October 7th, 2:23 pm, after just getting off work and rushing home to switch cars, I hastily got into my Type R to meet up with Pat and Chad at our agreed 2:30pm meet-up time. I’m a stickler for punctuality and pride myself on always being on time. However, when work is the reason I’m late, I give myself a pass because, for me, work takes priority. So, at 2:32pm, I pulled into Pat’s cul-de-sac to load up his full-size spare (because the FK8 has all the room) and we drove off to the meetup spot.
As we arrived at the gas station (1 block from Pat’s house) where we were meeting, I anticipated Chad being there, tape his watch, giving us a hard time for being a few minutes behind. Much to my surprise, Chad wasn’t there, even after topping off our tanks he still hadn’t showed up. Chad ended up being almost 30 minutes late and took the focus right off my measly tardiness of only a few minutes (thanks, Chad).
October 7th, 3:10 pm, our journey to Buttonwillow, California had officially begun! (40 minutes behind schedule). We had all signed up for three days’ worth of Speed Ventures events at Buttonwillow Raceway. For me, though, I almost enjoy the journey more than the actual time on the track.
The excitement leading up to driving down there, the anticipation during the drive, and eating deliciously tasty food from terrible roadside fast-food establishments have an allure that only a few can truly enjoy. I’m one of the few that cherishes those moments and the ability to make memories that I can reflect on forever.
For that 5-hour drive… I forget about all the worries of life, work, debt, struggles, and challenges. For those 5 hours, I can listen to music and be as carefree as I was when I was a teenager living in my parents’ house. It’s such an amazing feeling to truly be liberated from your everyday life, even if only for a weekend. And quite honestly, that feeling is what makes putting in the hours at work all year long worth it.
After filling up in Vegas, our first stop for gas was at a Love’s truck stop off the 58 freeway in Tehachapi.
It was also my first time having McDonald’s in over a year! You see, I love fast food, but unfortunately, fast food doesn’t love me. If I could, I would have fast food for three meals a day every day! It’s my 40-year-old metabolism that won’t allow me to though.
Gassed up, we headed back onto the open road with our sights set on Buttonwillow, CA. After hopping off the 58 and cutting through the town of Arvin, CA, we jumped on the 5 freeway heading north for Buttonwillow. It was about an hour and a half, and we had arrived at our home for the next three nights – The Vagabond Inn/Extended Stay Suites.
After checking in, we parked our cars and carried everything of value into our rooms for the night.
I slept with one eye open all night, peeking through the curtains anytime I heard a noise.
When we awoke the next morning, rain was in the forecast, but it looked like it was going to avoid us. We gassed up again before heading to the track, picked up some Starbucks (well, those guys did), and headed north on the 5 freeway for about 10 miles before exiting on Lerdo Highway.
As we pulled into Buttonwillow Raceway and waited in line to get in, it started to rain. By the time we got into the track and picked out a pit area, the rain had let up, but we noticed the clouds around us still looked ominous. Pat suggested we try to get a garage in case it started to rain again, that way all our stuff would stay dry. This being only my third time at Buttonwillow, once before not driving (when Pat blew the motor in his S2000… click the link below to read all about that adventure)
And once as a driver (in my 4-door EK when it was single cam… click the link below to read all about that).
For me, just the thought alone of getting a garage was an exciting one because it would make the whole Buttonwillow experience complete. We weren’t sure if there were going to be garages available because the weekend’s events included the Bimmer challenge on Saturday and the HTAC on Sunday, so we had assumed the garages would have gone quickly.
I arrived at the main office and, already assuming the answer, I asked, “Are there any garages open today?” Surprisingly, there were a few available! Garages 9, 10, 11, 12, and 13. Not being bothered by superstitions, I happily chose “lucky number 13.”
It’s $100 a day for garages, which in my opinion is well worth it. I happily paid the $100, got the key, and excitedly drove back to inform the others of the good news. “They had a few left! And I picked out #13!” It was that stroke of good luck that would help keep our spirits high throughout the weekend.
We gathered our things and moved into Garage #13. Garage 14 was attached to it, and to our amazement, the person who had reserved it wasn’t there or didn’t use it the whole day. This made it possible for us to squeeze our three cars into one side without being in the way of the other garage patron (since they were never there).
All the stars were aligned for us, and this weekend was shaping up to be a great one.
Before even arriving at Buttonwillow, I had established ambitious objectives for myself in terms of lap times. While many aspire to achieve a sub-2-minute lap, I aimed to set realistic goals that would allow me to enjoy my time on the track over the course of three days. Having experienced a challenging initial track day with the FK8 a month earlier, I was aware that setting excessively high expectations would not be conducive to an enjoyable experience (you may refer to my article recounting my first track experience with the FK8 by following the link provided below).
The goals I had set for my self were…
- I needed to at least get a 2:05, sure this is slow considering I have a cheater car, but it was still a decent time and if I couldn’t muster up a 2:05 I was going to sell the car (not really, but maybe really).
- I had also set a stretch goal for myself of a 2 flat… This way it wasn’t sub-2 pressure but was close enough to sub to that I would be happy.
- Basically, if I got anything below 2:05 I was going to be happy, especially since this was only my second time ever driving this track and I was on Hankook RS-4’s.
Since my first track experience with the FK8 didn’t go so well, I had made some alignment changes in hopes of getting the car to handle a little better. Previously, my alignment setup was -1.5 degrees of front camber, and that’s after I had pulled the front guide pins, and -2.4 degrees of rear camber. This made the car have quite a bit of understeer, to the point where it had ruined the track weekend for me. This time around, though, I picked up some EVS eccentric ball joints to help dial in a bit more negative front camber, and I took a little out of the rear. For the Buttonwillow event, I had set up the car with -2.5 degrees of front camber and -2.0 degrees of rear camber with ZERO toe all around.
I was in a middle run group (because I had put my lap time as 2:05), so the first two groups out had ensured that there was no water on the track from the morning’s slight rain, leaving me with a perfect surface. My first lap out, I could tell the new alignment had transformed the car into a completely different animal. I remember telling myself, “This is how it’s supposed to handle” as I sailed through turns. My first session ended; I came off the track no longer with regret of purchasing this car, and I knew that this thing was as capable as everyone had made it out to be.
Not only did we get a garage today, and my car was handling amazingly… My family (Dad, Sister, and Brother) were coming out to the track to hang out all day. I haven’t seen them in quite some time, and since this was a Speed Ventures event, they would be able to ride along with me too! (The PCA events at Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch don’t allow ride-alongs)
The Friday event was a “low car count” event and meant there were 6 sessions that day alone, compared to 4 sessions on Saturday and Sunday. I was somewhat worried that my RS-4s weren’t going to last me all three days, especially since they already had two other track days on them. Yes, RS-4s wear like iron and last forever (which is one of the reasons I got them), but remember, I still had to drive 350 miles back to Las Vegas after the weekend of racing was over.
My plan for the weekend was that I wanted to make sure I took it easy for the first day or two just to fully learn the track and then try to set a personal best on Sunday. However, after experiencing how good the car felt in the first session, I decided that with the weather being cool due to the rain, I might as well attempt to achieve my sub-2 lap time now. This way, I thought I could relax and enjoy Saturday and Sunday, focusing solely on getting more seat time in the FK8 and gradually learning the track in order to find ways to become even faster.
After basking in the excitement of getting oh so close to the holy “sub-2” number, it started raining hard for the last group of the second session. Fortunately, the hard rain only lasted about 10 minutes and had stopped by the time it was Pat’s group’s turn to head out. Pat was in the red group and was getting ready to head out for his third session of the day. However, it was still wet out, and as he went out, I sarcastically thanked him for going out and drying the race line before my next session. As my third session approached, I had told my family that I was really trying to sub-2 and that I wanted to take advantage of the good (cooler) weather. Because of this, I didn’t want to take them out (really, I didn’t want the added weight in the car). I went out on my third session seeing red and knowing that if I was going to sub-2, this was going to be the session to do it.
Unfortunately, the rain had changed the dynamics of the track, and the grip just wasn’t the same (even though the track had dried). I’m not exactly sure what happened, but Pat and I both agreed that the track wasn’t as fast as it was in the morning. Even though I was a little disappointed because I couldn’t manage a sub-2 lap. I was still extremely pleased with being able to get a 2-flat on Hankook RS-4’s, and I was now excited to take my family out for some rides the rest of the day. It was a good feeling to just enjoy the remainder of the day, having fun, and I would again concentrate on hitting the sub-2 mark on Saturday.
For my fourth session of the day, I took my sister out (she was the first one to ride with me) and we jammed around the track for a few laps, even managing to get a 2:02.28. Unfortunately, during a flyer, I cut “club corner” a bit too much and smacked the inside of my wheel on the curb. It didn’t bend, crack, or dent… just some scratches (thankfully, it was on the inside of the wheel). At the end of the fourth session, the overcast rain clouds were now all gone, and the sun was starting to poke through the clouds.
My car had run extremely cool throughout the morning because the air temps never got above 65 degrees. The car was barely even getting to 205 degrees for ECT. The oil, on the other hand, was still reaching about 230-240 degrees range (monitored via logR app). Keep in mind that I am always running my heater on full blast too.
It was now time for the 5th session of the day, and my dad was next up to go for a ride. I took it easy and ran a few 2:05s, and nothing out of the norm or worth noting took place during that session. My dad had a blast!
Last session of the day, and it was time for my brother to ride along with me. I ended up pulling a few 2:03’s with him, but I noticed that by the end of the session, my brake pedal was starting to travel further than it had all day. This was not confidence-inspiring at all! I knew that there was no way I was going to feel comfortable enough on Saturday to push the car hard with the brakes feeling this way.
Below, you can see how hot the brakes were getting. My brake pad setup is ST-43 pads up front, Club Racers in the rear, Castrol SRF fluid, and SS brake lines.
Since that was the final session of the day, upon returning to the garage, I enlisted the assistance of my brother in bleeding the brakes. Simultaneously, we undertook the task of rotating the tires from the front to the back. By doing so, I ensured that I would commence Saturday’s endeavors with tires boasting fresher treads. This calculated move was driven by my unwavering determination to extract every ounce of performance, as I relentlessly pursued a lap time under the elusive two-minute mark.
My brother brought his dog “Lexi.”
After bleeding the brakes and then starting the car to back it out of the garage for the drive back to our hotel that night, I was instantly disappointed in the pedal feel. As soon as the car was on and the engine was making vacuum to help power the booster, the pedal was traveling even further than before I bled the brakes. I had also just used the last of my brake fluid to bleed the brakes, so bleeding the brakes again the next day was out of the question. I did try going to the race shop on the property to see if they had some Castrol SRF fluid for sale, but all they had was Motul RBF 600. I didn’t buy any of it because I didn’t want to mix two different types of fluid.
Man, it was absolutely awesome to see all three of our cars chillin’ in those legendary Buttonwillow garages. Once you’ve experienced the luxury of a garage, there’s no way you’d wanna go back to pitin’ on that rough asphalt. Trust me, those little things like smooth and level concrete floors make life so much easier. Whether you’re checkin’ the oil, jackin’ up the car, or just kneelin’ down to work under it, it’s a total game-changer. Plus, the car is shielded from all the elements: wind, scorchin’ sun, and in our case… good ol’ rain. And can we talk about the lighting? Perfect for snappin’ some sweet pics too!
After taking the garage pictures, it was golden hour and I wanted to take a few pictures of my car alone.
I’m so happy with how my car turned out. Like everyone else, I had a vision in my head of what I wanted it to look like… and it came out exactly as I had hoped. I still think it would look really good with a Mugen lip and side skirts, but at this point, I’m still undecided. For one, I scrape my stock lip on quite a few things (including my driveway). Secondly, the Mugen Lip kits have been the subject of some pretty savage memes. Yes, it is true that the Mugen kit is very cookie-cutter, but you shouldn’t worry about any of that when you’re building your car. Just do whatever makes you happy. I’m honestly concerned that I would scrape it quite a bit though, and I would just ruin it within a few months.
I still don’t like the way the ZL1 mud flaps look on the car, but I’m happy with how much they protect the car. I really beat the snot out of the car this weekend, and after returning home and washing the car, I was very pleased to see no damage to either side of the car: the doors, the rear fender flares, and even the side skirts. Not a single chip, dent, or blemish of any kind. The paint on newer Honda’s just isn’t what it used to be, and these things nowadays chip super easily.
I wish the wheel fitment were better, but I wanted there to be zero rub at all while running a 265 tire on a 9.5-inch wheel. Sure, there are people who don’t have any rubbing on a more aggressive wheel/tire spec, but I guarantee you not many of those are tracking their cars. Even with my +45 wheel, I was still rubbing ever so slightly on the tab under the fender. Also, remember, RS4s don’t run as wide as some of the other 200tw tires (in the same sizes), so imagine how much I would rub if I had RT660s or A052s. I’m sure later on in the car’s life, I’ll opt to shave, roll, cut the fenders to get a more aggressive wheel spec, but for now, I want the car to stay as virgin as possible.
It’s also worth mentioning that because I got more negative camber from the eccentric ball joints (that push out the lower part of the wheel), the upper part of my wheels is pushed further outwards (towards the fender) than someone who has camber adjustability on the top of the strut. When the camber is adjusted on top of the strut, you are essentially moving the top of the wheel more inward, and this effectively gives you more tire/fender clearance. There are so many variables when it comes to fitment that it’s best to ask all the right questions when seeing what wheels will fit without rubbing. A +45 is really the most aggressive offset you can run with a 9.5 wheel and a 265 tire on these chassis (without having to do some shaving, rolling, tab bending, or running crazy amounts of negative camber).
That night as I lay in bed at our seedy motel, I searched the internet for “how to properly bleed brakes on the FK8 chassis.” I was hoping that I would come across something I was doing wrong, but no, I was following the correct procedure and couldn’t blame the long pedal on the way I was bleeding them. I tossed and turned all night thinking about how my chances for a sub 2 were slipping away, and how maybe, just maybe, I could possibly find some Castrol SRF in the middle of California late Friday evening. Aside from time travel, there was no possible way I was going to acquire my desired brake fluid. I was just going to have to send it on Saturday and hope for the best.
Along with driving, Pat had also signed up to be an instructor on Friday. I think it’s really neat that one lucky person would get the opportunity to have such an experienced driver teach them the basics on their first track day. Pat brings more than 10 years of driving experience and is also well-versed in both FWD and RWD platforms, truly embodying what it takes to be quick. I was also fortunate enough to have Pat ride with me on Saturday just to give me some tips and critique me (more on that in part 2).
Pat ended Friday, laying down a time of 1:59.88, which he achieved during his second session of the day, just before heavy rain arrived and significantly altered the track conditions. Pat’s car performed flawlessly throughout the day, with no issues to report. However, as mentioned earlier, we both agreed that after the rain subsided and the track was washed, it never felt as fast for the remainder of the day. Pat’s lap times ranged between 2:03 and 2:01 for the rest of the day. Below, you can watch the in-car footage from his best lap on Friday.
Overall, Friday was an amazing day, despite some small issues. We ended up going back to the motel that night feeling great. Since it was a three-day weekend and there were three of us, there are quite a lot of pictures, videos, and things to write about. I decided it would be best to break up each day into one blog post. This way, it would break things up and allow me to focus on each day. It would also make it so that the blog posts weren’t so long that it would take you hours to read. So look out for Saturday (part 2) coming up as the next blog post in a week or so.
Hopefully, you’ll enjoy me splitting it up into three parts because I know that I can be a bit long-winded. This way, you’ll have to read more to find out if I managed to subdue or not.
Thank you to all who are interested in reading about my FK8 journeys. As always, I hope that you are able to learn something from my brutally detailed documentation and hopefully you don’t find it too boring. If you have any questions about this post or any others, please feel free to reach out to me via email at Billy@Functiontheory.com, Instagram @Functiontheory, or simply comment on the post below. I would love to answer any questions you might have.