Civic of Doom: Honda Challenge Recycling

[NTIman]

PM sent

[Kaan]

quick recap...

Saturday the car felt great. In warmup i was right back where was i was with a 2:16.5... in qualifying i dropped down to a 2:15.5 and i still knew i had time left (dont we all?!?!). The 2:15.5 means i'm qualified 7th out of 10 and MUCH closer to the mid pack.

Shine and Line (honda challenge regional sponsor) pays out 3 spots on a random number generator... $200, $150, $100... random numbers are 7, 1, 6... i'm thinking "heck yeah, run away from the guys behind you and maybe pick up a spot and i'll have some cash for all the crap i need to do over the winter"...

On the pace lap, 3rd place (Mike Young, Shine and Line boss man) pulls off with smoke from under the hood... now i'm 6th... we are reshuffling to grid up for the standing start. the start is normal... everyone stays put. the race is pretty uneventful... my AIM would predict a low 2:14 and i'd run down the back of the miatas or E30s...

on the second to last lap, i start to pull on 5th place in areas i dont normally... and i know i kill him in the esses and south bend... apparently so did he. he said he saw me coming and pushed too hard in oak tree... he spun and i got around him for a 5th place finish.

Sundays BOTE i was the lead car in the 3rd group... i think spot 13. I was able to win my group and sit under the bumper of the guy that spun on saturday (one group ahead of me) and finished 10th over all. BOTE caused some drama as the guy ahead of me was DQed for weight and the first placed HC car was DQed for being 11hp over... yes 11hp over (i think there is something to this sunday tune BS)

All the BOTE qualifying runs impact grid for the sunday race. i'm now 5th in the order... i know i can run where i am... maybe get bumped back to 6th... but stay up front as long as i can to learn. Mark got a hell of a start and moved unchecked around the outside from 10th to 6th... where i shut the door on him so i could out run him up the esses.

I make my run up the esses... i'm pulling on the guys in front of me and closing the gap. I get checked by them going through south bend... i get as close as i can in oak tree... we make the run down the back straight and as i shift to 5th i check my gauges and see the 6th place car come around oak tree... we start lining up to run hard off the back straight and my axle snaps (again), the front has locked up, it wont slow down or turn, and i'm looking like i'm about to collect the leaders (not a good look for me)... i get it slowed down, i put it back in gear, it revs and wont move... i know its just an axle... i coast down to the hot pits in defeat for the day.

BONUS... the cool suit was the JAM sitting in the hot pits waiting for a tow. it actually made me COLD.

[Senor_Taylor]

Great progress. What a crazy situation with all of these axles snapping.

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[Kaan]

Great progress. What a crazy situation with all of these axles snapping.

Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk

There are a couple of theories. 
1. the diff/trans is doing something and causing the issue. nothing has changed on the diff/trans except a little more wear to the plates... which should mean it locks up less... which means it shouldnt do this. 
2. the axles are binding because of how "low" i am. i'm not really low, but i'm also not on a stock setup at all... we moved some weight around and redid the corner weights and rake... this is the only change i think we made over the winter that might have effected the axles. 

the pain in the butt is i have to remove both axles to get the broken part out... i have to take a bunch of measurements and and remove the shock, put in an axle, then test for binding. i think its binding on full compression because of where its breaking... high speed left hand turns

[Senor_Taylor]

Put a GoPro in the fender to watch the axles so you can see what stress they may be under when they snap.

[Kaan]

Put a GoPro in the fender to watch the axles so you can see what stress they may be under when they snap.

i'm not sure i have the room OR i have the go pro to "waste" in there... or if it will even capture it at 100mph

[Kaan]

Not having a replacement Raxle to check.... I tossed in a rebuilt OEM and don’t have a bind. This lead us to look at the axles themselves... the Raxle looks to be 3/8 of an inch too long. Probably because I should be running integra axles and not civic Si axles because of the subframe and control arm swap

[Senor_Taylor]

Were you breaking stock axles or did you just decide to run aftermarket for some other reason?

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[Kaan]

Were you breaking stock axles or did you just decide to run aftermarket for some other reason?

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sourcing OEM axles is pretty hard. they last a long time but with +20 year old cars its pretty hard to find. people neglect the boots, ruin them, etc. 

i purchased this shell barely rolling... so i went straight to the aftermarket for axles. Raxles has a really good reputation and designed a joint specifically to deal with the gators at VIR... in the end this all looks like my mistake for the axles i ordered, not the axles and workmanship.

[Kaan]

The engine and trans are out of the car... they have been sitting on the floor for a while now (i missed the last VIR event). The trans is going to Deren at (now) GTPeace to check out. The engine is going on the stand for some preventative maintenance. my last dyno tuning session showed that I'm down on my over all peak carry ( how long i carry the 190hp cap... right now its a small 800rpm window and other guys have 2k rpm windows) ... so its time for some changes.

Engine to do:
- Replace valve springs with Toda valve springs
- Replace seats, retainers, keepers with OEM
- Install my 62.5mm TB
- Install +98 spec cams
- Replace the OEM oil pump gear with the Toda billet setup

Trans to do:
- Replace/rebuild the Mfactory diff with a OSG unit, or keep the Mfactory
- build a spare trans (maybe)
- Likely replace all bearings and shims in the trans with new OEM

Car to do:
- Add AIM dash and smarty cam (i fight with my go pro every weekend... its getting old)
- Fabricate the 3 inch exhaust
- Replace the roof skin (FML)
- Dyno Tune (again)

I'm currently running a 8,200 RPM redline (200 under factory) with a 8,400 cut (in 5th gear only) on my B18C5... why am i under factory setting?!?!? well RPMs kill engines (eventually) and i wasnt making useable power much higher so why keep goin!?!? Well with the +98 spec cams, bigger TB, and bigger exhaust thats all going to change... the idea is to get a higher peak so we can detune and flatten the curve for longer. This is all about maximizing life to the rules.

You might ask... why the heck are you going to an AIM dash and smarty cam?!?!? I need my life simplified in the car. Especially when it comes to the camera. I also need things to easily overlay for data and my video. right now i'm working straight off data because I dont know how to consistently use my go pro (lol old people problems). it randomly goes into burst picture mode... instead of video... and its a one button setup. I've drop a lot of time with just data, but i think to compete in Honda Challenge i need to really dig into my video (with data overlay).

the OSG diff purchase and building a spare trans is sort of a luxury item... it might not happen, especially if we dont find anything wild in the trans... but its a pain in the butt to source a new trans, rebuild it, and get it going with two weeks between events...

All i hear is the sizzle of my visa (for points!! ... folks please dont build a race car on credit cards, you wont be able to keep up the expenses weekend after weekend if you are maxing a card just to compete. without breaking anything a race weekend is around $1200 at the cheapest, factoring brake and tire wear)

[D_Eclipse9916]

You might ask... why the heck are you going to an AIM dash and smarty cam?!?!? I need my life simplified in the car. Especially when it comes to the camera. I also need things to easily overlay for data and my video. right now i'm working straight off data because I dont know how to consistently use my go pro (lol old people problems). it randomly goes into burst picture mode... instead of video... and its a one button setup. I've drop a lot of time with just data, but i think to compete in Honda Challenge i need to really dig into my video (with data overlay).

I learned that the hard way too. Years of inconsistent video in my GTS2 car result in me having very little video of those times.  I switched to Smartycam and it made my life a hell of a lot easier. Was worth it. 

Sooo AIM has finally released their PDM and it comes with a dash GPS Datalogger.  It's a VALUE (yes I said value) as its barely over the cost of just a dash (MXS/MXP/MXL2) itself.  If I was buying a new dash; its the one I would do.  Of course a cheaper MXM would probably be my go to for a HC car.

Or forget the dash and just do an AIM Solo with a Smartycam.  Losing a lot of benefit of datalogging though since HC has no CAN.

[Kaan]

You might ask... why the heck are you going to an AIM dash and smarty cam?!?!? I need my life simplified in the car. Especially when it comes to the camera. I also need things to easily overlay for data and my video. right now i'm working straight off data because I dont know how to consistently use my go pro (lol old people problems). it randomly goes into burst picture mode... instead of video... and its a one button setup. I've drop a lot of time with just data, but i think to compete in Honda Challenge i need to really dig into my video (with data overlay).

I learned that the hard way too. Years of inconsistent video in my GTS2 car result in me having very little video of those times.  I switched to Smartycam and it made my life a hell of a lot easier. Was worth it. 

Sooo AIM has finally released their PDM and it comes with a dash GPS Datalogger.  It's a VALUE (yes I said value) as its barely over the cost of just a dash (MXS/MXP/MXL2) itself.  If I was buying a new dash; its the one I would do.  Of course a cheaper MXM would probably be my go to for a HC car.

Or forget the dash and just do an AIM Solo with a Smartycam.  Losing a lot of benefit of datalogging though since HC has no CAN.

Ummm... i need to look into this PDM business... since ive been flirting with the idea of putting the whole car on a PDM and panel. Yes its over kill BUT ive worked hard to clean up the wiring in the car and make my life easier for checking fuses and all... this would just be the end all be all. my back, checking fuses, and the door bars dont get along very well... 

I already have an AIM solo 2... my biggest complaint is that it uses about 1% of the battery per minute... yes per minute. that means i have to charge it daily. probably less of an issue when i go enclosed, but right now charging off our solar setup is limiting (phones, go pro, AIM, etc.). The dash would just be powered by the car and my deep cycle battery. 

I cant just use the CAN in a honda, but i can wire it into the ECU harness. My gauges are accurate enough but they catch more glare than I like where they are.... swapping to a dash would free up that space for the PDM switch panel... 

DJs really good at spending my money.

---

FML... value? its cheaper for the PDM8 with a 10 inch display than a dash alone... the PDM32 is $200-400 more than a dash alone.

i realize the 32 might be "better" for future expansion, but really how many things does my PDM need to control? HALP HALP!

[Senor_Taylor]

I'm with you. GoPros suck ass. I hate dealing with them in registration for compliance and I hate dealing with them in the car.

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[Kaan]

we have a solution for the axle issue... the story begin over a year ago when i had a DSS axle pop in and out on one lap. It began the wear on the passenger side part of the diff. over time the axles have slowly rattled around and wore that part of the diff out of round. this is likely causing a lot of axle movement in the diff and causing it to break.

hopefully i get can get parts from Mfactory... if not its time for that OS Giken life.

[Kaan]

After two trips to cali, the diff is back with Deren so he can finish my transmission overhaul.... I've also been nursing a chronic tennis elbow issue, but it seems to be better, so i decided to tackle some of the motor maintenance since its out of the car. 
 

You may not believe it, but i keep the car on a maintenance schedule (edit: you see on one of the packages, these parts were ordered in January 2020... plan ahead to beat the questionable availability of parts that happen from time to time) ... especially the motor. 2020 wasnt a full season but I dont want to "wait" another full season and sure dont want to do this mid season... 

 

I need to bump my rev limiter a bit all around, so fresh OEM keepers/retainers and new valve springs were in order. JDM life and a design i prefer over straight coils... i went with TODA springs. 

 

so I replaced everything with the head on with the "rope" method/spark plug method... if you dont know what this is... you basically work one piston at a time, turn the crank so the piston is low in the stroke then snake some rope in there and slowly turn the crank until snug. If you use paracord, you might get things snagged in the head (cylinder 1 took me 1 hour, the next 3 took me 45 minutes) ... so i switched to dropping the piston to the low position, installed the spark plug for that cylinder, then adding air pressure buy turning the crank... and did the valve springs/keepers/retainers.

 
TIPS: use THICK assembly lube to put the keepers on the tool you use to slide them in the spring compression tool and then onto the valve... this will help you from losing one and help them seat as you decompress the valve spring. If you use the HPT type valve spring compressor tool... use hand tools to mount the valve spring compressor tool to the head, you can use an impact (small light weight, easy to control... not the one you use to rip the crank pully bolt off) to compress the spring BUT when its time to release the spring and seat the keepers... use a hand tool and take it slow (i was wearing a head lamp and staring at the keepers while they seated in the retainer)

[Kaan]

The axle issue continued. this time, no turning required... it broke while braking for T1 at VIR in a straight line. with literally no more axles left i had to pack up for the weekend...

fast forward a couple of weeks i decided to send the car to GTPeace to get looked over by Deren. there is literally no good news from this trip.

Apparently the tub has serious issues on the passenger side (go figure). it is flexing, buckling, and coming apart in the front frame rail/firewall area (the passenger side front week is roughly 7/8ths of an inch behind the drivers side). Once Deren pointed some things out i went back to pictures of the area from the winter to right before the event... and it looks like its finally "showing" and completely failing.

Deren and I sent pictures to Marcus (he runs a body shop) and he sent it to his frame guy... being a minimum $2k to "maybe" fix it with a "we can definitely fix it for $6-7k"... i'm writing the tub off as a loss and parting it out (there is a premium on B18C5 engines right now).

Keep an eye out for 8th gen civics... that looks to be the generation i'm eyeing for the next build (or buy). Dont bother linking me in the STL civic for sale in haymarket... hes not willing to negotiate at all (and offering an every shrinking spares package) and its going to need a lot of work to make it legal for honda challenge.