Yokohama ADVAN Neova AD08

I couldn't help it !

Very good reviews, circuit footage on YouTube and my own curiousity and need for a better tyre resulted in me purchasing a set of Yokohama ADVAN Neova AD08s!

I got them fitted today by Super Autobacs near Tokyo Bay.
(Cost was 32,000yen a piece + 1,050yen for fitting per tyre and 800yen for throwing away the old)



I can't wait to try out both the tyres and my new brake pads next time at Fuji !

Project Mu brake pads

After browsing through Japan's HyperREV magazine for Integra DC5 brake pads and fishing for some advice from various people (Tom and Pikku) I decided to get a set of Project Mu's HC+ brake pads.



They arrived on Tuesday Feb 17th (part #F306 for the front and #R389 for the rear) and I had them fitted by my trusted local Honda dealer today. Cost wise, the fronts were 17,230yen and rears 15,412yen.

30,000km service

Took my car to get it serviced and asked for both clutch and brake fluids to be replaced (DOT-4), dished out for a more expensive Mobil1 RP engine oil (0W-40), had the transmission/LSD oil changed also as well as other 30k service items.

I was also informed that my exhaust system is on a borderline of what's allowed by the shaken law as far as exhaust noise is concerned. This i need to follow up on with FEEL's.

Fuji International Speedway (FSW) Feb 16th 2009

It wasn't long before I was ready to go out to Fuji again.

This time I wanted to concentrate on my braking and cornering techniques and really give my Yokohama ADVAN A046 a workout.

I ran 2 sessions in the morning.

The tyres weren't too bad from about 2nd lap until 5-6th after which I felt I was gradually losing grip (especially under braking from the main straight). I attributed that to the rubber getting over heated and losing it's gripping properties.

Air pressures were as follows:
Front
Cold 230kPa
Warm (after 1 hour of driving) 240kPa
After practice 270kPa

Rear
Cold 220kPa
Warm 230kPa
After practice 265kPa

As far as brakes were concerned, they could have done a lot better.

Video from the event is shown below.

Fuji International Speedway (FSW) Feb 7th 2009

On Saturday Feb 7th 2009 I decided to go to Fuji for the 1st time with an old friend of mine Adam who was visiting Tokyo from Germany as part of his work assignment.

My first time at Fuji was basically about getting a feel for the car, the track and myself. I needed to refresh my memory from the days I attended track days in Perth and since it'd been over 4 years I took things easy.

I practiced heel and toe, cornering and tuned in on the car's behaviour. The biggest surprise though was the 180km/h speed limit imposed on my car by the japanese spec law, but not to worry as that's something to be dealt with later.

The video from the day is shown below.