Not necessarily mustang related but definitely track related. First edition of “Unfair advantage” by Mark Donohue

A classic

1st edition, very nice. Don't forget Carroll's books tune, drive , prepare to win

I’ll look for that one. As a book collector it’s fun to find the old originals
Can’t wait to read about the Porche can am 1500 hp he developed lol

It's a good book. I've read it twice.....

blacksheep-1 said:

1st edition, very nice. Don't forget Carroll's books tune, drive , prepare to win

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Don't forget "screw" - which the publisher made him rename as "Carroll Smith's Nuts, Bolts, Fasteners and Plumbing Handbook."

Great book. Fun to read and so much good info. Died way to young RIP

The Captain signed my first edition. I wanted to get Paul to sign it, too, but I think he passed.

This is where is all started, though. I like that Mark showed some bumps and bruises on the way. It wasn't just a 'look at me' piece.

Fantastic read yeah he seems like a modest guy really. And a mechanical engineer. I love how in the beginning chapters he’s finding out how expensive it is what car to get how to maintain in between working hiring cheesy mechanics figuring out tires and alignment how to transport cars to track etc etc etc. And how to get your racing license from scca. And how great it was to drive someone else’s car and walk away after a race. Pretty much all i been through in last 6 months lol. Wish i started in my 20’s but i was really broke then The unfair advantage he refers to all the time makes total sense. This guy won indy 500 and died in a F1 car like so many did in the 70’s. Epic short life

Gunslinger55 said:

Wish i started in my 20’s but i was really broke then ....... Epic short life

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Yep, I was homeless for a fair stretch and slept in my car more times than I know. It's just how it was. In the end, you probably took the right path...at the very least, it was the smarter one.

I think people measure lives the wrong way. It's about the story, not how many pages are in the book.

Agree. I’ve had a pretty good run now and now looking at a TA2 mustang to play with. Not bad

Gunslinger55 said:

Agree. I’ve had a pretty good run now and now looking at a TA2 mustang to play with. Not bad

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There are a couple guys that run those out here in AZ, Clay Koevary (yellow #55 "Camaro"), Parker DeLonghe (blue/white #14), and at least one other guy. If you see them at the track, go talk to them about what it takes to keep those cars maintained and running. Clay is a good example of someone that can DIY or with minimal help--this looks very rare to me. All of the other TA2 cars have an army of people constantly working on them to keep stuff intact. They are "easy" to work on but it looks like the volume of work is non-trivial.

I agree i’m sure it’s work. The car is from AZ and you probably seen it. So what car isn’t a lot of work? i got a brand new mustang and now im thinking about changing tons of stuff on it? It’s and endless cycle. Kinda like Donohue talks about in the book….

Seen the Erickson boys TA2 cars kicking ass at pro auto races seems like it would be fun having a car that can maybe chase them around for a few laps…

I agree i’m sure it’s work. The car is from AZ and you probably seen it. So what car isn’t a lot of work? i got a brand new mustang and now im thinking about changing tons of stuff on it? It’s and endless cycle. Kinda like Donohue talks about in the book….

Seen the Erickson boys TA2 cars kicking ass at pro auto races seems like it would be fun having a car that can maybe chase them around for h th few laps…

Gunslinger55 said:

I agree i’m sure it’s work. The car is from AZ and you probably seen it. So what car isn’t a lot of work? i got a brand new mustang and now im thinking about changing tons of stuff on it? It’s and endless cycle. Kinda like Donohue talks about in the book….

Seen the Erickson boys TA2 cars kicking ass at pro auto races seems like it would be fun having a car that can maybe chase them around for a few laps…

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A totally fascinating thing (which there are tons of in this book) is these fact he discovered that a broken in bottom
end with new heads produces approx 30 more hp. That makes total sense when he describes it and they dyno tested to confirm results. One of his “unfair advantages”
Full of nuggets like that

Gunslinger55 said:

A totally fascinating thing (which there are tons of in this book) is these fact he discovered that a broken in bottom
end with new heads produces approx 30 more hp. That makes total sense when he describes it and they dyno tested to confirm results. One of his “unfair advantages”
Full of nuggets like that

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That was the trick in FF2000 30 years after he found it. If you put a fresh head on a 500 mile engine, you'd make 1-2 *more* HP than you would when the whole thing was brand new.

Very cool. I assume it’s was larger displaced v-8’s from his trans am camaro that was acid dipped lol.

BTW, what did Mark find with the differential? With the Trans-Am, he settled on a spool. It's the right answer. The diffs in our cars need to be much tighter. Torsens do not get the job done. The only good thing about them in there's nothing to change, so you can't mess them up.

Lock the diff up on that TA2 car. Everyone will tell you it makes crazy understeer. It doesn't. It helps damned near everything. Braking improves, traction improves, mid-corner stability increases....the only negative is that you may have to be slightly more patient before going to throttle. Having said that, when you go to throttle, you'll be able to do it quicker and the car will continue to turn on-throttle.

The only downside is that it's a PITA to push around the paddock.

Gunslinger55 said:

Very cool. I assume it’s was larger displaced v-8’s from his trans am camaro that was acid dipped lol.

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It was that team. The engines were all 5.0 liters, but the fresh head gives a little better top-end seal and that plays nice with a bottom end that has gotten nice and broken in.

Actually he first figured it out early on in his 58 corvette but didn’t understand what was going on till later

TeeLew said:

BTW, what did Mark find with the differential? With the Trans-Am, he settled on a spool. It's the right answer. The diffs in our cars need to be much tighter. Torsens do not get the job done. The only good thing about them in there's nothing to change, so you can't mess them up.

Lock the diff up on that TA2 car. Everyone will tell you it makes crazy understeer. It doesn't. It helps damned near everything. Braking improves, traction improves, mid-corner stability increases....the only negative is that you may have to be slightly more patient before going to throttle. Having said that, when you go to throttle, you'll be able to do it quicker and the car will continue to turn on-throttle.

The only downside is that it's a PITA to push around the paddock.

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Spools a way of life offroad. Daily driving sucks but on track i’m sure it’s the answer as well.