The Automotive Thread

[blybrook PE]

Found that it was the alternator and not the wiring. Was glad I picked up one while I was in town just in case. 1/2 hour later, have 16V surging through the system; now to replace the battery before it spews more acid over everything...

 

[Road Guy]

EG, Does your Jeep (I assume Cherokee?) have a tow package, Hopefully since it was factory installed (hitch).. If your towing a long distance the tow package gives you an extra radiator for help in cooling the engine while towing..

It would probably not be a big deal but we had the older Dodge Durango (original body size) with a Hemi V8 that didnt have a tow package, and when I would pull my 2 jet ski's it would run hotter than I would prefer if I towed it more than an hour or so..

I have the newer durango now with a smaller V8 (4.7L) but it does have a tow package and life is much easier on the engine..

on my hitch issue from the previous page I ended up going to a "hitch & trailer" place and they were able to fish a couple of new bolts and drill some holes for $45 bucks.. money well spent in my opinion, I figured I would have lost the better half of a saturday doing it myself...

 

[Capt Worley PE]

It would probably not be a big deal but we had the older Dodge Durango (original body size) with a Hemi V8 that didnt have a tow package, and when I would pull my 2 jet ski's it would run hotter than I would prefer if I towed it more than an hour or so..

I thought the 1st gen Durango had the LA series small block and the second gen had the Hemi?

 

[blybrook PE]

If you start to overheat for any reason, roll down your windows and crank up the heater, it will help alievate some of the extra heat from the vehicle until you can find a safe place to pull over and let it cool off. But I think EG will not have any problems since she reports having the stock hitch; jeeps are fairly tough in that respect.

RG - Good to hear on your hitch, that's definately a better price than having to replace the entire bumper assembly to get one that way.

 

[engineergurl]

everything I have read seems to indicate that the capacity is 5,000 lbs... I'll be honest, the day I bought the jeep, was the same day I wrecked the truck and I got bopped on the head, face, legs, chest, etc etc etc pretty hard and really don't remember much about anything that day other than some really old guy pulled me out of my truck... and the smell of the air bag

I have one other place to check for the owners manual, but I think it has already been packed and shipped to VA...

 

[Supe]

Need to work on installing the new Kirkey race seat tonight now that the cage is done. Going to modify the slider brackets that were in the car.

 

[Supe]

Got the brackets modified last night. Race rules require my seat to be no more than 6" from the roll cage main hoop. Problem is, I have midget legs, and so I had to lay the seat back more than usual to let me meet those requirements, and now the thigh area of the seat impedes my ability to comfortably press the clutch all the way to the floor. Have a little wiggle room left, so I will try to put a 1" spacer on the back of the brackets to tilt the seat forward tonight and see if that works.

 

[Capt Worley PE]

Put a block of wood on the clutch.

 

[Supe]

Not exactly what I want beneath my foot during a hill climb, though I could actually make a spacer for it, as it has a separate pedal pad.

 

[MA_PE]

you could wear elevator shoes and put them on the top floor.

 

[Dexman PE PMP]

You could wear your stilettos...

http://www.arstcrylique.com/2010/12/old-school-tattoos-on-your-stilettos.html

 

[Dexman PE PMP]

This happened at the Pikes Peak Hill Climb this year:


All the more reason to ensure your cage is up to spec.

 

[Supe]

Quite a few spectacular crashes at Pike's Peak this year.

My roll bar is up to spec, though the SCCA specs are pretty crappy (so are the SFI specs for that matter). The design criteria they give you is OK, but leave a lot to be desired from a welding standpoint (as do the tech inspectors). I'm a huge perfectionist when it comes to my roll cage installs, which I guess is a good thing as I'm now involved in writing the new Code book that governs it (AWS D10.17).

 

[MA_PE]

ouch. did the cage save that guy?

 

[Dexman PE PMP]

From the news article, both the driver and his co-pilot were taken to an area hospital with minor injuries.

http://www.9news.com/news/article/282975/339/WATCH-Pikes-Peak-crash-caught-on-camera

 

[Supe]

There was another driver whose throttle hung open and he went straight off the side of another track section at 130mph roughly. They used the jaws of life to remove the top half of his roll cage, entire car was covered in mud, but the cage and his Hans device saved him.

Thankfully, the hill climb I'll be running in September had the track location chosen so that there are, at a minimum, guard rails on either side of the track or a rock face, so you can crash, but are less likely to plummet to your death.

 

[Supe]

Seat is FINALLY installed. Took car around the block yesterday, brake pedal is a little low, needs adjusted. Clutch works like a dream. Car is jerky on deceleration, don't know if its the new clutch or the rear end giving me fits, probably a combination of both. Car stumbles a little off idle, probably a combination of carb setup, bad old gas, and vacuum leaks somewhere. Alternator doesn't seem to be charging, need to see if I knocked the charge wire loose somewhere. A few other electrical odds and ends, but its coming along. Need to get the diff drained and put some synthetic fluid in there and cross my fingers. I have a replacement ready to go, but it appears to be quite the production to get that thing out of there.

 

[Supe]

Woohoo! Got brakes back in the Mazda. Took the two of us quite a while, but we were able to get them bled. The old ABS unit that was pulled had its seals deteriorate so badly, that when we finally got past the blockage (by pumping the brakes up, then cracking the bleeder), that what came out was the color of dirty motor oil. Actually have a pedal back now, so all that really leaves for the race later this month is to get the electrical cutoff switch installed, and figure out where I'm getting this miss at part throttle. UPS guy brought me some carburetor parts today, so that will be tomorrow's project.

 

[Supe]

If anybody's interested, here's a link to the site of the hillclimb I'll be running, complete with some videos from the previous races:

/>http://www.dragonhillclimb.com/

 

[pbrme]

If anybody's interested, here's a link to the site of the hillclimb I'll be running, complete with some videos from the previous races:

http://www.dragonhillclimb.com/

Looks like fun, good luck on finishing your build and chasing that dragon!