Toyota Yaris Forums - Ultimate Yaris Enthusiast Site
 

 


 
Go Back   Toyota Yaris Forums - Ultimate Yaris Enthusiast Site > Technical Forums > Tracking, Racing, Auto-X Forum
  The Tire Rack

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 03-04-2017, 07:55 PM   #1
ysar
 
Drives: 2007 Yaris
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: Davis, CA
Posts: 16
B-Spec build Norcal #86

I just turned 50 and my big plan for the milestone was to do a lot of SCCA racing culminating in a trip to the Runoffs at Indy. Well, my knee had something to say about that, and now I'm going to miss a big chunk of the season due to surgery and recovery. Enough about me, let me describe the car.

To begin, I wanted to build a car that was street, race, and rally legal. I also didn't want to spend a lot of money. I considered modifying my Lemons/Chump/LuckyDog Miata, but making it street and rally legal would be expensive. So I decided on B-Spec, and specifically the Yaris because it has the least expensive kit and has been around nearly 10 years.

I purchased the 2007 Yaris for $3040 from a woman who was driving it cross-country from North Carolina to California. I had a racer friend on the other side check it out for me. After taking delivery, I used it as a daily driver for about 6 months, during which time I took it to a few track events where I was doing some coaching. I found it to be a great commuter, getting over 40 mpg, and a surprisingly fun track car even in stock form. I even took it to a rally school (Primitive Rally) where it was one of the faster cars on the course. I really liked the car and part of me really didn't want to do the full B-Spec conversion...

The cage was constructed at a cage-welding class held by master cage-builder Jon Pagel of Evil Genius Racing. He oversaw the operation and did a little welding, but most of it was done by students. In the end, I got the cage built for about 60% of the usual cost. It doesn't yet have the A-pillar vertical bars, so it's not yet fully rally legal, but the rest of the cage meets rally specs. It's probably going to be at least a year before I do stage rally anyway, and in the mean time I can do RallyCross and RallyTrials along with road racing.

The performance mods for a Yaris B-Spec are: (1) suspension (2) exhaust (3) intake (4) tires (5) brake pads. The suspension is a TRD kit that costs about $650. The exhaust is just a 1 minute job with an angle grinder. The intake is optional, and I really don't know if a K&N filter improves much over a paper filter. In any case, all together, I got 101 HP and 105 TQ. It's more than I expected. Wheels and tires are SM-ish: 15x7, 205/15/15, 13+ lb rims, DOT slicks. I've got a set of Toyo RRs, Hoosier SM7s, and RE-71Rs. For rally, I've got steelies and Cooper Weathermasters up front and runflats out back. I'm using EBC Green Stuff for the front pads and something OEM-ish in the rear.

Safety stuff is the usual: seats, harnesses, fire system, kill switch, window net, center net, tow hooks, and various stickers. Other stuff include wide-angle mirror, quick-release steering wheel, fuel sample port, tachometer, extra fire bottle, extra electrical outlets, bluetooth radio, rally lights, and AiM SoloDL. A cool thing about the SoloDL is that it talks CAN bus to the Yaris ECU. It can be quite expensive to set a car up with telemetry, but all cars since 2008 (and sometimes before, like the 2007 Yaris) have loads of sensors and a high speed network built in. The Yaris reports RPM, vehicle speed, individual wheel speeds, steering angle, brake, clutch, throttle, and all sorts of engine stuff. It would cost thousands to put all this stuff in an older car.






Last edited by ysar; 03-12-2017 at 08:19 PM. Reason: more pictures
ysar is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-04-2017, 09:18 PM   #2
CoryM
 
Drives: 2009 5-door, 5-speed
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: White Rock BC
Posts: 687
Welcome! Hope you get lots of events in.
CoryM is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-05-2017, 02:09 AM   #3
Kaotic Lazagna
 
Kaotic Lazagna's Avatar
 
Drives: '14 GT86, '08 Vitz
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Central Valley, CA
Posts: 9,873
Nice.

You're not too far from me. So I'm assuming you just cut the exhaust off????

Also, I don't think you'll be driving that car on the streets anymore, so why not pull out anything associated with the audio system and do some weight savings?
Kaotic Lazagna is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-05-2017, 09:18 AM   #4
Dabuu
Radical Dreamer
 
Drives: spiritedly.
Join Date: May 2016
Location: No Bueno Park, CA
Posts: 219
Awesome!! Can't wait to see videos. :)

I wanted to do a B-spec build with mine, but since it's my daily, I'm loosely following the rules, I call it my Wanna-B spec build. lol
__________________
Enjoy Family Car Sports
Dabuu is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-05-2017, 10:02 AM   #5
ysar
 
Drives: 2007 Yaris
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: Davis, CA
Posts: 16
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kaotic Lazagna View Post
Nice.

You're not too far from me. So I'm assuming you just cut the exhaust off????

Also, I don't think you'll be driving that car on the streets anymore, so why not pull out anything associated with the audio system and do some weight savings?
I cut the exhaust off right before the can. I also have a stock exhaust for around town. I have a radio and other comforts so that I can drive to the track. I don't like towing and would argue that it's safer driving this car than my tow rig. The bars are well padded and a long way from my head. The B-Spec weight is 2425 lbs with driver. I actually have to add weight at this point. I'm hoping the cold box will be enough, but if not, I can put a spare tire in as ballast.
ysar is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-05-2017, 10:47 AM   #6
ysar
 
Drives: 2007 Yaris
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: Davis, CA
Posts: 16
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dabuu View Post
Awesome!! Can't wait to see videos. :)

I wanted to do a B-spec build with mine, but since it's my daily, I'm loosely following the rules, I call it my Wanna-B spec build. lol
Here's some video before the build was complete.

https://youtu.be/HJC_P5FpByU
ysar is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2017, 01:03 AM   #7
Kaotic Lazagna
 
Kaotic Lazagna's Avatar
 
Drives: '14 GT86, '08 Vitz
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Central Valley, CA
Posts: 9,873
Quote:
Originally Posted by ysar View Post
I cut the exhaust off right before the can. I also have a stock exhaust for around town. I have a radio and other comforts so that I can drive to the track. I don't like towing and would argue that it's safer driving this car than my tow rig. The bars are well padded and a long way from my head. The B-Spec weight is 2425 lbs with driver. I actually have to add weight at this point. I'm hoping the cold box will be enough, but if not, I can put a spare tire in as ballast.
Cold box? What's that?

Didn't realize you still drive the car on the road (didn't think it would be legal due to the roll cage). How much more weight do you have to add to be class legal? Aren't you still adding more to the cage, so that should add some weight. Does the TRD kit you got have the rear sway bar? If not, that should add a few lbs. And good idea about balancing out the weight distribution by the spare tire.

I have no knowledge on track/auto-x racing, btw, so I have no clue what parts are legal and not legal in classes.
Kaotic Lazagna is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2017, 01:05 AM   #8
Kaotic Lazagna
 
Kaotic Lazagna's Avatar
 
Drives: '14 GT86, '08 Vitz
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Central Valley, CA
Posts: 9,873
Have you replaced the brake lines with SS lines and the brake fluid with something more race oriented like Torque RT700?
Kaotic Lazagna is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2017, 11:03 AM   #9
Dabuu
Radical Dreamer
 
Drives: spiritedly.
Join Date: May 2016
Location: No Bueno Park, CA
Posts: 219
I wish Toyota offered a better B-spec package like Mazda and Honda. :(
__________________
Enjoy Family Car Sports
Dabuu is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2017, 12:43 PM   #10
Jason@SportsCar
 
Drives: 2015 H Production Yaris
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Debary, FL
Posts: 1,953
Just a heads up, in the March Fastrack there are a number of rules/spec changes for B Spec. You can now run -3 front camber, previous limit was -2.5.

The Yaris also picked up the K&N intake (full system, not just a drop in filter), and a new suspension package including Bilstein struts and any spring up to 500lbs.

Cold air intake K&N 69-8612TFK is allowed.
Allow Bilstein kit 47-237834


Still not going to be competitive with the other makes, since the Yaris is effectively the only one stuck on a stock ECU tune.
__________________
2005-2008 SCCA Solo BS National Champion
2017-2018 SCCA H Prod National Champion
Jason@SportsCar is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2017, 12:45 PM   #11
Jason@SportsCar
 
Drives: 2015 H Production Yaris
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Debary, FL
Posts: 1,953
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kaotic Lazagna View Post
Cold box? What's that?
http://coolshirt.com/motorsports/
__________________
2005-2008 SCCA Solo BS National Champion
2017-2018 SCCA H Prod National Champion
Jason@SportsCar is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2017, 12:52 PM   #12
ysar
 
Drives: 2007 Yaris
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: Davis, CA
Posts: 16
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jason@SportsCar View Post
Just a heads up, in the March Fastrack there are a number of rules/spec changes for B Spec. You can now run -3 front camber, previous limit was -2.5.

The Yaris also picked up the K&N intake (full system, not just a drop in filter), and a new suspension package including Bilstein struts and any spring up to 500lbs.

Cold air intake K&N 69-8612TFK is allowed.
Allow Bilstein kit 47-237834


Still not going to be competitive with the other makes, since the Yaris is effectively the only one stuck on a stock ECU tune.
The max camber I could get was -2.5. The K&N intake isn't CARB legal, so I can't (honestly) use it in California. So basically my non-competitive B-Spec just got a little less competitive.
ysar is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2017, 12:54 PM   #13
ysar
 
Drives: 2007 Yaris
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: Davis, CA
Posts: 16
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kaotic Lazagna View Post
Cold box? What's that?

Didn't realize you still drive the car on the road (didn't think it would be legal due to the roll cage). How much more weight do you have to add to be class legal? Aren't you still adding more to the cage, so that should add some weight. Does the TRD kit you got have the rear sway bar? If not, that should add a few lbs. And good idea about balancing out the weight distribution by the spare tire.

I have no knowledge on track/auto-x racing, btw, so I have no clue what parts are legal and not legal in classes.
I'm only 35 lbs under weight. Fuel and tire should do it.

I'm not running the rear ARB because it's not part of the kit.
ysar is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2017, 12:55 PM   #14
Dabuu
Radical Dreamer
 
Drives: spiritedly.
Join Date: May 2016
Location: No Bueno Park, CA
Posts: 219
Awesome info Jason!

Now, where to find off the shelf 500lbs lowering springs for the Yaris lol. I'm currently looking for a new suspension set up.
__________________
Enjoy Family Car Sports
Dabuu is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2017, 12:57 PM   #15
ysar
 
Drives: 2007 Yaris
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: Davis, CA
Posts: 16
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kaotic Lazagna View Post
Have you replaced the brake lines with SS lines and the brake fluid with something more race oriented like Torque RT700?
I don't run SS lines in either of my racecars. I do run a high temp brake fluid, but I'm not that picky about brand. There isn't all that much braking in a B-Spec.
ysar is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2017, 01:00 PM   #16
Jason@SportsCar
 
Drives: 2015 H Production Yaris
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Debary, FL
Posts: 1,953
Quote:
Originally Posted by ysar View Post
The max camber I could get was -2.5. The K&N intake isn't CARB legal, so I can't (honestly) use it in California. So basically my non-competitive B-Spec just got a little less competitive.
Would take you about 10 min at the track to install it.

If you use two sets of SPC bolts (top and bottom hole) you should be able to get -3. This is what I am using, sitting at -3 with more available.

http://www.spcalignment.com/componen...AFrom&to=USATo
__________________
2005-2008 SCCA Solo BS National Champion
2017-2018 SCCA H Prod National Champion
Jason@SportsCar is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2017, 01:03 PM   #17
ysar
 
Drives: 2007 Yaris
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: Davis, CA
Posts: 16
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jason@SportsCar View Post
Coolshirt and FAST are the standards, but I don't actually run their products in my cars. For the Miata, I built the cold box from a large ice cooler and a bilge pump. I needed the capacity to run in 100° weather for 2.5 hours. The Yaris is built for sprint racing, so the cold box can be much smaller. Rather than buy one for racing, I got a cold therapy unit on ebay for about $50. There are lots of brands of choices out there. McMaster-Carr sells fittings if you want to build or modify.
ysar is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2017, 01:10 PM   #18
ysar
 
Drives: 2007 Yaris
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: Davis, CA
Posts: 16
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jason@SportsCar View Post
Would take you about 10 min at the track to install it.

If you use two sets of SPC bolts (top and bottom hole) you should be able to get -3. This is what I am using, sitting at -3 with more available.

http://www.spcalignment.com/componen...AFrom&to=USATo
Thanks Jason. -3 will help tire wear. This year I'm more concerned with learning how to drive FWD. Next year I'll probably focus on performance and upgrade the intake and suspension. Maybe get a fresher motor. I feel like my motor stats are pretty good, but I don't know what a B-Spec Yaris is supposed to make.
ysar is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
budget B Spec rally build slowly coming along 07dirtyaris Tracking, Racing, Auto-X Forum 8 08-15-2016 04:21 PM
SCCA Houston Region B Spec build :) FHT_Racing Tracking, Racing, Auto-X Forum 126 11-11-2014 01:08 PM
1NZ-FE All Motor Build burned Performance Modifications 19 10-24-2014 10:56 AM
Carbon build up in the throttle body Sedan DIY / Maintenance / Service 18 11-15-2013 11:44 PM
12/20/08 Buddy Club USA 5th Anniversary Clearance SALE DuckinOut California 3 12-18-2008 12:25 AM


All times are GMT -4. The time now is 05:01 PM.




YarisWorld
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.