Rusty bucket into Solo toy, Some highlights of my budget autocross build from rust to rocket Options

[brant]

track racing organizations usually require one working brake light.
maybe not autocross... but all of the tracks I've ever been on did.

That's not the case for SCCA Solo Prepared classes. Per the 2015 Solo rules book...

17. PREPARED CATEGORY

17.2 BODYWORK AND STRUCTURE

U. All side marker lights and tail/stop lights may be removed. If such an item is removed, the resultant opening must be covered.

This car will probably never be on a track. There is some talk that the SCCA may ramp up the Solo Trails program which could potentially be held on road courses but Solo rules and regulations would apply to those events (from what I understand).

good deal
I think your safe with autox
but even for PCA drivers ed, or if you change your mind about track work in the future.

[Han Solo]

HAIRY ANT NEST RACING 914!

Time to let everyone know just how nuts I really am. Going with the wildlife theme (remember the three ant nests infesting car when I got it?) and making that into a racing team. It's a rough paint job that I can touch up with smoke grey Rustoleum. The graphics were applied with stencils and took quite some time. If it's good weather next weekend, we will be driving this beast.

OBTW - I got the Mallory FPR and that fixed the last fuel leak. I also wrapped the headers and collector with exhaust wrap so hopefully I won't be melting down the clutch cable pulley or emergency brake cables. The new FPR is running about 4.5 PSI but the Webers seem to be fine. I took it for a quick road test and then did an oil change. The oil and sump looked fine with very few metallics. I think we're ready!

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[Han Solo]

What a great weekend! Friday I received the RaceQuip racing harnesses I ordered and got them installed that evening except for the submarine (needed some hardware). I did the shoulder belts like Porsche on the factory 914 race cars. U-bolts through the rear bulkhead. And I used the OEM attachment points for the lap belts.

Then Saturday we loaded up the car for NCM Motorsports Park. I was the event chair so we did a course layout Friday evening before storms came in. Stayed overnight at a KOA and was back on-site at 6:30 AM tweeking the course. I was in the second of three run groups and temps were still cool. The car started first crank every time. My course had a couple of somewhat tight 180 turns and that 2056 pulled through those in 2nd gear no problem. Greg from FAT had sent me a 6500 rpm rev limit rotor and that was crucial to getting good time as there were two fast sections. I was actually taking 3rd in those and after several runs got good at not only finding the appropriate gears but making the shift points. I think this transmission is a keeper! At some point in the future I do want to get a performance gear shift however. Engine oil temp barely came off the low mark so the engine is cooling well. I also touch tested the clutch pulley mount with no finger burns so the exhaust wrap is doing the job.

Next expenditure will be new race tires but that's about it for the season unless something breaks. I'm very pleased with this build and now it's time to enjoy it (IMG:style_emoticons/default/piratenanner.gif)

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[Han Solo]

At the last autocross we raced the 914, I had two issues that needed addressing...

One, I suspect the engine is getting hot without the engine console tins. Readers will remember I removed those because of bad rust holes.

Two, the alternator belt was coming off just about ever lap.

Now those two issues may be related. If the engine compartment is getting hot, the belt could be getting soft and loose. I repeatedly checked tension and there's just no way to get a bar in between the tins and really pry on the alternator. I have purchased a Gates belt with kevlar that supposedly gets tighter with heat. The current belt is a new Conti.

I read several threads where it was pointed out that the oil temp gauge is not a good way to monitor engine temps. So I ordered a VDO head temp kit from Pelican. But before I took delivery on that, I went ahead and got an electric cooling fan. 11" was the smallest at the local O' Reily's and it actually fits fairly well. I mounted it under the grill because the drip pan is off on this car. Two holes with 3/8" pop rivets into the back edge of the grill frame. And then two tie wraps on the front side. I installed with the fan blowing up thinking that heat is going to rise anyway, best just move it on out of the engine compartment. I used a switch panel I made back in the winter for bench testing, mounting that under the driver side vent hole. Hookup was very easy as I've got terminal strips for hot and ground under the dash with open lugs.

Last weekend I got the head temp gauge kit. I thought maybe the gauge would fit nicely in the vent hole but it's about 1/4" too small. So I fabricated a bezel out of sheet metal. The instructions call for a 2 1/16" hole but a 2" hole saw cut a perfect size hole. I cleaned and primed that. This evening I installed the gauge and wiring. I put the ring terminal sensor on #3 spark plug as that's the easiest to get to and directly above the exhaust collector. The hardest part was fishing the connectors through the tunnel, along side my custom harness and into the engine compartment. The sensor or gauge does not require 12V so I'm not sure you should cut, crimp or splice that harness. The wire itself may be passing the thermal temp to the gauge.

I tested the engine and the gauge works great. Climbing right up as the engine warms. It settled in at 350F in the garage on a fairly cool evening. I kicked in the fan but didn't notice any change in temp so I'm not sure that is effective. I plan on racing this weekend so we'll see how it goes outdoors, warm day and higher revs.

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[Jetsetsurfshop]

Not sure how this is going to work. Wouldn't you want to pull cool air in? I like the idea though...

[yeahmag]

I really doubt that's going to do anything when the car is running. I suppose it could have a small impact on heat soak when the car is off...

A couple thoughts/questions come to mind:

* What makes you think the car is getting hot? Oil Temps? Head Temps?
* Replacing the belts is a good idea as they tend to get deformed occasionally after being thrown off.
* Did you check the alignment of the alternator to the crank fan assembly?
* "Typically" all rubber belts get tighter as they heat up.

[Han Solo]

Not sure how this is going to work. Wouldn't you want to pull cool air in? I like the idea though...

I'm running with the heat rises concept. That fan can be reversed however.

[Han Solo]

I really doubt that's going to do anything when the car is running. I suppose it could have a small impact on heat soak when the car is off...

A couple thoughts/questions come to mind:

* What makes you think the car is getting hot? Oil Temps? Head Temps?
* Replacing the belts is a good idea as they tend to get deformed occasionally after being thrown off.
* Did you check the alignment of the alternator to the crank fan assembly?
* "Typically" all rubber belts get tighter as they heat up.

Idle oil pressure got down around 20 psi after a few runs and oil temps were up about 1/2 of that gauge. Agreed on the alignment. I'm going to straight edge those pulley faces to see exactly what's going on.

[Han Solo]

3rd autocross.

Overall things went well yesterday. I tweeked the alternator bracket and the Gates belt stayed on. Head temps never exceeded 300F even with ambient temps in the 90s. I was shutting down after coming off course and not re-starting until just a minute or so from starting the next run. But I had another driver ride with me on my 5th run and he confirmed what I suspected. Oil pressure is dropping in the turns. Looks like I'll need a tuna can or deep sump. Pelican no longer offers the tuna can but does have a deep sump. I think the deep sump requires drilling and tapping the engine case. Any readers with experience on installing either please chime in.

[Chris Pincetich]

Shop around for the tuna can. It's an easy install, and effective (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)
PS - check the 914 World classifieds, there's one there NOW (IMG:style_emoticons/default/shades.gif)

[yeahmag]

I still lost my rod bearings after a few seasons with a tuna can. Be sure to run it about .5 quarts over when you get one. The sumps I've seen do *not* require any mods to the case, but are a bit dicey on how they mount in my opinion. That's how I ended up going with a modified CB Performance dry sump system...

[Han Solo]

Shop around for the tuna can. It's an easy install, and effective (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)
PS - check the 914 World classifieds, there's one there NOW (IMG:style_emoticons/default/shades.gif)

Crap. I just ordered from Automotion. Thanks for the heads up.

I still lost my rod bearings after a few seasons with a tuna can. Be sure to run it about .5 quarts over when you get one. The sumps I've seen do *not* require any mods to the case, but are a bit dicey on how they mount in my opinion. That's how I ended up going with a modified CB Performance dry sump system...

Copy that on the sumps. The mountings do look dodgy. I'm going to get a tuna can on this joker before I run it again.

[stugray]

I also wrapped the headers and collector with exhaust wrap so hopefully I won't be melting down the clutch cable pulley or emergency brake cables.

Very nice build! similar to my build that took 5 years.

I have the exact same exhaust and I used the protective cable wrap from tangerine racing for my clutch cable.
http://www.tangerineracing.com/transmission.htm

I also added a custom bracket to hold it away from the header.

I am surprised no-one has asked the question (perhaps I missed it):

Where did you get the wheels!?!
I have been searching for exactly that setup for a couple of years.

[Han Solo]

I also wrapped the headers and collector with exhaust wrap so hopefully I won't be melting down the clutch cable pulley or emergency brake cables.

Very nice build! similar to my build that took 5 years.

I have the exact same exhaust and I used the protective cable wrap from tangerine racing for my clutch cable.
http://www.tangerineracing.com/transmission.htm

I also added a custom bracket to hold it away from the header.

I am surprised no-one has asked the question (perhaps I missed it):

Where did you get the wheels!?!
I have been searching for exactly that setup for a couple of years.

My buddy Henry at Just Porsche Parts had them. I sold the OEM Fuchs (I thought they were Mayle) and took that money to Little Rock to buy those Dura-Lites. From what I've seen they're hard to find. Super light and perfect for the Hoosiers.

[J P Stein]

I dunno if I ever mentioned it,but the best single mod I ever made to my 914 AXer was tying in the cage (with no upper side bars) to the suspension towers F & R. That makes the suspension do it's assigned work consistently rather than have the chassis try (& fail) to do it. I think I posted a pic somewhere in this thread

[Han Solo]

I dunno if I ever mentioned it,but the best single mod I ever made to my 914 AXer was tying in the cage (with no upper side bars) to the suspension towers F & R. That makes the suspension do it's assigned work consistently rather than have the chassis try (& fail) to do it. I think I posted a pic somewhere in this thread

You did JP and thank you for that recommendation. A cage is definitely in this car's future but that will probably be a winter project after this racing season. As my welding skills improve, I'm considering doing that job myself. I found a company that makes what appears to be very good benders and notchers at affordable prices.

JD Squared website

I'll get some more welding practice when I put the '76 on a homemade rotisserie. I'll post progress on that here...

76 parts car or keeper

[Han Solo]

Yesterday we took the car back up to NCM autocross pad and generally things went well. I'm pleased to report that the tuna can worked very nicely with no oil pressure drops in turns. It was in the mid-80's and head temps were very manageable. The car ran well and I placed third RAW time (amongst cars with doors) in a field of 70. However, this course had a very tight section in the beginning and then opened up for higher speeds. I was really struggling to hit second gear precisely and could have used third gear on two sections. I was hitting rev limit in second gear right at 50 mph. I'm going to have to get a performance shifter before the next event.

Here's a rather shaky video. I'll also find a good way to mount my cell phone properly before shooting another.

NCM event 6-28-15

[Han Solo]

After reading about clutch replacement and flywheel re-surfacing, I decided to drop the transmission and put a washer under the clutch fork pivot ball. That's a lot of trouble but well worth it. Getting the trans off was simple enough but that pivot ball was nested into the trans case and getting a socket on it wasn't happening. I had to get a dremel grinding stone and remove about 1 mm of casing to get a bite with a socket. I also replaced the nylon bushing in the shift fork. Put everything back together and yes, a big difference on where the clutch engages and dis-engages. I've also got a Rennshifter on order and hopefully when I get that into the mix, smooth and precise shifting.

[Han Solo]

Update on the race car.

I did get the performance shifter installed and it made a HUGE improvement. Coupled with the shim under the shift fork ball and I'm able to get from 1st to 2nd to 3rd to 2nd, etc. with no problems. I ran the car at a couple of regional events before last weekend's Championship Tour in Ohio.

What has been a issue is minimum weight however. That minimum in SCCA Solo DP class is displacement = weight (2-valve per cylinder cars) so that put mine at 2056 lbs. without driver. Without any ballast, the car weighs 1638 lbs. That meant over 400 lbs. of ballast. So I added hot rolled steel plates (least expensive) in 12" x 12" chunks of 1" and 1/2" thickness. It took stacks to get that weight which I bolted to the floor pans. I ran the car 4 runs in that trim at a regional with a decent course. The car handled well but acceleration was poor. For the next heat, I took out all but one 1/2" plate on the passenger side for XP minimum of 1653 lbs. Quite the difference with very good acceleration. So I'm in XP now with a greater level of preparation for many different makes and models (including engine swops). Oh well, might as well just drive as best I can and have fun.

Here's some photos of the shifter, ballast, etc. And a link to one of my runs at the Champ Tour.

Also, I started in on a restoration project some of you may be interested in. An '82 924 Turbo that needed saving.

931 restore thread

Wilmington Champ Tour run 3

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[Han Solo]

A month or so later and we've got two SCCA Solo National Tour events under our belts. Wilmington OH and the Championship at Lincoln NB. Wilmington was sort of a throw away. The car ran okay but I DNF'd two runs on the second day. Chalk that up to lack of concentration. That was a pretty fast flowing course and I had to shift multiple times second to third and third to second. Good practice for Lincoln however. Here's a video...

Wilmington 2015 3rd run

And some photos from Perry Bennett...

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More from Nationals in the next post.