No just kidding, that last picture was the first mock-up, but it was waaaayyyy too high!  It was over 30cm above the roof line.

So I kept working on it and think I’ll end up with a height like this.

Again, the mounts are just scrap pieces for mocking it up.

The real mount will look like this (except wont be made of cardboard – just in case it rains).

And on the car, will look a bit like this

Just need to source some thicker alloy to turn this carboard cut-out into a real wing mount.

Once I have that, I can position it on the car and make the framework that will run from the rear chassis up to the underside of the boot lid to support the aerodynamic loads that this wing will generate – well over 100kg of force when on the Porsche that it came from.

After that’s all done, will need to start working on the front end to make it generate more downforce to match what the rear end will be capable of now.

Here is the final (well I think it is – I’m still not 100% convinced of my own decision…)

I also spent a bunch of time trimming up the metalwork that is going to stay on the car.  I want small tubs to remain over the wheels to keep water, stones etc from filling up the rear  of the car.

A view inside the car.

Inside the wheel well.

Then spent a bit of time making the fuel filler flap lighter, sealing it permanently shut as the fuel filler will be on the other side of the car with the new fuel tank (once I build it :))  Also put the rear bumper back on, some of the rear trim and the boot lid – ready to start on the rear wing mounts.

Still trying to work out exactly where to run some of these bars, to make it all look right.

Not sure about this layout….

Another view of the mock-up, from above this time.

View from the rear (standing inside the boot actually :))

I’ve now welded in most of the bars, with the one running up to the rear strut towers still having a question mark over it.

More soon.

So, after a couple of good events, there is now a 6 week break until the next event.  So i figured I’d just quickly cut the rear of the car out….

The first step was to remove the fuel tank and then cut the boot floor out.  Quite funny really considering the amount of time I spent making this new floor and welding it all in a few years ago (I removed the spare wheel well to fit the fuel tank in a better location)

The first bar work was the rear end, joining the subframe to the rear cage structure.

The next part was to join the front of the subframe to the rest of the new chassis.  At this same time, I decided to replace the original part of the subframe that supports the nose of the diff.  This took a lot of weight out and it also made the rest of the chassis a better structure by running up to the nose of the diff.

The next lot of bars were more about supporting the suspension pickup points than supporting the diff or the chassis.

Another view above.

Below you can see the floor, and the bars supporting the nose of the diff.  The next step is to remove this floor.  At the moment, it is in the way of a bar that I want to run to one of the upper suspension mounts.

More soon.

The event went well, the car worked good – just need to get the boost control a bit better to make maximum use of the power that she can make.

Finished 4th outright out of the 80 odd cars.  Made a mistake on the last run – tried a different line that did not work……  I don’t think it would have been enough for 3rd place, but it should have been a faster lap (was faster everywhere else in the lap, just lost it all on the one corner and following straight)

I have now bought a new solenoid for the boost controller – hoping that will help to control it better.  Will have to do a quick test run before Waneroo.

Next on the agenda modifications wise it to:

• Tube frame the rear end
• Clean up the aero underfloor of the car – was only very roughly put together for Collie
• Mount the new rear wing that has been in the shed for the last year (see previous posts on the acquiring of the wing)
• Add some more front downforce to balance up the new rear wings extra downforce.
• Fit some stiffer springs as an experiment.

Some more posts and pictures of these mods as soon as I get out to the shed to make them 🙂

Got it back on the dyno last night and found and fixed the miss fire!

One config option in the ECU settings was not correct, change that and its all good now.  Still have no idea how it ran on Friday practice, all Saturday at the hill climb, then decided to stop on Sunday without anything being changed…..

Off to Busselton tonight for the next event.

Been in Melbourne for almost the last week, back in Perth now, so I’ll have to get back into it tomorrow night, searching for this ignition issue and fixing up some of the items that I never got finished before Collie.

The Busselton sprint is less than two weeks away now!

I’ve got a bunch of Aero changes that I’d like to make, but they may have to wait until a touch later in the year.

After Busso the next big task is a new paint job, as she looks very beat up right now.

Today was the sprint at the Collie circuit.  Today was the opposite of yesterday…  When we started on the first practice, it was misfiring above 5500rpm.

At each run, we tried different things, replaced different parts, etc and never found the issue.  It may have killed a coil, more investigation required.

In order to set a lap time, I did one lap flat out, but short shifting before 5500 rpm in each gear.  We did a 49.1, which was still good enough for 4th outright, 2nd in class.  Ohh what could have been if we had a working motor…

I’m knackered beyond belief, going to sleep for a few days…

The hillclimb at Collie was run today, and we had a good day.  Finished 2nd outright and 1st in class.  Not too bad for its first event 🙂

I’ll get some pics etc when I get back to Perth.

The first real outing at the track, all went very well.

My previous best at the Collie circuit was a 48.4, today we did a 47.6, straight off the trailer!!

Things look good for the event on Sunday, as I feel that there is a 46.9 in it, if not better.  Time will tell…

We have passed scrutineering for the event!  Tomorrow we leave for Collie – Tonight I need to finish the car!

We peaked at 370hp at the wheels at 18psi!  Woooh!

We could have wound it up even more, intake temps were still really good – but I didn’t want to risk it just to get a number.

The only thing we broke today was the 300hp mark, which had eluded me in all my previous cars until today.

We’ve wound it back to 15psi – 350hp and that’s how its going to be raced.  I’m not convinced how long a stock motor will last for at 370hp and 18psi of boost, and I can’t afford to find out.

The boost solenoid is playing up a bit, will try play with a few of its settings on the track and see if that changes things, else I might need a new one :(.  Running in closed loop (aka smart mode) its producing a big spike in the mid range, then a big dip – so at the moment its running open loop (no automatic feedback, aka dumb mode)

But considering that I have changed absolutely everything on the outside of that motor and fitted cams inside the motor, I’m so happy that everything worked, and nothing fell off!

Will it be victory, or total destruction?

Its only two of days until the tune – so a lot needed to be done…

Got the glass all back into the car.

Put the fenders and stuff back on

Finished off all of the electrics to the dash, including the steering wheel buttons to change screens on the dash display.

Finished the floor on both sides of the car.

Just have the little bit around the exhaust to finish yet (bottom left corner of the pic above)

The next pic is the floor from underneath.  The front under tray extends down the tunnel to fill the gap between the two sides of the floor.  I wanted it removable like this so that I could access the bottom of the trans tunnel.  The floor sections shown here are glued in place (as well as bolts and rivits) to seal the inside of the car off from the outside – so they are not easily removable.

The new exhaust.  The inital plan was to run no muffler at all.  The muffler that was on the car was one that I had made myself, I figured how much difference could it have made.

Well it turns out that it made a big difference.  Without any muffler, the noise was loud, obnoxiously loud, even at idle.  So, if I was going to run a muffler, it had to go on before the tune.  Another 4 hrs work that I really didn’t need at this stage, but….

I’ve cut out the sil panel and the muffler is tucked in where it used to be.  Once I have made the side skirts, they will cover the muffler and only the exhaust exit will be showing.

More soon….

The maiden venture out of the shed under its own power!  It didn’t have a floor or anything, but it drove…..

I looks so tuff that low – you just can’t drive over anything…..

Needs a wash (and a paint job for that matter…)

I’ve got the seat down so low, I look little….

Most of this time spend on the work in this update actually happened underneath these photos.  Getting there slowly…

Under the dash all of the firewall is complete, including the bolt-on section that allows be to get access to the back two cylinders of the engine, for changing spark plugs etc.

The new fuel

This is what the V8 supercars have been running – Yes JC, I’m still trying to be like a V8….

This will enable me to get a little more HP out of the motor.  Next Tuesday is the day that we’ll know how much – Dyno Day!

Got the gear shift completed – well phase one of it anyway.  I’ve already got a few changes planned for the next event.  I just don’t have enough time right now to start it again.

The shifter money shot…

I’ve also now got the ignition coils, wiring and spark plug wires all finished.  Cranked her over and she fired right up, that’s a relief!

Started work on the passenger side firewall.  Here it is partially completed.

Also cleaned up all the cabling that is going to the rear of the car.  This is now just the brake lights, fuel pump power and the fuel guage wires.  Everything else is gone.

More soon…

This is the start of the remoter shifter that I’ve been building…  The motor has been moved back so far the gear stick comes out level with my back, and with the race seat you can’t reach it.  So this device will bring it back in front of me.  More to come on this one as manufacturing progresses.

The inside is coming together.  The seat and transmission tunnel are now in.

Another view…

My little friend who seems to be sitting on the step outside the shed every night…