Bonjo2

I am going to give it another go this year. Goal, be competitive in autocross, track day, standing 1/2 mile, drift, and short track drags without a trailer, changing tires etc... Would love to run solo1/time attack/drift, but a "kit car" and not massed produced production vehicle. this might be my last go, before joining the miata crowd. I spanked a supercharged LS miata on highway but there's nothing I could do to stay with it on the off ramp, or under braking.. I love hitting the cruise rides and car shows. Currently my kite is running 1760lbs at 705Bph per ton (flywheel and no driver). Car is nuts, super easy to handle up to a point. over 100mph wants to kill. Cam comes on, mega lift and wind buffeting though 170mph, (so even 4th gear wheel spin at 90mph) and then even goggles or full face helmet don't work. Anyway, designing new front control arms to lessen the braking wobbles/upper a-arm flex at high speed. second is to beef up the rear end which even after welding tubes and 600bph axles, and a stout 3.08 ring gear, the poor 7.5 flexes and leaks, and doesn't like burning through 315 tires. 1. safety, bleck, side impact bars, crossover bar and top, plus reinforcing frame a bit by adding some 20g steel flats and 16g gussets. I got turned down at three open tack days and 1 nascar style "wacky Wednesday" event due to no side nets, side (2?) impact bars, crossover bars, fuel tank not sealed off from driver, battery not sealed off, aluminum firewall and only 2 frame (steel) mounted seat mounts (other 2 are mounted to aluminum skin). one tech guy says I need 3/16 mount plates for a min of 6 point roll cage? WTF? not a mustang. Currently I've only found one shop in MD to do the roll cage mods, but am not sure it worth the hassle as I can get a spec miata roller for about $3500. 1. a. lose 40lbs--make up for other weight gain 2. aero, full flat bottom through diffuser, front wing, rear wing, windshield, barge boards etc.. not quite full time attack due cost, but no more lift. but doing the math will need 100-150 wheel horsepower to be 170-200mph crazy. (single low boost 6-9psi rear turbo?, or wait a year and up cubic inches) 3. Longer... lengthen rear trailing arms and relocate fuel cell to be flat, may have to run a mumford link to clear beefed up 10 bolt housing. New front spindles and a-arms should net more caster, 1 degree more neg camber, and almost 1" forward bite with adjustable ackerman (on or parallel). A 2" longer trailing arm will allow me to go back to the 13" shocks and still clear the frame at full droop. with 15 wheels, and 13" shocks, the axle would hit and I would spin... 4. More fuel. Currently 90% cycle on stock injectors and wali pump is stressed, angled tank sucks below 1/4 full. Need to relocate FPR to engine bay with a solid 8 or 10AN feed and 6AN return, with 65-80lb injectors, add a holley 450+ in-tank pump. 4. Smaller tires. The most fun I've had in this car was running 15x225 drag radials with 0 tread wear. They lasted only 1k miles but were awesome and sidewalls were suited to a car of our weight. The toyo 100 treadwear tires (and brakes) look brand new after 12K miles, but are rocks until they get hot, and sidewalls made for a 3500lb car, so no telling if no pressure. I will downsize to a 17x9 rim and 235-255 tire as since upping rears to over 300mm the car is an on and off switch and if/when hooking up feels like something is going to break. My best gtech was 1.9 to sixty with 225 drag radials, and now over 2.4 with 315 100 treadwear and very inconsistent. Still able to launch in 2nd or 3rd, keep low revs and blast past most cars to about 90, then technology takes lead and the GTR, demon, corvette and 911s walk me as I feel like I am bout to take off for flight. The LS3 sounds like a truck motor in non merged form and not cool until 4500-6500RPM which is nuts..not as much fun as a 7 with a screaming Ztec, Duratech, or Honda that can pounce to 6500-9krpm. I just wanted to put my plans out there with hopes that 1. someone needs my spare bits, 2. someone knows a shop that can do roll cage near Hampton VA. and 3. someone might have some experience with making a polycarbonate windshield. all the best.

Amazing car, and well sorted. Sad to see you go. It's the car that convinced me to buy mine in 2011. You should swap engine and transmissions with the miata...

With the V8 I would go with a larger diameter wheel/tire combo and run 1" shorter coil-overs, or same length as front, or limiting straps. My car truly came alive, and no more clunks to frame and snap oversteer. In front, 1/16" TTO, lower a-arms level, and almost 2 deg neg camber. There are extra threads on one side to allow more, but limited on the drivers side. I am hoping to fab new control arms this winter to get more caster, add more stability (no more speed oscillations). I am also switching spindles to Speedway Motors new Metric geometry and lower ball joint, short steering arm, and a 7 degree upper ball joint. The steering has never inspired confidence.. Hoping this will work without having to upgrade steering rack.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1inBEhemAIrhx8lkavcilGTuoHA3D2aYG/view?usp=sharing

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hygClYr80om6ItHMBeM63zGNoPZdzT_0/view?usp=sharing

Haha. Yours more like the United colors of Benetton. I really don’t want to take the car apart again.... But, will to make it safer. I also want to make up some new front a-arms and a different spindle and steering arm—wanting more adjustment, more angle, and less flex. So far I’m thinking two bars from center main hoop curving out to the top of the a pillars, leaving enough room to get in and out, the straight bar to floors 4 point corner front outside of seat by knees, a straight tube across at top of scuttle height with threaded insert for center net, then a simple side bar like yours. What also concerns me are rules requiring roll cage to mount to frame rail or floor, using 3/16” plate, where our roll hoop mounts aren’t that robust and nowhere near the floor.

I need: Side impact protection 1.5” at .09+ Top tie bar Side nets for driver Front cross bar (dash) Ties from front to chassis floor Anyone have any design recommendations that won’t make car too difficult to get into, and not look like Mad Max? This, or “factory hard to and windows rolled up”. Hehe funny

More detailed photos of windshield... Please.

outstanding

Did you dimple die those holes?

Looking good brother. Very colorful—I’m sure the purists are rolling.

I saw cameras at track so made some noise.. https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B33DN78e1a9wWVpKTks3NXdGaW8

Outstanding.

Great progress brother! I cannot wait to hear how you like the steering rack. Maybe a visit is called for.

The more the better. I would love to drive a GT2 or Formula Mazda--want to trade? The car is light with a ton of weigh centered (180lb transmission), so is much easier to drive than say a corvette or porker with their driving aids off. The V8 torque just makes the speed easy, but takes away from some of the fun in the twisty stuff. I think it would be more fun if we could get peaky 300-350 BPH in something that revved freely, required lots of shifting to stay in the power, is 400lbs lighter, with smaller softer tires. Right now I just leave in 3rd gear, play cat and mouse with corvettes and lotus elise without ever shifting, with the big motor just chugging along no fuss. If I am full tilt, sounding like a beast, I am going straight or and making lots of tire smoke.

I'll gladly trade my LS power for an extra 2k rpm and some grip.. I really love the car and having over 500bph, but the street tire thing an issue. The car is too light and r888 are still not soft enough and sidewalls have no give, making them a bit unpredictable anytime it's colder than say 80 outside. I've been using my 2 step launch control as poor man's traction control and keeping right on gas and left on brake, no need to shift these truck motors. Even with 3.08 gears I can still launch in 2nd and slip all the way to over 90mph, then 3rd to 120, 4th to 150 etc... To really make use of our LS power we need substantially more grip and aero and maybe another foot or so of wheelbase--then no longer a 7. 650 BPH motor and 300BPH worth of grip makes a drift car. It feels like I am going to take off over 130, and over 160 transition from gas to brake really wakes you up. Don't get me wrong, love this little sprint car, and could even see another 1-200 BPH for horsing around.

very nice? you draw it?

I gladly hand over the claim. This car is freaking amazing... http://www.enginelabs.com/news/late-model-engines-develops-e85-road-racing-mill/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=late-model-engines-develops-e85-road-racing-mill

WOW. Very nice!