Mocking up the tow hook: We got the rest of the roof holes drilled today. In one of them, we discovered a near as I can tell vintage 1984 fossilized bug (cicada shell?): There was no room in between the plastic and the metal for it to get in after the fact. Some of the cage welds were just plain UGLY. We got them all welded up, but it wasn't pretty, so I won't be sharing any pics from that Tow hook welded together: Note we got a 15,000lb one because that's the smallest one that fits the 3" minimum inner diameter in the ChumpCar rules. Hook bolted in place: And bumper test-fit back on:
[This message has been edited by kwagner (edited 06-19-2011).]
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10:14 AM
kwagner Member
Posts: 4257 From: Pittsburgh, PA Registered: Apr 2005
Here's a case where pictures don't tell the whole story. Getting from the first picture to the second took a lot of work and thinking. We didn't have access to a brake large enough to bend the (I believe .080" thick) aluminum, so we had to use some creativity: Here's what we ended up with at the end of the time we had available: The old dash is on the left. The cutout on the left side is where the tach will fit.
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10:19 AM
kwagner Member
Posts: 4257 From: Pittsburgh, PA Registered: Apr 2005
The "cowbell" painted and properly cut out: The cutoff switch wasn't wired properly, and needed moved to inside the cabin. I also removed the 200A fuse at the same time, just to eliminate things that could go wrong. I actually did this (and a few other things) on the 5th, but forgot to bring my camera: The new dash in, with gauge and switch locations drawn on: And now with all the holes cut out:
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10:27 AM
ManMadeChickens Member
Posts: 553 From: Clackamas, Oregon USA Registered: Jun 2006
Your first race is coming up, keep us in the loop! I really hope you guys do the 25 25 25 We will see how the beaver goes.
Chumpcar added 'It's a Corkscrew Christmas" at Laguna Seca help me talk Manmadepoulets (and his team) into going.
I want to so bad, but I'm beyond broke, so unless someone is willing to pay for the trip in exchange for me bringing the car, I'm gonna have to pass. :-(
quote
Originally posted by kwagner:
The correct way to put a cage in a fiero, according to Doug Chase, is to drill holes in the floor, drop the cage through, weld the top, push it up through the holes, then weld plates where the holes used to be.
That's the way we did ours. I commend you for taking care of the cage now, while it's "easy." The first thing a ChumpCar tech inspector will do is get in there and run their fingers around the welds, to be sure it's done right... and if it's not - fix it there at the track, or you don't race.
Everything is lookin' good. I like the work you guys are doing, it all looks well designed, and well fabricated.
[This message has been edited by ManMadeChickens (edited 06-19-2011).]
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10:10 PM
kwagner Member
Posts: 4257 From: Pittsburgh, PA Registered: Apr 2005
Thanks! It's a bit frustrating at times because things take a while to design and time is definitely not on our side. I'm fortunate to be working with someone so knowledgeable. If it were just me I wouldn't have thought of half these things.
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10:56 PM
Jul 11th, 2011
ManMadeChickens Member
Posts: 553 From: Clackamas, Oregon USA Registered: Jun 2006
We just had our first race this weekend. I've spent almost every spare hour working on the car to prep for this weekend, which is why updates have fallen off. Give me a day or two to recover, and I'll be posting the whole saga here. It was an adventure, to say the least.
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11:50 AM
ManMadeChickens Member
Posts: 553 From: Clackamas, Oregon USA Registered: Jun 2006
A little more cutting to the dash to streamline it (and make it easier to get in and out): Took the finished dash over to my parents' house for painting. My dad selecting the proper cleaning agent: Putting coats of paint on the dzus buttons and the dash: Finished:
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08:14 PM
kwagner Member
Posts: 4257 From: Pittsburgh, PA Registered: Apr 2005
Paint applied to welded dzus brackets: Dash going in, gauges and switches properly loomed to their new locations: "Power block" hanging down. This will have to be insulated well and secured so as to not cause a short: Dash almost done:
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08:21 PM
PFF
System Bot
kwagner Member
Posts: 4257 From: Pittsburgh, PA Registered: Apr 2005
Dash done, testing reach of switches: Gauges were laid out so the most important (oil pressure, tach, and water temp) were visible inside the steering wheel from the driver's seat. There was then a gap where the steering wheel blocks view where most of the switches were placed. Finally, the less important gauges were placed to the right: oil temp, speed, and fuel level: New kill switch mounted within driver's reach (old one was on the roll cage that attaches to the strut tower), and wired correctly so everything on the car dies when shut off: Removed the spare tire holder. This would come in handy later for tying the car down on the trailer and attaching the front tow strap: Power cables secured from belts and general floppiness: Some hose was used to protect the belts from the sharp edges of the seat holes:
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08:39 PM
kwagner Member
Posts: 4257 From: Pittsburgh, PA Registered: Apr 2005
Fired up the car to check the dash. Tach and water temp weren't working. I knew the water temp wouldn't work (I ran out of wires to plug in), but I didn't understand the tach. It was the only wire that made sense. It had to go there. After much debate, head-scratching, and searching, I took off some electrical tape and discovered that the tach signal wire was two segments. The segment that was visible was correct; the one that was hidden in the electric tape was actually the connector to the water temp. Well that part's solved, but where's the tach signal, then? I reach up under the dash and give a shake. What plops right into my hand? With that straightened out, we label the rest of the dash switches. Some light reading material (a haynes manual and the service manual) helps the process:
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08:49 PM
kwagner Member
Posts: 4257 From: Pittsburgh, PA Registered: Apr 2005
Duct tape is applied to the holes in the roof until there's time for a more permanent solution: Window net in, seat in, and because we're going to an autocross, passenger seat in: Dash all done: Some cool tape applied to the wires and cables near the header: Nose secured in place:
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08:57 PM
kwagner Member
Posts: 4257 From: Pittsburgh, PA Registered: Apr 2005
All loaded up on the trailer: An appropriately-chumpish truck to tow it: The tow hook coming in handy: Waiting at the start: It was a pretty fast course as far as autocross layouts go. Four of the five drivers for the ChumpCar race got to try out the car, get used to the feel, see how well they fit, etc. All in all a good day.
At this point, we had a few more things to do: roll bar padding, reseal the oil pan, some odds and ends. We were confident we would be ready in time for the race. This is when fate threw a curve ball...
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09:07 PM
Jul 15th, 2011
ManMadeChickens Member
Posts: 553 From: Clackamas, Oregon USA Registered: Jun 2006
Sorry for the delays in posting. My life has gotten quite busy lately (all good things, fortunately). I will post the rest of the story soon. We won't be going to Nelson Ledges this season, though perhaps next. The extra downtime has much reduced my stress level and strain on my funds. The car is being torn down right now in prep for an engine swap and spring testing.
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05:06 PM
Feb 2nd, 2012
kwagner Member
Posts: 4257 From: Pittsburgh, PA Registered: Apr 2005
We went to do some basic maintenance on the car after the autocross shakedown: check fluids, pressures, etc. When we drained the oil it had a disheartening sparkle to it. We took the oil pan off to check the damage: Most of the bearings to look like this: After taking them all off, it appears that one bearing wasn't getting enough oil (which # escapes me at the moment), and from its flaking every other bearing got messed up. I still have the worst offender sitting on my desk as a reminder of how a small part can cause a huge headache. No time to mourn our losses, though. Less than a month before the race, we needed an engine overhaul!
We began prepping to remove the engine: One nice discovery was what headers were actually on the car: One not-so-nice discovery was the crap that was the coolant system: Finally, engine out: Not bad for a first time removal.
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05:13 PM
kwagner Member
Posts: 4257 From: Pittsburgh, PA Registered: Apr 2005
