Mikelly

It weighs in at about 14#... http://www.ultrashieldrace.com/prod.php?id=107 Mike

Just got this in for one of my projects... This seat is a LOT more rigid and much better made than all four of the Kirkey seats in my shop right now... Can't say enough about the quality of the product. Seat, covers (come in multiple options) and shipping ran $690 complete. Mike

"Why doesn't he just finish it"... I've heard that a lot. Reality is there are 24 hours in the day, and they, along with the customer contract, the company, the family, and the life that gets in the way, take a lot out of me. I'm but a man...Shocker, I know. This weekend I invited and asked Tom Harris, Joe G., Pete Paraska, Doug Carrow, and Glenn McCoy to come out and lend a hand... Now were getting the largest snow storm that has ever hit the east coast. So I'll push on and hope to reschedule for January. Here's the reality: I have two months to get the Zcar done, the Miata sorted with a new cage, and the porsche fitted with a new seat and other new hardware. Reality is I'll focus on the cars I can IMMEDIATELY drive and IMMEDIATELY have my kids drive. Beyond that, everything else is noise. We'll get it done, but it might not be in Feb. Mike

... I was mounting mirrors and thinking "gee, maybe I'm within reach!" of finishing this project. 11 years ago I started in on a V8 Zcar and made a little bit of a name... And then life happened. First, I made a great car, and enjoyed it. Then I met others, thru this board, who had greater talent and made greater cars... Bad move.. I started wanting my car to be like theirs... Years passed, and that car went south to North Carolina...I got distracted making control arms and selling them. That was a rude awakening... Vendors hated me because I was cheaper than them... Some members hated me because I wasn't cheap enough. I began to hate Zcars because, well all I did was trip around mine while I made parts for other peoples cars... And then I bought another "type" of car... December 2003 I bought a Corvette. 1999 model with way to many miles on it for way to little... It still surved a great purpose. I started tracking again... A fair amount. As time passes, we started a company that has become very successful. We sold our other house, along with that Corvette, and moved to a great home in the country on 5 acres in the woods, with no pesky neighbors. We also bought a cool BMW that wasn't cool enough for trackng, and sold it 6 months later, replacing it with one of my dream cars, a highly modified Porsche 911 turbo. This car was and still is simply amazing to me, and everyone who has sat a butt in it. In the process of owning and enjoying this car, and posting about it here, I have created so many enemies that I've pretty much alienated myself here on HybridZ, [pretty much forcing me to resign as administrator of this board last fall. My friends know the truth. My foes? they can rott in hell, and I'll gladly tell them my feelings if we ever meet face to face, bank on it. In the process of the last four years I've learned a lot about myself. I've learned a lot more about cars, and even more still about running a business. While others have come and gone, we've kept on keeping on. We are still managing to grow, even in these tough economic times. Then again, we're not selling doggie doors on the internet or driving semi trucks for companies for pennies on the dollar. We've managed to keep our overhead reasonable, our goals within reach, and our professional partnerships ahead of the mark. On the car front we're sooo fortunate. I've managed to buy another car to continue learning, and more importantly, teaching others in (yes I'm now an instructor, meeting another of my personal life goals) and I've managed to convince my two sons into buying Miatas as well. We're so wrapped up in this Miata thing that we're most likely going to race a Spec miata in an endurance series... Driving this little car has given me cause for concern with my Zcar. I haven't driven one in a long time, and with 400+WHP on tap, and no driving aids, it will be a handful. The miata has proven to be the most difficult car I've tracked in the last 10 years. It is soooo hard to manage your momentum while modulating braking at 10/10ths. So we're getting close to unwrapping the Zcar for the masses... I'm looking forward to the day when I can run many fast laps around VIR. I'm sure this journey is far from over... Mike

We're in the middle of sorting the final few issues with my project car... The goal is to get it to the track soonest (likely spring) so I can then think about sorting it. Yup you read it here... The goal is to have the car "done" by the Watkins Glen event in 2011. It'll be in attendance and will have a for sale sign on it. It's time for me to move on to a dedicated race car, and I've pretty much taken my Zcar dreams as far as I dare go. Once this one is done and de-bugged, It'll go to a new home and I'll be done. Mike

http://www.saferacer.com/ultra-shield-roll-cage-right-side-net.html?productid=1839 It's got a quick release so you can disconnect it to slide the seat. Mike

Mike

http://s145.photobucket.com/albums/r226/Mikelly_2006/WG%20Historic%20GP/ Here are some of the Non-Zcar specific pics from the weekend walking thru the garages and the pits! Mike

Here is the album for Zcar specific pics taken a month ago during the historic GP at Watkins Glen. some of them are from various pit shots and some are of cars in the shows, and of one or two driving during the historic race thru the streets. http://s145.photobucket.com/albums/r226/Mikelly_2006/WG%20Historic%20Z%20pics/ Let me know if you can't view them... I've marked it for public access... Mike

JIm McNemar's is forsale as well right now. I'm not sure what he's selling it for, but it comes with a couple sets of wheels, and the OEM stuff, along with the car that is extremely well sorted, and is wrapped in graphics and then clearbra'ed... Car is stellar, and exceptionally fast... Mike

Actually, If we could talk seriously about Porsches and the market for a second... Anyone, and I mean ANYONE serious about buying something like this level of performance right now should seriously do a little research. 2004-2005 GT3s are a super bargain right now, and I've had reports from my mechanic of them selling in the LOW $40s. This was a $120K car out the door in 2005. This level of performance, fit, finish and mechanical sophistication can not be had for less...How fast? Jim McNemar and others were turning 2:03s on VIR full with leather interior, CD changers, power accessories, A/C and other "creature" comforts with these cars. And those of you who have dreamed about 911 cup cars? Race packages are going for $65-90K depending on how "fresh" you want it, and how many spares are included. If I could move my 996TT right now, I'd have already moved on two different cupcar packages, but what can I say... Mike

When you get footage of that, please post it! Until then, it's just pipedreams! Evan, I told them to take their time! Next two events are short tracks!

Mines at the shop getting a full tranns rebuild, to include some cupcar syncros, and the case is getting tapped for trans cooler/heat exchanger. Every time I drive mine, I'm reminded why the Zcar still sits in parts. There simply is no replacement. Mike

Donna and I are heading up on Thursday morning and will be there for a couple days... Anyone else going to be there? Mike

BZZZZT... wrong answer... My kids and Tom Harris (and maybe one or two other special people in my life) get everything my wife doesn't want to keep! Mike

I was told today that the cam is a competition cams 217/220 cam. I've got the hardened pushrods, and the 1.8 roller rockers to go with it, along with some good roller lifters. Thoughts? Mike

I've run at the track with two of them, and both have been less than impressive... Mike

Had my wife out driving it today getting used to the clutch. If I can talk her into driving this car at the track, I'll be keeping this thing as is until she cries uncle and wants more power... The fact that I've got her even thinking it is a GREAT sign... Mike

OK, Er' um, this ain't my first (or second) LS1 build. Along with the ARP studs/bolts for the heads/main/rods, I'll be using the re-usable ARP CRANK bolt and their Flywheel bolts... The motor will be used for road race related activities only, and I have zero interest in a forced induction on this motor. Keep the ideas coming gang! Mike

The ITBs are HOT looking... def. want to go with FI... I've already got the 383 stroker carbed, and although I haven't driven it yet with the 750Dp on it, starting Eric's car up yesterday and watching it idle without having to fiddle with mixture screws or idle/bleed/bowl issues was just soooooooo nice! Mike

So I have a buddy with a 99 camaro, and another buddy who races T1 C5 corvettes in SCCA. Joe, the T1 racer swaps his motors out regularly and Eric had stripped a bolt on a head, then drove on the track on it, not knowing the head bolt had stripped. Joe needed to sell a motor, Eric needed a motor, and I needed a few headaches along the way... So A week ago Friday I dragged my car trailer to Winchester, grabbed the Camaro and unloaded it in my shop. I'd already had the motor delivered a few months back, and was ready to get it and the obnoxiously large crate it was in out of the shop... So Sunday my wife leaves for Boston for a week and Eric and I start pulling motor/tranny/driveline... After much swapping of parts from his block to the Z06 motor, and fussing, a little cussing, the car was started for the first time in 3 years yesterday... Eric has long tube headers, and 3 inch exhausts and that Z06 motor BOOMES... Anyway, as we were settling up on parts/chemicals, eric said you want to buy the motor don't you (meaning his old LS1) and I said "how much"? It's got 5.3L ported heads, 1.8 roller rockers, hardened push rods, an aftermarket cam I'll have to get the specs on... and needs a complete rebuild... So now the "project" begins... Kinda funny that before I get the Datsun complete, I already have another motor in the wings, preparing to build it for the Z... I'm planning a dry sump setup very similar to Mark Icard's, and I'm undecided about intake/fuel as of yet... So, clean sheet of paper here, what would you guys start with? I plan to replace the pistons and rods with something forged. The LS1 rod bolt issue left my corvette with a window'ed block in 2005, so the OEM rods are out of the question... I'm all ears... I'll get the specs on the cam, and we can plan accordingly for the proper induction... I'll need to research header options for the Z as well... Gonna be fun!!! Mike

Drove two... Didn't care for them. I've never "clicked" with Accuras, or the Honda brand... don't now why, but I didn't... The 996TT however, it had me at Hello! ...There really is no substitute... Mike

It's a stopgap while we finish up the Zcar, rebuild the trans for the 996TT (between $5-8K depending on how nuts we go) and we may turn this car into an endurance racer in one of the local series... or I may end up passing it on to one of the kids... This car is pretty darned fun and I'm surprised at how the mods made to it have transformed it. I'll see how it does on Friday at VIR... Can't wait! Mike

Yup, I bought a "girl" car! Went and dropped off my buddies camaro we just did a swap on, and ended up test driving another guy's car, and brought it home... It's got Koni Yellows, Racing beat Swaybars/ links, Jackson Racing header/CAI, Borla Cat& Exhaust, Kirkey Roadrace Intermediate seats, Sparco Harnesses/steeringwheel/removable hub, a harddog rollbar, camera mount, New tires, a track alignments, braded lines and hawk pads. I picked the car up for $4700... Mike

Not relevant to the current state of the car. Mike Mike