84 whp!

Originally from Tuesday, July 6, 2010

We dyno'ed the car today, and it survived. It also posted 84 hp max and 94 ft-lbs, at the wheels on a Mustang dyno. I'd say that's pretty good for this car. We are leaking oil out of the tranny, a lot of oil, through the linkage on the driver's side. We'll fix it and take it in for tuning again before our track day this Friday.

We got to drive the car a bit. Seems to run fine. No horrible noises, or smoke, and it shifts fine even though one of the synchro shoes is missing. We're going to pull the tranny from the parts car and have it ready as a spare.

Oh, and the motor sounds great, and a lot like a V8. Here's the video.



Other news, the air dam is on and we'll be working on a splitter tomorrow. The kill switch is in and I'll do a little rewiring for it tomorrow. Various brackets and other hardware are in, the battery is now in back, over the right rear shocks. A bunch of other small stuff got done as well.

Also, we had the car on a trailer while getting gas for it. Some guys driving by pulled in and asked "What is that?" We told them, and also about our plans for LeMons. They loved the car, and they too were preparing a LeMons car, a Mazda 323. And when we got to EGR for the dyno run, the owner of the LeMons famous V8olvo was there, and he saw the car, and he loves it, and always did like the GT. Looks like we'll have no trouble building up a fan club.

Looking very C4-like with its turbine wheels and fancy new nose job.

Baby’s First Laps, Tomorrow

Wednesday-Thursday, July 7-8, 2010

We worked until 11 PM again on Wednesday. We finished the electrical, installed a third brake light, installed passenger side roll cage padding, removed the tranny from the parts car, installed screening inside the air dam, other small stuff, ordered parts from OGTS, and now the car is just about ready for it's first date with Thunderhill on Friday. It still needs:

• To have the drivers-side floor repaired (Clint, Evil Genius Racing)
• Weld on a bracket for the instrument panel (Clint, EGR)
• Replace a seal on the tranny (us)
• Install oil temperature sensor (Clint, EGR)
• Install the windshield (us)
• Install mirrors (us)
• Tuning (the fine folks at EGR)
• Finish installing the roll cage padding (us)

We worked until 1:01 AM tonight and the track, which is about 90 minutes away, opens at 7AM. We still have a few things to do, so we should be able to get a few hours sleep. Hopefully the car runs well tomorrow.

Tonight we finished assembling the new, professional-looking (non-LeMony) gauge/switch panel. Don't mind the mess of wires behind it. We'll get that under control soon. Also, we don't have the fan, cool-seat, headlights, etc in yet.

The instrument panel was made by Front Panel Express.

Messy wiring, but it will get cleaned up.

The warning LEDs that will go in in the top right will flash when a gauge is in the bad area.

We got the floor repaired earlier today, got the gauge panel mounted, installed a harness, installed the windshield, succeeded in getting the shifter seal replaced, but no tuning. Not enough time.

If we survive the track day then all that is left is primarily cosmetic and fine tuning/adjusting, and driving it around the neighborhood late at night.

Geoff Works His Magic

Originally from Tuesday, July 5, 2010

We had the car at Geoff's last weekend for some light fab work. We got a lot done.

• Installed the front air dam (courtesy of OGTS and UPS), which now makes the car look even more Corvette-like.
• Patched holes in the cabin, such as where the e-brake was
• Patched a hole in the fender where the radio antenna was
• Did more work on the damaged R/F fender. Geoff got to try out his new metal shrinking tool on the car.
• Installed the tach using tabs welded to the roll cage
• Stiffened the fuel bulkhead so it would be quieter
• Fab'ed up a battery holder that mounts in the rear, just above the shocks, behind the fuel bulkhead.
• Installed one of the headlight pods, holding off on the other while Geoff worked the fender.
• Hooked up the fuel line, to the gas tank
• Fab'ed up a bracket to hold the fuel and vacuum lines running from the carburetor to where ever they come from.
• Installed the hood and secured it using hood pins. Removed the original hinges and latch.
• Did a lot of sanding. Much sanding still left to do.

Geoff loves playing with his fire-breathing toys.

Our current immediate, before Friday’s track day, to-do list:

• Find a cheap long battery cable. Rumor has it that a certain model of BMW has them.
• Finish the electrical
• Install the gauge panel. The panel itself should arrive tomorrow. After assembly, it gets installed.
• Make a splitter, to complete the ALMS Corvette look.
• Repair the driver's side floor. Too much rust.
• Figure out what to do about the tranny. Swap in the tranny from the parts car???

Don't worry, it gets prettier, eventually.

The sanding has just began. There was a skin of bondo covering the whole car.

The car goes back to EGR for some work and tuning tomorrow.

Big-ass wing!

Originally from Saturday, July 3, 2010

Yesterday Alan and I installed the Big-Ass Wing! It looks as good as it does ridiculous, but I have to admit, it makes the car look a bit more serious about running some fast laps.

C4-style wheels, carbon fiber wing, it's almost ready for the big party.

Proudly displaying its wing. But it still doesn't have a gas tank.

Looks somewhat funny car-ish.

Later we took the car over to Geoff's who will do some welding for us and will fit the air dam, and as it was out in his driveway we put it under a cover. The profile was that of a small funny car. Awesome. If we brought it into the paddock at Thunderhill under a cover people would really wonder.

Other developments - in an attempt to change the gear oil in the diff I was able to add nearly a quart of AmSoil Extreme without siphoning out any oil. ??? Was the diff dry? I had stuck a hose in it and it came out with oil on about 1/2 inch. I hope the PO didn't run the car with no oil in the diff. The bottom was wet so it did leak. Could that much viscous oil leak out through a bad gasket in 25 years?

The tranny didn't have any oil either. None. I'm guessing the PO drained it when he stored the car. The engine had new-looking oil in it, the coolant had been drained, and the brake system had no fluid in it. The tranny also seems to have tried to shed a few parts. We pulled the pan to look inside and there was a spring and two pieces of a broken syncro shoe in the pan. Not good. Fingers crossed. Anyway, everything else in the tranny looks good, to someone lying on his back, with a flash light, and who does
not really know that he is looking at.

Big ass hold-up - the tank we got from OpelWerks appears to have a different type of fitting on the tank's outlet. When we tried hooking up our new aluminum lines we couldn't get the nut/cap on for more than a half turn, then tightening it we stripped threads in the cap. We found similar fittings at our local Parker (Hose and Fitting) store and finally determined that the fitting in the tank is different. We've got several calls into OpelWerks to find out what we should do next (use a different fitting, replace their fitting), but no replies yet. It is a holiday weekend.

This weekend, we'll get the air dam fitted and installed, finish the R/F fender repair, patch some holes in the floor, install the battery in the back, and install hood pins. In between, I may start sanding and we'll put a second coat on the roll cage.

Other than all that, I now have logged about 70 yards in the car - pushing it out of our driveway and into the street, turning it around and getting it to the end of the trailer. Then sitting in it while we roll it off the trailer and into Geoff's driveway. So far it drives pretty nice. Alan say it rolls nice when pushing it.

We are sooooo close to finally driving it.

Alan and I knocked off at 10:30 last night and went downtown to get dinner. One observation, as slow as the work seems to go, day by day, we've done all this in just under 5 weeks.

About LeMons Races

Originally from Thursday, July 1, 2010

The race is in August and it is coming up fast. You you are interested in coming, here’s roughly how the weekend goes.

August 6, Tech and BS
Some think this is the best part of the weekend. Teams get their cars inspected and some end up running off to make last minute changes, usually to the roll cages. After tech, comes BS, where the judges inspect the car for compliance with the spirit of LeMons, usually cost. With bribes and excuses and pleading for mercy so common here it is definitely an interesting part of these weekends.

August 7, Part 1 - Start of Race
The first day is fun and exciting because so many people are out on track racing for the first time. It's a lot of fun watching 150+ themed cars rolling out and starting a race. There will be a few incidents, but not a lot, but there will be a lot of tows. Some cars may only last for 20-30 minutes.

By the end of the day the paddock has thinned, and the track has thinned even more, because there are a lot of "heroic fixes" underway in the paddock, some which will go on until nearly sunrise. The guts of engines will be all over, brake pads worn away and backing plates welded to caliper pistons, grinders and welders will be grinding and welding, and everyone else will either be drinking heavily or sleeping. It is also a great time for teams to go around to visit each other, complement each others driving, or apologize of one's own driving, swap team t-shirts, etc.

August 8, Part 2 - End of Race
The survivors of Saturday are serious now. Clean and conservative driving, but hard racing will be taking place between cars vying for positions. A few more cars will drop out. Also, there are many more stories to be heard in the paddock. Just walk around and ask teams "What happened?". Finally there is the awards ceremony, which is attended by all 200-300 people still left. It's fun, and funny. An example - The 2009 LeMons Awards on Vimeo:


We hope to see you there. Make sure and find us in the paddock and drop into say hi.

Here are a couple of photos to show you what I mean:

Sometimes you run out of fuel, sometime you run out of road.

Half of the show is in the paddock. White Trash Barbie does a great spoof.

Team Hurling Moss, a car that had moss growing on it when found, and it still has moss growing on it.

The popular Uberbird, a BMW E30 dressed up like a Plymouth Superbird.

Still Here, Still Making Progress!

Originally from Thursday, July 1, 2010

Sorry for the lack of updates. We've been working longer and longer days on the car and by the time I have cleaned up at the end of the day, or night, I'm too tired and my hands to sore to go on-line and update this thread or our blog.

So, here's what has happened recently:

The car had gone over to Evil Genius Racing (EGR) two weeks ago. We had gotten as far as almost finishing the brakes, but also ran the engine for 20 minutes or so. Still, it was in good enough shape for EGR to jump in and do their bit.

Clint at EGR did most of the work. On the day we dropped the car off he got started and by the end of the day he had half of the cage in. Here's what it looks like:

It had taken EGR a bit longer than expected, partly due to a deadline they had to get a Trans Mexico car ready, so John let us bring our tools over to continue working on the brakes and suspension and whatever else we could do to keep things moving along.

The car came back last Friday, but Alan and I both needed a weekend off. Then, first thing Monday we were under the car again, getting dirty, and progressing slowly.

As of last night, 11:45 PM, we've been working later and later, our recent progress and today's to-do list include:

• Repaired the fuel level sender. There was an open in the ground line due to corrosion.
• New fuel tank arrived yesterday. It goes in today.
• Brakes are done. They are assembled, bled, and no leaks found. Pedal is firm.
• We've installed hard poly bushings in front, but just for the upper A-arm. We can't get to the lowers without taking out the whole steering/front suspension section. Will do this before Buttonwillow, if we survive Thunderhill.
• Increased caster by moving the caster spacers. We have no idea what caster is now, but its at the max possible without modifications.
• Shifter stickiness fixed. I was difficult to get into reverse. All is good now.
• Geoff patched the fiberglass air dam and we have tired fitting it on the car. It needs a little work but this should probably be done before the weekend.
• The "big-ass wing" is finally here. We will install it today, temporarily. It will go back on for the track day and finally after painting.
• The rear suspension is done. This includes new hard poly bushings through-out and new KYB (Kill Your Back) shocks. We have torque tube bushings to install but will do that later.
• We've got the C4-style wheels, but will use these mostly for show and theme. We've ordered light-weight steelies for the race, and Falken 615 tires. We'll probably have to use the C4 wheels on Bonni's track day (Next Wednesday!!!) because the steelies won't be here in time.
• The windshield goes back in soon. The rubber parts have been ordered.
• Brass adapters ordered so we can install the gauge sensors. The recommended 14mm X 1.5 did not fit.
• Progress on the electrical. Engine electrical is done, rear lights/fuel sensor electrical is routed to the front, sensor electrical is in. We're waiting for the gauge panel to come in (designed by us, custom made by Front Panel Express). It should be here by the end of the week. Meanwhile, will install a connector panel for the current wiring and will string wires for the front lights.
• The work on the fuel bulkhead is nearly complete. We're cutting the holes for the roll cage now and will test fit today, after the fuel tank goes in. We won't install it permanently until we start painting.
• A 5-point harness has been ordered. For the track day the brave instructor (me) will sit in one of the original smelly seats and will use the original smelly 3-points. All good incentive for keeping his student under control.
• Cage padding and mirrors have been ordered. They should be here before later today, or so says the FedEx web site.
• We will primer the welds on the cage at the end of the day today and will paint it black tomorrow.

Alan and Geoff were here working late last night. We got a lot done, but not the type of stuff that shows in photos. Zep has been checking in and doing a lot of work, especially on the brakes. Bernhard has been checking in too and has helped a bit. On Tuesday a complete stranger, to us, (Mr Bob, Sacramento, used to autox Opel GTs, was at last week's autox with the LeMons car they are building) dropped in and helped work on the car for several hours. Also, we've gotten excellent advice and support from other Opel people who have dropped by, and OGTS has been very helpful in advising us and providing parts, including the C4-style wheels. Opel people are awesome.

We plan to take the car back to EGR next week (Monday = holiday, Wednesday = track day! Tuesday=?) for dyno tuning and maybe a little more minor prep work. John has been very helpful and generous. Then, we haul it up to Thunderhill for it's first time on track. It should be interesting. Unless we drive it around the block here in Davis in the wee hours then Wednesday at Thunderhill will be the first time the car has rolled under it's own power since 1985!

What About Wheels?

Originally from Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Well, the car is now over at Evil Genius Racing. It feels strange not having it here to work on, needing our love, care, and attention. Empty nest depression?

We're feeling pretty good about the car now, even though we hit two more snags today. The Honda wheels we had on the car won't work for us. The center hole is too small to fit over the front wheel bearings. We tried on other wheels at John's shop (EGR) and found some interesting almost fits, including a 15x7 wheel, but offset was a problem.

Anyway, we're looking for six wheels now, 14x7's most likely, and might have to get customs made in steel at about $100 each. Tires will be Falkin Azenias 615K.

Opel GT Source (OGTS) carries wheels for the Opel GT. The Team Dynamics wheels the sell look great, but the OGTS price is quite a bit higher than steelies, understandably. We're looking at Diamond Racing Wheels now and will get six steel wheels. The minimum width in 15's is 8", 14x7's are available, and the price is around $85 each. Note, instead of "offset" they use "backspace".

Team Dynamics, black, 15x7, +15 mm offset

OG, graphite, 15x8, +25 mm offset

Note - photos of the wheels above are from the OGTS web site.

We called Opel GT Source to discuss wheels and Gil gave us a set of used wheels! Aluminum, C4 turbine style, 15x7's. We'll be picking up this week when we drive up to Sonora to meet Gil, pick his brain, and pick up some other parts. Once we have them and see everything fits we can measure them for the other two we need. A minimum of six wheels/tires are recommended for these races.

In other news, the top front shock mounts are trash. The car had been on jack stands for the last three weeks and we never had a chance to see how the suspension worked. Well, it's pretty damned soft, and we in effect have no front shocks. When we push down on the fender we can see the top of the shock moving freely. We discussed going the coil-over route if we can find cheap set at a pick-n-pull, but, after doing some research and found that front coil-overs are out of the question. They just won’t fit inside the tiny a-arms. We'll get a part from OGTS to weld in/replace the corroded shock mount.

We're Ready for the Evil Genius

(Originally from around June 14, 2010)

We've got the car to the point where it is time to take it over to Evil Genius Racing (West Sacramento) to get a cage installed, Kirkey seat installed, and quick-release wheel installed, plus some other work.

Today we finished stripping the interior of sound deadening material (not the most pleasant job), got most of the brakes put back together, and ran the engine long enough to get it up to temperature. It was rough at first, without a choke, but once it warmed up it ran great, sounded great, and the exhaust was clear and not ejecting rust anymore, although it did spit out a small wasp’s nest.

The cleaning is progressing.

It's amazing how much of a car you don't actually need.

There was an entertaining moment with the engine running involving the sweet smell of wood smoke, with a hint of olive. We found the last rats nest, right there where the four pipes from the header come together. Every day I think I have found the last rats nest, and every day we find more agricultural material in the car. Now I'm sure we'll get black flagged because we'll be dropping burning walnut shells and olive pits on the track.

Tomorrow Zep and I will do a few last minute things to the car then Alan will bring his trailer after lunch and we'll take it to EGR.

Once we get the car back, hopefully in a week, there will be lots more to do, such as - mirrors, intake, fuel tank, aluminum fuel lines, finish the brakes, finish the electrical (including the gauge panel), straightening a fender, install the windshield, add an air dam and splitter, install the CF wing, and finally paint it and sticker it. I'm ready to go out and buy the yellow paint now. Also, once we get the tank in the car will have to go back to EGR to complete the cage install.

I don't think we'll be using this gas tank.

 

We will be using this carburetor, the only part of the motor we have refurbished.

Thinking a little father into the future, Bonni's Thunderhill track day is coming up soon, first week of July, and we expect to have the car running and track worthy by then and we'll have it at that event.

We had another guy offer to drive for us, Bernard, and rumor is he drove on the Elf team, with Jackie Stewart, back in the day. I am going to have to check that out. We've met him and he's a great guy, obviously knowledgeable and skilled at wrenching.

If it is allowed I'll see if I can get some work done on the car while it is at EGR. I could do the front lights and other electrical while other things are being done to the car. Maybe some body work, too.

We will start on the cool suit system while the car is in the shop.

A year, already!

I can't believe this has been going on for a year already, and that I dropped the ball on this blog. I really had intentions of keeping it up to date, but the days working on that car got longer and longer and the extended Opel Yoga sessions took their toll, and somehow between stiff hands and sleep working it's way back into the picture the blog got dropped. Cursed demands of a biological vehicle trumping the ethereal passions to go racing yet again! Damn you, body! Anyway, I would feel eternally guilty if I didn't finish the job, so the Team Tinyvette blog is back!

Fortunately I did take notes and have done write-ups elsewhere, so stay tuned and I'll get things caught up soon. Meanwhile, you might want to see what the finished product looked like.

By the way, the next race is about two weeks out - Arse-Sweat Apalooza, Thunderhill Raceway, August 6-7, 2011, with tech. and BS on Friday, August 5. Are you coming?