Coolant back in

I picked up my radiator hose this evening. The hose, distilled water, and water wetter is now in. Started it up and runs just like it did before the fluid changes. As Martha Stewart would say "and that's a good thing".

Later this week, I will set the timing and idle. Then I hate to say it, but I think its ready to roll around the track.

Below are some of the photos I promised.

The transponder wired into the auxillary plug and grounded to the body.

Transponder wired and mounted. I used 1/4" nylon adel clamps with self drilling/tapping screws.
Under tray cleaned up, it almost looks new!
Ahhh, its almost ready...

Track Prep

So, in preparation of my October track day, I spend some time changing fluids.

This weekend I changed the following. Differential oil, transmission oil, engine oil. I have drained the cooling system, but I am awaiting a new lower radiator hose. The car will not have "anti-freeze" in it. It will instead have a mix of distilled water and a product called "water-wetter" basically this simply helps break down the surface tension of the water. However, you do not run anti freeze due to it being very slick and nearly impossible to clean up off a track.

In addition to the prep work, I also installed the transponder. This is mounted in the front driver side wheel well. The wiring is then passed through the fender and wired to the "power supply" plug on the driver side fender well. Easy as pie. The wiring is held on with a series of adel clamps and zip ties. I will get some photos posted soon.

Finished photos

I realized that I never posted any photos with the car and the hardtop on it. You will find some below.

Coolant Leak Resolved

It appears the issue was just the upper radiator hose. A small $10 repair and no more coolant under the car.

New web site and a coolant leak

I have created a new blog that will focus on the racing of this car. It is available at https://megolasracing.blogspot.com .

I also just noticed a coolant leak. It is where the upper coolant hose meets the radiator. I am still not certain if its the radiator or the hose. I will update as I investigate.

Setup Pads

So as a substitute to buying a $1000 set of setup pads, I decided to start building my own.

Pure welding pleasure. No porosity, minimal splatter, flowing smoothly.

They are starting to take shape, all four of them are at this stage. I am going to weld in what is essentially a cross in the middle to provide support in the center of the pad. The more rigid I can make these the better.

The couplers were zinc coated. Which I am now feeling the effects of. Just a headache. I will have some oreos and milk and that usually takes care of it

Basically setup pads allow you to align the car so that all 4 tires are sitting on a single level and even plane. The feet are adjustable so that you can level them. Astoundingly garage floors (especially my shop floor) are not level or even. One quarter of an inch across the distance of a car can yield .5 degrees of variance in the camber settings.

Here is the commercially available product. http://www.racingplus.com/scale-accessories/intercomp/4-scale-pad-leveler-w-roll-off-pad/1361p11832

Re-Aligned

Taking a much needed break from work, I had a couple friends over to re-align the car.

Few things I noticed, its pretty evident that work surface was not as level as expected. We were able to compensate for the found difference.

This raises another interesting thing. I need a better way of leveling the car. I see some angle iron in my near future to build some roll of scale stands/pads. I do not yet have a set of scales so they will really just be setup pads for now. It should be a fun project.

So I also have done a quick assessment of what I need to go racing.

- Drivers Gear
- Fluid changes
- Remove Passenger seat (only there for a track day)
- Install fire extinguisher

Still aiming for at least a track day this year before the racing season is over.