Ocell's 318is

[Ocell]

I've got two new GKN axles ready to install, and some ARP Head Studs on the way from WOT-Tech.

I'm saving up to put a deposit down on JakeB's turbo kit. Hopefully I can do that next month.

I'm also going to need to get a track/autocross wheel and tire set in the future. I've only got 4 months on my Falken Azenis and they're already to the wear indicators on the insides. So far I'm thinking either 15x8 or 16x8 Rota Grids. (I'm also just STARTING to research wheel/tire sizes, so that might change. I'd like to get something wider than the 15x7 I have now, though.)

[Stitche30]

Those track work videos are sweet, nice corner speeds and hitting the apex really well. Awesome car and your the epitome of anne30 owner daily drive during the week andbtrack the shit out of it on the w.e

[Ocell]

Thanks, I really appreciate that.

[davidayeee]

I'm loving this. The vids are awesome as well

[Ocell]

I've been playing with Race Render for overlaying my data from Harry's Lap Timer over my GoPro footage. It's pretty powerful software. I spent a lot of time for this video playing with the colors and layout of the telemetry.

This is also the first video I took since taking the class at this track. I think I'm a lot smoother and I'm not over-driving the tires, but I still haven't turned a faster lap yet.

[econti]

Looking good. It's great to see a 318is being driven how it should be driven

[Ocell]

A bit of an update:

My mother and her husband came into town, and I got to take them out on track at Driveway Austin. Nothing spectacular, but I shot a video looking back at us in the car. I was hoping I'd scare my mother a bit more, but I forgot I got my driving style from her in the first place.




I got one of those bent-wire cup holders from E30Jigzaw. The quality is great, and I use it pretty much daily. I think it fits in well with the rest of the car. http://www.r3vlimited.com/board/showthread.php?t=327597





I returned the GKN axles I had ordered and got some chromoly axles from CATuned instead. They were cheaper, and should be stronger. I haven't installed them yet.

While I was getting the axles I got a Spal puller fan so I can get rid of the mechanical fan on the front of the engine. I ordered the lower E36 temp switch for the radiator too. I haven't installed any of that yet. I'm hoping I can remove the auxiliary fan and use its wiring to run the new puller fan. I'm still doing a lot of searching trying to get my head around how the wiring will work. It seems like everyone does it a different way.

It's very hot right now in central Texas, so I'm waiting for the heat to ease up before I do the axles, head studs, and fan conversion. I also need to do some work on my truck, so I'd like to get that done so I'll have a daily driver in case something goes wrong while I'm working on the 318.



I DID actually do some work on the car this weekend, though. The light behind my speedometer went out, so I finally pulled the cluster out and installed the replacement odometer gears I got from Garagistic (11 months ago). I'm VERY excited to have a working odometer, and everything still works after I put the cluster back in the dash.





Right now my priorities are some 15x8" or 16x8" wheels for autocross/track, turbo kit, and new exhaust. After all of that's taken care of I think I want to address the bodywork and paint over the next couple years.

Oh yeah, somehow the transmission is leaking, so I guess I'll be pulling that out to reseal it at some point in the future. For now I'm just going to make sure it keeps gear oil in it and doesn't go dry.

[ForcedFirebird]

The trans leak is usually the shifter shaft seal, output flange seal, or both. I usually just replace both. You can do it without removing the trans, just have to remove the drive-shaft.

[Ocell]

It must be the shifter shaft seal. The output looks dry.

It seems like it's coming from the top or front somewhere. Real hard to tell with it in the car. And the air is blowing it all around while driving of course.

Thanks for the leads.

[ForcedFirebird]

No problem.

You can do the shifter shaft seal without removing the DS, but it's a pain. Easier just to pull it and replace both seals. They are cheap enough and will last a long time once done. You won't lose much fluid, either, only under hard acceleration (or car jacked up in front etc) will the fluid be high enough to come out of them.

[wazzu70]

If you are going to sell the Ronals let me know. I would love the early version for my 318is!

[Nairb]

Very nice work! Love the 318is.

[Ocell]

I got some good track time in at Harris Hill Road this weekend. Here's video of the fastest clockwise session. I've got another video of a counter clockwise session I'll work on posting soon.

This was my second time on the track. My first time was only a few weeks after getting the car a little over a year ago. I'm still learning a lot about the track, but I feel like this visit was much faster than my first.

Load the video in HD to get 60fps.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJChmmKGpQ0

[Ocell]

After thinking on it for months, I finally grabbed a set of autocross/track wheels. I settled on the 15x8" TRM C1s. The price, the size, the weight (14 pounds)... it was all too good and made too much sense. Once I put them on the car I really fell in love with the look too. The added width really fills the fenders helps the car look planted.

I mounted an old set of 205/50R15 Falken Azenis 615k's on them so I could finish up the tires. They've got two autocross seasons and probably 200 laps around Driveway Austin and Harris Hill on them, along with daily driving.


TRM C1 wheels by Ocell, on Flickr


Harris Hill Track Day by Ocell, on Flickr

I didn't mention in my last post... I wasn't paying attention and wore one of my brake pads down to the metal at the end of that day at Harris Hill. I grooved the rotor and had to get a ride to town to buy new cheap pads so I could drive home. I decided that I should get track-only pads that I'll swap out with the wheels before/after events. This way I get better brake performance and it will force me to get my eyes on components and do a sanity check on wear level before I get into trouble again.

I got an invite to spend a morning out at Harris Hill again, so I had to fast-track getting the brakes figured out. I decided on a set of Hawk HT10 pads and http://andrew-racing.com/ helped me get them in time. I got my front rotors resurfaced, but had to buy new rear rotors when I found they were cracked through on the inside from parking brake pressure!


After a few days getting tires mounted, trying to find rear rotors in stock locally, and sweating over package tracking number status I was able to get the car together in time for Harris Hill... the night before.


I wasn't expecting much from the tires since they were so used up (past the wear indicators) and hard. We also ended up with a 40 degree day with clouds. BUT the car HOOKED UP so well in the corners. I felt an immediate payoff from the wider 8" wheels compared to my 7" Ronals. The brakes took some getting used since they bit instantly. I was getting into ABS much earlier in pedal pressure, so my driving had to change a lot.

All said and done, I took 2 seconds off of my fastest lap from my counter-clockwise sessions last month, and last month was on brand new 615k's. Of course, I had more experience and confidence in my line, but I really think I felt a dramatic difference in cornering thanks to the stiffer sidewall the 8" wheel is giving me.

Here's the video of my quickest lap:


And here's a side-by-side of my quickest laps from last month and this month. (Last month is on the left, this month is on the right):

[Ocell]

I'm planning to do quite a bit of work on the car this spring/summer. I'm leaking a lot of oil from at least a couple places (still diagnosing) and last night I realized that several of my lower oil pan bolt holes are striped out (but it seems to be sealed with RTV, so no leaks yet).


Today I did the Advanced Road Racing course at Driveway Austin. This unlocks the Level 2 and Level 3 course configurations. It was an absolute blast!

I'm still running the Hawk HT10 pads. I just got a brand new set of Bridgestone RE11As mounted on my TRM 15x8 wheels, so this was my first time driving this car on a tire that wasn't the Falken 615k. So far, I'm very impressed with the RE11As. I'm anxious to see how they feel at an autocross, but they held up extremely well on track.


Here's video of the end of today, running the Level 3 track configuration. The quickest lap is at the end of the video. (You can click on the "Best Lap" graphic in the top right to skip to the fast lap.) I recommend opening up the video in Youtube so you can see 60fps. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIctFWojuUA