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Thank you! That is quite the build you have going yourself thereDang, this is a really sharp looking ride! You've got a pretty good setup going already.
I believe we pitted near one another last September at Gingerman. You (I think):Perhaps I should actually update the build thread.
Winter 2021/Spring 2022
Tried to do some preventative maintenance and got decently burned. I decided I wanted to change the clutch as the pedal was getting longer and longer and engagement was getting shorter and shorter and ended up cracking one of the ears on the engine that the trans mounts to. It was really upsetting and in conjunction with grad school the car got put on the back burner.View attachment 87858View attachment 87859
eventually the crack/threads got filled, welded and retapped and got the clutch changed and just in time to make it to Pitt Race at the end of July (2022). I learned that four jackstands and a lowprofile trans just are not and enjoyable time for a garage clutch swap especially considering the car on the jack stands sat too low and I had to drag the trans out on a mat. My favorite part was removing the pilot bearing, bearing puller tool didn't work, some grease and a tight fitting rod with an o-ring didn't work, but a loaf of white bread and a wooden dowel rod worked wondersView attachment 87860View attachment 87861
So much to my surprise that I still have the bearing on the dowel in the garage as a trophy. Given the amount of headache I ended up going with new hardware, a new flywheel, and went with an OEM replacement clutch and most importantly an OEM throwout bearing, I couldn't find anything but horror stories about non-OEM throwout bearings that gave people issues, it seems many run inconsistent sizing some larger and some smaller so they can be shimmed and have no issue but if you don't catch it then the bearing ends up over extending and needs replacing early.
While I was sorting out the clutch a couple other small mods were made. One being a new upper rear control arm to retire the OEM one that was very tired and had very worn bushings. Opted for the Roush/GT500 rear upper as it still has a rubber bushing just a much denser rubber so it should still absorb some bumps but really help transfer power to the ground. Same design as the OEM one but a much thicker and more reinforced steel.
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Removing the hydrobushing that was in the diff housing was not entirely difficult but very annoying, took a hole saw to most of it, then switched to the torch to burn out some of it but got a little nervous as its right next to the gas tank, eventually ended with the Dremel and a wire wheel attachment. This one got a delrin insert with a healthy amount of marine grease to install it, ideally I would have liked a denser rubber like the control arm had but the only options I could find were delrin or spherical
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Another upgrade being a rear axle fluid reservoir, last season I kept finding the axle tube with a slight film of oil on it, decided to also swap the diff cover for the finned Ford Performance one to make fluid changes easier and help combat the high temps causing the vent to blow over onto the axle
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Had to get a little creative with routing the hose for the diff reservoir to make sure it wasn't kinking when the car was sitting on the ground but also make sure it had enough length to stay intact during full suspension droop.
Last upgrade while I was getting the clutch figured out was to attempt some brake cooling, it's not news to anyone that they're heavy cars and while the brakes have been updated to StopTech ST-40's with the dual piece rotors I already smoke a pair of rotor rings and I really don't want to have to worry about if the car will stop or not. The first attempt were some homemade deflectors, I like the idea of not having to work with hoses especially considering I'm running a 315 so there isn't a ton a real estate in the wheel well. (The second revision along with more info of this coming in a build thread update soon)
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I like the concept of the deflectors but I struggle with them a little bit as I am really not sure how much air is actually making it to the rotor, in addition I had to adjust them kind of awkwardly to avoid contacting the strut and tierod. I recently grabbed some rotor temps and caliper temps and I am going to make some changes and see what kind of difference in results I am able to accomplish and will report back the differences, I was hoping to implement the changes before the most recent TT event but I overlooked how much hose I had on hand and was about 2 feet short and discovered that the evening before we were heading out.
Given the late start to the season due to the crack in the mounting hole from changing the clutch it was a short mod list last year. First test was at Pitt Race which was my second time there, the car felt very confident and very planted, used all sorts of curbing and some grass and the rear stayed planted and didn't have any issues with the diff fluid overflowing so I'll take it! Only got to run 6 track days that year due in part to the wife getting sick since she was pregnant but for those track days the car held up well, really started pushing it as the season went on, more curb and some dirt at most tracks and t stayed confident and predictable. Changed fluid at the end of season, the outside of the axle tube was still dry and the fluid was not very discolored so I am drawing the conclusion the fluid was not burning and the changes did what I was expecting them to do. I think next I want to add a temp sensor as that was something I really like in my S550 when I was running laps with that, I know theres a temp sensor spot on the diff cover I just need to figure out what size the threads are.
aye that is me! nice pics. if I remember right I believe you were fighting some higher than desired coolant temps?I believe we pitted near one another last September at Gingerman. You (I think):
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Me:
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From our talk and how it did on track seemed you were well on your way to getting her sorted. Hope it's the case. Good luck with it. Seems she's a runner and a looker!
Oil temp and I’m still losing the fight but a tad less badly. I may see if the Trackspec center vent like yours is the ticket. Thankfully the next two tracks (Blackhawk & Gingerman) are north.aye that is me! nice pics. if I remember right I believe you were fighting some higher than desired coolant temps?
I wish I had some tips on helping out with oil temp but hopefully you can get it sorted out. The vents certainly may help, (knock on wood) I haven't had any issues with mine but then again I have about 100 less horsepower. If its a TNiA event I may see you at Gingerman!Oil temp and I’m still losing the fight but a tad less badly. I may see if the Trackspec center vent like yours is the ticket. Thankfully the next two tracks (Blackhawk & Gingerman) are north.
Thank you! It is made by Bob's Machine, I've been quite happy with it. If I remember install correctly the only thing I had to change was there was a fuel tank overflow/breather that was a hard tube which was in the way but I just cut it and added a 5/8's flex hose and made sure it was routed away from anything that might be hot.Nice build, looks like it's coming along. Who makes that diff reservoir?
Same seat I use, for all the same reasons.As the 2022 season went on I kept noticing at the end of the sessions I would be slouching in the seat and by the end of the day my lower back would be hurting. Didn't take long to figure out that it was due to how high I was sitting so I kept creeping down to try and get a better line of sight of the track. I'm about 6'4" add a couple more for a helmet and it takes up most of the space in the cabin. I was running a Corbeau seat which I did like but it was obviously compromising my seating position, since I was driving it to the track I had a slider on there and even the widest seat they had was still a little more snug than I really liked. So I capitalized on going to PRI and sat in a ton of different seats and landed on the Kirkey Series 65 seat, it had the best fit for me, the best price point, some adjustability, and it was still light weight.
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The unfortunate part was this upgrade also had me justify a few others, one being a 4 point cage, the other being a removable steering wheel as the seat was going to come off the slider and be hard mounted to the floor. Granted both things I wanted to do regardless but now I had the reasoning.
While I was installing the seat I upgraded to a 6 point Schroth 3" harness, this harness had the clips (COTER PIN YOUR CLIPS IF YOU HAVEN'T) and I couldn't really reuse the factory mounting holes as one was on the seat bracket so I went for the Watson Racing Lap Harness Bracket (picture below if from the Watson Racing website). While I was installing this with the seat bracket I was really unsatisfied with the nut engagement onto the stud of the car as that stud captures both the seat bracket and the harness bracket both significantly thicker than the OEM seat only. What I found out was it was just a double ended stud so with a little bit of oil to loosen things I backed the stud out measured it and got a replacement bolt and just ran the bolt down through both and that felt much better, the one thing to watch with that is on the outer hole there is a piece of sheet metal under the hole so the bolt had to be sized to not run into that where it would not be fully securing the seat.
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Apparently I don't have any pictures but I went with the Fathouse Fabrications Kirkey seat bracket, the adjustability and the pricing while still being a solid piece are what drew me to that and there were several I was looking at. I will update the post with a picture of that along with the bolt into the seat bracket mounts when I get a chance to get out there.
So far I have been really happy with the seat and the new setup, no movement under braking like I would get with the slider. The seating position took some getting used to as it put me further back from the pedals than I was used to but a couple sessions with it and it feels normal now. The vision improvements that I got from lowering the seat are significantly more than I thought, less A pillar and roof line obstruction, I am more in line with the mirrors so I can set them up for a wider view. I thought I was doing a good job looking through a turn before but this makes it so much easier.
Hmm well that's odd, I'll double check it maybe I messed something up when attaching the images. Thanks for the heads up.Not sure why, Ken, but a bunch of your later threads do not show pictures on my computer, so if you have already done some things or I missed a post, I was wondering if you got rid of your driving lights or installed a new grill. I noticed a comment about running hot, and the hood vents help, but installing a race style grill or just losing the fog/driving lights is also a big help. Great build and fun read.