Track Day Prep - Side Impact Protection/etc

[Christopher smith]

sf4018- For sure fire safety is important. I have an 8 gallon ATL fuel cell and have it mounted over the axle a fair bit forward of where Lotus originally had the fuel tank, the idea being that it allows more crush space. I have a hand held Halon extinguisher  with quick release on the passenger floor, within reach. I can also reach the kill switch with my 5 point harness tight. The fire sticks you mention are interesting. As a chemist I was curious how they work. Sounds like it will deposit potassium oxide around the area. With humidity, this will then turn to potassium hydroxide which is pretty corrosive, or maybe potassium carbonate if some CO2 is around. But if they put out the fire, that is great and maybe the residue is not that big a deal. Just need to have them tucked away so they do not go flying out at the time you need them most. i think I will get one. Thanks

Does anyone know if Caterhams come with those inertia switches that cut off electric fuel pumps in a bad crash? I think most race cars use them now.

Sorry to dwell on the safety subject but when I get tailgated by a big SUV it gets me thinking.

[11Budlite]

3 hours ago, Christopher smith said:

Does anyone know if Caterhams come with those inertia switches that cut off electric fuel pumps in a bad crash? I think most race cars use them now.

Sorry to dwell on the safety subject but when I get tailgated by a big SUV it gets me thinking.

 

My 2019 310 has an inertia switch and I'm pretty sure they've been standard for a while.  Probably on all the fuel injected motors.

[kayentaskier]

For example:

https://caterhamparts.co.uk/switches/4410-inertia-switch-ford-sigma-duratec-engines.html?search_query=INERTIA+SWITCH+BYPASS+PLUG&results=177

[CarlB]

22 hours ago, Christopher smith said:

sf4018- For sure fire safety is important. I have an 8 gallon ATL fuel cell and have it mounted over the axle a fair bit forward of where Lotus originally had the fuel tank, the idea being that it allows more crush space. I have a hand held Halon extinguisher  with quick release on the passenger floor, within reach. I can also reach the kill switch with my 5 point harness tight. The fire sticks you mention are interesting. As a chemist I was curious how they work. Sounds like it will deposit potassium oxide around the area. With humidity, this will then turn to potassium hydroxide which is pretty corrosive, or maybe potassium carbonate if some CO2 is around. But if they put out the fire, that is great and maybe the residue is not that big a deal. Just need to have them tucked away so they do not go flying out at the time you need them most. i think I will get one. Thanks

Does anyone know if Caterhams come with those inertia switches that cut off electric fuel pumps in a bad crash? I think most race cars use them now.

Sorry to dwell on the safety subject but when I get tailgated by a big SUV it gets me thinking.

I am curious about your fuel cell. Would you please post some pictures? 

[Christopher smith]

CarlB-

 Thanks for asking. Unfortunately I never photographed that area of the car during construction and now it would take quite a bit to take the panels off that cover it up. It is a standard 8 gallon ATL sports cell and Summit Racing has a picture and now a price about 50% higher than back then. Not sure how hard a retrofit would be with body panels in place making welding very tricky. Possibly a couple of supports could be fabricated to hold one up without welding. I think someone must make a custom cell that replaces the standard Lotus ones that fit behind the axle.

[11Budlite]

Fuel Safe makes a 5 and 7 gallon version for Lotus Sevens.  https://fuelsafe.com/sa113-b/

[CarlB]

Thank you for the information

[11Budlite]

I thought it was time to finally update this post.  I bent up some 1.5" steel tubing (.095 wall) and fabricated a stub tube to attach to the forward boss located on the upper chassis rail.  Drilling the outside skin was a little nerve-racking but with some careful measurement it came out nice. On the other end I bought a 1.5" ID 6-bolt clamp to attach to the lower portion of the roll bar.  My welder had retired and moved out of town so it took me a while to find someone that would take on a small job and did good work.  Finally got it all TIG-welded together and painted last week, just in time for a track day at Club Motorsports in NH.  Here's a photo of the completed setup although I did add some FIA roll bar padding before the track day.  The side impact bar extends out 7.5" from the body and enabled me to have my arm just outside the body and not draw negative attention from the track day safety crew.

I did end up getting a 6-pt Sabelt harness from RMC and also picked up a Simpson Hybrid Sport to add to the safety equipment.

 

 

[wemtd]

Looks sharp!

What are your thoughts of the track? I only just learned about them last week while at LRP.

 

p.

[11Budlite]

6 hours ago, wemtd said:

Looks sharp!

What are your thoughts of the track? I only just learned about them last week while at LRP.

 

p.

 

Thanks, it was more work than I expected!

From my limited experience, I think it's the best track in New England.  I've been to Canaan in NH, Palmer in MA, and LRP.  I did LRP in the Miata because it was raining.  My favorite up until now was Palmer, but after Saturday I think Club is my new favorite.  The only negative is it's 4 hours away. I do want to try LRP in the Caterham just because I've been there so many times as a spectator.  I have track days scheduled for Canaan in September, and New York Safety Track and Watkins Glen in October.  I hope the weather holds out and I can take the Caterham to all three. 

Edited August 17, 2022 by 11Budlite

[Croc]

I have spectated at Club and can see why you would like it.  Its got this mountain road look and feel.  It tends to favor momentum because it is fairly tight, not a lot of power straights.  Only downside is that the driving season is so short where it is located.  The runoff areas are much better than Palmer where everything seems to end up in a barrier really quickly.  In Fall, the colors would make both incredibly scenic tracks to drive.  

 

Sorry we cannot see you at NJMP in September with the other sevens but it is a fairly long 5 hour haul for you through the NYC area (traffic is a pain).  Even so I think I would rate Club above the two NJMP circuits. 

 

  

 

 

 

 

[11Budlite]

On 8/17/2022 at 8:24 AM, Croc said:

I have spectated at Club and can see why you would like it.  Its got this mountain road look and feel.  It tends to favor momentum because it is fairly tight, not a lot of power straights.  Only downside is that the driving season is so short where it is located.  The runoff areas are much better than Palmer where everything seems to end up in a barrier really quickly.  In Fall, the colors would make both incredibly scenic tracks to drive.  

 

Sorry we cannot see you at NJMP in September with the other sevens but it is a fairly long 5 hour haul for you through the NYC area (traffic is a pain).  Even so I think I would rate Club above the two NJMP circuits. 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

Croc - Is there any track that you haven't been to???  I agree with you about the runoff areas at Club vs Palmer. I was following a Challenger in the novice group at Palmer last Oct, and was concerned with his driving even though he had an instructor in the car.  Sure enough, a lap later he stuffed his brand new car into the tire wall. The only time I was concerned at Club was braking into turn 15 when another car was tracking out.  I felt like I was aiming right at him!

 

I wish I could have made it to NJMP, but I already had a couple plans in NH for that long weekend.  

[Croc]

14 hours ago, 11Budlite said:

 

Croc - Is there any track that you haven't been to???  

 

Let's face it - I am a track junkie.  Plenty of tracks remain on my wish list.  Italy has escaped me mostly.  So has The Netherlands and California.   Always wanted to try out Austria.  One day...

 

I am heading back to Oulton Park and Anglesey 10 days from now.