Review MAM June 30th July 1st

[RusherRacing]

I am TIRED, BROKE, and BROKEN!























But I should be up and running in a week or twp. I will post an actual review later with pictures etc...

Rich and Crew its was great meeting you guys thanks for the helps and the little parts.

 

[Ludachris]

Damn, I wish I could have been there with you guys. I told my friend Whit with the white Integra to keep an eye out for the DSMers out there. Can't wait to see pics!

 

[GoSloTurbo]

rusher, this weekend was a blast. let me know next time your going to an event and ill try to get off work again.


rusher's rigs

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nice turnout

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[Slow old poop]

This weekend proves that, no matter how long you've done this, there is always something new to learn. Or something old to remember. This weekend, I learned about Hoosier tire realities, brake pad wisdom, and the red mist. More on all that anon.

We may have set a record for the most DSMs on a road course at one time: 3

First, there was Ryan Rusher of Rusher Racing (see post above and more to come tomorrow), who brought out his newly purchased race-prepped DSM. We thought it was one of the Archer Brothers cars but, no, it had been prepared by somebody in Chicago. I'll let Ryan tell you all the gory details but suffice it to say he had an agonizing weekend with a blown transfer case seal, then a non-shifting transmission. Nevertheless, he ran both days in HPDE and turned an impressive 1:56 time when he was stuck in 4th gear all the way around. I turned a 1:47 with all my gears intact, so he was a mere 9 seconds back with a one-speed.

Second, there was Dave Lafavor, who ran the Race Driver School on Saturday and competed in the Production Touring C race class on Sunday. Alas, Dave can't post here because forum rules declare him a "rookie," who is not allowed to post. He monitors this forum, but can't contribute.

Dave ran pro rallies for four years in DSMs, came out to Iowa Speedway last month to run HPDE on Saturday and TT on Sunday, then the race class this Saturday and the race group on Sunday. Some rookie! From HPDE to TT to race class to race group in four days! Dave may be the only DSM currently in a race group, but he can't post here. (Ludachris: Please let Dave post, so we can hear from this guy. Dave, send your report to me at [email protected] and I'll post it.)

Third, there's me, who won TTR both days, even though I had my share of problems as hinted at above.

MAM (MId-America Motorplex) is my home track, so I know it cold. We've turned a 1:42 here, so I was bitterly disappointed to see my times in the 1:47s. Was it the weather? A slippery track? The car was sliding around a lot, but it was running very strong. Mike the Mechanic had installed DSMLink, we had set the camber to maximum (-3 degrees all the way around), and were running on Hoosiers for the first time on this track. It should have been faster. I was looking for times in the high 1:30s.

My times were initially right up there with cars running in TTS, which probably will be my class when we get it dynotuned at AMS. DSMLink computes my horsepower at 387, and that will put me into TTS once I get an official dyno sheet. Cars in TTS include a 410 hp Mazda RX7 and modded Z06es. I could run with these guys down the straights, because the DSM pulls like a frieght train, but they were eating me up in the corners.

We finally decided it was the Hoosiers. I bought a set of used 245/17 Hoosiers last year at the end of the season, and ran them at Iowa Speedway. As it turns out, Hoosiers start to lose grip after the 12th heat cycle, and the grip is pretty much gone by the 18th cycle. The Hoosiers I bought probably had either 8 or 16 heat cycles already (one or two race weekends with four sessions per day = 2 x 4 or 4 x 4 cycles.) After running them at Iowa Speedway, they now had eight more heat cycles, putting the total at 16 or 24.

My times at first were equal to the fastest TTS cars, but got progressively worse as the weekend wore on as the Hoosiers were going away. Makes me wonder if I want to buy another set of used Hoosiers or move to something else.

So, my first lesson is: Hoosiers ain't that great. When new, they are untouchable, but they go away too fast.

My second lesson concerned brake pads. I normally install a new set of Carbotechs, run them two weekends, change them out for a new set, and throw the used set of pads in the Brake Box. So I tend to accumulate a lot of spares. I said to myself, "Myself, you have a set of pads in the car and three sets of spare pads in the box. Instead of buying new pads, why not use up all these spares this weekend?"

That was a wrong decision. I found myself running out of brake on a consistent basis, mostly at the same turn (5). The first time I went off, I banged on the brakes, the pedal was solid, but the car just wasn't stopping. I flew off the end of the straight, into the weeds. We pulled the pads and found the inside right front was down to the metal. So we changed them out for a spare set.

That worked for a while, but I found myself double and triple pumping the pedal to get pressure, and still not stopping. I should have known: When pads are worn down, they wear faster than normal and tend to fade, because there is not enough pad material to dissipate the heat. I didn't realize the spare Carbotechs would wear down quite that fast.

I was going four wheels off on a fairly regular basis, including one Spectacular Off, when I hit the brakes at about 115 mph, the car leaped to the right, had no stopping power, and I went into the fields at 100 mph. Man, what a ride! It was like being on a pro rally all over again. It ripped off the air dam and whacked the downpipe hard enough to upset the gasket, so we decided to pack it in, halfway through on Sunday. The Hoosiers were shot, the brakes were shot, and we had an exhaust leak. No reason to continue.

Lesson number two: Don't cheap out on the brakes. Put new pads in when you need them.

Then there is the red mist. This is the evil force that makes you do really stupid things in the name of competition. On Sunday afternoon, a red M3 came onto the track right behind me as I was going down the front straight. I pulled him down the straight just fine, but he was getting me in the corners. On every straight, I'd get him by 25 yards, and he'd make it up in the twisty bits--but not enough to get into a passing situation. So, here I am, running on slippery tires, triple pumping the brakes, and trying like mad to stay in front of the M3, when I did the aforementioned Spectacular Off.

Lesson number three: Don't let the Red Mist cloud your judgement. (On the other hand, that M3 pushed me to one of my fastest times of the weekend, even with the slippery tires and bad brakes.)

The DSM was awesome otherwise. Plenty of power, no particular problems (other than tires and brakes), and able to run with just about anything on the straights. We hooked up a laptop and datalogged the DSM all weekend, and Mike said everything looked great, including no knock at 20 lb boost.

If we can arrange it, we'll get the car dynotuned at AMS between now and Autobahn. This will not only get us a dyno reading so we can get into a TT class, but the wizards at AMS know how to set the tune for road racing, so it should be even stronger than it is now (not more peak horsepower, but more usable horsepower and torque). I am with child in anticipation of what AMS will do for us.

Dave Lafavor also showed us a trick for fixing my fuel starvation problem in long lefts, so we'll be pulling the gas tank to make the fix. This will let us run with less than a full tank of gas, for a considerable weight savings. As it is now, the car has so much grip it gets fuel starvation at 3/4 of a tank.

I'll have pix soon.

Rich

 

[Slow old poop]

Brent the Fabricator shot these

1. Dave Lafavor

2. Ryan Rusher

3. My Spectacular Off

Rich

 

[asian312]

You sure that last show was an off or intentional shortcut? Sounds like a wonderful weekend and a nice showing of DSMs. Just our of curiosity, what is the thickness of your pads when you decommision them to spares?

 

[Slow old poop]

You sure that last show was an off or intentional shortcut? Sounds like a wonderful weekend and a nice showing of DSMs. Just our of curiosity, what is the thickness of your pads when you decommision them to spares?

The Carbotechs start out at about a half-inch thick. After a weekend, they are down to a little more than half that. After the second weekend. they go down to about 1/8 to 3/16 in., and we replace them. Toward the end of the third track day, I am pumping like crazy.

Sometimes it's difficult to keep track; we often don't make it completely through the second day of an event, because of mechanical problems, and some tracks require more braking than others. Road America, for example, is notoriously hard on pads because of the long straights and 140 mph speeds. I can go through a set of pads in two track days. MAM is not hard on pads, which is one reason I thought I could get away with running the spares.

Also, I am discovering that running with the Big Boys is a whole lot different than running HPDEs. These guys are tough, and they show up with new tires and brakes. I am not getting easy wins any more, so now I shall have to emulate them. Since I only have three events left in my alleged racing career, I may have to bite the financial bullet and go with new pads and better tires at each event. I know I ain't going to beat anybody if I show up at the Nationals with $10 used Hoosiers and worn pads.

 

[Ludachris]

Wow, pretty tough weekend! Man Rich, I hope you and few others are able to make the Hastings track event that's 3 weeks after your Road America event. Even if you're only able to come out for a day it would be so great to meet some other road racing DSMers.

 

[Ludachris]

... Dave Lafavor, who ran the Race Driver School on Saturday and competed in the Production Touring C race class on Sunday. Alas, Dave can't post here because forum rules declare him a "rookie," who is not allowed to post. He monitors this forum, but can't contribute.

Dave should be able to contribute even though he's a "New Member". There are no restrictions at this time that prevent New Members from posting in our Road Racing forum. Tell Dave to get in here and participate!

 

[asian312]

If my brake setup accepted your 1/2 used Carbotechs I'd definitely pitch into your Nationals efforts. Our tracks are quite brake friendly.

 

[Slow old poop]

Wow, pretty tough weekend! Man Rich, I hope you and few others are able to make the Hastings track event that's 3 weeks after your Road America event. Even if you're only able to come out for a day it would be so great to meet some other road racing DSMers.

I would really like to, but I am discovering how EXPENSIVE it is to compete at a high level. I have to plan in advance when to order tires, how long they will last, and so on. I am beginning to understand why Greg Collier decided to retire from racing. (I don't know if finances was the reason, but if it was, then I understand completely).

What it boils down to is: if you just want to run HPDE and TT and have fun, then you can do it on $10 Hoosiers and makeshift repairs and ghetto-style mods, and not spend a lot. If you are serious and want to win your class no matter what, it will cost a LOT of money.

Besides, Hastings is just before the Nationals. If we get through Road America OK, I'm not sure I want to risk the car. If we decide not to run the nationals, then we'll be at Hastings instead, and will be able to run for fun.

This racing stuff was a lot more fun when it was fun, and I ran a basically stock car. Ya know, drive to the track, change tires, run the entire weekend, and drive home. No truck, no trailer, no crew, no timing, and no pushing everything to the hairy edge and beyond. I think when I sell the car and retire from active racing, I may try to find the fun again.

 

[Ludachris]

Well even if you just came out to Hastings with your used Hoosiers and ran in HPDE it would great just to get together and get some rides in eachother's cars. But I can understand the financial part when you're trying to win the whole thing. If you're able to make it even just for fun I hope you head out.

 

[dilbertgonebad]

WTF I don't know what keeps happening to the photos after I send them over to the Rich but let us see if we can clean the images up a bit.

 

[RusherRacing]

MAM June 30th and July 1st

Well overall what a weekend...

The week leading up

Saturday Night my trust mechanic Brad, and Marcus came down and helped my get the transmission back in the car. We tried to get it back up in with out pulling the motor mounts with no luck. So we undid the mounts and slid back in the transmission and put everything back together. We couldn't test run it since I was still waiting on shipment of Redline Oils. So we decided to break for the night and finish up the beer left over from the previous weekend. We ended up making a new chair and a new bed in the shop...

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I was out of town Monday night. Tuesday got home around 6:30 Brad came down again to help out and finish everything. We got it up and running and for the first time the clutch disengaged properly. The transmission felt great. I drove it up and down the road trying to make sure everything was working properly, let it all heat up etc. I then rechecked the fluids everything looked good! A huge thanks goes out to the guys at MAPerformance best price on ACT around and it got here QUICK and Jon at TRE!! Great job on the trans.!

Wednesday night I was out of town again. Thursday night gathered everything up I needed for the weekend.

Justin and Tyler met me at my house when I got off work. I was a little late because my boss decided give me a little lecture about leaving early I am used to it I get it everytime I take leave or comp hours. Loaded everything up wow was my truck full glad I had a tonneau, actually a topper would have been nice.

Got on the road looked like we would be there by 6:30 easy. Then we found stop and go traffic south of Sioux City. You just don't get stop and go traffic up here its sucked. Anyway we finally arraved a little after 7pm. Unloaded the car, set up the TENTS, and went Glenwood in search of a grocery store, liquor store, food and a stiff drink. Well we found all of them. No frill had flirty little school girls helping us find our crap for luches. The guy at the liquor store is a duchbag, and the best restaurant and bar is the Oasis! We went back to MAM started drinking and watching a little 1/8 mile drag action. Damn 5.00 at a 148 mph wow. He then continued his run into the corn field. He walked way with now injuries and we headed back to our tents. Now none of us have ever stayed there. I have only raced there once before and it was an afternoon thing. But in the night there are TRAINS lots and lots of them honking there horns all night long!, and then horrible interstate traffic on top of the trains. Don't camp if you are going to MAM get a hotel and get it early..

Now to the actual fun stuff the Race Day, dragged my self out of the tent a little after 6 went and showered and just relaxed till the 7:30 drivers meeting thinking I would have an hour or so to prep the car before we went out. NOT the case. If you are running in HPDE 1 or 2 you go to this class that burns up your morning until you haft to go onto the track. Well, I rallied the crew and we got everything done minutes before heading on track. I actually missed the first lap, and entered on a hot track.. I took off really taking it easy on everything. Making nice clean smooth shifts shifting more than I probably needed too help break in the transmission clutch etc. It went really good, I was having a fuel starvation issue on the first grouping of corners. Not sure but I don't think I had to point anyone by passed a bunch of people. Next thing I know it was over and I was heading back into the pits.

Headed back to the download session (class session) they talked a little more nothing new.. got done and again didn't have much time to properly prepare for the next session. Filled it with fuel and lined up in Grid. We got out on track and it was great. My car was pulling harder then ever. I passed the 4 cars in front of me right away and had a full open track ahead. I think I got a little lazy because this white corvette sneaked up on me. I started really pushing myself but keep missing a corner here or there so I let him pass on the next passing zone. Followed him for a lap or so then the checkered came back out. Headed back in. Now his time I was like I need to check over my car. So I planned on sneaking back into class a few minutes later than I probably should. Checked the oil, brake pad thickness... I noticed something that didn't look good. I had an oil seeping from between my bell housing and block. So needless to say I didn't make the download session.

After some diagnosis and a few phone calls back and forth to my Mechanic Brad, I figured my input shaft seal was toast, I thought I could give it a try and see how low my transfer case actually is. It doesn't need a full quart in it, if it seeps some that would be ok as long as I could make it though 20 minutes. I started filling it up and all of a sudden I had Redline shockproof running all over. There was no quick fix here. So we got on phone and called everyone looking for a seal, nothing in the town the size of that NOTHING!!! I called some friends up in Sioux Falls, and was able to convince Marcus and his wife to gracefully bring down my spare transfer case. We waited relaxed some caught up on sleep. Well after a few phone calls and a few wrong turns my transfer case arrived. I knew it needed a lot of clean up so I started cleaning. After some investigation I found the input shaft had different splines. So I swapped them out, and reinstalled the transfer case. Filled everything with fluid, ready to go for Sunday Morning.... Or so I thought.

Well then it was off to find a hotel since we just couldn't handle the trains. Everything was full we searched for over an hour. We ended up staying at the Baymont up in Omaha more money than we wanted to spend but I needed sleep so I didn't care. Got up at 6:00am and headed back to the track. When we got there we started going over everything checking nuts bolts etc. Found some loose things nuts and bolts got those tightened went to start it and it was dead. DSM (Dead Sunday Morning coined by Justin ) After 30 minutes of messing around we found that the starter cable end came off. Are friends Rich and his crew greatfully gave us a new end. It was a little smaller but we made it work. Got the car fired up and running, went and filled it with Gas I had the rear hatch un bolted and left the bolts on the roof they ended up falling down and 1 of them ended up under the passenger seat. So we pulled it, got to bolts out and put it back in. At this same time I also noticed I didn't have clutch disengagement same problem I have been fighting all year.

I lined up early because I wanted to have an instructor ride with me and sign me off to HPDE3. Well when we put the passenger seat back in we forgot to reinstall the seat belts.. So needless to say I went back out on track by myself. With a known clutch problem, I wasn't able to shift so I found 4th and left it there the entire session. It was fun I was out in the open all by myself I lapped a Fiero but other than that no passing. My friends were able to get some times for me on this session. I was bouncing back between 1.56 and 1.57 which I was really happy with especially since I was taking it easy down the big straight. 5k in fourth normally I am 7k in 5th so needless to say I left a lot of time out on the course. Put I was learning the course and my car so it was fun.

I came back in unable to shift I got to the padock the car was making all sorts of clunking etc. Lifted the car up and saw more red gear oil dropped it back on the ground and Said I am done. We wasted a lot of time talking watching races etc. Got out off the track around 2ish and headed home.

Now I have learned a few things, racing at this level takes money and time, more than I originally thought. I am now trying to decide if I want to stay at this level or bounce down to something a little more reliable and not nearly as fast. Because the DSM halls balls!!! No if ands or buts about it. Well I am going to finish of the season with it for sure at that point either sell it and build something cheaper or start saving every penny for next season because I am going to need it!

 

[Slow old poop]

I was taking it easy down the big straight. 5k in fourth normally I am 7k in 5th so needless to say I left a lot of time out on the course.

You hit 7K in fifth gear on that straight?
I get about 5K in 5th, or about 120-125 mph.
Did you change the gear ratio?

If you go to Road America with that gear ratio, you'll be wound out halfway down those big long straights. I only hit 6500 rpm on those straights (140 mph).

Rich

 

[RusherRacing]

The trans is from a Galant VR4-RS, freshened up by TRE. I will get the specs and MPH when I get home I have all the calculations ratios etc in my office. I figured out before and I am thinking it was somewhere around 140mph+ on the straight at MAM. But I will double check my figures.

 

[Slow old poop]

The trans is from a Galant VR4-RS, freshened up by TRE. I will get the specs and MPH when I get home I have all the calculations ratios etc in my office. I figured out before and I am thinking it was somewhere around 140mph+ on the straight at MAM. But I will double check my figures.

Better check your speedometer accuracy, too. No way were you hitting 140 mph. If so, you have a tremendous motor in that beast.

 

[RusherRacing]

No speedo thats why I have to run the calculations based of my gear ratio and final drive. and my final drive is 5.435, I remember that one. I am shifting into 5th as I pass under the flag bridge.

 

[Slow old poop]

No speedo thats why I have to run the calculations based of my gear ratio and final drive. and my final drive is 5.435, I remember that one. I am shifting into 5th as I pass under the flag bridge.

Crikies! It must accelerate like a fuel dragster! Was that originally a drag car?

I wonder what will happen on a course with long straights, like Road America? You'll be flat out by the top of the hill on the front straight, and pulling 7200 rpm in 5th gear for a half mile.

Hmm...wonder if that would work in my car?

Rich

 

[RusherRacing]

Well I grabbed some info over lunch. Now I have a .617 5th gear with 5.435 final drive.
Running 225/40/17 tires.

http://www.kabamus.com/garage/gears.html

I am guessing your running .666 5th gear with 4.929 final drive.

I believe i was hitting 6500-7000 on that back straight. The car actually would stop pulling towards the end of it a couple seconds before I hit the brakes. I would hit the corner on the long straight at ~60-70mph.

The few lap times I have (stuck in fourth) looks like i was averaging close to 70 mph not to shabby I think. However I know I need alot of work. The car is more capable than myself as I am quickly finding out. It does make me look like I am a better driver than I really am though..

 

[stealthTT]

Well I grabbed some info over lunch. Now I have a .617 5th gear with 5.435 final drive.
Running 225/40/17 tires.

http://www.kabamus.com/garage/gears.html

I am guessing your running .666 5th gear with 4.929 final drive.

I believe i was hitting 6500-7000 on that back straight. The car actually would stop pulling towards the end of it a couple seconds before I hit the brakes. I would hit the corner on the long straight at ~60-70mph.

The few lap times I have (stuck in fourth) looks like i was averaging close to 85 mph not to shabby I think. However I know I need alot of work. The car is more capable than myself as I am quickly finding out. It does make me look like I am a better driver than I really am though..

I think you better recheck those figures. By my fuzzy math skills, an 85mph average on a 2.23 mile road course is a 1:34 lap. That's faster than anyone ran at MAM this weekend (if I recall correctly). A 1:50 lap is a 73mph average.


My fuzzy math calculations:

Convert the 1:50 laptime to hours
1:50 = 1.833 minutes = .03055 hours

Divide the course length (in miles) by the laptime (in hours)
2.23 miles / .03055 hours = 73mph


To work it backwards:

Convert 85mph average to a laptime:
2.23 miles / 85 mph = .02624 hours
.02624 hours = 1.574 minutes = 1:34 minutes

I may be forgetting something obvious though.

 

[RusherRacing]

Thanks your correct I see what I was doing wrong

Edited post to show correct speed.

Also what was the laptimes of that blue mustang running with American Iron Cars and SU cast running it was walking everything.

 

[Slow old poop]

I could only reach an indicated 120-125 (depending on if I had a passenger or not, and how hot it was) at the end of the straight. Since we have essentially the same AMS motor, we should reach about the same speed at the end of the straight, no matter the gearing.

I suppose it's possible to figure it all out, using the gear ratios.
I have (you say) a stock final drive of .666 5th gear with 4.929 final drive and reach 140 mph at 6500 in 5th gear.
You have a .617 5th gear with 5.435 final drive, and probably reach 120-125 mph in 5th gear at 7200.

Surely there is a math formula that grinds all those numbers up in a rpm/ratio/mph osterizer, spits out some magic numbers, and shows that I am correct.

If that's true, then you are going to have a problem at Road America, because you'll be stuck at 120 mph at 7200 rpm whilst the Z06es, M Coupes, M3s, and everybody else whistles by you at 140.

On the other hand, if your car REALLY is hitting 140 at 7200, and I hit 140 at 6500 (a 700 rpm difference), then the rpm/ratio/mph mathematical osterizer may prove you to be correct, and I need to get one of them trannies!

We'll never know until somebody runs the numbers or we can get both cars on the track at the same time.

If you are correct, you have revealed a major development in DSM car prep for road racing. All the rest of us are running stock gears, so Shpherd and TRE may get a run on tranny rebuilds this winter.

Rich

 

[stealthTT]

Surely there is a math formula that grinds all those numbers up in a rpm/ratio/mph osterizer, spits out some magic numbers, and shows that I am correct.

Rich, he did post a website for the osterizer formula:
http://www.kabamus.com/garage/gears.html

I also have it in the form of an excel file that we talked about on emails when Jon was looking at the different gears for his 3000.

Anyway back to your car. You can plug your stuff in at the link, but I've posted it below. You should be at these speeds at this rpm and gear using 245/40/17 tires and the listed ratios:


Gear 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th Overall
Ratio 3.083 1.684 1.115 0.833 0.666 N/A 4.929


RPM\Gear_1st_____2nd____3rd_____4th_____5th
1000______5_______9_____13_____18______22
1500______7______13_____20_____27______34
2000_____10______18_____27_____36______45
2500_____12______22_____33_____45______56
3000_____15______27_____40_____54______67
3500_____17______31_____47_____63______78
4000_____19______35_____54_____72______90
4500_____22______40_____60_____81_____101
5000_____24______44_____67_____90_____112
5500_____27______49_____74_____99_____123
6000_____29______53_____80____107_____134
6500_____31______58_____87____116_____146
7000_____34______62_____94____125_____157
7500_____36______66____100____134_____168
8000_____39______71____107____143_____179
8500_____41______75____114____152_____190
9000_____44______80____120____161_____202

Rusher's gears:
Pros- you accelerate quicker (as long as you don't end up on the wrong side of the powerband)
Cons- your top speed is lower, traction will be a bigger problem during corner exit

 

[Slow old poop]

I calculated Ryan's ratios, and if he's pulling 6500rpm at the end of the straight, the calculations say he was hitting 139 mph. Seems high. Hardly anybody goes that fast down that straight.

The calculations you ran say I should be hitting 146 at 6500 rpm when, in fact, I hit an indicated 140 at Road America in 5th at 6500. I know my speedo is inaccurate, but they usually read too high, not too low.

OTOH, if my speedo does read 5% low, then I could be hitting 132.5 mph (125 + 5%) at the end of the straight at MAM vs Ryan's 139. So maybe we are not that different.

Anybody got a radar gun?

Maybe my car is faster than I thought.

Note: This may seem like a frivolous, my-ratio-is-bigger-than-yours discussion, but bear in mind that this is virtually the only time we've ever seen two DSMs on the same track at the same time at similar levels of preparation. Ryan and I both have AMS engines. I have a stroker and he has a much lighter car, so we should have the same power/weight ratio. That means there is something to be learned from all this, if we can figure it out. That is: What is the best ratio for road racing?

All contributions from learned DSMers are welcome.