August 2015

30Aug

The dampers are going to be sent off to Intrax for the service. The cost is approx €128 per unit plus VAT, and for that they will strip, check and reassemble, and re-pressurise the reservoirs. Before they go, I'll work out where the positions of all the stops are, so when I put them back on the car, they'll have the same adjustments.

A job I'm tackling at the moment is removing the self adhesive aluminium foil tape from around the engine. Someone has stuck it to the chassis rails, on the turbo side of the engine, and its adds nothing, and looks crap. So its all coming off, no matter how long it takes.

If you'd like to see more detailed pictures of the new car and the progress, check out my zetecinside motorsport facebook page

28Aug

The dampers on the car are made by a company called Intrax. I noticed last night that the braided hoses on the rear dampers had tank tape wrapped around them. Removing the tape revealed that the hoses on both dampers are damaged. So I'm making enquiries about having them serviced/repaired, and I may as well have the fronts done at the same time. These are very sophisticated 4 way adjustable units, and I dont even have instructions on how to adjust. I've fired off an email to Intrax in the Netherlands for advice.

Speaking of the NL, the sequential gearbox has arrived safely at its new owners address, and it is going to be converted for use in a Zetec powered car. Nice to see it has gone to a new home, and will be appreciated by its new owner. It was the first time I'd even sent anything big enough to require a pallet. I neednt have worried though, it got there safely, and in under 48 hours too.

27Aug

I've already made a Life PC cable, that allows me to plug the laptop in to the ECU and interrogate the data. It is essentially a modified ethernet cable. One end has the RJ45 plug removed, and it is replaced by a Lemo connector, with four wires out of the eight, connected. Hardly difficult to make, and considerably cheaper than the £83 that Ford charges.
If you want one, drop me a line :D

26Aug

22Aug

I collected the Mygale Formula Ford from Grantham today. Radical let me use a Brian James Race Shuttle, which is a clamshell trailer that opens at the rear to allow the car to be stored inside. It had a tyre rack too. So we loaded the majority of the wheels and tyres in the trailer, around the car, and the remainder of the tyres inside the BMW, and set off.

Once home the trailer and car were quickly unloaded, and we were then joined by Neil Baecker, who had driven non stop from Inverness in Scotland, to collect a load of Duratec parts from the Fiesta that I'd sold him. After lunch, and a quick cup of tea, I set off to Grantham again, with an empty trailer in tow this time, to return it to the Radical depot. I'm sold on the idea of getting a covered trailer now. My Woodford trailer will need to be sold, as its too narrow for the EcoBoost. So once the Fiesta sells, I'll get rid of the trailer, and I'm already looking for a clamshell to replace it.

The single seater is amazing. I've worked out how to start the engine, and when it runs, it growls. If you rev the engine, the turbo spins up, and the exhaust makes a lovely popping and banging sound as the revs drop back down again. I've already started on the spanner check, I've found a few bits and pieces that need tidying up before I can drive it. But overall, with the spares package and the sheer number of wheels and tyres involved, I think the price we paid was pretty reasonable.

I just need to sell the Fiesta now to offset some of the cost.

This is the car all loaded up at Radical, waiting to drive home. We changed the straps on the car to go through the wheels, before departing, as Woody said if the trailer suffered a puncture, it would make it more secure.

I invited the wife to sit in the car, and she liked it. Thats a good thing right?

15Aug

My Fiesta is now on Ebay, item 151788614416. The starting price is £5000.

There is a great article on Karl Hacken's Fiesta on Stanceworks, here http://www.stanceworks.com/2015/08/the-original-hot-hatch-karl-hackens-ford-fiesta-rs/

Karl (aka Kustom Karl) designed and built the suspension on my Mk1 Fiesta.

10Aug

Sold the 2.0 Engine from the Fiesta, its gone to HHC Motorsport, for installation in to a Mazda MX5. I've still a lot of other parts to sell, please check the For Sale page above for more details and prices.

The advert's for the Radical Mygale EcoBoost that I'm buying are here and here.

07Aug

Its been very busy week, selling parts, dismantling the Fiesta, and working out a deal on the new cars. The good news is that today myself and Pete Goulding have put a deposit down on the pair of Mygale EcoBoost single seaters, that were run by the Radical factory, for James Abbott. The deal was too good to miss, and after some further negotiation, I'm taking one of the cars home in August, and the other car is going to Pete. We're getting 28 wheels and 52 tyres in the deal, plus two whole flight cases crammed with spares. I've already picked up a box today with a pair of new Turbos, plus 22 springs of assorted poundages. I've still to sell the XR2 rolling shell, but I have sold the gearbox, both engines, the exhaust, radiator, driveshafts, the S80 ECU and a few other parts. Still a way to go, and I need room in the garage to store the Mygale, so I'm now concentrating on getting the word out about the rolling shell, and the other remaining parts, to get them sold.

I still have, the Titan roller barrels with 100mm air horns (£900), the OZ Vega 15"x7J split rims with Dunlop slick tyres(£650), Race Technology DL1 Mk2 data logger (£350), and the shell itself, which I'm open to sensible offers on.