Video - Rebuilding a Monotube Damper

Ever wonder what kind of black magic voodoo happens when you rebuild a damper?

This video show the process pretty well!



Mechanically, it's pretty simple if you have all the specialized tools and the damper is made to be serviceable. The real art is knowing how to set them up to go faster.

It's nice to see more companies providing dampers that can be rebuilt, re-valved, use digressive pistons, and actually will provide dyno plots.

If you want to learn some more about damper voodoo check these Autocross Secrets pages:

• Shocks
• Buying Shocks
• Shock Forces
• Shock Dyno Plots

Rollovers and safety equipment

Here is a nice video that shows how much your poor little head and body get thrown around in a rollover accident.




Here are some pictures of the damage: Link to Flickr Set

While the driver was well protected from the equipment he had installed (FIA homologated seat, 5 point harness, SCCA legal roll bar, and helmet) the addition additional items would have further protected his upper body and neck.

1) FIA or SFI certified head restraint - Like a HANS

• Why? Keep your neck from snapping like a chicken bone. Check this Sportscar Article to get some good reviews and info on the various systems.
  

2) FIA seat with built in head restraint

• Why? Keep your head from whipping to the side and maintaining body alignment and dissipate energy with your noggin supported.
  

3) Window Net

• Why? Windows, doors, and hard tops some times go AWOL and the net is there to keep your arms and head inside the structure where it is safest. These don't work too well without full roll cages so keep that in mind when deciding to track your daily driver.
  

4) Side Net

• Why? Supports your seat and prevents your body from twisting outside the edge of your seat on rebound.
  

5) Arm Restraints

• Usually required in open top cars and prevents your arms from flailing outside the confines of the roll bar and getting severed/crushed.
  

To get a healthy respect for why you might want to spend the extra money on this kit that doesn't make you faster see these videos. (Sorry - they don't embed but watch the Schroth video to get you warmed up!)

• Safety Solutions Racing Crash Test Videos
• Safety Solutions Benny Parson Videos
  

Motorsports Fire Safety

Like a lot of safety equipment in motorsports there is not very much good information out there for the average racer. People are left to interpret the rule book and often spend more time and money on other go fast bits and leave fire safety as an afterthought and doing the bare minimum to get by.

Grassroots Motorsport has on online article on what happened to Charles Espenlaub at the 2010 25 hours of Thunderhill when his car exploded into a giant fireball.

This could happen to any car at the track without even hitting anything. This is why it is important to spend some money and time on installation beyond the required minimums.

Read This - http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/articles/fighting-fire/

Some images from the article for the shock effect:




(Note - Cuts in the suit are from the EMT's removing it with scissors)

Here is what the fire looked like:


Read the SpeedTV live blog from the race for more details on the incident: http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/article/25hr-thunderhill-live-race-blog/

From the GRM article:

A month after the incident, Espenlaub’s hands were healing nicely. He was back at the top of the lap charts, too.





Learned Lessons

• We at Team MER have always made safety our number one focus, and the unfortunate events of this year’s Thunderhill 25-hour race have been a wake-up call, even for us. We have always strived to use the safest seats, belts, nets and fire systems on the market.
• We have installed these systems with great care while paying particular attention to how easily the driver can operate these systems in the event of an emergency. Our kill switches and fire pulls are always within easy reach, normally right near the driver’s door. The last thing you need to do if a car is burning is reach farther inside the car. Furthermore, a corner worker is more likely to reach the driver’s side first.
• We also make sure the steering wheel is easy to remove and that egress isn’t obstructed. The window net (or nets) should drop away easily. All access to the fuel tank or cell is covered by a sheet metal bulkhead.
• Even with all of these safety measures in place, one of the most heads-up drivers in any professional race still got injured in our car. Here are some of the lessons we learned in analyzing this incident, as well as the solutions we’re implementing to correct them:
• Even with sheet metal panels in place, when a fuel cell explodes the fire will get through. From now on, we will be making sure the panels fit even tighter and have fewer gaps around their edges.
• Clear rubber hose is not okay for fuel filler lines. It’s nice to be able to see if the tank is full, but from now on all our cars will have braided, armored or metal fuel filler, delivery and return lines. Ideally those lines will have properly installed and tested AN fittings on all connections.
• A fire system is great, but if the driver doesn’t know that there’s a fire burning, it’s useless. We believe that Charles drove around for quite a while with a small fuel fire burning around the fuel tank. From now on, all our cars will carry a second 5-pound fire bottle dedicated to the fuel tank and fitted with automatically triggered nozzles. This should help knock down any fuel fire as soon as it ignites. We are working with our fire system supplier to create a warning light so the driver knows the system has been discharged.
• Accurately aiming the fire system nozzles is critical. We are going to take extra care so that all nozzles are pointed in the correct direction. Our new standard placement will have one in front of the driver, one behind the driver, and a third inside the engine bay. The fourth nozzle will be the dedicated, automatic nozzle on the fuel tank.
• Even on stock cars, the driveshaft needs to be tethered. We are going to install driveshaft loops on all cars, no matter how mundane the machine. Upon final inspection of the car involved in the incident, the driveshaft didn’t fail as reported online. Once the car was stationary, the fire caused the driveshaft to explode. Nonetheless, it’s a reminder that a loose driveshaft can immediately become a safety concern.
• Our cars will be safer thanks to these enhancements, but the foundation comes from choosing the right safety gear, always wearing it—underwear and balaclava included—and having a plan for escape. Just as in driving, there is no substitute for practice. Time yourself when exiting your car, then see how much you can reduce that time.

Just doing the practice exits may identify some weak points in your strategy; try correcting them to make your exits quicker and smoother. We hope that everyone can learn from this incident so we can all make our race, practice and track days a little safer.—Jason Saini, Team MER

For a good guide on driving suit buying click these images for a scan from SCCA's Sports Car Magazine.

• Page 1
• Page 2
• Page 3

Stay safe and if you have any questions about your safety gear be sure to contact the manufacturer for help and advice!

Amateur Engineering Design Guide

Car modification is a complex field. There are untold thousands of forums on the web and every one has a horde of users asking how to do things who get promptly flamed and told to search.

Finding information can be tricky and translating into successful real world outcomes even more so.

So how do you learn to modify your own car?

To start read this great guide from the site AutoSpeed: Amateur Engineering Design: Improving engineering outcomes

It takes some good research skills to develop a plan of attack. Once you feel armed with enough knowledge jump in and just do it. It can be daunting to attempt a process that you've never done before but nothing beats hands on trial and error for learning.

To get a good start spend some time reading the excellent articles on AutoSpeed.com. There are a lot of general guides on everything from electrical mods to nuts and bolts plus a lot of inexpensive, DIY test methods to make sure your setup actually works.

Happy modding!

How to build a drift car

A lot of people new to drifting don't know where to start upgrading their cars. Most go for more power with engine upgrades and spend money on body kits before taking care of basic maintenance items.

The majority of cars can drift well with very few mods. Here are my recommendations for a simple, reliable upgrade path to build a car for drift events.

Stage 0 - Before you even think about going to the track

1. Maintenance - Change all fluids, Inspect all mechanical parts, replace any worn out components, tune-up, get running 100% reliably. Pay special attention to all ball joints, tie rods, and wheel bearings.
2. Fix all fluid leaks - If there is ANY oily residue on your engine, transmission, power steering, differential, or drips in your parking spot fix them before coming to the track. Your drivetrain must be 100% free of any oil/dirt buildup and leaks and stay that way.
3. Tech Inspection Checklist - Read the rules for the event you want to go to and go down the tech inspection and safety checklist and ensure you pass every item. Search or ask if you have a question before you get to the track.

Stage 1 - Bare necessities

• LSD - aftermarket clutch type or welded. VLSD kind of works but don't waste the money.
• Helmet - Budget at least $200 and buy a current year rated Snell SA helmet.

Stage 2 - Minimum Upgrades

• Springs/Dampers - To begin with some coilovers from a reputable company that services and rebuilds their stuff (Tein, Stance) will do the trick.
  
• TC Rods (240sx) - Get high quality rod end TC Rods to keep your front wheels from flopping around and improve steering and braking feel.
  
• Poly Steering Rack Bushings - Because your stock ones are guaranteed loose and sloppy making your wheel flop about at high steering angles.
  
• Tires - Any crapball tires will work for slow speed 2nd gear course. For top of 2nd gear and 3rd gear courses get 200 UTQG high performance tires in a width matched to your power level. Tires in 195 to 225 width work well for near stock power levels on 240sx and similar weight cars. You'll drift better and it might just save you from hitting the wall and totaling your car.

Stage 3 - Replace the stuff you just wore out

• Clutch - Get an aftermarket clutch when your stock one starts to fail. Choose one with a sprung disk to save your transmission syncros and gears. If you have extra $$$ it's worthwhile to get a light flywheel at the same time.
  
• Bushings - Your suspension bushings will wear out after 2 events with an LSD. Fix the clunking and wheel hop with either poly bushings (ok) or good quality rod end links. On 240sxs Go for RUCA's and rear toe arms first and get an alignment so the tires wear evenly.
  

Go for maintenance items first, and replace stuff as it wears out. Save money to get to as many events as you can so you can figure out what needs to be upgraded next based on real track experience.

The longer you drift with an underpowered vehicle the more you techniques will learn. Starting off with a lot of power will handicap you later on.

Tire Tech

Pressure Explained.



Graining Explained.




More at : http://www.youtube.com/user/DunlopInsideRacing

Autocross drivers and every other motorsport racers have long known that tires are the most single important component for handling performance.

Drifters take note. Want to drift faster and have more control? Get wide, sticky tires!

Never Lift

Set. Commit. Never lift.