Thinking of Running the FD in a 12 hour race
 

Hi all,

Its been a while. I have managed to get my hands on another fd which i plan to convert into a full track car. Whilst bodywork and engine is not a problem, i just wanted some feedback on your opinion on running the rotary for 12hours at a go.

My plan is to have the car safely produce 300-320rwhp and the car will be lightened to FIA255 spec 1100Kg. Running a single would be ideal.

TIA

Dave

The rotary will be fine for that length of time. Back when the FD's were running in a series in the states that did some 6 hr races etc. the biggest problem the teams had were the stock turbos. It seemed like they always had the whole assembly off the cars between sessions. When they ran they did great, fix the stock turbo heat problems and you should be fine.

I don't know about the FD, but for other rotaries I've seen running enduros it seems that a fresh transmission is always a good investment. Some of the more experienced FD track drivers can probably comment better on this.

Good luck in the race!

-b

Turbo rotaries are not widely used in endurance events because of heat issues. This is on the money. Heat soak is the biggest issue with factory setup. I remember a lot of teams got rid of them because it was the weakest part of the car. I'm sure AI can help out.

Thanks fellows. It is pretty much decided that we will run single turbo. There are a couple of rules according to FIA 255 which requires the retention of original radiator and intercooler. Apart from that it is also very clear no water injection allowed, in my class at least.

If you have to use the stock radiator (ouch - are "equivalent aftermarket units" allowed?), then oil cooling and ducting will be critical. If you are allowed to go larger than stock on the dual oil coolers, you may want to seriously consider that. If you have to use stock ducting, you probably want to block off the section that vents the battery case, and make sure you close off all gaps.

Good luck,

-b