt quote from Aus = $60 each. US Price = $12 each. Go figure.

http://www.cflhonda.com also posts directly to Australia where as most US dealers do not. (Update did... post. But no longer. American Honda have banned international shipping from the US...)

The banjo bolts I ordered were actually to address an issue in early F20C engines with the oil squirters being undersized and often causing oil starvation in the head due to high RPM use. So the engine could have them already but also could not...
Amongst the parts, also ordered GPW touch up paint (mainly for the front lip cause it scrapes alot ) which Australia Honda says is no longer being made??
Some rear licence plate light housing because thanks to the workshop who resprayed the original red rear bumper... they did not prep it properly and ended up spraying the clear plastic. Fail.
There's also a few gaskets and bulb plugs for the AP2 headlight conversion.



Where's the Civic?
Sold it. Haha and bought this as a daily. Very similar price, but comes with registration, SR20 manual and is more importantly... rwd Looks like I have trouble keeping away from Silvias...


Ta da... Ikeya formula rear toe arms.



Very well made. The AP1 and to a lesser extent AP2, suffers from bumpsteer when the car is lowered. Essentially as the ride height changes, so does the toe. However due to the suspension geometry - once lowered, the dynamic toe changes increase drastically.
The rear toe arms are to address rear end uneasiness over bumps/toe change. But unfortunately I don't have the tool to remove the original toe arms so these will sit in my goodies bucket until then...


Because I was beginning to see very very slight wear on the edge of the seat, I ordered these protectors. Actually kinda like the red stiching and "leather" look.



Sent my coil-overs off to Bilstein in NSW for a rebuild as I could really feel the lack of dampening over bumps which made for an uneasy ride.
You can see in the pic, new shaft wipers but other than a slight clean - exactly the same. A dyno graph was also included which was good to see.


Also requested new bump stops and dust boot covers (due to the street driving). They didn't include this originally when they sent me back the coils and took quite a number of phone calls to get this out to me as it was in the original quote but they eventually couriered it my way... being a special build from Japan they don't fit exactly as the body size is considerably bigger than the PSS9 coils that Bilstein offer off the shelf.

Small note: Larger bump stops were put in the front and small ones in the rear.


Reassembled...! Took me a bit of mucking around as the dust covers didn't fit (I believe these are PSS9 dust covers) but eventually got it all fitting.



What am I doing in the engine bay? Fixing the ABS!
Swapped it out with the replacement sensor I got from Japan in my last update... and all working

Current feel?
Awesome! Although still hard, the car still absorbs bumps very well, very confidence inspiring and body weight transfer is managed smoothly... once the rear toe arms are installed and new tyres bought - hopefully I can bring those times down

ABS also works! The replacement sensor I got originally was faulty... such bad luck and caused hours of wiring testing etc etc... a quick sprint and slam on the brakes brings back that foot massage I hadn't felt in a very long time

aozora

More track day preparation... - July 2011
It's been a very long time since I've updated this but better late than never.

Continuing where I last left off, tyres were next up and after some quick research through the US forums - Hankook RS3s were the item to go for.


All up costed me under $800 landed. BUT a huge delay at Customs. No contact made with myself but Tirerack believes they were confirming the value of them... so they could bleed some money out of me. Scum.

Initial impressions?
Awesome. To be honest, I've never bought grippy tyres brand new... and I can see what I've been missing out on. Absolutely awesome in the dry but the tread pattern limits their ability to channel water effectively... so not as grippy in the wet...


New kicks to go with my new tread...

Along with other things going on in my life... it was time for a make over.
The carbon fibre bits just weren't working for me and in the back of my mind, a bit much imo. So I pulled them off and went for a more subtle yet aggressive OEM look.



At the same time... also sold my other daily and got a new one! Haha

Needless to say this car also didn't stay in my possession long... because ultimately, I kept going back to the S2k to drive daily. Silly no? I was also fearful of the appetite the Police have for turbo cars... and I do not have time anymore to go clearing defects for fun.


Part 1 of a cleaner look... OEM sidestrakes installed. About $350 landed from the US. I think Honda Australia wanted $500-600? That's how ridiculous it can be trying to mod a car in Australia.

...more Amuse!


Part 2 - Amuse R1 front bar (Genuine ). To further my obsession with Amuse, I impulsively ordered the front bar about 6 months earlier (This would have been about June/July 2011 when it finally arrived).
Impressions? Awesome as usual... fitted nicely but did crack in a few places (very tiny).


More overnight parts from Japan... (not so overnight, apparently the fastest EMS can get it out is 4 days. DHL, 3 days at a much more exorbant cost - F&F, you lied to me again)

And fitted...?

For those in Melbourne, remember that period of insane rain/storms we had around September?

Here's my car before it...

Being an idiot, I thought it would be fun it drive in torrential rain (I still don't regret it )... when I noticed my Water temp was behaving very erratically. Jumping from 80 to 100... I quickly pulled into the Glen underground car park only to hear hissing... couldn't quite figure out where it was but could definitely see coolant leaking.

Daylight revealed the following...

Vu brought sense to the situation that freezing cold water on the outside, boiling hot water on the inside would only cause things to crack... and sure enough it did. Who's brilliant idea was it to use plastic for end tanks anyway?
A quick phone call and some reluctant handing over of cash to Johnny from OTR saw the below Koyo aluminium dual core radiator (apparently the last one in Aus for an S2000 =P).


Impressions? Water temps seem a lot more stable but in peak hour traffic, it still activates the fans but I guess that's expected.
The install itself was easy... BUT....

- K&N intake box had to be modified (aka bent out of anger)
- A Nissan radiator cap had to be used. Awesome Koyo... make me spend over $500 and you're too tight to provide a radiator cap. Vu gave me a spare one he had and I was set... eventually I ended up buying my own though!
- I now have a useless Honda radiator cap sitting about...