pierats

John, One of the things about my setup is that the overflow tank gets quite a bit of coolant flowing into it under full throttle. I suspect this is from that vent line (the little blue one on the diagram). Coolant is flowing from the back of the engine (where it is under high pressure from the water pump) into the overflow tank through this small hose. This may or may not be desirable. It has not hurt anything so far! Interestingly I have an aluminum expansion tank that I have been thinking of fitting for a while now. It would use an overflow bottle, which my current system does not have. In the current system if the coolant overflows, it just comes out the cap. Not ideal for trackdays! Anyway, this expansion tank only has one inlet (on the bottom). On the top it has a rim to fit a radiator cap and this rim has a small outlet for the overflow tank. I would think that a setup like this would be ideal for getting the excess air out of your cooling system (if the expansion tank was the highest point in the system). It should also allow you to run a higher pressure radiator cap - thereby giving you a bit more wiggle room before it overheats (not that I have heard of any Duratecs with overheating issues). What are your reasons for changing the cooling system?

Initially, I used some aluminum tape (used for sealing ductwork). This worked fine and was nice and light. I ended up replacing it with a piece of aluminum that a machinist friend made for me. I've seen other cars with a simple piece of stainless steel screen over the hole (just to prevent debris from falling into the bellhousing.

John, Do you need two hoses going to the expansion tank? It looks like the expansion tank would be mounted on the scuttle? Would it be the highest point in the system? If so it might use less hose (and therefore save some weight if you did a take off from the rear of the engine, where the water rail connects. If you want to have some flow through the expansion tank, you would want to connect the black line like the heater in the diagram above.

Dave, I'd be interested to see that document if you can find it. What advantages do you think this kind of setup provides? I understand that you could run a higher pressure (the stock Caterham cap is just a couple of pounds). Thoughts?

Al, we did the San Juan skyway on the USA2005 tour. It was *very* scenic but I don't think it compares to something like the TOD for twisties! (although I did manage to still have some fun!)

Hi Al, I suspect one thing that will effect each of these locations is the time of year. The weather is a large factor in a se7en! :7rain: Should we also have poll for the range of dates folks would prefer? or list the times of year each place *should* have the best weather? Cheers! Tom

Brian, Great idea!! It looks like a lot of (fast) fun! Cheers, Tom

The term I have seen used for the air intake you have a picture of is an "airbox". The primary reason for running an airbox is to reduce the noise of the intake system in order to comply with trackday sound levels. It will reduce your top HP by a small margin though. Tom

Squarefour, That just tempered your chassis.

Howdy Buzz! Sorry I'll not be anywhere near Ohio in January , but it's great to hear from you and I hope that you get a chance to visit with some of the locals! Cheers, Tom

Any standard size se7en will be a problem with your feet. The rest of you will fit fine, especially if you fit lowered floors. However, one of the "super-sized" se7ens would probably fit you better. I think something like a Caterham SV would fit just fine (I'm 6'4" and had to move the seat up!) and it has quite a lot of room (for a se7en) in the pedal box. The best advice is to sit in/drive as many as you can. There are *big* differences in how each car feels/fits. Cheers, Tom

Here are a few more: Nasa Se7ens Challenge 7Torque Radio7s

gjslutz, I have run my car with 13" tires on the street for 15,000+ miles. No problems. The only time I have to be really careful is with speedbumps. The 13" wheels handle better, are lighter weight, and lower your CG. I also run competition tires - not race tires. I'm currently running Yokohama A032R's. They do wear faster than a tin top tire, but they sure do grip!

:skep: Hmmmm... This is a tricky part of Caldwell: Jackals Forge Caldwell Park See the videos at the bottom of this page. There is a spin in the same location.

slngsht, what forum software do you use for this site?

I'd say we learned a lot on this tour, the least of which is how they disguise their police cars in Washington state! Credit to Gert though - no ticket was issued. :hurray: I also second that a tour of shorter time would be a good idea. It was starting to seem like the amazing race at the end. It would be wonderful to get together with folks from the east coast, but I fear that this would result in a tour that was longer than the 9 days Gert mentioned (one week, plus a weekend on either end = 9 days), especially for those of us who are not driving trailer queens. I read recently on the se7ens.net tour list that they suggest long weekend tours, or tours where the goal is to stay someplace nice for a few nights and then move on to the next nice place. The idea being that if your spouse is not into hardcore blatting every day, they can go to the spa or go sightseeing, etc. Instead of having to be strapped into a loud cramped car for days on end. We had very good weather, but in case of bad weather you can imagine that your spouse would probably get pretty tired of driving in the se7en while wet and cold!!! I agree with Stan that the most interesting hotels were the "motor lodge" type, where we could casually hang out and do some bench racing. :cheers: :iagree: I feel that some kind of intra-car communication would be most helpful. It was manageable with our sized group, but would be more difficult with a larger group. It was nice to have Stan driving a normal car, and he did an admirable job of keeping up with us! However, it was a bit concerning to see him rushing up to us in my rear view mirror as I was braking! Good thing the ABS works, eh Stan?! I think John's suggestions about the tour are right on target. Each of these items should be considered when planning the next tour. FWIW, the UK folks have a members only sharepoint site where they keep all of the information for the tours - for both organizers and participants. Regarding the passing of cars, it would be wise to put the lower powered cars either in the front or in the middle of the pack. Having a high horsepower car bring up the rear (Mike Biddle in the case of USA2005) made passing a lot easier!

This was the final day of the tour for me. It was a great last day though! Follow the leader: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/232188932_underway.jpg Getting close to home: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/467970001_ggbridge.jpg Tired, but happy to be home: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/174601515_home.jpg

Nope. It's not torture for those of us on the tour. I'm not sure, but probably around 3300 at this point There have only been a few minor things so far. I'll see if i can recall them correctly: 1. Ed hit a rock and bent his rim - put the tire on a new rim and he was fine. 2. Ed's exhaust hanger broke - hose clamp to the rescue. 3. Tom and Louise had their exhaust crack and break in two - a quick trip to the welding shop fixed that one. 4. I had a sticking throttle pedal. A bit of grease and a new bolt from Gert fixed that. 5. My tires are about shot, but no cords are showing yet. 6. John had some coolant dissapear 7. Dion had some alignment issues and replaced his front tires. 8. John Christensen had his fuel tank come loose. 9. Gert's car would not re-start at the Canadian border crossing - he had the border guard push him into Canada! That's as much as I remember - Wow, it has been an incredible trip. If there was one thing I wish we had done differently it would be to have spent an extra day in Whistler (for MTN biking).

Dude, that was the sunrise! I said we got up early...

Day 11 was rough. We had to catch the ferry from Victoria back to the US. We did not make reservations so we ended up getting up at 4am (UGH!) to park our cars in line for the ferry. We figured if we were able to get our cars in line by 7am we could make the 10:30am ferry. I am guessing we arrived at the terminal around 5am, and were suprised to hear that we would make it on the 6:10 ferry. I had not anticipated this and had to catch a taxi back to the hotel to get the rest of our stuff!! Despite this early start to the day, it was a really great day. Yea, it was early...this is as the ferry was leaving the port: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/314545471_IMG_2594.jpg Se7ens on the ferry: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/2043924704_IMG_5768.jpg Gert trying to direct us to the coffee: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/1641537022_IMG_2642.jpg http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/73660638_IMG_2606.jpg Se7ens in Olympic national park: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/1519333588_IMG_5794.jpg At the top of Hurricane ridge: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/772910362_IMG_5802.jpg One of the Iron Butt competitors - it's day 9 of the Iron Butt, he is in 3rd place! http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/1631456370_IMG_5807.jpg The Makah museum was very nice: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/296089607_IMG_2693.jpg http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/1069798422_IMG_5878.jpg http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/2007077519_IMG_5866.jpg Chinese for dinner: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/1400936630_IMG_5883.jpg

More pics from our rest day in Victoria: The inner harbor: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/789965870_IMG_5694.jpg At the beach: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/828396994_IMG_5699.jpg At the pub: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/784575455_IMG_5731.jpg The intrepid adventurers have dessert: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/1129194849_IMG_5738.jpg The infamous Nanimo bar!!: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/1658915496_IMG_5739.jpg

The sea to sky road was under heavy construction - getting ready for the 2010 Olympics: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/1413154511_IMG_5615.JPG We were the last car on the ferry (yay!): http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/723318613_IMG_5640.JPG

This has been a great tour. We have had a few trying moments like getting stuck behind a boat: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/170892433_IMG_2285.JPG ...and getting stuck in traffic two blocks from the hotel! http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/1500442245_IMG_5537.JPG FYI, in this pic, we are sitting in traffic, and have been for 30minutes. We have the engine off, as we have only gone 1/2 of a block in that 30 minutes! On the bright side, we did have great weather and there were some fun roads. We also got a warm welcome in Kelowna from Greg and his family: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/2105206084_IMG_5544.JPG Greg, many thanks for your hospitality! We look forward to seeing you again tomorrow!

TADTS. (They all do that sir) The first time I drove a seven I had to take my shoes off...and I don't have especially big feet! (size 10 1/2) I was able to drive with a pair of converse all stars, but find that a pair of driving shoes, or boxing shoes work best. Besides, extra room = extra weight!

Not mine, but thought I'd spread the word: here