Pitchblack Motorsports Rally e30 318i (now with M50) - and some Porsche 924S stuff.

[irish44j]

today's morning and afternoon courses. First one is my first run, so there are a few mistakes for sure. Second one is my fastest run in the afternoon, as I recall...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2-Dl4VTZEQ&feature=youtu.be

[grt]

This is so cool! I would look to get out on my local dirty track and have some fun!

[irish44j]

stole a few pics that Spencer took with Pat's camera

[phenryiv1]

No energy to search: stock or aftermarket subframe bushings?

I PM'med Condor- may go that route.

[irish44j]

For your car....go solid/Condor. For a street car, probably stock.

[phenryiv1]

For your car....go solid/Condor. For a street car, probably stock.

I was worried about the lack of absorbtion/damping of impacts. Not to the driver but on the car. Subframes have bushings for a reason and i was worried that going too stiff on our terrain could cause damage to the frame at the subframe junction.

[irish44j]

hmm....not sure. Seems like a pretty stout area of the car, but talk to Carlos.

[irish44j]

Not much new to report. After the success last weekend I'm reluctant to make any real changes until I see if I can duplicate the effort at the next event.

In the meantime I've been rounding up my race gear for LeMons in June....so basically I needed to re-buy everything I either never had or don't have any more (nomex suit, closed-face helmet, etc etc). The garage is a disaster area at the moment for no apparent reason and I just can't get motivated to go clean up anything since I have no car projects on tap....

Anyhow, spent a bit of time tonight installing the comms and the helmet mounts for the DefNder retraint (like HANS) that we'll use for the race. Nothing all that exciting, but it's something to do.

I know, try not to get too excited, ok?




Also trying to talk another buddy (Fred) into picking up a rallycross car. I (along with Nick) autocrossed against Fred for a few seasons (he in a Mazdaspeed3, me in the WRX) and he finally came out to the last rallycross and did a lot of ride-alongs and now I think he's hooked and wants to pick up a cheap beater. While we're steering him toward getting an e30, of course, I also suggested a Volvo 240-series and he also mentioned a Benz 190 as possibilities. We'll see. The more RWD, the merrier....

[Mark 42]

Are the straps for a HANS Device?

[Nick_S]

By far my favorite build thread to find updates for :up:

Really dig the new white/black color scheme on the car.

[irish44j]

Are the straps for a HANS Device?

yes, for the DefNder, which is a different brand than HANS. It's what the Lemons guys are using, so I just got anchors for my helmet and will use their brace/harness.

[irish44j]

By far my favorite build thread to find updates for :up:

Really dig the new white/black color scheme on the car.

Thanks, I hope my photobucket account never crashes though, or I'm screwed lol... :)

[irish44j]

A few little projects today:

It's always annoyed me that I have no interior lighting, especially in the early mornings departing for events. So, I pulled the map lights off an e36 last time at the junkyard (total cost: $1.00). And installed it in the e30 using the OEM wiring for the seat belt warning light on the overhead console (attached to constant power under the dash).

So, now I have light. And these really are pretty excellent map lights, to tell the truth.

Attachment was some cut-off L-brackets with a rivet into each side of the plastic housing. For attaching to the car I just used double-sided 3M trim tape. This stuff is plenty strong enough to hold the lightweight light up there.



Installed





Also did a little project I was thinking about doing. Again, cost was almost zero (other than a new metal blade for my saw). Used some 1/16" steel that used to be part of a gas fireplace in our house (I've used other pieces of this fireplace previously for other things), and the bar section of an ebay strut bar that I bought a while back that didn't fit, so I had cut the ends off of it.

Anyhow....mocked up the plates in cardboard, then cut them...


Put them on the car and tacked the crossbar in position


Took it off and did the rest of the welding in my usual extremely sloppy, un-pretty style. Definitely had some issues with wire heat and speed on this one. I do fine on thick, thick stuff, but thinner metal I continue to struggle welding with.....


Painted up


On the car




I'll note that clearance is VERY tight, which is why most bars go around closer to the firewall. I didn't have a long enough tubing piece to do that, so I "made it fit." There's about 1cm clearance over the intake manifold, and with the hood closed I can't exactly tell, but I'd guesstimate about 5mm. It doesn't touch but if you press down on the hood in the middle you can make it touch. I might shave the top of the bar just a bit with a grinder if it becomes an issue.

[Mark 42]

I used some red marker lights for night lighting to be able to see at night without
destroying my night vision - it was a really good mod, and cheap.

With Rally Cross you probably don't need to read a course map in the dark, but
it's still a cool addition worth installing, IMNSHO

I still have no dome light in my E30 or in my MR2. It seems like there's always
higher priority projects on the list :(

[irish44j]

Was out of town for the last week, so nothing new to report - though I really don't have any real projects to mess with right now and have been doing other things. Still almost 3 weeks until the next event, so kind of bored.

Today, made a run to Yoshi's and picked up some stuff for the LeMons car that the ETA guys are building and that I'll be driving. I'll be doing some "cosmetics" for the car next week while the wife and kids are out of town at the beach.



Some little stuff on the car:

Nick at the last rallycross asked me if I wanted some random Sparco pedal cover for e30s since it wouldn't fit his car. Free, so I took it. Installed. Mad bling yo....adds 10whp!



Also had an old piece of tubular bar (was a handle for my toolchest that I never used) so I made a "brace bar" for passengers to give them someplace to brace their feet when riding with me. Just welded to the floor, nothing too exciting. Will eventually make a flat "plate" as a better footrest.

Painted with some bedliner to give it some grip. Might get some skateboard grip tape since I doubt this stuff will hold up.