Tracking a Scuderia

[HamidQ]

Having just tracked my Scud for the first time, I was hoping for some advice from fellow PHers on this subject. How much value will I wipe off my car per track day?

Only joking, I don't give a monkeys about this;)

I was after some advise on the brakes specifically. I have looked at some of the other forums and have seen lots of different suggestions ranging from doing nothing to a full swap out for steel brakes. I think I will do 4-6 track days a year and am tending towards changing the brake fluid to one more suited to track use and maybe some harder pads but using the standard ceramics. I am prepared to adjust my driving style on the road to accommodate any changes the aforementioned will introduce.

Any suggestions will be gladly received and I will happily report back any changes I make along with the corresponding results to help others out. It seems criminal not to take such a beastie on the track and allow it to stretch its legs, not to mention what an absolute blast the car is when used in this manner.

[GRBF430F1]

If you have actually driven it let alone on a track its now worthless. Surprised its not fallen apart into a heap of parts

[Simon T]

If it uses standard brake fluid then changing to a higher boiling point race fluid will certainly help the pedal feel once the brakes warm up. Might be worth talking to a dealer or team who raced them?

Simon

[Slickhillsy]

Simon T said:

If it uses standard brake fluid then changing to a higher boiling point race fluid will certainly help the pedal feel once the brakes warm up. Might be worth talking to a dealer or team who raced them?

Simon

What would be the consequences of running this type of fluid on the road as well?

[Hollowpockets]

The best fluid I have used on my cars (including road and race car) is Motul RBF660. Buy a few packs off eBay can save quite a bit of money over the shop prices!

[Simon T]

Slickhillsy said:

Simon T said:

If it uses standard brake fluid then changing to a higher boiling point race fluid will certainly help the pedal feel once the brakes warm up. Might be worth talking to a dealer or team who raced them?

Simon

What would be the consequences of running this type of fluid on the road as well?

Assuming its ok to use in the braking system then no negatives, it just costs a lot more

[Simon T]

Slickhillsy said:

Simon T said:

If it uses standard brake fluid then changing to a higher boiling point race fluid will certainly help the pedal feel once the brakes warm up. Might be worth talking to a dealer or team who raced them?

Simon

What would be the consequences of running this type of fluid on the road as well?

Assuming its ok to use in the braking system then no negatives, it just costs a lot more

[F355GTS]

You should't need to change the fluid as you would on a Steel setup. Your issue will be disc and pad wear, the discs loose about 10% -12% of their life on a fast track day, pads around 15% so you'll be replacing them annually based on your numbers. Pads & discs are around £13.5k inc Vat and fitting

Admittedly my numbers are based on a 599 but they won't be much different for the Scuderia unless you drive like Miss Daisy

[Slickhillsy]

F355GTS said:

You should't need to change the fluid as you would on a Steel setup. Your issue will be disc and pad wear, the discs loose about 10% -12% of their life on a fast track day, pads around 15% so you'll be replacing them annually based on your numbers. Pads & discs are around £13.5k inc Vat and fitting

Admittedly my numbers are based on a 599 but they won't be much different for the Scuderia unless you drive like Miss Daisy

Has there never been an aftermarket 'cheaper' alternative to Factory Ceramic's?

[HamidQ]

Thanks for all the replies. My local workshop suggested a change in brake fluid to a racing fluid in line with a couple of the suggestions. I think i will do this first while I consider the options.

My driving style on track is more Dubai Taxi Driver (flat out then heavy on the brakes) than Miss Daisy so I will explore brake pad and/or disk options as there appear to be few out there and will post my findings.

[Simon T]

F355GTS said:

You should't need to change the fluid as you would on a Steel setup. Your issue will be disc and pad wear, the discs loose about 10% -12% of their life on a fast track day, pads around 15% so you'll be replacing them annually based on your numbers. Pads & discs are around £13.5k inc Vat and fitting

Admittedly my numbers are based on a 599 but they won't be much different for the Scuderia unless you drive like Miss Daisy

change to steel disks, big six pot callipers, race pads, steel lines and good fluid that will work.

http://www.larkspeed.com/index.pl?p=78GT9526A&...

The big challenge is usually keeping the brake temps down with steel disks, take a look the brake cooling and see if you can help the airflow in any way

Or don't brake

Edited by Simon T on Tuesday 10th February 20:43

[F355GTS]

If you change to steel the CCM wear indicator will still register use. I'm told the info is stored in the instrument binnacle

[rosino]

Surface transforms should be your replacement discs especially as they can be refurbished easily.

[red griff roger]

Some good quality Dot 5.1 fluid is a must, or you will boil the ordinary stuff. You will know when you have done it - pedal to the metal, and usually when you least want it. Change to a set of fast road pads (e.g. Ferodo DS 2500, or EBC Yellow Stuff). That will work fine, for track use you are talking about, and is OK for road. Keep checking the pad wear - you can get through a set quite quickly.

Have fun.

[F355GTS]

Slickhillsy said:

F355GTS said:

You should't need to change the fluid as you would on a Steel setup. Your issue will be disc and pad wear, the discs loose about 10% -12% of their life on a fast track day, pads around 15% so you'll be replacing them annually based on your numbers. Pads & discs are around £13.5k inc Vat and fitting

Admittedly my numbers are based on a 599 but they won't be much different for the Scuderia unless you drive like Miss Daisy

Has there never been an aftermarket 'cheaper' alternative to Factory Ceramic's?

You can get the discs refurbed in Germany but Ferrari will not release the unique password code to reset the wear counter

[ted 191]

Buy a £20k track car, more fun and faster than a scud on track.

[kbooker]

Plenty of cheap cars will lap quicker than a Scud but more fun?.....hmmmmm not sure about that

[keith jecks]

There is a reason that many people on this forum also have Caterhams for track use... They are faster and more fun. Oh yes, and the track running costs are a fraction of the Ferrari. e.g. if you wipe off the front end on a Caterham you are looking at a £3,000 bill. I bet replacing the bumper on my Ferrari would cost more than that!

[NEFOC]

It's only a track day. Much better to use it on the track then overdo it on the road. We aren't racing on a Trackday so no reason for any true expense. If you bin it on a Trackday youve probably saved yourself a fortune on the damage you would have caused on the road.

[HamidQ]

Yeah, I thought about buying a track car and a Caterham did spring to mind...but how could I drive the Scud like it should be driven? Will keep tracking the Scud but I dont discount buying a cheaper car to go alongside it. Cayman GT4 anyone?