Project RS

[ScottyB]

thanks on both accounts...if we aren't running around with our hair on fire during the trips back and forth I might hit you up!

[ScottyB]

little maintenance update with some oil analysis nerdery to see how the engine fared. full track weekend plus daily driving plus road trips as of late in 90+ degree heat. i was concerned about the chromium (that's piston ring wear) and silicon from last time but both are way down. i think i just had a crappy air filter seal. This is Mobil 1 10W-30 High Mileage...I like it a lot and will probably consider it for future track days, but the car really likes to drink it for some reason. For daily stuff i might stick with the good old Rotella T6 because its so damn cheap.

there's no secret that adding 2.5 quarts of fresh oil to the sump plus a very short oil change interval (the TBN is saying i could probably get 8k mile runs out of this safely) skews readings a bit but the wear metals are looking good considering the hard driving. the car drank a quart during the track weekend and the rest in daily driving. i don't know where it goes....it doesn't smoke, makes good power, so i just check the level every week and keep feeding it.



one thing to note is that this oil is rated ACEA A3. i specifically sought the M1 High Mileage stuff out as this is almost the only 30 weight formulated to this rating. basically anything that's rated with this spec is highly resistant to shearing down out of grade (think extended, high heat, high load use on the autobahn for instance) to a thinner less protective oil over long drain intervals. i'd definitely recommend looking for this rated oil if you intend to run the car hard and want to keep the oil in use for a while - think non-dedicated track car or daily that you lay the whip to fairly often.

[ScottyB]

signed up for my next rallyx on the 14th, we'll see how it goes. my first time running with SCCA (Atlanta Region) and it looks like i fit into Prepared AWD.

i'm actually really excited, this will be a solid challenge. there will probably be at least 3 or 4 STi's there including a '15. i've got some cobwebs to blow out but if i'm lucky i'll get to fit in 3 or 4 more events before 2015. that's one of the other things i love about rallyx...the events really pick up in the fall when its great to be out anyway.

[nismosam]

I love reading up on blackstone lab reports. REAL data on oil, instead of X brand is better because I say so and it cost more.

[ScottyB]

yeah me too, i get pretty nerdy about it. there are some opinions about how useful some of the wear metal readings can be due to accuracy disputes and oil characteristics but one of the most important things i get out of it are the CST/SUS viscosity numbers and the TBN reading. that stuff tells you how hardy the oil is under use and how much additive remains in the oil so you can figure out how long to run it. in these days of $10/qt oils i want to run that stuff as long as possible and this is a good tool to figure out how to do it safely. plus it sucks to drain out perfectly good oil from a waste standpoint.

i've got Rotella T6 5W-40 in there now and i'm going to try to run it out to 8,000 miles and see how it looks.

[ScottyB]

after a cancellation last time, i think this sunday i'll finally get to rallyx again. we'll see how it goes, i'm expecting to feel pretty rusty...its been a long time. everything feels pretty good otherwise, which isn't hurt by the fact that i only drive about 50 miles a week nowadays.

looking forward to trying out some new GoPro angles...particularly something in-cabin to get a better sense of the steering angles. i'd love to find someone with a drone to take video with, that would truly be the hot ticket for an event like this.

[ScottyB]

pulled down a 2nd place out of 6 in Prepared AWD against a GSX and a WRX. lost out by 4 seconds over 8 total runs to 1st and i know i can easily make that speed up if i fix my mistakes. gonna get that guy next time! not sure on overall standings, results aren't posted yet. some real fast guys were there in Modified AWD so i'll be surprised if i'm in the top 5.

lots of fun, but boy i am rusty. really didn't feel confident in the car again until my last few runs. fought a total lack of front grip all day on a surface that literally looked like silt on the surface of the moon. so much damn dust. course was pretty fun but had some frustrating corners that highlighted my lack of skill getting the car down into first gear...stupid synchros. brought a buddy who co-drove and had a blast, i think i converted him.

gopro videos and pictures to come.

[ScottyB]

these are my best runs, and by "best" i mean least screwed up...they may not actually be my fastest runs as i haven't seen the times yet. the course was reversed for the afternoon.

had a rough time getting the front end to tuck. really liked the first set of corners and the sweepers leading to the last hairpin. never could get the car rotated right coming into the hairpin to the finish. stupid carousel.
[youtube]YhzHW20fuBc[/youtube]

much preferred running the course in this direction. flowed better on the infield. got lost in my own dust cloud exiting the stupid carousel. got too Dukes of Hazzard coming off the last banked section, bottomed out real hard on the driver's front and it upset me enough that i just couldn't collect things and slid out into a cone group (you hear it at 1:13) which really sealed 2nd place for me.
[youtube]BQirzZSddPA[/youtube]

next time i'll try some in-car gopro mounting points so you can witness my wacky-waving-inflatable-flailing-arm-tube-man driving style.....and holy crap i've gotta find that trunk squeak and kill it dead.

this was also pretty fun to watch....open diffs and street tires suck but it still hooks up pretty well
[youtube]MQwr3hYsPto[/youtube]

[Beej]

I think it's cool as shit that you do that.

[ScottyB]

I think it's cool as shit that you do that.

yeah buddy! silver imprezas know how to roll*.


*we'll see how long i last until i roll it onto the roof

[Senor_Taylor]

Wait... I saw that launch as a gif on Reddit today and thought it looked familiar!

[Sijray21]

The slow motion gif was awesome! Nice going Scotty; looks fun!

[ScottyB]

Wait... I saw that launch as a gif on Reddit today and thought it looked familiar!

huh? well don't look at me, i don't have an account with that site. i guess somebody else liked it :dunno:

[ScottyB]

The slow motion gif was awesome! Nice going Scotty; looks fun!

thanks Jayray. guy i brought along to co-drive had a new iphone and we had to mess with the slo mo feature.

[ScottyB]

3/17 overall, 2/5 in Prep AWD. my butt dyno is fairly accurate i guess...i figured my 3rd runs were fastest and the time readouts now back that. i think i can gun down 1st in PA next time if i can get the front to dig in.
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://rallycrossatlanta.com/results/Event_7_2014_-_11-9-14/">http://rallycrossatlanta.com/results/Ev ... -_11-9-14/</a><!-- m -->

i don't know why but i always drive like
1st run - total mess
2nd run - back way off
3rd run - i love it when a plan comes together
4th run - overdrive car like idiot

every time.

[JPolen01]

3rd run - i love it when a plan comes together

I don't know why, but this made me :lol:

[V1GiLaNtE]

Nice job Scotty!

Looks like the WDC SCCA is having a double header this weekend.. Thinking about signing up!

[ScottyB]

I don't know why, but this made me :lol:

you know you started hearing the song play too

Looks like the WDC SCCA is having a double header this weekend.. Thinking about signing up!

thanks man, i'm certainly not going to talk you down! WDC lost the summit point venue which is a huge blow but i think their new stomping grounds has become a huge gravel lot. you may want to check with them and find out what the surface is like before you take a bunch of paint off the bottom of the car. your flaps will help but if its a deep crushed gravel surface you're going to shotgun the rockers and wheels pretty good...just be warned!

EDIT: confirmed, its heavy gravel. hilarious to drive on, but just know that even with tape you're not going to save the paint.
example:

[V1GiLaNtE]

eek! Maybe I'll wait until my mud flaps come in..

[ScottyB]

well, shit.

over the past month a puddle of gear oil has been getting bigger and bigger under the car and i've started having to top off the tranny every week or so to keep it happy. its dripping from the bellhousing which means its the input shaft seal...not uncommon. prepare for the ultimate "while I'm in there" debacle...

so i've gotta drop the tranny and split the gearbox case to reach the $10 offending seal. but here's the thing, at 120k miles now, if I'm already popping out the input shaft to swap this dumb seal, I might as well also just go ahead and do new input shaft bearings, particularly since these are the bearings that aren't fully bathed in gear oil and and because the input shaft isn't as well supported as the shaft below due to having to reach out over the front diff....so they tend to wear out quicker and are responsible for most 5 speed deaths that don't involve tearing the teeth off the gears from flat-brimmed yo-boi abuse.

i can slide the seal and front bearing off without trouble. the big rear bearing has to be taken off and put on with a press....naturally.


and, because i'm still on the original clutch, and its getting soft, has a bunch of rallyx launches on it, has a lot of shudder on cold mornings now, and is probably full of gear oil....i'm just going to go ahead and replace it. with a better clutch. and a lightweight flywheel. might also upgrade the transmission mounts. because rallycar.



yeah i could probably just do the seal, get an OEM clutch disk, and resurface the stock flywheel. but, i intend to keep pushing the car hard in local rallycrosses and i don't really want to replace it with anything right now as a cheap kid hauler. this thing doesn't really owe me anything so i guess i'll just keep it reliable and more fun when the opportunity allows.