07-27-2007, 09:08 PM
Well, we have our second 968 Firehawk car back from RSBarn, and I have been able to track it several times. So I thought a I might report a little on the cars.
The red car (the first one back from RS Barn) has run better than ever. We ran it all last year and it was weak and pushed like a pig. We would go through front tires at an alarming rate, and it just never ran like we knew it had in the past.
Pete at RS Barn took it in and updated everything. The suspension was replaced with Bilstein cups, the header was serviced, a new exhaust system, a custom chip was created, and a myriad of other things were done. The car now is painfully well balanced, and has more pep than it ever has. Temperatures were a worry (we run 100+F regularly at Miller Motorsports Park in Utah) and he walked me through adding an additional oil cooler after we received the car. It seems to have stabilized and is a great car.
The yellow Firehawk has been at best abused. Most of the drive-train was cobbled together 944 stuff, and even the vario-cam was missing. What? no MO30 brakes on a professional race car?!?!?
Pete took it in and rebuilt it from the ground up. When he was done it was spec'ed identically to the red one with the exception of an improved chip map, and a new air box mod. (I'm still trying to figure out how to change the filter Pete :) With the extensive work done some gremlins were unavoidable after the delivery though.
First, the car would run remarkably well for about 2 or three laps. Soon after that though, there would be a sudden snap-oversteer, bringing the car around at random times and circumstances. We tried tire pressures and sway bars, and were going crazy with the lack of improvement. After nearly putting the car into the wall in a fashion I was glad my wife wasn't at the track, we discovered a coolant leak. The radiator at some time was changed to a 944 turbo radiator. The port that would have gone to the radiator was plugged with a cheap rubber cap. This cap was cut by the clamp, and would leak coolant on the front tires at temperature/pressure causing the loss of grip. I replaced this with a piece of radiator hose and a piece of aluminum bar stock, and all is well there now.
Who would have thought a handling problem would go back to the cooling system?
Anyway, now that we were able to run for more than a lap or two, I started having parts failures. First the power steering tensioner strut broke. I fixed it and then it broke again, taking half the Power steering mount, and the alternator tensioner strut with it.
Perplexing.
I did a temporary fix to be able to race using turnbuckles (they actually worked really well) but the alternator actually came off the mount tearing the bolt's threads to shreds. In the process the power steering pump cut into the radiator hose, and the engine temperature soared off the dials. Thus ended my weekend.
In discussing this with Pete, he had a brainstorm about the lower balance shaft gear. The car came to him with SOLID struts, meaning they had been having just the same problems I was having. The lower balance shaft gear can be placed at a 180 from the intended position, and thus instead of dampening the vibrations, it actually magnifies them. With his expert guidance I pulled the gear which was indeed half turned.
As it stands, I need to replace the radiator hose (in hand), and I hope to run tomorrow. If all goes well, the gremlins will be at bay, and I will be able to tap the car's potential. I keep getting moments of its brilliance, but I have been playing problem whack-a-mole too much to really get to see it in action.
Basically it seems that the red car my have slightly better handling, and the yellow car is slightly more torquey out of the turns. It will take time to see if this is the car or the driver, but they are both quite competitive with each other.
I want to thank Pete for his brilliant job in putting both cars together. Even the problems with the yellow car stem from prior to his getting it, and his diagnostic skills were invaluable in getting things worked out.
In short, Pete knows his 968 Porsches. I would not hesitate to recommend him, and am glad we made the investment in shipping the cars halfway across the continent to have him work them over. It was well worth the effort.
I'll report on tomorrows results.
The red car (the first one back from RS Barn) has run better than ever. We ran it all last year and it was weak and pushed like a pig. We would go through front tires at an alarming rate, and it just never ran like we knew it had in the past.
Pete at RS Barn took it in and updated everything. The suspension was replaced with Bilstein cups, the header was serviced, a new exhaust system, a custom chip was created, and a myriad of other things were done. The car now is painfully well balanced, and has more pep than it ever has. Temperatures were a worry (we run 100+F regularly at Miller Motorsports Park in Utah) and he walked me through adding an additional oil cooler after we received the car. It seems to have stabilized and is a great car.
The yellow Firehawk has been at best abused. Most of the drive-train was cobbled together 944 stuff, and even the vario-cam was missing. What? no MO30 brakes on a professional race car?!?!?
Pete took it in and rebuilt it from the ground up. When he was done it was spec'ed identically to the red one with the exception of an improved chip map, and a new air box mod. (I'm still trying to figure out how to change the filter Pete :) With the extensive work done some gremlins were unavoidable after the delivery though.
First, the car would run remarkably well for about 2 or three laps. Soon after that though, there would be a sudden snap-oversteer, bringing the car around at random times and circumstances. We tried tire pressures and sway bars, and were going crazy with the lack of improvement. After nearly putting the car into the wall in a fashion I was glad my wife wasn't at the track, we discovered a coolant leak. The radiator at some time was changed to a 944 turbo radiator. The port that would have gone to the radiator was plugged with a cheap rubber cap. This cap was cut by the clamp, and would leak coolant on the front tires at temperature/pressure causing the loss of grip. I replaced this with a piece of radiator hose and a piece of aluminum bar stock, and all is well there now.
Who would have thought a handling problem would go back to the cooling system?
Anyway, now that we were able to run for more than a lap or two, I started having parts failures. First the power steering tensioner strut broke. I fixed it and then it broke again, taking half the Power steering mount, and the alternator tensioner strut with it.
Perplexing.
I did a temporary fix to be able to race using turnbuckles (they actually worked really well) but the alternator actually came off the mount tearing the bolt's threads to shreds. In the process the power steering pump cut into the radiator hose, and the engine temperature soared off the dials. Thus ended my weekend.
In discussing this with Pete, he had a brainstorm about the lower balance shaft gear. The car came to him with SOLID struts, meaning they had been having just the same problems I was having. The lower balance shaft gear can be placed at a 180 from the intended position, and thus instead of dampening the vibrations, it actually magnifies them. With his expert guidance I pulled the gear which was indeed half turned.
As it stands, I need to replace the radiator hose (in hand), and I hope to run tomorrow. If all goes well, the gremlins will be at bay, and I will be able to tap the car's potential. I keep getting moments of its brilliance, but I have been playing problem whack-a-mole too much to really get to see it in action.
Basically it seems that the red car my have slightly better handling, and the yellow car is slightly more torquey out of the turns. It will take time to see if this is the car or the driver, but they are both quite competitive with each other.
I want to thank Pete for his brilliant job in putting both cars together. Even the problems with the yellow car stem from prior to his getting it, and his diagnostic skills were invaluable in getting things worked out.
In short, Pete knows his 968 Porsches. I would not hesitate to recommend him, and am glad we made the investment in shipping the cars halfway across the continent to have him work them over. It was well worth the effort.
I'll report on tomorrows results.
(This post was last modified: 07-27-2007, 09:13 PM by wonko.)
