clarkspeed

Scary. Glad you are ok.

Most importantly, never forget to take the pin out when on track. A SCCA racer in a 944 got burned to death at Daytona a few years ago. Its a long way from the banking to a corner working station. Check, double check, triple check.

I just returned from a visit to the largest casting supplier in Germany. Amazing stuff going on there, investment castings down to .4mm thick, 3 x 3 meter cnc'd sand castings, custom alloys mixed on site....but this project still blows me away. Derek thanks for taking us through the steps so people can see just how ambitious this really is. It definitely makes a statement to your skills and capabilities.

I saw this ad from QA1 in my new Circle Track magazine. They are now building a inverted strut for the fox body Mustang that is fully rebuidable or can be ordered sealed. I took a picture of the ad since there is not much info on the internet about it except for a video from SEMA. Anyway, looks on the surface like something that could be adapted over to an S30 spindle.

I had a 2.3 cobra stern drive in a boat I used to have. Always wanted to drop an Esslinger mini-stock motor in there. They even cast their own blocks.

I saw this website awhile back. Shows how to modify a Bilstein shock to make adjustable. Looks MUCH easier than modifying the Tein struts in that video. Plus all the valves are available with no modification. I know of 2 sets like this in existence and the guy who runs them is very fast indeed. http://farnorthracing.com/shocks_2.html

I met the CRP guys at the MSX Expo last week. They had samples of their metal infused plastic called Windform. Seems the way to go for a one-off intake manifold.

My 2 cents. You don't want the front CA's parallel, but at a slight angle down. That will keep the front RC above ground.

Sorry for multiple posts but I am at a bar typing. The reason you take 40 hours to do it is you will probably find something that it not what you thought it was. Lap times depend on what that thing is.

If you do decide to go down the measurement path, I found the FSM helps in establishing the datums. I also realized after spending a lot of time measuring the car out that I really didn't want to share the info with anybody because it's really car specific.

Its what you do if you are serious about alignment accuracy. For general guideline, make sure the front control arms are pointed down. And I made a cheap bumpsteer checker out of plywood and a piano hinge.

Yep, that's pretty much it. Can be very effective in the hands of the right driver.

In my experience, if you are lowering the car, the spacer seems to work best for restoring the roll center. Then a tiny slotting of the inner pivot is very effective at eliminating bumpsteer. But dont lower the car too much.

Good luck. Thats a nice rig. You are gonna love that diesel as much as the race car:-)

Sorry for the general advice, but I will now give more. There is not a hell of a lot you can do with McPherson struts from the 70'S. Like Jon says, shocks are the only things that have advanced. Good alignment is required, and "trick" parts to solve any problems with achieving desired alignment (camber/caster/toe/bumpsteer/ride height)

Maybe its me but that spring looks way too short. You can purchase 2-1/2 springs in 8 or 10" length in any stiffness you want. Those look like 6"?

Wow this was an old post. Anyway it is not unusual for custom race wheels not to have a true center hole. Most race tire shops spin balance with a Hub and lug nuts.

For what its worth, My research showed MTL about the right viscosity for the NWC T5 and MT90 about right for the Nissan box. But i was only looking at Redline products.

I still have one buried in the for sale forum about 6 months ago.

Please spend your money wisely. Safety, reliability, and driving skill are more important than the latest suspension. Is your car safe enough? It must protect you so you can come back to the track again and again. Is it reliable? Paying for 1-2 days of track is expensive and you don't want to be sitting on the side, or worse, on jack stands in the garage at home. Professional driving instruction can cut many seconds off lap times and is much cheaper than a new suspension or engine. Just let a fast guy drive your car if you don't believe it. Your initial goal should be getting the most quality track time, you can worry about go fast parts later when you damn sure what will help you.

Balanced Performance should be able to help you.

I dont recommend shifting at 120mph. The CD alone will wipe 10-15 mph off combined with a poor 5th ratio will put you in a hole. Your options are to find a better 5th gear box, change gearing where you shift to 5th at lower speed, or change gearing so you can stay in 4th. With a $5k budget you might get into a used Jerico 4sp with convert parts from Taylor. Or convert a WC T5.

Depends on a lot of things. Tire size, diff ratio, top speed at track, RPM's in important corners at track, power of engine, how hard and fast you want to shift, Availability of parts, and finally, how much you want to spend. For example, that ZX tranny you listed above is a good compromise, but if your gearing and track requires you to shift to 5th at 110+ mph, it sucks.

What happened to the LS? I know that was not a mild build up. Did you do a post mortem?

We run both Centerforce and ACT with no problems. Duragg, you might want to reconsider the Accusump even if it's not feeding. I lost an oil pump at Road Atlanta and did 3 laps with low to no oil pressure to finish race. No damage on tear down. Plus I like looking down at the direct pressure gauge when my dash gauge/sender looks funny.