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Ryephile · 04-23-2018, 01:42 PM

Finally Michigan has thankfully received a few days of spring!

I took the opportunity this weekend to:
*Swap in the take-off ZL1 brakes
*replace a winter-damaged aero pan, and do a general cleaning underneath
*replace the Moreno strut mount bearing and carrier
*Swap the anti-roll bars with Hotchkis adjustable front and BMR adjustable rear items
*OEM air filter change, and Dexos 2 oil change for track season.

I measured the difference between the FE4 and aftermarket anti-roll bars. For sure the FE4 bars are only incrementally smaller than the Hotchkis front and BMR rear bars. One thing I found curious is how both aftermarket bars have significantly longer torque arm lengths, effectively softening the bar rate and relying on their diameter and wall thickness to make up the difference. Locating the drop-link on the BMR rear bars' softest hole requires grinding the casting nub off the knuckle to clearance the drop-link to the knuckle, otherwise it would bind and likely bend the drop-link. If the torque arm length was closer to stock this wouldn't be a problem. Classic poorly engineered aftermarket. As a baseline I'm starting with the front and rear bars on the medium setting. This puts the roll couple stiffness at about 30% more than the FE4 bars, making it a "full step" stiffer again, given the FE4 bars are roughly 30% stiffer than FE3 bars, though the FE3 bars bias towards understeer, whereas I've kept the balance between FE4 and this aftermarket combination the same. For comparison, at least going off advertised numbers, the BMR front bars are way too stiff, and the Hotchkis rear bar is way too soft.

Stock FE4 front bar, 30x8mm:

Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr

Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr

Front bar comparison:

Untitled by Ryephile, on Flickr

Hotchkis front bar, 32x12mm, relies on wall thickness over diameter for added stiffness:

Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr

Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr

********************

Stock FE4 rear bar, 27x8.7mm:

Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr

Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr

Rear bar comparison:

Untitled by Ryephile, on Flickr

Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr

BMR adjustable rear bar, same diameter as the Hotchkis front but thinner wall, 32x9.8mm, relies on diameter more than wall thickness for added stiffness:

Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr

Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr

The ZL1 brakes, however, are 100% plug-n-play, as long as you have the right pads, backing plates, bolts, and hoses. 20mm more front and 27mm more rear diameter and 2mm more thickness front and rear. Larger pad area front and rear, and the front calipers are significantly larger compared to the SS 1LE brakes, yet in the hand they feel the same weight, very light without the pads. I'm expecting this setup to run cooler for improved pad, rotor, and caliper seal longevity. For the street I have PowerStop Z26's in size 1835 front and 1053 rear, a perfect match for the larger ZL1 pads over the SS 1LE pads. Curiously, the ZL1 rear hydraulic hoses appear identical to the SS rear hoses, however their part numbers are different. I'm not sure why, but just to be complete I put new ZL1 hoses to match. For sure up front the hoses are different as the caliper hose mount is different.

Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr

Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr

No more red brakes! I kind of like the non-contrast now, more subtle.

Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr

I was still running the original Moreno camber plates. After a loooong winter I swapped out the bearing and the updated stronger carrier, however my original carriers were still intact. For sure the assemblies took a beating with the salty Michigan winter, the platings are rough looking and the included mild steel bearing was quite rusted. I swapped in an FK FKSSX12T stainless version, which incidentally is rated for axial loads whereas FK doesn't rate the mild steel as such. Even so, I've coated the hardware with good-ole Bel-Ray Super Clean, heh heh

Max plate camber, dialed back with knuckles for maximum tire clearance:

Untitled by Ryephile, on Flickr

...and directly from the top, "up" is aft. This shows the slightly added caster, about 0.6° worth:

Untitled by Ryephile, on Flickr

Next track day is Memorial Day weekend at Grattan!

04-23-2018, 01:42 PM	#124
Ryephile Hot Dog Drives: '17 1SS 1LE Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Metro Detroit Posts: 1,937	Finally Michigan has thankfully received a few days of spring! I took the opportunity this weekend to: Swap in the take-off ZL1 brakes replace a winter-damaged aero pan, and do a general cleaning underneath replace the Moreno strut mount bearing and carrier Swap the anti-roll bars with Hotchkis adjustable front and BMR adjustable rear items OEM air filter change, and Dexos 2 oil change for track season. I measured the difference between the FE4 and aftermarket anti-roll bars. For sure the FE4 bars are only incrementally smaller than the Hotchkis front and BMR rear bars. One thing I found curious is how both aftermarket bars have significantly longer torque arm lengths, effectively softening the bar rate and relying on their diameter and wall thickness to make up the difference. Locating the drop-link on the BMR rear bars' softest hole requires grinding the casting nub off the knuckle to clearance the drop-link to the knuckle, otherwise it would bind and likely bend the drop-link. If the torque arm length was closer to stock this wouldn't be a problem. Classic poorly engineered aftermarket. As a baseline I'm starting with the front and rear bars on the medium setting. This puts the roll couple stiffness at about 30% more than the FE4 bars, making it a "full step" stiffer again, given the FE4 bars are roughly 30% stiffer than FE3 bars, though the FE3 bars bias towards understeer, whereas I've kept the balance between FE4 and this aftermarket combination the same. For comparison, at least going off advertised numbers, the BMR front bars are way too stiff, and the Hotchkis rear bar is way too soft. Stock FE4 front bar, 30x8mm: Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr Front bar comparison: Untitled by Ryephile, on Flickr Hotchkis front bar, 32x12mm, relies on wall thickness over diameter for added stiffness: Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr ******************* Stock FE4 rear bar, 27x8.7mm: Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr Rear bar comparison: Untitled by Ryephile, on Flickr Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr BMR adjustable rear bar, same diameter as the Hotchkis front but thinner wall, 32x9.8mm, relies on diameter more than wall thickness for added stiffness: Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr The ZL1 brakes, however, are 100% plug-n-play, as long as you have the right pads, backing plates, bolts, and hoses. 20mm more front and 27mm more rear diameter and 2mm more thickness front and rear. Larger pad area front and rear, and the front calipers are significantly larger compared to the SS 1LE brakes, yet in the hand they feel the same weight, very light without the pads. I'm expecting this setup to run cooler for improved pad, rotor, and caliper seal longevity. For the street I have PowerStop Z26's in size 1835 front and 1053 rear, a perfect match for the larger ZL1 pads over the SS 1LE pads. Curiously, the ZL1 rear hydraulic hoses appear identical to the SS rear hoses, however their part numbers are different. I'm not sure why, but just to be complete I put new ZL1 hoses to match. For sure up front the hoses are different as the caliper hose mount is different. Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr No more red brakes! I kind of like the non-contrast now, more subtle. Camaro April 2018 updates by Ryephile, on Flickr I was still running the original Moreno camber plates. After a loooong winter I swapped out the bearing and the updated stronger carrier, however my original carriers were still intact. For sure the assemblies took a beating with the salty Michigan winter, the platings are rough looking and the included mild steel bearing was quite rusted. I swapped in an FK FKSSX12T stainless version, which incidentally is rated for axial loads whereas FK doesn't rate the mild steel as such. Even so, I've coated the hardware with good-ole Bel-Ray Super Clean, heh heh Max plate camber, dialed back with knuckles for maximum tire clearance: Untitled by Ryephile, on Flickr ...and directly from the top, "up" is aft. This shows the slightly added caster, about 0.6° worth: Untitled by Ryephile, on Flickr Next track day is Memorial Day weekend at Grattan! __________________ 2017 "M1SS1LE" in Hyper Blue w/PDR Last edited by Ryephile; 06-26-2018 at 04:28 PM.