Autoblog

Click above for a high-res shot of our newest project.

As regular listeners to the podcast know, Project MR-S met its untimely demise when a truck driver clipped the rear end of our 2ZZ-powered daily-driver, spinning it into the center divider with my fiancée behind the wheel. Fortunately, Melissa made it out okay. Unfortunately, said truck driver sped off and has yet to be found. Karma's a bitch, so we sleep soundly with the knowledge that what goes around comes around.

But life goes on. So with summer fast approaching, we set out to find a suitable replacement that would serve double-duty as daily driver and part-time track tool. The criteria was simple: something rear-wheel-drive, with a manual transmission, a small displacement engine and a blogger-friendly price tag. After a few weeks of research, we narrowed the list down to an NA Mazda Miata (MX-5) or something of the BMW variety. Having to install a roll bar (required for some track events) in the Miata quickly knocked it out of the running, so an E30 or E36 Bimmer became the focus of our late night, highly-caffeinated searches through Craigslist. And then, as if guided by the all-knowing entity upstairs, our friends at Modacar found a 1992 BMW 318is at an auction. It met all the criteria and had a price we couldn't pass up. Two days later, we drove it home and Project Track Slut was born.

Click the pic above for a high-res image.

Our newest addition to the Autoblog Project Garage was christened in oil when the engine unceremoniously grenaded itself on our daily slog to work. Riding shotgun in the tow truck, we knew it was a blessing in disguise – Project MR2 was officially underway.

Despite its 4200 lbs of "road-hugging mass", my '96 Chevrolet Impala SS manages to handle an autocross course with surprising grace and agility (that is, if one wants to apply such adjectives to an obnoxiously loud sedan that negotiates cones by frequent and well-timed applications of full opposite lock steering). Get it onto an open track, and then it's yet even more able to put its considerable power and adhesion to good use - for all of two or three laps. That's when the brake fluid reaches its boiling point and the pedal sinks to the floor, which is surely one of the most sickening feelings one can experience in an automobile.

I've already upgraded the stock brakes with Raybestos rotors that have thicker "cheeks" than the stock parts, and a set of Raybestos BruteStop pads live up to their name while providing friction (and rotor wear) similar to that of 80-grit sandpaper and a terrible amount of squealing and brake dust. The stock 95/5 front/rear braking bias was also modified to a much more reasonable 70/30 via a simple proportioning valve modification. Even when hot, the upgrades deliver sufficient stopping power and cured the vehicle's rotor-warping habit, but a 12" diameter and 1" thick rotor simply does not have sufficient mass and surface area to dissipate several hundred kilowatts of power many times per lap. Quite simply, the performance of the brakes have failed to keep up with the rest of the vehicle.  

[We've got far more reading on brake system options for the Burgundy Boat after the jump...]