Re: 2015 Spec Racer Gen3
Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2013 1:53 pm
It was a pretty long road to the first test with production like conversion parts. I was really pleased how it turned out, the car sounds better, balance is a little better. We ran a liitle more than 1 second under the record, on a really cold windy day.
On most tracks Gen 3 will likely be 4 to 6 mph faster on medium length straights. That is about .15 / .3 time savings per straight. Not overwhelming but a nice boost in performance.
My car weighed 1378 with full tank of fuel, Weld wheels, half worn tires, late model frame with the steel panel under the fuel cell, fiberglass seat, steel foot pan, newish nose, center and 40 lb. tail, CDS dash / 24 channel system, Heavy U1 Battery and the "in tank fuel pump". I removed 6 plates or 30 lb. of ballast. My car dropped 144 LBS. But no good deed goes unpunished, the car was 13 or 14 LBS heavy left side, bummer we can work on that. The engine itself is about 55 LBS less weight.
Some of the production parts will weigh a little more I'm sure. Plus I have a couple more weight saving parts that are not pure performance related, but intended for easier service / set up work. They should be on my car @ COTA.
It's very likely my car will be down 155 LBS. That in itself will be a nice performance increase and surely help with our upright / wheel bearing reliability issues.
That brings us to the new Minimum Weight issue...Erik and I have talked, it's been talked about a bunch on our monthly CSR calls. Which by the way is how we make most of the decisions, so if you have issues or concerns tell your CSR or e-mail me in a professional manor please. I believe we should target 230 lb. to meet minimum class weight with a fresh car.
Much heavier than that and I believe we pose a serious safety issue with drivers of 150 lb. and less. I know we don't have a lot of small build men or women in the class but 130 / 150 lb. drivers would have to carry 80 / 100 lbs of ballast. I really don't want to test the Safety margin. We talked briefly of ways to carrying ballast in that range safer.
As the pre production kits are installed, we can look at the weight savings of the test cars and make a better judgement on the new minimum weight.
One more thing I'm doing best on...ease of engine R&R. Yesterday I pulled the engine for the first time from a full running install. It took about 50 min at steady not hurried pace. I believe overall it's a little less complicated. You still need to turn the engine at an angle to get it out of the frame. But it's lighter and a little easier to manage. I'm thinking of adding a block drain to help control the mess of draining the cooling system. Something like a -6 male fitting and AN cap? Simple and effective, would that be worth a phew bucks to you guys?
I hope to get another test or 2 in before COTA...more to come !
On most tracks Gen 3 will likely be 4 to 6 mph faster on medium length straights. That is about .15 / .3 time savings per straight. Not overwhelming but a nice boost in performance.
My car weighed 1378 with full tank of fuel, Weld wheels, half worn tires, late model frame with the steel panel under the fuel cell, fiberglass seat, steel foot pan, newish nose, center and 40 lb. tail, CDS dash / 24 channel system, Heavy U1 Battery and the "in tank fuel pump". I removed 6 plates or 30 lb. of ballast. My car dropped 144 LBS. But no good deed goes unpunished, the car was 13 or 14 LBS heavy left side, bummer we can work on that. The engine itself is about 55 LBS less weight.
Some of the production parts will weigh a little more I'm sure. Plus I have a couple more weight saving parts that are not pure performance related, but intended for easier service / set up work. They should be on my car @ COTA.
It's very likely my car will be down 155 LBS. That in itself will be a nice performance increase and surely help with our upright / wheel bearing reliability issues.
That brings us to the new Minimum Weight issue...Erik and I have talked, it's been talked about a bunch on our monthly CSR calls. Which by the way is how we make most of the decisions, so if you have issues or concerns tell your CSR or e-mail me in a professional manor please. I believe we should target 230 lb. to meet minimum class weight with a fresh car.
Much heavier than that and I believe we pose a serious safety issue with drivers of 150 lb. and less. I know we don't have a lot of small build men or women in the class but 130 / 150 lb. drivers would have to carry 80 / 100 lbs of ballast. I really don't want to test the Safety margin. We talked briefly of ways to carrying ballast in that range safer.
As the pre production kits are installed, we can look at the weight savings of the test cars and make a better judgement on the new minimum weight.
One more thing I'm doing best on...ease of engine R&R. Yesterday I pulled the engine for the first time from a full running install. It took about 50 min at steady not hurried pace. I believe overall it's a little less complicated. You still need to turn the engine at an angle to get it out of the frame. But it's lighter and a little easier to manage. I'm thinking of adding a block drain to help control the mess of draining the cooling system. Something like a -6 male fitting and AN cap? Simple and effective, would that be worth a phew bucks to you guys?
I hope to get another test or 2 in before COTA...more to come !