theedge

Specifically, the setup from www.customengineeredperformance.com

Best there is out there, period.

HoBoJoe

http://www.kokeln.com/air_oil_separator_and_cooler.php

Duke

Park your car in the pit and ride in friends cars all day.

333pg333

^^ Spoken from experience Dukey??.....but tru-nuff all the same.

Duke

Actually I've always been able to drive home from the track, but I suppose not running it is the only way to make it reliable
Sorry for the OT!

Van

I've driven my car at the track an average of about 15-20 days (sometimes more, never less than 12) per year for 9 years. Only 4 time have I not be able to drive it home (and 3 of those time were before I got a trailer). They were: 2 head gaskets (back when the car was chipped), transmission output shaft bearing failure, and a off track excursion that bent the car.

Things that have been inconveniences: blown power steering hose, dying wheel bearings, loose axle bolts, electrical gremlins, TPS sensor, BOV, cycling valve, corded tires, etc.

The answer, I think, is to stay on top of everything like a hawk. Generate a pre-track check list (like a pre-flight check list) and go over things like suspension bushings, mounting bolts, axle bolts, even exhaust hangers, every time. Make sure everything is running top-notch... this will help ensure all of those sill electrical components are working.

Change oil every few events. Change brake fluid at a minimum of once a year. Use good brake pads and monitor their wear. Change front wheel bearings every 2 years. Change rears every 5 years or so. I'm adding re-greasing the CV joints to my annual routine.

As for front wheel bearings, I adjust them with a large flat head screw driver in the slit of the lock nut. While spinning the brake rotor, turn the screw driver as hard as you can with one hand. That's the perfect tightness.

aben8057

First of all great post and hope this can be a sticky.


1.Post event inspection: one of the key items I do upon completing a track event is inspect. You may have had an off-track excursion or picked up some debris that can go un-noticed until a later date. One point was my alternator belt that got severely frayed which would have snapped in the near future. Another was a small crack on my A-arm. In other words..check your car afterwards instead of rushing around days before your event trying to address issues.
2.Brake Fluid Flush
3.Oil Change (20/50) filled above the notch on the oil dipstick
4.Ditto on KLR’s #1 post. Keeping the motor stock with a few exceptions (chip/boost controller)
5.Suspension- my primary focus when I decided to start “tracking” my 951. Having a 50/50 WEIGHT DISTRIBUTION, the 951 will benefit from this upgrade and reliability.

daigo

John brought up a point that I pay attention to no matter make make of race car I've built. The first investment in any race car's engine should be to keeping it cool, and a healthy oil supply. So, the order of things I do to any race car engine:

- Crank, in 951s case, "proper" cross drilling
- good oil cooling. Heat exchangers are best
- never run "extra" oil in the pan
- invest in a good larger rad. There aren't too many off the shelf units I've seen that I like for the 951, I had mine custom made.

Take care of the cooling and the oiling up front. Any subsequent investment you make will be protected. Don't do it the other way around.

Jeff N.

+1 on oil cooling. I find my track time limited by oil temps with the factory cooler. After a few years of sorting my car, my suggestions for general track prep are:

- Add both an oil temp gauge combined with larger oil cooler. Closely monitor your oil temps.

- Add an oil pan baffle. Likely the only serious mechanical upgrade required.

- Redo all your water hoses. All. And the heater control valve (- here's why)

- Verify your ignition parts are all in good health (coil, plug wires, etc). All are stressed under boost.

- Update your boost track hoses and add some quality constant torque type clamps. Make sure there's no oil residue on any of the hoses or pipes when you re-install.

- Verify your front control arms are good. Caster blocks and ball joints in particular.

- Update your BOV to a quality aftermarket unit. The stock plastic is subject to failing which can create boost issues and compressor stalls.

- Verify you have no vacuum leaks. Replace your hoses with silicon versions.

- Repack your front wheel bearings with high temp synthetic grease.

- Verify your half shafts are in good shape. Carefully check and star torque all the half shaft bolts. Monitor the bolts.

- verify all your fuel lines are healthy.

- get your injectors rebuilt and flow tested to be sure you don't have a cylinder running lean.

After each run, be sure to open the hood to let the heat out. These things make tremendous underhood heat and you really need to let it out.

I haven't had the water cooling issues others have described but then it's not too hot here in the Seattle area. Might be more of any issue elsewhere.

rlm328

Heater Bypass
- Remove the hoses to the fire wall
- Blank off the heater line on the top of the block, this can be welded shut, jb weld blocked, or LR makes a blanking plate for it
- Remove solid steel tube above headers
- Tap and plug the water pump (3/8" NPT)

This will eliminate a lot of leak paths. When you can get around to it pull all of the heater paraphenalia from under the dash.

vt951

Listening intently, this is a great thread. Only thing I would add is to check fluids (oil, brake, coolant) religiously between each session.

TonyG

Put in an LS1. The car will become 500% more reliable at the track.



TonyG


(... had to say it :-)

Chris Prack

I disagree with this very much. By doing so you are removing a coolant path at the back of the block/head. Coolant will not flow as well and you will end up with #4 cylinder running hotter as a result. On race cars I have a Gates hose that is a perfect fit from the heater pipe over the headers to the water flange on the head.

TonyG

Agreed...

If you have newish hoses, they won't be a problem.

The best solution if to leave the hoses in place and use some Thermotec around them (and the fuel lines.... and any other lines/hoses exposed to excessive heat).

TonyG

Van

Corner balancing is important - not having a 50/50 weight distribution. In fact, as you lighten these cars, they become a little front heavy. 50/50 front to rear weight distribution isn't possible unless you're willing to carry a few hundred lbs of lead around... And no racer wants extra weight.

However, I can't stress the importance of good corner balancing enough. Alignment too. Attention to this can make the car feel completely different (in a good way, if done right.)