CHEAP Traction Help for FWD Guys

[jacobevan611]

Kind of random but why is everyone obsessed with going fast in a straight line?

 

[knochgoon24]

Something that can really help you FWD guys is some form of gear dependent boost control, especially with turbo's that really hit hard.

 

[DeceptivePerfor]

Something to help a little for traction is to run Nitto 555s. For street tires these things are sticky and, they still last. I have a set on my Mustang GT. I take it to the track, they like heat. They hook better than any street tire I have found. They are not going to be as sticky as a drag radial of course. But, Nitto makes a nice tire.

 

[toofast82]

Something that can really help you FWD guys is some form of gear dependent boost control, especially with turbo's that really hit hard.

Yep, that should help some.
An example would be on an SRT, if you use the stock setup and pcm controlled boost. The pcm limits boost in first and part of second(~35mph) to help with traction.
You'll see when you put an aftermarket actuator on the turbo and NO pcm boost, you just murder the tires in 1st/2nd.

I also see a lot of guys hitting pretty good 60's on slicks with a 2step(stutterbox) at around 1.67-1.85sec

Go to about 1:45+ and you'll see an SRT hit a 1.63 60"
stock suspension and lowering springs
YouTube - tonydsrt4 stock turbo run [email protected]

 

[BLINKY619]

i think having a turbo that lags a little will help too, do to the fact that you wont spin out very often...!!! and quickly like sometimes i do... trust me it sucks big time

 

[mannyssj13]

Got some pictures on where you put the booster at? If not where did u put the rear and fronts at thinking about getting it for my car and was wondering where to place them.

 

[habitatguy187]

Something that can really help you FWD guys is some form of gear dependent boost control, especially with turbo's that really hit hard.

I made a dual stage controller using the stock bcs like shown here. Low boost stays right at 15psi, took it to the track after I did this and it only helped my 60' by .1, and I ran 15 passes total that night. But I think my tires just weren't good enough with their 420 treadwear rating.

Something to help a little for traction is to run Nitto 555s. For street tires these things are sticky and, they still last. I have a set on my Mustang GT. I take it to the track, they like heat. They hook better than any street tire I have found. They are not going to be as sticky as a drag radial of course. But, Nitto makes a nice tire.

I just ordered 2 new tires and after reading reviews of the nitto 555s I decided to pass. They're probably good if you have to DD your car but the treadwear rating is too high for my taste since I should only put about 5-10k miles a year on my car now. I went with some Kumho's with a 320 treadwear rating. On sale from tirerack for $65 a piece!

Got some pictures on where you put the booster at? If not where did u put the rear and fronts at thinking about getting it for my car and was wondering where to place them.

I'll get some soon.

 

[Diamondrev]

yes pictures please! Im going to attempt this too.

just to clear it up.. you put the big ones on the rear coils? 2 per coil. on opposite ends of each other? Side to side or front to back? Top or bottom of the springs?

 

[DeceptivePerfor]

Let us know what Kumhos you purchased and give us a review after a few miles and maybe drag trips.

 

[habitatguy187]

just to clear it up.. you put the big ones on the rear coils? 2 per coil. on opposite ends of each other? Side to side or front to back? Top or bottom of the springs?

I put both the big ones and the small ones in the rear springs, opposite of each other. I'll get pics soon guys I promise but it's been raining all day here and I don't want to melt.

Let us know what Kumhos you purchased and give us a review after a few miles and maybe drag trips.

Got these ones - Kumho Ecsta SPT , SPT's. "Ultra High Performance Summer", 320 treadwear rating, $65 a pop right now, says it's "closeout pricing" and that they only have 7 left, and check out this review.

My Porsche is a fairly heavy (3505 lb) all-wheel drive car with 444 HP. I mounted the new Kumho SPTs on spare wheels intended only for the track (Miller Motorsport Park has a 2/3 mile front straight; I've managed 145 mph there, so far. I'll go faster). I haven't taken the tires off since, and have now put 4,500 miies on them. They hardly look worn. Traction is excellent. I ran the track in the rain in April of this year, and was clocked on short (1/2 track) front straight at 110 mph. No slippin' or sliding. I ran them at 95F air temp this month, July. Front inflated to 32 psi cold; back to 40. At the end of 20 minutes on track, they measured 40 and 48. No sign of heat fatigue. I drove back home on them, and continue to use them for city driving. I'm beginning to wonder if I'll ever put my show wheels with the Bridgestone Potenza S02As back on the car. Superb tires !

Follow-up Review, 6,500 Miles on Tires
September 29, 2009
I've noticed those who don't like these tires are running them soft. Put air in these tires to stiffen the sidewalls! I was on the full MMP track this month, September, and have upped my top speed and reduced lap time on the same tires I reported on earlier. Porsche 911s oversteer; however, all-wheel counters this IF you power out of the slide. The Ecstas facilitate this: drifting out of a hard, high-speed turn I push the accelerator even deeper and the tires pull the car back online. I'd have been spinning on lesser tires. I'm guessing I'll get 12,000 miles out of the rear tires; that's twice what the Michelin Pilot Sports delivered

 

[ziggo0]

Any pics yet?

 

[Raymos24]

I got around to putting these in the other day. I couldn't get the big ones to fit in there. I have Tein springs and maybe the springs are closer together? I did however throw in 2 sets of the smaller ones in there and to be honest I can feel the difference. When flooring it, it almost feels like the car squats more in front now. I will have a better gauge on things when my car is done tuning. My set up is a 10:1 compression ratio on E85 (1000cc injectors) and 25psi on an HX40. I have a quaife and now lets see how these help me out becuase we all know how much I'm going to spin .

 

[HadesOmega]

So have you gotten a wheel alignment yet? Was it off by a lot?

 

[nothingfiction]

I did however throw in 2 sets of the smaller ones in there and to be honest I can feel the difference. When flooring it, it almost feels like the car squats more in front now.

You used 2 sets of the smaller ones? Could you post pics of where you placed them?

As for what ^ said... i too wonder if it changes the alignment too at all.

 

[Raymos24]

Yea I got the alignment after putting on the new springs because it raised the car a good amount. It wasn't too bad at all. Im assuming that question was for me .

It's almost 5am here so I can't at this moment. As soon as I get the car back from tuning I will post pics. The small ones were easy to put on but the big ones, I have no clue how those would ever fit unless the stock springs are much further apart than the Tein S.Techs.

 

[nothingfiction]

Would an alignment be suggested too if using just the stock springs? or since i am talking stock springs... would it not be needed?

 

[Raymos24]

Honestly I don't think so. The only reason I needed one was because I went from a 2.0" drop to a .9" drop which made a pretty big difference.

 

[nothingfiction]

cool

what do you think about the 2 sets? would it be better than just one?
could you show us slow noobs how you placed them in the springs?

 

[Raymos24]

I'm no expert myself but it was easy. I would suggest getting both sets in there. I wish I could have gotten the bigger ones in too. As far as putting them in, I just covered them in pb blaster and slid them in sideways and then turned them 180 degrees until the spring fell into the indent. On the product it shows how they should be placed but you have to place 2 of them on the same spring just opposite of each other. Think about it like a clock. If you put on of the boosters at 9 o'clock you will have to put the other one at 3 o'clock and so forth. They were real easy to put in so don't fret. Just place them facing opposite each other and on the same coil and you will be ok.

 

[nothingfiction]

i'm more thinking of the second set. did you do 9-3 on 2 dif springs? or 12-3-6-9 on one spring?

 

[Raymos24]

Well since one set is much bigger than the other you can't put them all on the same spring because the two smaller ones would just "float" instead of sitting flush. The way I did it was 9-3 on one spring and then I skipped a spring and the following one I did the 9-3 again, trying my hardest that the two in the "9" position lined up and the two on the "3" position lined up. I am not sure how the originator of the idea did it but this was my method. Just seems to make sense to me.

 

[nothingfiction]

Makes sense to me.

So you used 2 sets of the smaller ones just as you described colluming each other?

(don't mean to sound like i'm a total tard. just wanting to make sure)

 

[Raymos24]

Well the original formula was a set of the big ones and a set of the smaller ones. I had to run 2 sets of smaller ones because my Tein springs are too close together. But with stock springs you can run a set of the big ones and the small ones so go with that. Be warned that the back of your car will raise up a little with the boosters so maybe a little more wheel gap! . Don't worry about it, glad to help if I can.

 

[nothingfiction]

Does this make going over bumps rougher?

 

[Raymos24]

Well these spring boosters actually just make your springs "stiffer". So I guess the ride in the back might be a little harsher but not ridiculously different. These things actually helped me out with another problem I was having. I run 245/40/18 tires and since my springs were so soft I would sometimes rub in the back. Not anymore though since these tightened stuff up. So in short , expect the ride to get a little harsher but nothing drastic if anything at all.