Umai Kakudo

Video - Rebuilding a Monotube Damper

2011-02-28T14:03:00.000-08:00

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:

Rollovers and safety equipment

2010-12-27T16:19:00.000-08:00

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!)

Motorsports Fire Safety

2010-12-21T11:46:00.000-08:00

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.

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

2010-11-01T13:15:00.000-07:00

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

2010-11-01T12:41:00.000-07:00

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

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.
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.
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

2010-06-16T15:51:00.000-07:00

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

2010-04-12T13:18:00.000-07:00

Set. Commit. Never lift.

Drift Infiltration into Mainstream Advertising

2010-03-30T09:02:00.000-07:00

NOS chose to use drifting for a major commercial spot to be shown during the Martinsville Cup race.

Here's hoping more teams are able to pull off deals like this.

Word from Chris is the bottle breaking shot took only 2 passes. The bumper would have hit the bottle first time around but it was placed too high. They raised the rail and readjusted the bottle position and Chris got it done the very next run. That's some precision driving skills.

If Hyundai used Rhys for their Superbowl commercial anything is possible!

REAL rally cross for the USofA!!!!

2009-10-22T19:19:00.001-07:00

Rally America has announced that they will be holding European style rally cross races for the 2010 season.

All 3 events will be held at New Jersey Motor Sports Park in Millville, NJ as exhibitions but RA is looking to expand for the 2011 season.

If you don't know what euro rally cross is like think WRC cars with twice the power running in a a road course sprint race format on mixed gravel and pavement purpose built tracks. The top class cars can do 0-60 as fast as an F1 car, on dirt.

To start there will be two classes with one for AWD and another for two wheel drive.

This should be a big boon to rally in the US as it is much easier for spectators to enjoy and with wheel to wheel action it is great fun to watch.

I sure hope it catches on. If you are in the NJ area check them out and make them successful! I want to have local rally crosses in my area to participate in.

F1 Mission Control

2009-10-21T08:59:00.000-07:00

Check out this video of the Vodafone McLaren 'Mission Control' center stuffed full of highly trained engineers monitoring every aspect of each session.

This kind of high level engineering and organization is just as interesting and exciting in my opinion as the racing itself. It's basically a wet dream for car nerds!

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery

2008-10-29T01:38:00.000-07:00

So I was browsing around and found a VQ swap thread on Nico that was a bit of an object lesson on how not to modify an intake manifold.

http://forums.nicoclub.com/zerothread?id=326877&page=3

When I get to page 3 halfway down a I do a double take at a post!

I see a picture and my first reaction is "I don't remember posting in this thread. I never post on Nico". Then I do a double take and see that it's my picture I've used for my sig in the past but it is being used by Sleeping240.

The image appears to have been found off of Photobucket and slightly resized/renamed.

http://i311.photobucket.com/albums/kk447/alexandermayorg/sig_-_s13_russelldrift.jpg

Here is the image as I originally had hosted on my Photobucket account for use in my signature on Northwestnissans.com

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z248/umaikakudo/S13_RussellDrift.jpg

And to give the photo full credit and justice here it is in all it's original glory from my favorite local photag DS who took my all time favorite shot of me in action:

Yep - It's me drifting around at an Evergreen Drift event back on 9/22/2007.

My initial reaction was to be ticked off because it looks as if some no talent forum noob is impersonating some one who can drift.

After thinking about it I realize that it isn't a big deal and and that I'm actually honored that some one thought that this image was cool enough to use.

So cheers Sleeping240 - I wish you the best of luck on your project and hope that you will get some of your own personal action shots that you'll be proud to replace my picture with.

Another Crazy Bloke

2008-03-18T08:52:00.001-07:00

So I've found a topper for crazy guy award

John Paul Stapp

He bears the title of 'Fastest Man on Earth' for USAF safety testing. This nutter consented to

being strapped to a rocket sled on multiple occasions and being accelerated to over 1000 km/h at a rate of over 500 g's per second with peak G forces of over 40 G's.

He did multiple tests in attempt to develop safer pilot ejection systems and restraints. All of this was done with 1950's safety technology.

Amazingly he did not suffer any permanent physical damage (only temporary blindness and bruises and cracked ribs) and went on to work with the NHTSA an help implement standards for seatbelts and airbags in cars.

And I thought top fuel dragsters were crazy.

There is always some one crazier than you

2008-03-10T15:51:00.001-07:00

No mater how 'extreme' you think you are there will always be some freak out there that is crazier than you.

Proof - Hayabusa kart guy.

This nut is drifting a Hayabusa powered shifter kart in a sweatshirt.

At least he is on the track. Love his support vehicle.

Here is another clip on the street.

To see how this type of machine would fair on a full size road course against a Viper check this German version of Top Gear

Very educational on vehicle dynamics and the importance of needing enough tire and balanced wheelbase to put the power down.

If that is not crazy enough then check out the Redneck SPL V8 'go kart'.

The title says it all - 'Bad Idea'. I think this was constructed after a kegger with leftover 4x4 parts.

Here is the beast in action.

This can only end in a darwin award or a broken redneck. This guy proves that going fast in a straight line is all 'mericans care about. When they want to get crazy they connect two straights and turn left.

German Tuners vs. US Tuners

2008-03-10T11:58:00.000-07:00

Check the article on Winding road for the Brabus Rocket

Winding Road - Brabus Rocket Article

I'm not really that big a fan of 'German Engineering' and they often sacrifice over the top mechanicals for serviceability (i.e. Designing the engine accessibility on the Porsche Boxter where it requires the engine to be removed and a $500 service for a freaking oil change. That and the 911 being struts at all four corners.). I find that Japanese vehicles give me more bang for the buck even if they are lower quality to begin with. I'm not willing to pay the premium for a nice interior and the weight penalty for a car I'm going to beat on at the track.

That being said the Rocket is an amazing machine. I highly respect the technological wizardry of the big German tuning houses. German tuners like Brabus, Dinnan, and Hartage have been able to stuff the best big engines from the likes of BMW and Mercedes and tune 200mph+ refined daily drivable road rocket. They must do this in a extremely high quality manner to past the stringent TUV testing requirements.

You think a VQ35 swap into a 240sx is hot stuff? How about stuffing a M5 V8 into a Z4 roadster? Good luck with that one.

Any aftermarket parts sold or installed on registered cars in Germany must be TUV tested and approve to make sure it doesn't blow up at 100 mph plus on 'ze Autobhan. This is part of why German aftermarket parts are so bloody expensive.

Since modern German automobiles are highly complex with crazy ECU's and in car networks controlling everything and are tuned very close to the limit straight out of the factory you need equal parts components manufacture and computer scientist to make any sort of improvement.

You can be sure that the stock broker that paid $100K for his M5 is not going to accept any compromises in reliability and driveablitly or else his dates will quickly dump him for a dude in a stock Ferrari.

So this begs the question; If German tuners can reprogram the ECU's, ABS, stability, traction control and the other various electronics systems of the most complex and sophisticated cars in the world and maintain OEM reliability and refinement why can't US tuners do the same?

It's freaking 2007, nine years after OBDII was introduced with mandatory flash reprogrammable ECU's and 6 years after the new CAN protocols have been introduced and we are now just seeing consumer re-programmable ECU flashing devices commonly on the market.

Where are the aftermarket plug and play CAN modules that can seamlessly integrate with the factory ECU and add extra features like intercooler sprayers, active differential controllers, and other nifty accessories all triggered by the existing sensors on the vehicle?

An add in CAN module could also simplify installing a CAN equipped powertrain with the factory ECU into a non CAN older vehicle.

It just seems that the level of ECU tuning available in the US and Japan for Japanese cars is way behind the curve of the stuff coming out of Germany.

Tuners like Vishnu, Jim Wolf, and Techno Square are doing great jobs at modifying the factory ECU's. Most modern cars in the mid price range now come with better ECU's stock than 99% of the aftermarket stand alone units. All that they need is a bit of tweaking to push the tune to the more aggressive end of the spectrum from OEM to make large power and throttle response improvements.

Stand alone ECU's are becoming less and less feasible for non track cars. Gone are the days of simply tuning the fuel, timing, and maybe boost maps. Now you have to tune electronic throttle, continuously variable cam timing on intake and exhaust, and a host of other integrated interdependent functions throughout the dynamic operating range of the engine. This is well beyond a hour or two on the dyno and requires lots of R&D and some engineering degrees to make any real improvements.

Perhaps it is due to what the market is willing to pay for. Sophisticated electronics systems and quality parts take lots of R&D $$$$$ to make and that increases the cost of the finished product.

With vehicles getting ever more complex and manufactures turning out highly tuned vehicles from the factory like the R35 GTR, Evo X, and new STI with powerful engine control systems that when the factory idiot proof tuning is removed can greatly improve the power and response that driving enthusiast want modifications to the vehicles software will become more and more important as hardware gains become more difficult.

What do you think?

Factory Five ’33 Coupe - I'd Drift It

2008-02-20T14:50:00.000-08:00

Winding Road is reporting Factory Five has a new hot rod style kit car called the The Factory Five ’33 Coupe in the works.

Winding Road: Racy Rat Rod: The Factory Five '33 Coupe

This thing is hot and coupled with the fact that Factory Five knows how to make race cars I'm betting it will have great handling. I'm digging how they used modern style wheels.

You can go with a hardtop or no top at all.

Throw a V8 from a Nissan Titan in it and drift the snot out of it. Or go lightweight and put an SR20DET or VQ35 in it.

Due to the no tube frame car competition rules it would never work for competition but for pure style at a drift event it would be hard to beat.

Only problem would be the open wheels and tandem. It would be fun until you hooked a wheel on the other car but the rear wheels hanging out there in the open would put up a good smokescreen.

Here is a video with some additional details and shots:

Confessions of a Raccoon Murderer

2008-02-14T19:07:00.001-08:00

I was driving home last night on some rural back roads when all of a sudden a raccoon started a mad dash from across the opposite lane for my car.

I caught him in my peripheral vision and I didn't have time to brake but was able to react enough to swerve a little. I though I just might clear him when I heard a 'thunk'.

I looked in the rear view and saw him laying unmoving in on the inside edge of the lane.

NOTE: Not actual raccoon described. Shown only for demonstration purposes.

As I continued to speed along I was thinking "What should I do?" Turn around and see if he is still alive? Take him to PAWS? Let natural selection take its course as dozens of automobiles run over his lifeless body? Turn myself into PETA or the police? What if it has rabies?

I've never committed vehicular animalslaughter but had my fair share of close calls. Birds, dogs, cats, other raccoons, even deer. I learned not to slam on your brakes and that deer travel in packs when I missed hitting a dear by 2' once while towing a Datsun 510 on a tow dolly with a full sized Chevy pickup once. I was lucky I didn't jackknife the trailer when I locked up the brakes panic stopping.

What position do raccoons even serve in the suburban ecosystem anyways? Keep the frogs population in check or just get fat off of everyone's trash?

At 40mph I was all ready a mile down the road and just a few blocks from home and resigned myself to let the poor critter fend for himself.

As I told my wife about it after she got home she informed me that the 'coon was indeed dead and still lying lifeless in the middle of the road when she passed by 20 minutes later.

I couldn't stop thinking about it and remembered that three months ago I very similar raccoon very nearly met the same fate only 3 months prior and 3 miles further up the very same road. The difference was that that time the 'coon turned around with only inches to spare and aborted mission which spared his life. I wonder now if it was the same beast.

I also started getting scared wondering if the raccoon's relatives were going to hunt me down and seek retribution Pom Poko style.

I've avoided getting getting attacked by gangs of raccoons with enormous testicles and spirits (watch the movie - 3:47 in) so I think I'm safe.

RIP Mr. Raccoon. Stay safe my fellow furry friends - the road can be hard.

Inaugural Post

2008-02-13T14:06:00.000-08:00

Inaugural Post