*The FL5 Track Junkie Thread*

[Rexpelagi]

I was reviewing my tires in the garage and thought I'd share - seems like I'm moving in a good direction towards front tire life.

Set 1 - 8 Sessions on the front at CMP, ~-3.9° camber, ~375whp/tq (obviously uneven wear and all the cords showing on the inside shoulder):

Set 2 - 8 sessions on the rear at CMP, effectively 1 session on the front at RAtl, 8 sessions on the front at GingerMan, -2.75° front camber, ~400whp/tq (just starting to wear through the inside shoulder, but uneven wear):

Set 3 - 8 sessions on the front at Mid-Ohio, -2.75° front camber, no front bar, ~400whp/tq (more-even wear across the tread):

Surface can definitely play a factor but it's encouraging to not burn through a set of fronts in one event - I probably won't use the Mid-Ohio set for competition necessarily but they definitely have some track days left in them at a minimum.

 

[Rfpauly]

I am hoping for some help getting my 2025 FL5 dialed in for track days. My car is stock except for Honda forged 19" wheels, Toyo R888R tires, Castrol SRF brake fluid, and pins removed from the front struts, leaving 1.6 negative camber and zero toe.

I have now done four track days with a total of approximately six hours of track time at Sears Point, Willow Springs and Laguna Seca. I had no brake problems until this past Sunday at Laguna Seca. I would guess that was because there are only a couple of hard braking zones at Sears Point and at Willow Springs, and there is plenty of cooling time in between them, but there are four at Laguna Seca, two of which come within ten seconds of each other.

On Sunday, the "Brake System" warning light came on halfway through each session. I didn't notice any softening of the pedal or other problems, so I kept going (at 73 years old, you don't have that much to lose), but after the last session, when I pushed the hardest (see lap times below), smoke was pouring out of the front brakes when I pulled into the paddock, even after one half of a cool down lap (they throw the checkered flag at the Corkscrew so you don't get a full cool down lap). I dove around the paddock slowly for a couple of minutes and the smoke stopped, and the brakes feel fine now.

Should I be worried about the "Brake System" warning light, or is it probably just overheated fluid/pads?

Are there any brake pads that will stand up to track use, but still be OK for the street? I am not mechanically inclined and not up to swapping pads for track weekends.

One last question: My oil temperature went as high as 273 degrees. Can I continue running like that, or will it damage the engine?

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

 

[Rhorn]

The brake system light is completely normal, I dont think the sensor recognizes that you have DOT4 high temp brake fluid so its still calibrated for the stock DOT3 fluid

 

[StingertimeNC]

I am hoping for some help getting my 2025 FL5 dialed in for track days. My car is stock except for Honda forged 19" wheels, Toyo R888R tires, Castrol SRF brake fluid, and pins removed from the front struts, leaving 1.6 negative camber and zero toe.

I have now done four track days with a total of approximately six hours of track time at Sears Point, Willow Springs and Laguna Seca. I had no brake problems until this past Sunday at Laguna Seca. I would guess that was because there are only a couple of hard braking zones at Sears Point and at Willow Springs, and there is plenty of cooling time in between them, but there are four at Laguna Seca, two of which come within ten seconds of each other.

On Sunday, the "Brake System" warning light came on halfway through each session. I didn't notice any softening of the pedal or other problems, so I kept going (at 73 years old, you don't have that much to lose), but after the last session, when I pushed the hardest (see lap times below), smoke was pouring out of the front brakes when I pulled into the paddock, even after one half of a cool down lap (they throw the checkered flag at the Corkscrew so you don't get a full cool down lap). I dove around the paddock slowly for a couple of minutes and the smoke stopped, and the brakes feel fine now.

Should I be worried about the "Brake System" warning light, or is it probably just overheated fluid/pads?

Are there any brake pads that will stand up to track use, but still be OK for the street? I am 73 years old and not mechanically inclined and not up to swapping pads for track weekends.

One last question: My oil temperature went as high as 273 degrees. Can I continue running like that, or will it damage the engine?

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

If you can put up with the occasional squeak and some extra dust on the street, the Paragon R5 fronts and P3 rear pads should do the trick on the street and at the track.

 

[Rfpauly]

Thank you Stingertime.

If you can put up with the occasional squeak and some extra dust on the street, the Paragon R5 fronts and P3 rear pads should do the trick on the street and at the track.

 

[Rfpauly]

The brake system light is completely normal, I dont think the sensor recognizes that you have DOT4 high temp brake fluid so its still calibrated for the stock DOT3 fluid

Thank you Rhorn. That's a relief!

 

[m3bs]

Rfpauly, I applaud you for getting the car on track at 73. I’m a couple of years behind, and it’s not getting any easier….

From what I’ve been able to learn, there is no temperature sensor for the brakes. Honda apparently uses some kind of algorithm to trigger the brake system warning. As to your question about pads, I’m using Ferodo DS3.12 for street and track. The only issue I’ve found is that there is so much cold bite, you have to be careful with brake application. I hate events that use that mid-lap checker that reduces cool down opportunity. I usually try to do a full cooldown lap by anticipating the end of each session.

Sadly, the oil temp is also a calculated value, not measured. I reached my comfort level at 265 and backed off for a lap. I would definitely run a higher viscosity oil than the factory fill, if you haven’t done that already. I’m currently running the Motul V300 0W-30. How hot is too hot? I suspect even the Honda engineers don’t agree on that….. That said, I haven’t seen many reports of engine damage on stock motors.

 

[Rfpauly]

Rfpauly, I applaud you for getting the car on track at 73. I’m a couple of years behind, and it’s not getting any easier….

From what I’ve been able to learn, there is no temperature sensor for the brakes. Honda apparently uses some kind of algorithm to trigger the brake system warning. As to your question about pads, I’m using Ferodo DS3.12 for street and track. The only issue I’ve found is that there is so much cold bite, you have to be careful with brake application. I hate events that use that mid-lap checker that reduces cool down opportunity. I usually try to do a full cooldown lap by anticipating the end of each session.

Sadly, the oil temp is also a calculated value, not measured. I reached my comfort level at 265 and backed off for a lap. I would definitely run a higher viscosity oil than the factory fill, if you haven’t done that already. I’m currently running the Motul V300 0W-30. How hot is too hot? I suspect even the Honda engineers don’t agree on that….. That said, I haven’t seen many reports of engine damage on stock motors.

Thank you for all of the great info m3bs. I really appreciate you taking the time for me.

 

[Rexpelagi]

If you can put up with the occasional squeak and some extra dust on the street, the Paragon R5 fronts and P3 rear pads should do the trick on the street and at the track.

+1 on this, although I just run R5 front/rear - they seem to be great pads.

 

[Rfpauly]

+1 on this, although I just run R5 front/rear - they seem to be great pads.

Thank you Rexpelagi.

 

[Club Version]

Just dropping this here...



Car was flawless this past weekend, only hiccup was swapping out a fresh set of front pads during the lunch break. The previous R5's were on their last leg.

 

[Rfpauly]

I just took a close look at my Toyo R888R tires after 3 track days and a 300 mile drive home and noticed something unusual on the inner tread of the rear tires. It looks like the rubber melted, but the fronts do not show this and I am pretty sure that they got a lot hotter than the rears, taking the brunt of braking, accelerating and turning. The rear alignment settings are stock. Has anyone else seen anything like this?

 

[MooMoo]

I just took a close look at my Toyo R888R tires after 3 track days and a 300 mile drive home and noticed something unusual on the inner tread of the rear tires. It looks like the rubber melted, but the fronts do not show this and I am pretty sure that they got a lot hotter than the rears, taking the brunt of braking, accelerating and turning. The rear alignment settings are stock. Has anyone else seen anything like this?

this is what they call OPR (other peoples rubber), basically you picked up other peoples tires as your tires got super hot, totally normal and usually always in the back because the fronts scrub off as they have to do twice the work

 

[Rfpauly]

this is what they call OPR (other peoples rubber), basically you picked up other peoples tires as your tires got super hot, totally normal and usually always in the back because the fronts scrub off as they have to do twice the work

Thank you. Do I need to try to cut it off, or should it wipe itself off at speed?

 

[MooMoo]

Thank you. Do I need to try to cut it off, or should it wipe itself off at speed?

They are a huge pain to remove since they are now cold. There is a machine that removes em. Best way to get rid of them is to swap wheels back to front and they will scrub off.

Sponsored