Wednesday 27 April 2011

Post D'Isis Rally Damage Report

I have now had time to have a look at the car since the D'Isis Rally and have taken a fairly good stab at what needs to be repaired for our next event - the Rally of the Midlands in June.

Firstly the fire.  After finishing the event we pulled into service to celebrate a good first outing for the Scooby for 2011. As we were getting out, flames started to appear from the drivers side bonnet vent and the bonnet scoop.  We hit the kill switch to kill the ignition and after some panic and a quick splash from the hand held extinguisher the fire was out.  The cause of the fire seems to be the anti-lag had made the turbo very hot and that in turn had melted a small area of the power steering pipe as it passes next to the turbo causing a crack.

Power steering fluid under pressure squirted on the turbo and instant BBQ.  So - fire extinguisher refill now required.  Will look in yellow pages tomorrow for a local fire place.  New power steering pipes required.  Some additional heat protection on the pipes to cope with a anti lagged turbo might be a good idea. Check ebay for pipes and heat protection.
Power Steering Pipes off

Power Steering crack close up
Unfortunately the fire did cause some damage.  A new accelerator cable required to replace the melted one, a speedo sensor for the top of the gearbox and a new air filter seems to be the main items. Just got to figure how to get that intercooler off so I can check for any additional damage underneath.  So far not too bad.


Melted Gearbox sensor

Also we managed to break the fuel filler pipe on route to the event.  No idea how, just seemed to deteriorate after being put on the trailer.  Jonesy did a great job at scrutineering to patch it up with an old inner tube and some silicone and not only did it get us through scrutineering but it lasted through the event and home again! A quick call to Gwaine at Langworth Motorsport and the fuel filler pipe and the gearbox sensor are now onroute.

Somehow the car we also managed to snap a drivers side rear anti roll bar drop link.  Will have a look on ebay to see if there are any kicking about.  Quite fancy some Whiteline upgraded ones but we will have to see what the budget can manage.  I also need to buy some Teng stubby spanners to get the power steering pipes back on.  The bolts that connect to the steering rack are in the most confined space known to man.  It was a nightmare to get off.

Finally I need to redrill mounts for the the drivers seat.  I could do with moving it forward an inch. Some heat protection for the turbo and exhaust pipe, roll the rear wheel arches in as they are fouling the tyres on fast bends, cut the bonnet scoop vent backing plate slightly to let more air to cool the turbo and spanner check all round.  Got some more stickers coming to replace those already scratched and broken and the car needs a good wash and polish before the RAF Festival of Motorsport on May 17th.  Easy!

Forgot to mention need 2 front tyres as well. Medium compound Pirelli's should do the trick. Add Slicks Tyres to the call list.

Spookworks D'Isis Video

Please see the video section of the main Spookworks Site to see the latest video featuring all the action from the 2011 D'Isis Rally, Round 1 of the RAF Rally Championship.

www.spookworks.co.uk

Saturday 23 April 2011

Spookworks 2011 Season

Hi all,

Just to let you know what is happening at Spookworks at the moment.

We recently competed in the D'Isis Rally and had a great time.  The stages were fast and interesting as it was held at MIRA.  Loved the bridge and the handling circuit.  For a first event in a new car we managed 17th overall and 11th in class.  Very happy with that.  Barry as co-driver and Greg/Jonesy as service did an outstanding job.  A highlight being Jonesy fixing a leaking fuel filler pipe next to the scrutineers.  Great job and held fast the whole rally.

Sadly when we pulled in after finishing the event, we had a small engine fire.  Basically hot turbo with anti lag, melted power steering pipe and fluid sprayed onto hot turbo causing fire.  Will confirm what damage has been caused tomorrow but we could be very lucky and have very little damage at all.  See pics on the gallery.  Event video out soon.

CT