34Geeteetee Daily / Track Project

[34GeeTeeTee]

3 hours ago, robbo_rb180 said:

The 86 looks like a heap of fun to drive, shame it sounds so bad.

Wire in a 2 port USB charger and run a cable for gopro and phone. Remember gopro doesn't like heat so will have issues using for extended periods without airflow over it. I am lucky too get 5-10 mins on a hot day (30+ outside)in the race car. 

Also on the Go Pro topic, that would explain the Marulan test day and lack of footage... I was leaving the car out in the sun and it was bloody hot and only got some sessions with footage! Most would be the outlaps and then it just cuts out... Now you mention heat that would probably make sense!

Same may have happened at Tamworth as it was another hot day and the car was in the sun most of the day! 

I'll try to keep them cooler if possible but the temps here are getting pretty high already which is pretty unpleasant in the cabin!

 

[MBS206]

On 9/28/2023 at 5:40 PM, 34GeeTeeTee said:

Also on the Go Pro topic, that would explain the Marulan test day and lack of footage... I was leaving the car out in the sun and it was bloody hot and only got some sessions with footage! Most would be the outlaps and then it just cuts out... Now you mention heat that would probably make sense!

Same may have happened at Tamworth as it was another hot day and the car was in the sun most of the day! 

I'll try to keep them cooler if possible but the temps here are getting pretty high already which is pretty unpleasant in the cabin!

 

Turn the AC on, you'll be fine

I find phones these days, don't even like sitting on a dashboard in a cradle without overheating!

[34GeeTeeTee]

On 30/09/2023 at 7:23 AM, MBS206 said:

Turn the AC on, you'll be fine

I find phones these days, don't even like sitting on a dashboard in a cradle without overheating!

And on that note, at Marulan on Saturday I had my phone doing lap timing and it went into overheat mode on the dash in the cabin so it does get hot in there... First time I've seen a Samsung do it... Go Pro looks like it got some footage but I'll get through that when I get some time, it will be mainly dorifto laps due to lack of grip.

Round 5 wrap up to follow once I get a sec...

 

[34GeeTeeTee]

Wrap up for Round 5 still pending... Will get some footage online hopefully this weekend if time permits. Lack of grip made it a fun day but a slow day in terms of lap times.

We ended up at the top of the time sheets which was good to see an outright P1 at the end of the day but the lap time to achieve that result was nothing flash. Rotating those Nankang AR1s front to rear was not a smart move.

Car ran well, we do have a leak again at the ARTEC manifold which I will again update more info once I get the time to remove the hotside and run a straight edge over everything... Have a feeling after a few heat cycles that its moved slightly but will confirm once I get it apart and check!

 

 

[34GeeTeeTee]

The little Fiesta ST has been getting small tweaks as parts trickle in... We've been replacing stuff that is cheap and easy to do and found a few bargains online so far.

The standout item so far has been the Mountune Catback exhaust and Cobb hangers... It has changed the note from a tinny stock 1.6l engine to more of a Euro sounding growl, its still super quiet but I am hoping the custom 3in decat downpipe we are waiting on makes it a bit louder for track use - 

The exhaust only steps up from 2.25 to 2.5in in size but for the lower power these things run it is more than enough!

We also ditched the OEM cooler pipe muffler which removes the soft rubber joiners - 

A few silicon bits were also changed over but we are waiting on the metal intake pipe to be made to finish off the intake side. I took to the airbox with a drill and did some ghetto mods for more intake sounds and hopefully let it breath a bit better, the holes were all placed strategically to try avoid upsetting the OEM flow but it was ghetto engineering at its finest!

Also, switched from a crusty old knob (not mine, the cars ) to a fancy weighted Carbon one... 

Will be picking up an Alloy sump baffle this week along with some brake ducts so I can start doing oil control mods for track use. Will need to work out a catch can and oil cooler setup but will get that done in time when the $ are available.

Most of the mods we are adding to the Fiesta will allow a Stage 2 OTS tune to be added which will bump it from 180hp up to the low to mid 200s which should be plenty for Carmen to learn in and I can still have a belt in it at hillclimbs and trackdays etc

 

 

 

[34GeeTeeTee]

Busy weekend in the shed... Mainly on the Fiesta ST this weekend as I am prepping it for a Stage 2 tune as it is the backup car for the Bathurst event later in the year with the Toyota 86 being out of action with a brake issue.

Firstly, the video of the R34 showing how little traction the AR1s have left after 5-6 days on track - 

The data in the GPS timer shows over a full second lost in 2 corners alone and the speed around majority of the track is lower due to lack of drive. The 2 main corners with loss of speed are due to understeer as I tried to rotate the tyres front to back and didn't account for the uneven wear pattern and also the fact the rears had a hard time... I thought it would balance the car out but it did the opposite! Although it was the fastest car on the day it was far from impressive in terms of lap times!

Will try get a set of Z221 mediums this week in preparation for Round 6 at SMSP Nth circuit which is coming up in a couple of weeks. Then I need to try find something softer for the Bathurst event if the R34 is still good to go!

The Fiesta ST has a heap of little parts on the way which are all bolt on upgrades and so far have all been quite cheap to do. They really are a Lego car to work on with most bits just bolting together... On the topic of bolts though, I snapped a downpipe bolt trying to remove it... No amount of INOX was going to help its cause so I pulled the turbo which gives me a chance to clean up a bunch of mess that was on the hotside anyway - 

The cat on these things has a restriction that may as well be a straw after the cat! We put on the 2.5in catback and wondered why it made fk all difference to the volume of the car but I am assuming the 3in straight through race pipe that is coming will soon sort that! We want it to be quiet but still audible in the car... Will update with videos once its all sorted but I think it will sound as good as an Ecoboost can sound

Will be sorting the snapped stud during the week while waiting for more parts to arrive.

Also, I've ordered a proper AC delete bracket which appears to use OEM ford parts and removes the heavy ass compressor off the front of the engine. It will also make working on the custom oil cooler easier when I get the time to sort that in the near future.

One mod that I really wanted to get done was the sump baffle as it was the first thing I did to the Toyota 86 when I got it and one of the first track mods on the R34. We scored a Pro Alloy one cheap that was still new in the box so I got into it. First thing I found was the silicon... My god the silicon - 

That took some serious force to break the sump away from the block! I've cleaned it up the best I can and will check how it goes once its running to see if there were any leaks that required half a tube to be on the outside of the sump 

Everything looks pretty clean in the engine but I gave the windage tray a clean up and washed out the pick up just to be sure it was all good. The pick up was lightweight plastic junk which was surprising being an OEM part.

The little rubber flap design seems pretty cheap and nasty but when I compared to all of the big name brands that do the same kit they all appear to be the same style so it must work. It all seats nicely in the sump and on the engine etc so cleaned everything up and put it all back together. I was impatient and couldn't be bothered going to by fresh sealant so I used an old tube I found on the shelf... If the sump leaks I only have myself to blame for being lazy 🤪

I've not run the engine yet as I am waiting on parts but will fit a new sump plug as that was leaking when I got it and looks like a generic Supercheap auto part... I'll go back to an OEM plug as they are the O ring type and should work well. 

I'll take a trip down and see Deka Matt and see if we can drill out that stud tonight ready to refit the turbo and dump when all the parts arrive.

I also ordered a GFB DV+ kit for the front of the turbo, it retains the OEM bov assembly which is a fancy electronic type but replaces the internals with upgraded metal ones that should hold up better over time. No fancy pssh pssh or pigeons, just a peace of mind upgrade I wanted to do.

The guy selling the sump baffle also had a Halo brake duct kit for sale cheap and as our front bar was missing the fog light inserts and looked a bit ghetto I figured why not... Plugged one in to the factory fog light plug and all works good but I'll deal with the ducting side of things later when I have more time as the tubing is a decent diameter and running it past the driveshaft doesn't look fun.

The plastic splitter is an eBay special that is just a generic kit which we chopped up to fill the void on the front bar. When we purchased the car it was meant to come with a splitter kit but the previous owner has not sent the brackets and not sure if we will ever see them so the plastic junk is what we have for now!  The splitter kit that came with it would be handy as the car doesn't have any of the OEM splash trays or belt covers so it would be functional to protect the engine bay even if it offers no aero benefits. Hopefully the previous owner gets them in the mail but we will wait and see.

I'll have more updates as more progress is made on the Fiesta as I need it up and running as a plan B.

The Toyota 86 will have to sit on the sidelines until I get a chance to look at what is up with the front brakes as they are having some issues with excessive brake dust and the rotor is showing serious signs of heat damage. It could be a tyre balance issue overworking the front brakes but I'll get it in the shed once I know the other cars are operational and ready for the track!

Shed space is limited so once I get the $$$ to extend it I can multi task a bit easier but for now its just chip away and get stuff done!

 

 

 

 

 

 

[MBS206]

Wow, they've really changed old Marulan DTC since new owners have taken over!

And looks like they've totally changed my old favourite corner or dropping the front wheel in "the gutter" and just staying on the throttle hard like a roller coaster

 

Those tyres are definitely struggling for you! Not know your power delivery, but I wonder if it would have been a smoother / easier drive up a gear and using the lesser power. Though, I understand the car could be totally gutless being up one gear at those speeds.

 

with the understeer, is that where you seem to be bouncing a bit coming into turn one under brakes, or is the car a bit bouncy normally for you, or is that just the track itself making the car look unsettled?

I've not been to Pheasants nest since new owners have it (since living interstate now, ha ha).

 

Wit's the 86, are both front rotors really really terrible, or just one of them?

I'm curious if you may have a sticking caliper in the rear if it's both of them possibly? Or if one only, maybe the other front is sticking a bit? This is all on the assumption the one that is showing mad heat and brake dust is still rotating easily like you'd expect and it hasn't stuck, ha ha. I know nothing on the specifics of how the 86 brake system or ABS works either.

[Roy]

Out of interest what does the R34 weigh in at?