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!

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

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!

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...

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!

Yeah its good fun with low grip tyres, its taught me a fair bit since owning it! I want to swap the engine to a Lexus V8 but the $ to do so don't make sense when trying to keep the 34 running reliably and also getting the Fiesta ST up to speed (Literally)... Would sound a million times better and the conversion isnt that difficult! LS conversion is also easy but I think I would want to go the Lexus route for something different... Finding an engine thats not got 400000kms is the hard part... I have been looking in case the right package comes up but its still not what I need to be focusing on FA20s just sound 💩 A few parts started arriving for the Fiesta which I will update soon... Mainly just exhaust and intake stuff so I can do a Stage 2 map in the thing and that should kick it up from 180hp to around 240hp I think... From there it just needs a diff and it will be a fun little pocket rocket!

Last weekend was pretty successful! Got the R34 jacked up and brakes bled, rotated the tyres around the car using the best of the worst I have left for the final rounds. I need to get an oil and filter change done tomorrow arvo before loading on the trailer for Marulan. Then I switched to the Toyota 86 as we had booked that last minute Lap Dash event with TSCC in Tamworth. Knowing the car was on the mismatched tyre set and that balance was going to be a bit I decided to just do the basics with servicing the engine, bleeding brakes and then loading it on the trailer. It was an easy run up to Tamworth although Kangaroos were launching across the roads in some sections which kept me awake considering it was a 3.30am departure. We arrived at Oakburn Motorsport Complex (Tamworths multi purpose track, including dirt drags and speedway) and got everything unloaded. Because I went into the event half assed I soon realised I had left my tyre gauge with the Skyline prepped stuff along with a bunch of other things I needed on the day Rather than worrying about tyre pressures or car setup I got the car scrutineered and just drove it as hard as I could, The tyres didnt really get up to pressure until the afternoon sessions and by then timing was over, it still did OK considering and was a bit of fun to drive. The tyre imbalance gave it a boaty feel in the rear end and it would slowly lunge into rotation but with the lack of power it was difficult to hold a slide or pull it back into line with the throttle like I would in the 34. Footage was again limited by my inability to learn Go Pros! We are going to try hard wire a power feed into them for future events and see if we can make them last longer than a couple of sessions. I took 2 batteries and out of the 15 or so runs I did I managed to record 2 or 3 of the car in the mid morning stuff where I was getting my head around the car balance. Anyway, I suggest the volume be on mute unless you like the sound of an FA20 and its 120kw of fury - This weekend is back to Marulan for Round 5 in the R34GTT but not expecting any miracles as the Nankang AR1 rubber is well past its prime and will be lucky to last the full day. Will give it a crack anyway!

Yeah I figured I'll do as much as I can while I can afford to do it Driver needs all the help he can get! We are pretty lucky here at the moment with lots of good things happening track wise providing they all go to plan - Marulan - Pheasant Wood Circuit = Major track extensions and facility upgrades coming soon (Bend SA spec) Goulburn - Wakefield Park = This track will come back bigger and better with the new ownership - Can't wait! Raymond Terrace - Circuit Italia = The Ashphalt is down and looks amazing! The track is one of the wide!!! Then you add the little hillclimb tracks and clubs that are supporting motorsport like Ringwood (MGCCN) and TSCC etc and there are plenty of options. The clubs just need the support to keep the events going hence why I am road tripping 4hrs each way to support the guys on the weekend. Fingers crossed 2024 if full of motorsport but will see what the budget allows! Trailer needs attention and $ so will just keep things ticking over for now and see what next year brings! The QLD event would be great but not stressed if we don't make this year as the 34 will cop a flogging in the lead up to the event so I will be getting plenty of seat time. It would be a good event to come up and experience as its something I've wanted to do for ages. If that fails I will still have Morgan Park in my sights for 2024 and hopefully Dale has the R33 boat up and running so we can hit the track together!

Updates to events list with addition of Lapdash in Tamworth. I noticed they had low entries and its a great little club so I will go and try support them. Smaller clubs and tracks need all the support they can get so they continue to run events. For those keen on drifting Tamworth has allowed drift practice on Saturday the 20th and only had 4 entries showing online. I speak to guys at the track quite often that say they have nowehere to drift so keep an eye out of get in contact with TSCC if its something that interests you and they may do more if it goes well and everyone behaves. I may even find some skinnier wheels for the 86 and work on some front lock and have a crack myself in 2024. 10th Sept - Toyota 86 Ringwood Hillclimb for last round 14/15th Sept - R34 at Marulan Test day to make sure driveline is sorted for RD5 24th Sept - Toyota 86 - Lapdash Series Tamworth (Booked and paid) 30th Sept - R34 at Marulan for Round 5 CSCA Championship (Booked and paid) 10/11/12 Oct - R34 at SMSP for testing - Have to try work out what event I can get into and it will be a weekday 22nd Oct - R34 at SMSP Nth Circuit - Round 6 CSCA Championship (Booked and paid) 28t/29th Oct - R34 or 86/Fiesta ST at Bathurst for Hillclimb/Supersprint (Booked and paid) 10/11/12 Nov - R34 at Morgan Park Raceway QLD for State Supersprint rounds (TBA - Waiting on reply) 19th Nov - Fiesta ST at Ringwood for Regularity Hillclimb event Marulan on the 30th will kill the last of the AR1 tyres I have to run and then I will have to decide what to do moving forward. The skyline really needs to return to an R comp tyre to justify the setup but will see how things go $ wise. Also running the CSCA series I chose to give myself a handicap with tyre choice as there were no cars to compete against in the higher classes, I think I'll just put a decent tyre on it again and race against my own PBs instead. Speaking of tyres, Ryan at K Racing is trying to sort a pair of wheels and tyres with a 295/35/18 to see how the gearing works at Marulan as I think the 4.5% difference will be enough for me to hold 2nd gear in a few spots and even avoid 4th on the straight which I assume means less shifts = more fasts! Not sure if the addition of tyre height/rake etc will have any negative impact but only one way to find out.

This is very true! Most look at the event entry costs but forget about the rest, fuel, tyres, oil, towing, breakages, time off work etc... I do as much club level stuff as I can afford but WTAC is a whole other level. It is an impressive effort to prep a car to this high level for WTAC and drag it half way across the country, costs would have been huge but also one of those bucket list things I guess? 🤔 I completely missed WTAC this year as I had my own stuff to sort, kinda bummed I missed it now as I would have loved to see this thing in action!

The AR1 was good bang for buck being mid $300s per corner for a 295 tyre but I wouldn't run them again as the lifespan was much shorter than expected and they heat cycled out really fast doing Supersprint stuff. The CR-S seemed to kill the AR1 in the wet so it has that advantage! AR1 was deadly lol Hankook Z221 is the tyre I've run the most on the 34 and at $2000 a set they still seem to be the best bang for buck for regular track users. For the occasional track day it would change things a bit but for heavy track use the Z221 is great!Currently in negotiations about trying A052/A050 but will see how that pans out and if it falls through I'll likely just put the C50 medium Z221 back on the car. The downside to the mediums is the time they take to come up to temp which makes events like the upcoming Bathurst event difficult as they don't switch on till the end of the run. Robs 180 is significantly lighter than our land barges so that also plays a factor in tyre choice. I run the Toyota 86 on Chinas Finest $100 drift tyres and its good fun haha... I have cycled all sorts through that thing but its a tyre killer. Am yet to run a proper R comp tyre on it but I think it will be a rocket when I do even with its 120kw of fury! The Fiesta is on R888 and they weren't anything exciting but also cheese cutter spec at 205 wide so I guess you can't ask much from a rubber band! Anyway, not a tyre thread... Sorry Rob

Mine had no real issues for the first 4 rounds as most days were 170kmh max! Once I got over that and into the mid 200s it got scary! My engine and gearbox mounts are hardened rubber and the diff is solid mounted to a solid mounted subframe so I doubt angles or movement had anything to do with it. Will know for sure in a few weeks when I head back to test at SMSP before Round 6.

Good watch!! Not sure if you have played with different brake pads but with everything I have used over the years I always end up back with the Winmax/Circo pads! The Skyline and 86 run similar with 6.5 up front and 5 in the rears. The Fiesta just has DS2500 front and rear but its doing light duties in comparison. I ran a Project Mu higher spec pad in my front Alcons and was pinching brakes everywhere due to the aggressive initial bite which may be fine for an ABS car or a driver with some talent but not for me! So I went back to Winmax/Circo pads. If you want some options check with Matt @ Race Brakes Sydney and he might have some feedback based on what you currently have VS what you want from the car?

Also, Matts R34 was running awesome all day and was good to get a passenger ride. Was good to be back out on track together again as its been a while. Here is some incar from Matts -

Have been slack with the thread again, most updates have been on Bookface anyway I think. 10th Sept - Toyota 86 Ringwood Hillclimb for last round The Toyota 86 did its thing and belted out 5 runs at Ringwood Motorsport Complex. As usual the car got better as the day went on but ran out of day to go faster and the beetle behind me took out the timing beacons on the last run so it was day over anyway. That Beetle is super impressive and is actually a state champ in our class, on 3 wheels and sideways most of the run, awesome to watch! I found those cheap Zeknova 240tw street tyres were sensitive to pressure and launch quicker at lower PSI hence the quicker sector 1-2 times on runs 1 and 4 as one was cole and the other I bled down before the run. 4.3 is normal of the line but with less pressure it would run 4.1 which is a significant gain on a short tight hillclimb. No Go Pro as the mounts were in the R34 Skyline and I figured its the same ole footage over and over. Although I did drop a wheel off on run 4 which was exciting, that would have been quickest of the day if I had kept it on the black stuff! (Photos courtesy of 2 of the MGCCN members) All up it was a good day but I think the last hillclimb for the Toyota 86 as it is better setup for Circuit practice and the little Fiesta ST can step up to the plate and Carmen can also drive it on the same days. 15th Sept - R34 at Marulan Test day to make sure driveline is sorted for RD5 So we booked the Friday at Marulan or Pheasant Wood Circuit once we knew Matt (Deka) was ready to go. The day was an open pit lane day which had just 3 cars all day, 2 x R34s and a little swift track car doing testing with 2 younger drivers. Plenty of track time was had and I used the day to sort a few things. Nova Stickers and signs killed it with the window banner and I also updated a couple of faded stickers on the car. I measured up the Skyline for the banner and had 2 made so I chopped one to fit the 86 but with the different glass shape it didn't work as well on that one and I will redo it later! First bit of business was run the car as it was at SMSP with same tyres and same settings to check the driveline issues. It was noticeably smoother and quieter than the single piece shaft even at low speeds! I was getting vibrations through the car on the straight previously that went unnoticed until I got to compare it to the new 2pc shaft... SOOOO much better now! After the first session I noticed the rear knock I have been chasing much louder and more consistent. I jacked up the car and cycled the suspension through the motions and found it wasn't movement causing the knock but binding in the front lower control arm spherical. I swung spanners off it and found no movement so figured it would be fine. I made a last minute decision to hit it with WD40 and to my surprise all binding and noise is now gone! The car was good so after the first session I slapped on the old dyno tyres from 2017 that were on my spare rims. One was rotating the correct direction and the other was running backwards but I figured for the day on track I might as well enjoy it without having to worry about killing rear tyres. The old Z221s were past the wear indicators and still handled it quite well, by the end of the day they actually had more grip than the front AR1 rubber which made it harder as the car was out of balance but still threw it around and just enjoyed the track time. (Also, enjoyed... not Enhjoyed lol... Its what happens when you slap a video together quickly without proofing or effort) Overall the day was a success and now I just need to service the car and prep it for Round 5 back at PWC. After PWC we head back to SMSP which means we get a chance to test the shaft at high speed which I am really keen to do and get an idea of car balance at higher speeds. Will work through stuff during the week and update more then!