It’s been quite a few months since the last post from us but hey, maybe you just forgot, we’ve been lying low, and for good reason. You may recall that the reason we are lying low is largely due to our car being built so as to comply with the Pre-80 regulations but as that only officially kicks in in January 2018, until then, we’re very much out of it.
That having been said, you may just also happen to recall that much of our testing which we commenced with in February of this year during the Passion for Speed event landed up not being completed and as a result thereof we have simply had to put much of it on hold until now. We took the concerns that we found back then and have endeavoured to make amends as necessary in the hope that we get it right.
So why all the effort for nothing then? Well, it just so happens that come 07th October 2017 the WPMC will be hosting their next event which coincides with the Ford & Friends event and which is also being held on the same day. This gave us a small window of opportunity to get the J-Series SSS out and pull it into the workshop for some TLC and a full inspection. (It’s common knowledge that standing racing cars just break for no reason so, we just have to, as best make absolutely sure that everything is still working as intended.)
We already knew that we had a loss of power and that the engine just wasn’t performing as it’s supposed to but by all counts, had run out of ideas as to the quick and easy fix. We also managed to largely overcome the vibration issues which plagued us from the very beginning as well as a persistent overheating problem that was somewhat concerning. In addition there were (and still is) a slight brake problem but for now we will live with that.
What we did manage to do was to eventually sit down and carefully analyse exactly what the car was doing at critical points around the track and slowly narrow it down to the most logical and possible likelihood cause. Having reached our decision, we then took the next step and confirmed our thoughts and conclusions with a very reliable engine builder and tester. It turned out that our thoughts and decision was the correct one as we soon found out that our jetting was hopelessly out (we had changed from previously using Dellorto’s on the old Datsun 140Z to now using Webers on the J-Series SSS and there is a huge difference in setup) and in addition we also discovered that a miscalculation had been made in setting the timing. Compounded together, we had lost nearly 20 kilowatts on power which explained ‘driving miss daisy’.
Of course having come this far, we further sat down, put our heads together once again and as best tried to recall our rev range and to which we have since decided to make certain changes so as to improve the useable rev range to better effect. A full undercarriage check has also been performed and lo and behold, proof that a standing racing car is bad news lived up to its belief, as a loose idler arm was found and which no doubt would have had some effect, if not back then, definitely later on. The overheating issue by our calculation will now also be a thing of the past, else in the very least, there should be an improvement in a lower temp somewhat. All the water hoses have also been double clamped to prevent any unlikely dislocations. The only thing, and most probably the most important is that the driver is somewhat race rusty and will require some valuable seat time to get back into the swing of things, however, that being said, he’s rather looking forward to racing a Datsun once again after such a long lay-off for reasons much out of his (and our) control.
Here’s hoping that the next event is a thoroughly enjoyable one (albeit an invitation event) and that we bare the fruits of all the hard work and efforts made to improve since our last outing back in February 2017 and that we can look forward to participating regularly as from 2018 when the Pre-80 regulations finally become official. Thanks ‘Boet‘
