Mikelly Posted May 28, 2013 Author Share Posted May 28, 2013 I had a thought today... What if I have an issue with my vacuum booster? I mean that is the only component I have not touched in 14 years. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewZed Posted May 28, 2013 Share Posted May 28, 2013 Any thought to plumbing a gauge in to the crankcase, via the valve cover perhaps, to see what's happening and when? Since it's just "gas" not liquid, and should be sucking not pushing, you could run a hose in to the cabin or up on the cowl, and mount the gauge in view without risking making a big mess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikelly Posted May 30, 2013 Author Share Posted May 30, 2013 Good idea. Might have to think about this. This evening I spent some time reconfiguring the datalogging portion of my FAST dash and XFi. I have to admit, I much prefer the datalogging on the MEGASQUIRT to the setup in the Fast Dash on initial setup. I now have a better handle on the setup and how the logging for each sensor has to be turned on individually. That part is simply DUMB, but OK, now I have it fixed. I also now know how to set up temp sensors for the diff and trans. Unfortunately I found that a 30 minute session darned near fills up the 2 MB on dash storage. But hey, learning as I go. I hope to get out and drive the car tomorrow evening to see if it is done puking oil out of seals and dipstick tube. If it still is, I will be calling the shop that built the shortblock and paying a visit with the car. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsicard Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 How much Oil does the present oil pan hold? Just curious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikelly Posted May 31, 2013 Author Share Posted May 31, 2013 5+ filter, plus oil cooler/lines, plus my 2 quart accusump. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~KnuckleDuster~ Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 Very nice build...your close to 100,000 views..good stuff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikelly Posted June 1, 2013 Author Share Posted June 1, 2013 Happy to report the test drive this morning produced no signs of oil forced out of seals or the dipstick. I did several hard 2nd gear pulls. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pparaska Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 Great news, Mike! How long were you at high load and high rpm? Enough to simulate the on-track environment that brought out the leak? Also, any idea if cornering loads would be important (like a right hander to make it come out of a left hand side dipstick tube)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikelly Posted June 2, 2013 Author Share Posted June 2, 2013 Pete, It was public roads, so I couldn't come close to simulating anything like that. I simply did some 2nd gear 6500RPM pulls to see if the oil was going to be an issue. Today I'm going to examine the car on the lift just to make sure we're still OK and there is no further evidence of oil. Once I'm confident that is done, I'm bringing the power washer down to the shop and using engine degreaser to remove any of the old oil from under the chassis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebekahsZ Posted June 2, 2013 Share Posted June 2, 2013 Mount a go pro by the dip stick to make yourself positive. You deserve the ability to be certain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikelly Posted June 4, 2013 Author Share Posted June 4, 2013 We'll be heading to NCCAR on Friday for a one day event on Saturday. Hope to get some solid and uninterrupted seat time in so I can start collecting real data, and start tuning the shocks. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikelly Posted June 4, 2013 Author Share Posted June 4, 2013 Well things are coming together well. I will be at NCCAR on Saturday, Racing Chumpcar 10hour at Charlotte on the 22nd (thanks Zack_280) and then instructing with Chin Motorsports at VIR on the 3-4th of July!! Hope the Zcar holds up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cobramatt Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Mike, Have a great time and be smooth, safe and smart and that equals swift. Taking care of your equipment and a little luck is what will win the raceand you deserve a good long outing. I was trying to work the schedule to get up to VIR and do the Chin event but doesnt look promising. You could always come to Atlanta and do the Chin event the week before at Road A............? Talk to you soon....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikelly Posted June 6, 2013 Author Share Posted June 6, 2013 Matt, I can't come to Road Atlanta the week before. We have a large piece of work we're going to be attempting to staff leading up to 4th of July. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikelly Posted June 9, 2013 Author Share Posted June 9, 2013 More highs and lows... Today I got the Zcar out on NCCAR for a session today. The video footage tells the tale. No more oil issues. But now I have an odd power/electrical/ignition/fuel issue... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VW_XYjpY-8&feature=youtube_gdata Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Domzs Posted June 9, 2013 Share Posted June 9, 2013 Enjoyed the VDO . It seems like you don't have a whole lot of luck with car , lately . Well , that's racing . Hope you find the problem and a small one . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gollum Posted June 9, 2013 Share Posted June 9, 2013 Well how many miles have you put on the car since you redid the dash and wiring? Maybe it's time to put that new "easy to diagnose" system to the test? At any rate mike, it's great to at least see some progress. Seems like this car is in eternal shakedown mode. Let's get 'er rock'n! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikelly Posted June 9, 2013 Author Share Posted June 9, 2013 (edited) Guess I should comment on the instructing I did, ey? Thursday night I was feeling a bit iffy. Friday morning I woke up with head congestion and feeling like crap. There was no way I was going to get a replacement instructor with less than 24 hours notice, so I solder'ed on and drove thru flood conditions (Literally, due to the tropical storm coming up the east coast) to do the event. I know Stacy King appreciated it, as he had at least one other instructor bail out due to sickness. Saturday I got to instruct a guy about my age with a C5 Corvette, and a younger guy in a 2012 VW GTi. Unfortunately for the gentleman in the vette, we had a snafu with the EMS crew not being on site until 0930, and he was leaving at lunch time, so I was only able to instruct him at speed for one session. We went two wheels off once, but otherwise it went well and he said he had never been "shown" the line there. He has now!! Will, the guy in the GTi, had never been to NCCAR. NCCAR has NO elevation changes to speak of and is a LOT like Roebling Road, but with more curves. It is an excellent instructing track for those who do not get motion sickness AT ALL. However, if you run even the slightest risk, it will get you sick, which is one reason we have such a hard time finding instructors to do the course. Anyway, Will had a great attitude and was really picking it up. By his third session of the day, he was doing great, picking his line, picking up the pace and passing every car in his group except for a highly modified newest generation M3. An interesting side note is that the VW GTi has an electronic differential. Between his run groups, Will was able to "tune" the differential to suit this track and the experience driving it was night and day. I was shocked at the changes in the car and his driving input by one simple change. He also had just put on a set of the new BFG Rivols and I am now a fan of that tire. Holy smokes that thing had amazing grip and those tires never felt greasy. By about 1:30 my truck was packed up. I was feeling really under the weather, and not in the right frame of mind to troubleshoot the car with me feeling so ill. I had a meeting with Stacy and a separate meeting with Will and I gave him a check out ride and signed him off to solo. I was back home and in bed by 5PM. The moral of this story is sometimes your instructors aren't on top of their game. Sometimes they are. I shouldn't have been in ANY car this weekend, and certainly not instructing. But I'd made a commitment and I'm not one to break them when I make them... Next time if I start feeling iffy, I'll make the decision sooner. Mike Edited June 9, 2013 by Mikelly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikelly Posted June 9, 2013 Author Share Posted June 9, 2013 Found three issues when I unloaded the car and got it in the air. 1. Zero fuel pressure at the rail. 2. OIl leaking from a valve cover 3. Same Valve cover - Air oil separator is not working and allowing oil into the intake snorkel. I am to sick to mess with it further today. I managed to energize the fuel pump with an external power source, and still did not get any pressure to build at the fuel rail. Beyond that, I bagged it and called it a day. Spending the afternoon on the sofa watching Lincoln with the dogs. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikelly Posted June 10, 2013 Author Share Posted June 10, 2013 I resolved the fuel issue. A simple compression fitting failed connecting to the pump inside the tank. I guess the combo of the gasoline impacting the fuel rated hose and the minimal movement of the surge box pulled at it enough to disconnect it. So now I have worm clamps on everything and fuel injection fuel line on that connection. I also resolved the issue with my fuel gauge. While I was at it I removed the fuel filler neck setup and put a traditional fuel cell "Bail" on the can for now until I am confident the issues are resolved. I also picked up some new valve cover gaskets to resolve the leaks on both valve covers (at the backs of the heads) and will look into the drivers side air/oil extractor over the coming days. This weekend I'll section the front strut tubes I have and start fitting them to the car. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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