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For those of you that follow this thread, you may have figured out by now that this entire project was undertaken so I could enter and compete in an event like this. The project took allot longer than I thought it would but then they all do these days. I had hoped to use 2015 and 2016 as development years but that didn't happen. So, 2017 ended up being the year to find and fix the bugs in this car. It is unfortunate that 2017 is also the year that we went to Indy and a more rational approach might have been to wait until 2019 or beyond to try this. But, I/we aren't getting any younger and sometimes you have to do things that don't make sense.
Thirteen years ago, my wife and I visited Indy on my 40th birthday. It is hard to explain, but the place got to me. The Indy 500 is a race I never miss on TV (even back when it was not a live telecast) and the guys and gals that race there are my heroes. I knew long ago that I would not have the courage or the financial ability to race an Indy car there but with the development of the road course for F1 I became hopeful. When SVRA was allowed to have an event at IMS I knew that either the SCCA or NASA would eventually race there.
So with this bucket list item crossed off (sort of), am I done? NO. My mindset prior to this season and the Runoffs was to use this car as a tool to get me where I wanted to go and then sell off what ever was left. Well, that mindset has changed. I am not done with this car or with racing it. So here are the future plans:
Rebuild my current engine and revise porting
Build a new street port or bridge port engine based on a 4 port core
Replace the 7.25" clutch with a 5.5" Quarter Master clutch (I bought one at Indy)
Install the Aero parts I have accumulated
Loose weight - Me and the Car!
Moar Hoosier tires
Well nuts, man. I was following online and wondered what happened. Sucks that you didn't make it out for the race, but at the same time, it's awesome you made it out and I'm glad nothng worse happened. And in the end you were there and I wasn't.
I've got the bit between my teeth though - going to see if I can get to the level to show up by the next time it's in the Midwest, it all sounds awesome.
The feedback that the SCCA is getting is that this was the best Runoffs ever. It will come back to IMS in 3-5 years. Get your car done!
The feedback that the SCCA is getting is that this was the best Runoffs ever. It will come back to IMS in 3-5 years. Get your car done!
I'm up to a total of 3 races so far in the T4 NC Miata I'm sharing with my dad... I figure that's a decent place to get some experience while I'm building the NA Miata. Hampered by complete lack of budget but that may be fixed a bit if the interview I went to Wednesday pans out.
If I'm at all up to it, even if I'm going to be mid/backpack in the T4 car, I want to do it.
Did some thinking this weekend. Doing fully proper struts had been keeping me from wanting to do a 1st gen - vs the Miata where everything is just fixed and available. Except... I mean I need to buy a hardtop before I can even start on a cage, and all those Miata parts that are already proven aren't exactly free. And I have 90% of what I need for an EProd car already, and what I don't have is either driveline stuff I'd need to buy for the Miata anyway, or a front strut solution which I've been wanting to fab for years. Oh, and I have a stripped FB shell already, plus a couple more non-sunroof shells, plus a bunch of parts cars.
I'd be tempted to double-dip into STU with it but fender flares make that a no-go.
Did some thinking this weekend. Doing fully proper struts had been keeping me from wanting to do a 1st gen - vs the Miata where everything is just fixed and available. Except... I mean I need to buy a hardtop before I can even start on a cage, and all those Miata parts that are already proven aren't exactly free. And I have 90% of what I need for an EProd car already, and what I don't have is either driveline stuff I'd need to buy for the Miata anyway, or a front strut solution which I've been wanting to fab for years. Oh, and I have a stripped FB shell already, plus a couple more non-sunroof shells, plus a bunch of parts cars.
I'd be tempted to double-dip into STU with it but fender flares make that a no-go.
Sorry, total hijack, just got to thinking.
What I noticed at the Runoffs is that the flares that guys are running in EP aren't as wide as they used to be. Probably because the radial Hoosiers aren't as wide as the bias ply cantilever tires that everybody used to use. So a stock fender EP car is doable on the new radials but you would be giving up track. Of course you could also run 225/45x15 A7/R7s in EP and those fit for sure. The double dip "fix" is an approved body kit for the FB in STU that would allow for more tire. I think they gave some STO cars alternate body work (the Acura NSX I think) before that class died.
The bigger issue, in my mind, is that the Miata can fit allot more rubber under its fenders than the an FB can. This, on top of the fact that is has a better suspension to begin with, makes it a better car. That is unless you/we can talk the CRB into fender flares.
Well, I also have a lot of friends in Prod, and stiff competition locally. STU mostly isn't a going thing - the car counts on the classes at the June Sprints this year was 11 in EP vs 1 in STU. And to be honest... I've had a strut solution for the FB in the back of my mind for 15 years and I want to prove it works.
The way I figure too is that I can always just build the Miata shell as a back burner thing - barring shaking a money tree and finding a sequential trans for STU, the entire driveline would be the same except for the driveshaft and diff housing. Same engine program... and I may have just won an auction for an engine dyno.
Over the winter will be making some updates to the cooling system. I'll be installing a bigger Afco double pass radiator (26x19) and some hood vents. Regarding the hood vents I am trying to decide where to put them. Per the rules I get 200 square inches to play with divided between as many as two separate vents. I don't think the vents have to be that big to be effective but I do think it is important that they are located properly to create positive air extraction. Below is a picture of my car at speed. Note that the hood is being depressed about 6" aft of the number. This tells me that this is a high pressure area. Thoughts???
By the way, my new street car - 2017 Mustang GT - has hood vents near at the front of the hood. Based on how they are designed, I am guessing they create their own low pressure area.
Last edited by mustanghammer; 12-04-17 at 11:31 PM.
The classic thing is that air is going to be packing up and forming a high pressure area the closer to the windshield you get. Longitudinally, where you have the number doesn't look bad; either moving the number or on either side of it.
This shows how I did my hood vent. I lined it up with the trailing edge of the radiator, and made it as deep as possible until I interfered with the alternator, you could make it bigger if you were to go to a side mount alternator. It seemed to work very well for me, it not only lowered my temps it helped with the hood flapping. For endurance racing I like only having the single hood pin for pit stops and I had the rear of the hood spaced up which probably helped a bit with cooling but it was flapping a lot, we even got a black flag from the flapping once.
The classic thing is that air is going to be packing up and forming a high pressure area the closer to the windshield you get. Longitudinally, where you have the number doesn't look bad; either moving the number or on either side of it.
I'll be interested to see what you come up with for the vents. As I know very little about it, I can't offer any advice...
Very nice daily you have there. In my favorite color too, I'm jealous!
Thanks. It is my second mustang in Race Red....it practically glows and stays pretty clean. I liked my 2012 V6 Pony package just fine but made the mistake of driving one of the new mustangs. It was a slippery slope from there. Looking forward to autocrossing this one.
This shows how I did my hood vent. I lined it up with the trailing edge of the radiator, and made it as deep as possible until I interfered with the alternator, you could make it bigger if you were to go to a side mount alternator. It seemed to work very well for me, it not only lowered my temps it helped with the hood flapping. For endurance racing I like only having the single hood pin for pit stops and I had the rear of the hood spaced up which probably helped a bit with cooling but it was flapping a lot, we even got a black flag from the flapping once.
Okay, this is what I have been thinking about doing. How the SCCA interprets where the hood vent is sized will be interesting. Will they apply the 200 square inch limit to the actual open that allows air to escape or will this be applied to the part of the hood that is modified. I guess I have to write a letter
Thanks!
Scott, do you have any pictures of the steering lock you have? I did some modifications to my steering arms and want to see if I improved things or made them worse
Scott, do you have any pictures of the steering lock you have? I did some modifications to my steering arms and want to see if I improved things or made them worse
Sorry I should have put steering angle, I am looking to see what kind of steering angle and ackerman you get with the stock steering arms
Well the only thing I did to the steering arms was to heat them up and twist then about 10 degrees so that the heim joints I am using for rod ends don't bind. See post #93
I am not using "turn in" spacers that increase ackerman on my car because I think they are unnecessary for what I am doing. So my car has the ackerman that Mazda birthed her with.
Let me know if I am missing the point. Its possible. New Year and all.
Really nice car! I wish I had the confidence to Fab the cage and some of your engine bay parts.
Thanks. If you want it bad enough you will learn the skills necessary to get it done. OR, earn enough cash to pay someone to do it for you. This build is a mixture of both.
Do you have any new engine plans since they allow any 85 and up 13b parts to be used? IE street ported 4 port with cosmo irons?
Had assumed all along that "13B" is defined by the width of the rotor housings in STU and that everything else was "open." So I picked up an intake to build a 4 port 13B using 12A parts. However, to get something rolling for this year I built another S3 6 port engine. Should be better than the last one because ports are more consistent and legal! My last engine had Pineapple Racing sleeve inserts glued in and I am pretty sure that was a no-no.
Also changed out the clutch and flywheel. Went from a 7.25" to a 5.5" Quarter Master on a Mazdatrix fly wheel. Saves about 5lbs over the 7.25 clutch set up.
I have the new engine in, now working on the installation of a bigger Afco radiator and two new oil coolers. Also have two piece brake rotors for the rear of the car.
Scott, still liking the equal length three link set up? After destroying all the bushings in my rear links this weekend, I am looking to make a change
Yes. Once I really got to hammer the car last year I couldn't help but be impressed by the corner exit grip. No waiting, just gas and go.
This isn't my first go round with this king of rear suspension. I had exactly the same thing in an autox mustang and that is the reason I went with it for this car. With spherical bearings there is zero bind, very easy to adjust and cheap to build.
10-06-17, 10:57 AM
