In the Shop: DC2 Roll Cage Overhaul (updated)

02 September 2013 Administrator Around the Shop, Customer Rides, King Motorsports, Racing (0)

On the fabrication side of the shop: Roll cage construction progresses on Ian G.'s DC2/K20 road race car. Ian purchased this race car out of the Pacific North West and upon delivery was quite shocked by the (lack of) quality of the roll cage. Ian sawed out the original cage and brought the car to us for a proper NASA/SCCA-legal cage that will provide a much higher level of protection and chassis stiffness.

First step is an ugly one: grind out all the remnants of the original cage. Not for the faint of heart but when complete, you have a clean sheet to work from!



Now that the remnants of the original cage are history we can begin by fabricating the mounting plates for the main hoop. We use 1/8" cold rolled steel plate in this instance. We will MIG weld the side plates to the floor first. A hole will be drilled into the floor so we can drop the main hoop down far enough to TIG weld ALL THE WAY AROUND all tubes welded to the main hoop. Once they are welded, the bottom mounting plate is slid under the main hoop and welded into place.



More about King Motorsports roll cage design, fabrication and installation:
http://www.kingmotorsports.com/c-248-roll-cages.aspx

Update 8/30/2013: NASCAR door bar fabrication. Nearing completion of Ian G.'s DC2 race car safety makeover!

Geoff Foster's Dalt's Honda C Sedan Civic 1200

07 July 2013 Administrator Mugen, Racing, Vintage & Nostalgia (0)



This awesome photo is Geoff Foster in his Dalt's Honda SCCA C Sedan Civic 1200 pictured here at Road Atlanta in 1979. Geoff raced Mini's in Canada for years before switching to a Civic in 1976. Geoff's best finish at the SCCA Runoffs was third in 1980. This car used many Mugen parts available at the time from Keihin CV carbs to a Mugen limited slip. This car was sold to Bill Shaw of CACI fame in after the Runoffs in 1980.



CACI was an early pioneer in the Honda performance market. Bill produced a line of high quality Civic 1200 parts in the mid-late 70's. Some of the highlight products were a twin Weber DCOE intake manifold, angle drive distributor, header and much more. Bill went on to race Civics in the IMSA Radial Sedan series at Riverside in early 1981 which is were this picture was taken. One of the cars was then sold and went on to great fame.......

Mugen Cover Art - Three Decades of Valve Covers

16 June 2013 Administrator Mugen, Racing, Vintage & Nostalgia (0)


We recently came across a 2-page spread of Mugen valve covers produced from 1973 to 2001. Called "MUGEN - One of the Art," the pages lay out 23 photos of Mugen valve covers spanning three decades of racing and performance.


1973 MF-318 - 1.3L L4 FJ1300:



1988 MF-204 - 2.0L L4 16V F-3:



1988 MF-308 - 3.0L V8 32V F2000:



1989 MF-358 - 3.5L V8 32V F-1 spec.:


1990 D16A BASE - 1.6L L4 16V SCCA GT3:



1992 MF-351H - 3.5L V10 40V F-1:



1993 MF-308 - 3.0L V8 32V F3000:



1993 MF-308 - 3.0L V8 32V F3000:



1994 MF-204 - 2.0L L4 16V F-3:



1994 MF-351HC - 3.5L V10 40V F-1:



1994 MF-351HD - 3.5L V10 40V F-1:



1995 H22A BASE - 2.0L L4 16V JTCC:



1995 MF-301H - 3.0L V10 40V F-1:



1996 MF-204A - 2.0L L4 16V VTEC F-3:



1996 MF-301HA - 3.0L V10 40V F-1:



1997 MF-204B - 2.0L L4 16V F-3:



1997 C32B BASE - 3.4L V6 24V JGTC:



1997 H22A BASE - 2.0L L4 16V JTCC:



1997 MF-301HB - 3.0L V10 40V F-1:



1998 MF-301HC - 3.0L V10 40V F-1:



1999 MF-301HD - 3.0L V10 40V F-1:



2000 MF-301HE - 3.0L V10 40V F-1:



2001 MF-408S - 4.0L V8 32V Le-Mans/ALMS:



All 23 Mugen valve covers:


San Pedro: Debut Race! (Updated w/ Vid)

28 May 2013 Administrator Around the Shop, Customer Rides, King Motorsports, Racing (0)

Our Prelude race car project known as San Pedro recently had a great day of testing at Gingerman Raceway. Once back at the shop we did some fine tuning and adjustments based on what we learned.


We prepped spare noses/airdams and splitters in anticipation of San Pedro's debut race at Michigan International Speedway in two weeks.



5/25/2013: San Pedro wins its first National SCCA EP race from the pole of the 2013 race season at Michigan International Speedway today complete with a new lap record! Congrats to Moser Racing - awesome result!



5/26/2013: Day 2 at Michigan International Speedway. San Pedro wins the qualifying race by 39 seconds! Way to go Moser Racing!



Day 2 at Michigan International Speedway and another flag to flag win for San Pedro and the Moser Racing team! Way to go guys!!!!


San Pedro captures the pole in its very first SCCA EP National race of the 2013 race season- pumped!! Go Joe Moser!!!




Fun San Pedro factoid- Top speed at Michigan International Speedway on the banking was 144 mph. Entry speed into Turn 1 off the banking was 62 mph. San Pedro brakes from 144 mph to 62 mph in 63 feet!!!!


The Mosers have posted the video on Youtube!

San Pedro: Unleashed for Testing

03 May 2013 Administrator Customer Rides, King Motorsports, Racing (0)



We put our Prelude race car project known as "San Pedro" through the paces for testing at Gingerman Raceway this week, and the results were fantastic!



San Pedro's driver's office. Easy to read analog gauges, GPS based data aq and adjustable brake bias. Uncomplicated and clean!




Testing going well. First set of Hoosiers are now history.... :)



Starting to use some brakes.... Huge brake ducts and trick race pads. This is way they should look when you use them hard!



The driver says there was a balance problem. The crew refers to this as driver running out of talent :)

For the record, we are extremely happy the driver wants to push the boundaries of adhesion. Sometimes that means going over the limit to find exactly where that limit is. That's precisely why we go testing! We have plenty more splitters where this one came from (it helps that we made our own).



That's a wrap from Gingerman Raceway! We learned what the car likes and finished up 2 seconds under the lap record. A very good day!


Want to ride  along? Watch the San Pedro test video now posted on YouTube!

 


 

Re-inventing "San Pedro" Part 2 (Updated)

07 April 2013 Administrator Around the Shop, Customer Rides, King Motorsports, Racing (0)


We've had so many pictures to share of our 4th gen Honda Prelude race car project (dubbed "San Pedro") that we've decided it's high time to start a new blog post! Welcome to "Re-inventing 'San Pedro' Part 2"!


Update 1/18/2013:


This week we have been working on building the plug from which the mold for the front air dam will be made. The airdam will provide a platform to mount the front splitter once completed. Here we are roughing out the foam core to the basic shape we are looking for.



Once the basic shape has been roughed out, Bondo is applied and sanded into a finished shape. This is a very time consuming process as the entire air dam has to be symmetric -- with a perfect surface finish. Up next, building the mold from this plug and making finished pieces out of carbon fiber! Stay tuned.....



Update 1/24/2013:


Work continues on the front airdam plug. After numerous coats of Bondo and shaping, we are getting close to a finalized shape. Next step is several applications of high build primer and sanding to make the surface of the airdam plug absolutely perfect with no pin holes or sanding marks. This is roughly what the airdam it will look like when attached to the front bumper.




Update 1/30/2013:


We have now completed the plug for the front airdam mold. Before the mold is made from this plug, it will be liberally coated with wax and then with a mold release agent so the fiberglass used in making the mold does not stick to the plug.



Here is an example of what the final mold looks like. The molds are designed to have great strength so there is no potential for any dimension of the final part to change during the lay up process.



The next step in producing the airdam for San Pedro is vacuum bag moulding.

Vacuum bag moulding uses a flexible film to enclose the part and seal it from outside air. A vacuum is then drawn on the vacuum bag and atmospheric pressure compresses the part during the cure process. Vacuum bag material is available in a tube shape or a sheet of material. When a tube shaped bag is used, the entire part can be enclosed within the bag. When using sheet bagging materials, the edges of the vacuum bag are sealed against the edges of the mould surface to enclose the part against an air-tight mould. When bagged in this way, the lower mold is a rigid structure and the upper surface of the part is formed by the flexible membrane vacuum bag. The flexible membrane can be a reusable silicone material or an extruded polymer film. After sealing the part inside the vacuum bag, a vacuum is drawn on the part (and held) during cure. This process can be performed at either ambient or elevated temperature with ambient atmospheric pressure acting upon the vacuum bag. A vacuum pump is typically used to draw a vacuum. An economical method of drawing a vacuum is with a venturi vacuum and air compressor.

A vacuum bag is a bag made of strong rubber-coated fabric or a polymer film used to compress the part during a cure or hardening process. In some applications the bag encloses the entire material, or in other applications a mold is used to form one face of the laminate with the bag being a single layer to seal to the outer edge of the mold face. When using a tube shaped bag, the ends of the bag are sealed and the air is drawn out of the bag through a nipple using a vacuum pump. As a result, uniform pressure approaching one atmosphere is applied to the surfaces of the object inside the bag, holding parts together while the adhesive cures. The entire bag may be placed in a temperature-controlled oven, oil bath or water bath and gently heated to accelerate curing.



Here are rolls of carbon fiber material that will be used to make the final airdam.



Daytona Red race cars have taken over the shop today!




Update 2/26/2013:

San Pedro update! The mold for the front air dam has been completed. Notice the robust construction of the mold to insure there is no chance of a core shift. Pictured is the backside of the mold. The upper and lower half are bolted together and then unbolted to release the final part.



Here is the inside of the front air dam mold for San Pedro. The surface finish has to be glass smooth as your finished part will pick up any imperfections.



A look at the first carbon fiber air dam out of the mold for San Pedro. Next up fitting to the car and measuring for the splitter plank....



Update 3/26/2013:

The front splitter/airdam is now complete and mounted. Next up building shrouding for the radiator, brake ducts and an airbox...



Update 4/3/2013:

In the shop today: TIG welding the aluminum airbox for San Pedro.




Update 4/4/2013:

Yesterday we bid a fond farewell to San Pedro. Next week we'll be testing San Pedro at an "unidentified" race track working various chassis setups. Here are a few photos before San Pedro was loaded up to head to its new home.



San Pedro basking in the sunlight after a winter makeover...



Detail shot of the front airdam/splitter profile. Lot's of downforce to be expected. How much? We shall soon see :)



All that's needed is the spacer between the seat and steering wheel :)




Around the Shop: 2013

25 March 2013 Administrator Around the Shop, Customer Rides, King Motorsports, Racing (0)

When we aren't building race cars or getting the most potential from engine builds, we have plenty of other things to keep us busy. Here are a few examples!


In the shop today: Comprehensive dyno development program completed for the multiple time SCCA ARRC championship ITA CRX. Now on to corner weight and four wheel alignment. You can see another pic of this CRX on the King Motorsports Instagram feed.

 http://www.kingmotorsports.com/c-326-wheel-alignment.aspx

In the shop today- assembling a close-ratio K series transmission for a Lotus Elise with a K swap-nice!

http://www.kingmotorsports.com/c-296-transmission.aspx



In our fab shop, we just finished up TIG welding an EGT bung to this S2000 header. This S2000 will be the test bed for the upcoming revised Kraftwerks SC kit.... More details to follow!

http://www.kingmotorsports.com/e-DM_ProductsPerMfgAndCategory.aspx?CatID=257&ManID=84



Have you checked your rear trailing arm bushings lately? 95% of the cars that we see for service have badly deteriorated rear trailing arm bushings. This condition can lead to very unsafe handling. Here we have just installed a set of PCI rear trailing arm bushings in an 88-91 CRX rear trailing arm.

http://www.kingmotorsports.com/m-78-pci-procar-inovations.aspx



Heading to the track this season? Consider a set of ARP hardened, extended wheel studs. Cheap insurance against bad things happening....

http://www.kingmotorsports.com/e-DM_ProductsPerMfgAndCategory.aspx?CatID=308&ManID=6

Mugen Nostalgia: F1 and Track Apparel (Updated)

16 March 2013 Administrator Mugen, Racing, Vintage & Nostalgia (0)

A little Mugen nostalgia to start off your November!


Damon Hill signed this Jordan Mugen hat for us at the Canadian Grand Prix in 1999 after a great lunch with the Jordan boys. This was Damon's last year driving in F1 and it was clear he was tired of F1. His team mate Heinz Harald Frentzen, by comparison was having a tremendous season and was full of energy and was all smiles......



These Mugen hot fingers gloves were standard issue for all the Mugen mechanics working in the field circa 1989-1990.



Here's a Mugen Sports team jacket circa 1989. Very cool to wear at the track back in the day. Shown here propped up Mugen's new MS-Z Semi Bucket Seat.



Update 2/14/2013:


Here is another great Mugen jacket circa 1998; part of the Mugen/Honda F1 racing team collection.



Update 3/16/2013:


1999 Mugen/Honda Formula 1 team gear...


Mugen Honda Civic AT Group.A Parts Catalog

20 February 2013 Administrator Mugen, Racing, Vintage & Nostalgia (0)


Way back Wednesday- we are going to post the entire Mugen AT Civic Group A parts catalog. We think you'll be amazed at the depth of the parts Mugen made available. You could literally build a turn key competitive Group A Civic from this catalog.


Right-click on an image to see it larger.



The Mugen Group A Civic leads the way. The Group A series was hotly contested by Honda and Toyota with Honda typically having the upper hand...



Mugen Group A Civic engine parts. Forged Mugen pistons with special material connecting rods. There were a few iterations of the connecting rods through the years- some beautifully polished. The Mugen oil pan was a work of art! It strengthened the block and added oil capacity and helped eliminate windage resulting a a 5 hp gain all by itself. The Mugen 30/50 cams were very easy on the valvetrain and had a very sophisticated profile to work with the PGM-FI system.



Part 2 of the Mugen Group A Civic engine parts list- smaller diameter pulleys and the adjustable PGM-Fi ECU and controller. The Mugen hard rubber engine mounts were sold for both race and street cars and made a great improvement! Keeping the engine and engine oil cool was very important- anything over 225 degrees oil temp caused the engine to loose HP.....



Because FIA Group A rules state you must use the factory upper exhaust manifold, considerable time was spent developing the secondary to make the most power. Chromoly lightweight flywheel and AP racing clutch.



One of the big advantages Mugen had over the competition in Group A was a wide range of alternative gear ratios and final drives. With this gearing you could always keep the engine in it's fairly narrow power band. The Mugen Limited slip has been a mainstay of all Honda competition cars all the way back to 1973....



Moving on to the Mugen Group A Civic suspension parts. Here's where things get really interesting. Mugen Showa dampers and upper camber plates, and the really trick front reinforced knuckles designed to be used with an adjustable sleeve that gave even greater camber adjustment. All the different front torsion bar diameters made it easy to dial in the handling to suit the track.




Here we have the quick ratio Mugen steering box (RHD) and 21mm front sway bar. The Mugen rear trailing arms were made specifically to help keep the correct suspension geometry. Mugen made three rear springs rates available, However most opted for an even higher rate linear spring.



The Mugen Group A rear axle with adjustable Panhard rod. The Mugen internal sway bars really worked well and we sold quite a few to street and race enthusiasts. Check out those Mugen 15" wheels......!!!!



We have covered how Mugen made the AT Civic go and handle, so how did they make it stop? 4 piston AP calipers and full floating front brake rotors, single master cylinder and rear disc conversion with all the needed brake lines.



Here's the Mugen brake proportioning assembly and yes- the FIA required a hand brake.....



The Mugen Group A fuel system. A custom ATL 90 liter fuel cell with pump and swirl tank. Don't forget the Mugen gauge cluster with 10K tach. And Mugen SW-36 steering wheel to grab onto!



Lastly the Mugen aluminum FIA roll cage.....



Add up all those Mugen parts with a few hundred hours of labor and this will be you!