GR86 Oil starvation

Grrr86 said:
An interesting article for anyone planning on tracking their car.

www.roadandtrack.com

New Data Suggests Subaru BRZ and Toyota GR86 Lose Oil Pressure In Right Turns on Track

Brian Armstrong, a Bay Area software engineer, tested a new BRZ and GR86 and presented his findings in a YouTube video.
www.roadandtrack.com www.roadandtrack.com
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Don't panic :-). Yes, the "problem" exists, but it's by far not as severe as people in US believe. Here is my comment in the forum/thread where this video was published first (I believe). It will be a "long time discussion" like the "still unsolved oil question". I'm on my way now to stock up chips and pop corn :)

Bye for now Fred
 
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Keep in mind this is a street car and not a track car. Despite the advertising as such the car has a standard wet sump and if you want to track it you’ll likely need to make some modification to the oil pan such as baffling to prevent the oil escaping the pick-up tube under hard cornering.

I would also say that that oil moving about under heavy G’s isn’t unique to the GR86.
 
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Pretty much this. If any car I had was going to spend more time on track it would be getting a baffled sump. It's an issue on lots of cars and yet the Americans make a big deal out of it as usual. They want to rag the cars then cry when they fail.

I've been watching the G Meter on the road and on a normal day I only saw a spike left of 1G when I slid at a roundabout exit. Then 1G for some hard braking. I'll be heading up North in a few weeks again so will be interesting to see as I've never paid attention to it but I'm not concerned. Keep an eye on oil levels, let it warm up and cool down properly and it should be fine.
 
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KobayashiMaru86 said:
Pretty much this. If any car I had was going to spend more time on track it would be getting a baffled sump. It's an issue on lots of cars and yet the Americans make a big deal out of it as usual. They want to rag the cars they cry when they fail.

I've been watching the G Meter on the road and on a normal day I only saw a spike left of 1G when I slid at a roundabout exit. Then 1G for some hard braking. I'll be heading up North in a few weeks again so will be interesting to see as I've never paid attention to it but I'm not concerned. Keep an eye on oil levels, let it warm up and cool down properly and it should be fine.
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The crux of it really, swap out 215 road tyres for 255 semi slicks, add a stack of negative camber, take them to circuits at high elevation, in hot regions and kick the living shit out of the car and have a tantrum about it breaking when the inevitable happens. Porsche haven’t exactly had a clean record in the past for thermal issues and engine failures despite running dry sump set ups. Boxer engines do seem more prone to oiling challenges so that appears a trade off against the low cog benefits.
 
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Exactly this I track my ST205 GT-Four extensively but that comes with a baffled sump from factory. I have seen plenty of cars engines pop because they do not have a baffled sump. The whole RTV issue is a myth too. It was a known fault on the old Saab 9-5 (2.3 ltr turbo 250BHP so similar power levels to the GR86) when I did mine it had near enough 100k miles and it had far more in the sump and the strainer then what has been found on the GR86. The engine had been absolutely fine during that period but also under a lot more stress and heat than a N/A engine. Even when my 3SGTE got rebuilt it had silicone in the pan and that had been sitting there for 25 years and been thrashed to an inch of its life!

It is almost like some Americans were born yesterday. These "drop in" "baffle" kits are pretty weak as well. I would also like to take my GR86 at some point to the track but not until a proper stand alone sump is released. I can imagine Cadwell park would be quite unforgiving with its elevation changes!
 
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My local is Pembrey which I'd really like to try. The other would be Anglesey but is a trek. Not interested in Castle Combe as I did action days there years ago and unless it was just us lot I won't be back there. Cost of entry is so low the amount of neds that go is insane and isn't worth the risk.
 
It seems to be that the majority of observed failures and most of the GR86 crashes occur in the USA? Could that be because they can't escape the 'Fast & Furious' mentality regarding Japanese cars or is it because of something else? The GR86, despite what Toyota publicity material would have us believe, is not really a car built for the track; it seems to be more of a focussed road car. My local track (Knockhill) in Fife is only a few miles up the road but knowing how many vehicles have 'come a cropper' on its harsh inclines and diverse cambers I'm never likely to expose the GR86 to such an environment. I don't have deep enough pockets that's for sure!
 
Cholmondeley-Biscuitt said:
It seems to be that the majority of observed failures and most of the GR86 crashes occur in the USA? Could that be because they can't escape the 'Fast & Furious' mentality regarding Japanese cars or is it because of something else? The GR86, despite what Toyota publicity material would have us believe, is not really a car built for the track; it seems to be more of a focussed road car. My local track (Knockhill) in Fife is only a few miles up the road but knowing how many vehicles have 'come a cropper' on its harsh inclines and diverse cambers I'm never likely to expose the GR86 to such an environment. I don't have deep enough pockets that's for sure!
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They have 50x the number of cars, and also got them before the UK
 
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KobayashiMaru86 said:
My local is Pembrey which I'd really like to try. The other would be Anglesey but is a trek. Not interested in Castle Combe as I did action days there years ago and unless it was just us lot I won't be back there. Cost of entry is so low the amount of neds that go is insane and isn't worth the risk.
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I Like Castle Combe although have had a couple of spinners nearly take me out
 
Cholmondeley-Biscuitt said:
It seems to be that the majority of observed failures and most of the GR86 crashes occur in the USA? Could that be because they can't escape the 'Fast & Furious' mentality regarding Japanese cars or is it because of something else? The GR86, despite what Toyota publicity material would have us believe, is not really a car built for the track; it seems to be more of a focussed road car. My local track (Knockhill) in Fife is only a few miles up the road but knowing how many vehicles have 'come a cropper' on its harsh inclines and diverse cambers I'm never likely to expose the GR86 to such an environment. I don't have deep enough pockets that's for sure!
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Nice to see a local member - I’m based in Rosyth. Did you go ahead with your order or already have an 86?
 
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This STI oil pan is sold out everywhere. I'm currently negotiating oil pan removal and cleanup terms with my dealer (I was never planning to do this buy I've found RTV on my oil dipstick during first oil check that got me a little bit worried). If it was available I'd go ahead and throw it in. Imo "low oil pressure" issue is overblown to the moon and should not be a matter of concern for average ZD8 owner. Since I do plan to track mine a lot as I did with my BRZ it is a little bit of concern for me. I'll definitely go with external oil cooler and thickest oil viscosity recommended by manual for now and we'll see how thing go.
 
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Also reading that prototype baffle that guy was going to test didn't make much difference. Thicker oil should be fine, add a better cooler if you track a lot in the heat of summer or just do shorter sessions.
 
KobayashiMaru86 said:
Also reading that prototype baffle that guy was going to test didn't make much difference. Thicker oil should be fine, add a better cooler if you track a lot in the heat of summer or just do shorter sessions.
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Yeah it's a bummer that this particular baffle didn't help. Someone on yt saw some improvement with Tomei one but it wasn't very significant improvement 😞
 
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