S197 BOSS 302 Race Car Build Thread Build Thread

[superhero]

That's an extra row of cooling per inch. That's a huge deal.
I remember your post's of when you put the new engine in. Hard to believe it was 2014. I guess it has served you well. That was the best move you did with your Boss (ALUMINATOR ). Any plans to freshen it up? Or do you take the route of If it ant broke leave it alone and just maintain it.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

That's an extra row of cooling per inch. That's a huge deal.
I remember your post's of when you put the new engine in. Hard to believe it was 2014. I guess it has served you well. That was the best move you did with your Boss (ALUMINATOR ). Any plans to freshen it up? Or do you take the route of If it ant broke leave it alone and just maintain it.

I am hoping to leave it alone for at least another season. We'll see how my luck holds up. Magnetic drain plug has always come out with minimal stuff on it at oil change time.

 

[BigTaco]

OK made some progress on Sunday...



First order of business was to remove the FRPP radiator. Here is 90% of the crap I knocked out of it after only two weekends! Thread sealer for size reference.


Comparing the FRPP radiator to the C&R Radiator--the C&R has a higher tube density and also a higher fin density. There are roughly 3.25 rows per inch on the FRPP radiator, while the C&R has about 3.75 per inch. Also there is just flat out MORE area on the C&R which further expands the cooling capacity.

Side by side (FRPP left, C&R right--don't mind my flap cutouts for oil cooler lines on the FRPP unit):


FRPP tube row density:


C&R tube row density:


Another big reason for pulling all this stuff was to also remove the stock harmonic damper and replace the crankshaft front oil seal. This seal has been leaking slightly since we installed this engine at the end of 2014, creating a layer of gunk on the front (and sides...and bottom...) of the engine.


All the gunk:


Here is the old oil seal (left) and new seal (right). The old seal got the "lip" ripped off at startup of this engine, I don't think I got the seal pressed far enough into the front cover that time.


And since all that was coming off, it only made sense to install an ATI Super Damper at the same time Photo taken after two cans of engine degreaser were applied to the front cover...not spotless but a lot better than before!


Next up I'll replace the alternator and tensioners, as well as the starter motor (all preventive), then clean up and keep the existing units as spares.

Then comes replacing the OEM radiator support with the BMR unit, installing the C&R radiator, rotating the Setrab 948 90*, and routing new oil cooler lines from the side.

Stay tuned

I'm really looking forward to your feedback on the Superdamper....

 

[steveespo]

Did you use the Ford/OTC tool to install the seal and the damper? I have them and it makes it very easy. Available from Freedom Tools.


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[ArizonaBOSS]

Did you use the Ford/OTC tool to install the seal and the damper? I have them and it makes it very easy. Available from Freedom Tools.


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Steve I was thinking to use that tool until I saw it cost over $400 from FRTD with no rental option. So I used a long damper installer bolt on loan from @captdistraction along with a couple "cup" type attachments from a ball joint install/removal kit I have lying around and that got it started well enough. I finished seating it with one of the "cups" and a couple "technical taps" from a dead-blow mallet. Cost $0.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

For the damper I used the aforementioned installer bolt and a few washers to draw it on, and then finished seating the damper with the old OEM bolt. Then I removed that and installed a reusable ARP damper bolt and washer and torqued to ARP's recommended 100 ft-lbs when using their assembly lube.

 

[steveespo]

Next time pm me on projects, I have many Ford service specialty tools and will loan them to you guys for the price of shipping.


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[ArizonaBOSS]

Next time pm me on projects, I have many Ford service specialty tools and will loan them to you guys for the price of shipping.


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Sweeeeeeeeeeeet Will do.

BTW--for those interested, here are the PNs:

ATI Super Damper (no A/C provisions): 918047N https://www.summitracing.com/parts/ATI-918047N
ARP Crank Bolt: 156-2502 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BT19J8I/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Swiss Boss]

Did you happen to weight the ATI damper?

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Shame on me, I did not. It is not featherweight by any means. It's slightly lighter than the stock damper, from what I could ascertain by feel.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Planning... (?)

 

[ls110]

LOL - The costs add up in a hurry. And you have failed to include some other spendy part failing which for me happens about every other event. Would Love to see you at the Roundup. I am headed to MPH tomorrow for a NASA event and then back again in two weeks for the Roundup.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Well, I do have a decent stock of spares, but things do happen. Can't account for that.

 

[smittytx]

Shouldn't drink be a separate line item? It looks a little light.

And your tire expenses make me glad that we run Toyo RR 275s. Not the best tire, but everyone is on the same tire.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Shouldn't drink be a separate line item? It looks a little light.

And your tire expenses make me glad that we run Toyo RR 275s. Not the best tire, but everyone is on the same tire.

Yes my "drink" budget may be a little optimistic...although overall has gotten cheaper since I switched to vodka + diet tonics instead of beer. Trying to cut some driver weight.

Spec tires are good for controlling costs. In ST classes, tires are open. I could run Michelin slicks if I had the $$$ and more weight/less power, but basically all the fast guys run R7s or A7s, so if you want to keep up...you know the drill. Fortunately the R7s last a lot longer than the R6s before them. They are similar in life to an NT01 now, just more expensive, but also faster.

 

[2012-Boss]

What is the C&R radiator part number? I am interested if this helps your cooling. I saw a minimal change when I installed the FRPP radiator.

 

[mustang5o]

Planning... (?)

Is that supposed to read 2017 MPH Roundup or you planning another year out? I picked up a V10 F250 and man does the mileage suck on that thing. Since I'm running basically stock I save money using Pirelli take offs. Though I'm considering changes. I'm glad I don't list the costs out nice and neat like this. I'd have a hard time going through with it. Luckily it goes like...pay registration in November\December...pay Condo\Garage a couple of months later...start track prep in spring (fluids, pads, rotors, tires). Plus some of those are probably still good from the previous year. By the time the roundup arrives I'm looking mostly at fuel (for the tow vehicle, Boss and myself). The difference between not having a real racecar I guess.

LOL - The costs add up in a hurry. And you have failed to include some other spendy part failing which for me happens about every other event. Would Love to see you at the Roundup. I am headed to MPH tomorrow for a NASA event and then back again in two weeks for the Roundup.

The NASA event was fun but for me (since I'm just in HPDE) it was just more practice for the Roundup.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Is that supposed to read 2017 MPH Roundup or you planning another year out? I picked up a V10 F250 and man does the mileage suck on that thing. Since I'm running basically stock I save money using Pirelli take offs. Though I'm considering changes. I'm glad I don't list the costs out nice and neat like this. I'd have a hard time going through with it. Luckily it goes like...pay registration in November\December...pay Condo\Garage a couple of months later...start track prep in spring (fluids, pads, rotors, tires). Plus some of those are probably still good from the previous year. By the time the roundup arrives I'm looking mostly at fuel (for the tow vehicle, Boss and myself). The difference between not having a real racecar I guess.



The NASA event was fun but for me (since I'm just in HPDE) it was just more practice for the Roundup.

I'm planning for next year. Won't make it this year as I am still prepping the car for NASA Nationals.
I have heard similar horror stories of V10 mileage @mattlqx knows
I have my finance plans lined up tentatively out through 2022 to help with planning and knowing what to buy and when. Benefits/curses of an engineering career.
It may be worth getting a pallet (5-6 sets) of the Pirelli take-offs from gttracktires.com, unless you can get them locally for cheap!

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

What is the C&R radiator part number? I am interested if this helps your cooling. I saw a minimal change when I installed the FRPP radiator.

@2012-Boss : The PN is 25-10660. I just installed it last night and wow it is beefy. If this doesn't help keep the car cool I don't think anything will. Got a lot of other work to do yet but I'll post some pictures shortly.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

OK I got a chance to spend some time in the garage after work last night.

First up I removed the existing starter motor and installed a fresh FoMoCo one, along with a full heat-shield wrap. This is a real PITA with long-tube headers and the Watson motor mounts. A long line of extensions was used to get to the mounting bolts. I am keeping the original one as an emergency spare. I ran into an issue with the original one at Auto Club where the car wouldn't restart hot, I think the solenoid got temporarily fried by the headers. The heat wrap I had on this starter didn't cover the solenoid--so we'll hope this new wrap holds up better.

Next up I removed the OEM lower radiator support and front sway bar. No pics here as my hands were covered in grease and grime from removing all the built-up crud on the bar and bushings and freshly greasing everything before installing the BMR lower radiator support.

BMR support installed. The main tube seems slightly higher than OEM as it rubs the front passenger brake hard-line. Gonna keep an eye on this but hopefully not an issue long-term:


Overall this seems like a nice piece and I hope it holds up to my abuse!


There were two primary reasons I went for this lower mount:
1) Create additional room/clearance for my oil cooler lines (which must now come from the side due to the much larger C&R radiator), and
2) to help offset weight increase from additional water capacity of C&R radiator.

After that was installed, the C&R radiator simply dropped into place. The fitment is a little tight due to the increased width of the unit. Then the SVT fan assembly clips on:


I was able to get my modified side-shroud for the radiator installed on the passenger side of the car, but the driver one will need to be modified before it (and the engine air snorkel) will fit with the new radiator (my added sealing flap is too long now):




Also, I ordered a set of "large" CF endplates from AJ Hartman Aero, since they are a little lighter than my homemade ones (and also significantly larger). My hope is that the reduced weight and added stiffness will take some of the stress off of the repaired mounting points I had to cobble together in the wing stub. These plates are beautiful.

Front:


Back:


Old vs. New (need to apply some fresh Stinger decals to the new ones):


I should be able to spend most of the weekend in the garage cranking on the car. Next up will be to get the diff and trans fluids changed out, fill the engine with oil, heat-wrap some harnesses, reconstruct and vacuum-fill the cooling system, and maybe apply some of the new BOSS decals and other racing livery.

Stay tuned!