welcome to the board! im the older brother, the red headed stepchild of the forum. and i feel the need to educate you. EVERYONE knows BLACK is the fastest color!! just ask dj!
seriously you couldnt ask for a better place to learn about how to make these cars fast. its all here.
i would suggest if its possible to combine your cooling mods just for ease of install. in LA. your dealing with tons of heat and you need all the cooling you can get.
install the supercooler 180 tstat and separate the cooling system at the same time. im sure you know the ills of the bosch pump so if you desire replace the pump also. doing this all at once allows you to flush the cooling system and refill with new fluid just once and your done.
if you get a tune from tony have them do the star -10 fan mod for 50$.
there is also more than afew threads about installing a bigger tank in the trunk on the m/b forums to hold more coolant and ice for the track. some like it some dont.
enjoy the car you will love the speed!!! btw akebono pads are dust free and work very well