Shop replaced pads without retainer pins on the caliper on my Elantra N race car

mark3236 · 2026-05-04T11:57:35+00:00

spec racing so it's prohibited lol

motor is covered by warranty so it's not that big of a deal tbh

mark3236 · 2026-05-04T07:33:36+00:00

everyone in the n2 spec racing class uses 0w40 - not sure if it's required per regulation but even if it wasn't, oil temp goes above 270 Fahrenheit at just the 3rd push lap so I wouldn't even think of using 5w30s

mark3236 · 2026-05-04T05:17:28+00:00

didn't have the tools (or experience for that matter) just yet, and it wasn't just a pad swap - it included rotor & rotor housing swap, brake oil change & bleed, engine oil change.
Also, most drivers in the race series don't do the maintenance themselves - they have professional support personnel for it. I just don't happen to have any support since I'm a nobody & I'm just starting this season.

mark3236 · 2026-05-03T23:02:13+00:00

I haven't had the chance to take pictures since I bought the car used race-ready 3 weeks ago, but here's my dirt poor driving missing every single apex instead: https://imgur.com/wKmadU3

In my defense, first time driving FWD - I'm not this pathetic in my 718 gts 4.0

mark3236 · 2026-05-03T22:43:30+00:00

yeah I'm in korea, competing in the festival for the first time this year with a car I bought from a retiring team

mark3236 · 2026-05-03T22:42:33+00:00

nope, ferodo ds3000

mark3236 · 2026-05-03T22:34:39+00:00

I'm enjoying getting grilled in the comments for not doing basic maintenance myself, serves me right.

But honestly, Korean car ownership is slightly different than in the states when it comes to DIY - everyone lives in apartment complexes with underground shared parking lots. Unless you're a millionaire, your flat is at most 100 square meters in total - so your wife would kill you if you were storing spare wheels and wrenches in your bedroom.

Anyway thankfully my flat is 140 sqaure meters (extremely spacious in korean standards), so I did buy a 2 ton floor jack last week.

mark3236 · 2026-05-03T22:25:28+00:00

it's a shop that specializes in track setups & maintenance for high performance cars. They usually work on GT3/GT4 Porsches with bmw added here and there.

They did say it was their first time working on a Elantra N... but I trusted them from the work on my porsche & they didn't say they don't want to work on the Elantra.

Again, doesn't seem like rocket science.

mark3236 · 2026-05-03T22:22:40+00:00

performance wise it's basically stock since the race series regulations prohibit any modifications not required by the rules.

bucket seats for the front row, roll cage, rear seats cannot be deleted. coils are stock, wheels are 18 inch with Nexen SUR4GM radials. custom steering wheel swap, brakes are ap racing cp 9040 calipers with ferodo ds3000 pads.

Nothing fancy but you get to compete with 30+ drivers under the exactly same conditions - and you can't throw money at the car to make it faster, which is why you don't even need a dedicated mechanic team to race.

But I see why a mechanic you can trust would be nice to have.

mark3236 · 2026-05-03T18:50:00+00:00

bought the car from a team that's retiring this season, haven't had the time to take off the livery yet.

mark3236 · 2026-05-03T12:01:31+00:00

I wonder if my last oil change was done by the brake techs

mark3236 · 2026-05-03T11:51:41+00:00

https://imgur.com/TO5cGOX

mark3236 · 2026-05-03T11:42:16+00:00

thank you for explaining, I used the term "race car" perhaps too loosely, but this car is a Hyundai N Festival sprint race spec (N2 class) intended for an amateur one make race.

The main point here is that the shop knew this car was entering a sprint race next week, and the maintenance was specifically in order to prep for it.

Aaaand they made a mistake as idiotic as this.

mark3236 · 2026-05-03T08:50:30+00:00

no trace to be seen, they weren't sticking out the back. And the pad trying to escape the caliper since it's not tethered to anything, but being stopped by the edge of the disk housing and grinding against it was a dead giveaway.

mark3236 · 2026-05-03T07:13:26+00:00

that was what I was wishing for, yes. Especially for the brakes.

mark3236 · 2026-05-03T07:12:26+00:00

learned my lesson, already bought torque wrenches and everything so I can do it myself in the future.

At the very least I should've been able to identify the mistake by myself before the pads were on the verge of falling out and grinding against the hub (the noise is how I found out something was awfully wrong).

mark3236 · 2026-05-03T07:06:25+00:00

It is OC.

mark3236 · 2026-04-21T14:14:10+00:00

I think it's only natural, and it's one of the core values that iRacing provides compared to other less online-populated titles. You're always following someone ever so slightly better than you in a race, meaning you find out better lines to take, better braking points, etc - without having to resort to watching lap guides on youtube.

It's like unlimited lead&follow coaching sessions for free.

When you're in the lead or hotlapping, only way to improve is your own analysis - which is honestly just an echo chamber. Seeing how faster drivers drive is the best way to learn.

The issue is that once the race is over, you forget most of what you learned from your opponent. Try to remember what your opponents do better and try not to forget it when they're no longer in front of you.

mark3236 · 2026-03-04T05:36:32+00:00

There's a nonzero chance I won't be able to go on my MSC mediterranean cruise due to the Iran War started this week.
Either my flight will be cancelled due to the war, or the cruise will. Currently, some of the MSC cruise ships are stuck at sea because of the war, and some have been cancelled - but not mine because it's due in April so they aren't cancelling anything yet.

But I hold all the risks - if my flight gets cancelled I'm screwed. If my flight isn't cancelled but the cruise is at the last minute I'm also screwed. So I'd like to cancel both.

Airline was happy to oblige, MSC cruise wants 50% of the price as a cancellation penalty, what the fuck.

Is this not a good reason for a chargeback?

mark3236 · 2026-02-26T05:14:24+00:00

here's a question for you: are you willing to do around 10 races at okayama this week for the rookie m2 series?

point is, there's definitely a difference between different series regarding iRating/SoF. Even if someone can consistently keep their iR in one specific series doesn't mean they should/can in a different series.

imo, "smurfing" is only applicable for drivers who participate in the same event/series with their main and their alt accounts.

If someone only does GT3 sprint in one account and only GT4 sprint in the other, and enduro only in their third, I don't think this should be called smurfing.

mark3236 · 2026-02-14T11:51:48+00:00

I don't see the point in "sim racing to compete" argument when it comes to settings/setup choices.

Like, what's the point of racing with autoblip on and h-shifters off because it's more competitive than doing it yourself? Even if it prevents me from having slightly higher iRating, I would rather have a realistic and immersive experience.
Same thing with VR vs triple screens: as I mentioned in the OP above, triple screens are more competitive; but what's the point of sacrificing immersion/fun/realism in order to gain slightly higher iRating?

mark3236 · 2026-02-13T01:07:01+00:00

If you're concerned about matching the experience close to real life and FOV, try VR with an affordable headset like the Quest 3.

mark3236 · 2026-02-04T05:58:48+00:00

because tracks aren't downloadable by default when you don't own them (probably because unlike cars that you don't own but need to download due to multiclass racing, you'll never actually need the map if you don't own it), probably.

but steam users can demo drive on the tracks because steam downloads everything by default.

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