Showing posts with label Motorsports. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Motorsports. Show all posts
Monday, March 30, 2015
Hot Action Under the California Sun
Our weekend at Chuckwalla Valley Raceway starts as a story about being stuck smack in the middle. While probably not the middle of nowhere, CVR is, in fact, in a pretty desolate area almost precisely equidistant from the EFF Home Base in the greater Phoenix area, and our home in San Diego. Unfortunately for everyone without a sleeper RV, it is also almost precisely equidistant from neighboring towns Blythe and Indio, which made for some early mornings and late evenings as we all carpooled some 45 minutes to and from the nearest hotel in Blythe.
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Thursday, April 30, 2009
Weekend Project: BMW Double VANOS rebuild
Double-wha? Simply put, VANOS (Variable Nockenwellen Steuerung) is BMW's name for their fancy oil-driven system for variable valve timing in their 6-cylinder engines. Oil is pumped into pistons which move the camshafts fore and aft to hit slightly different cam profiles, thus increasing engine performance and fuel economy. The problem? Due to a failure of materials design, basically every VANOS engine from 1992 to 2006 will eventually develop leaks that prevent the pistons from functioning correctly. If you're under warranty or willing to spend the money, they will happily fit a rebuilt VANOS assembly with the same design flaw and the same failure mode. A full explanation can be found at Beisan Systems, written by the clever bloke who figured out the problem and the solution for his own car, only to be told by BMW that "no further development" would be done on the design.Luca, one of the members of the local San Diego BMW Z Car Club (SDBMWZCC) had done the research into this problem for his own stable of BMWs. Luca is an awesome shadetree mechanic, and I've never seen him do something half-assed, so if he was going to fix his wife's Z4, it was going to be done right, which meant fitting the upgraded O-rings and Teflon seals from Beisan Systems into the VANOS pistons. And in a display of car-club-generosity unmatched in many months, he also organized a group purchase to bring the price down the price of the parts, then hosted a clinic at his condo where several other Z-owners could turn their own wrenches under his guidance!
With a Sunday appointment, I readied my tools and headed off to the clinic. None of this work is terribly difficult, but quite a few parts have to be stripped back from the head in order to get the VANOS assembly off, including the valve cover, spark coils and harness, and fan. Since the cars are low, this isn't exactly easy, but this process is really good for getting familiar with the more intimate parts of the engine, and I got my first really good look at how the VANOS system interacts with the cam shafts.
Once removed, we drained the VANOS (onto a diaper for easy cleanup, seen here), disassembled and cleaned it, then reassembled it. The actual upgrade takes only a few minutes, its just too bad that you have to spend several hours pulling things off the engine to get to it. After the new seals were fitted to the pistons, everything gets reassembled and refitted, re-torqued, and replaced. Sadly, getting this intimate with the Z did reveal some of her other flaws, namely some crusty guff near the thermostat housing that indicates a coolant leak. I'll be dealing with that next, but I'll be passing that one off to a professional because I lack the tools and patience to deal with draining, refilling and correctly purging the cooling system on a BMW.
And finally, after a test drive, I can report that yes, the fix was worth the effort and makes a noticeable difference. There is a noticeable increase in "urgency" from the engine, especially at the lower revs. The transition into VANOS can be felt but is subtle, but overall everything feels more powerful now. Most importantly, I know I won't have to look forward to doing this again in 20k or 30k miles as I would with the OEM seals.
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Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Miata Parts for Sale
This posting is for all of my Miata owning friends and former club-mates from the SD Miata Club. As much as I miss the SDMC after selling my Miata "Elsie" a couple of years ago, its time to face the fact that I'll probably not have another Miata anytime soon, so I need to sell the remaining accessories that have been hanging around in my garage.
I have the following items for sale. Please contact me with any questions you may have. I'll also arrange pictures on request.
Wheels: SOLD
Hardtop: SOLD
Flyin Miata MiataLINK ECU + Injectors:
1994-1995 cars only (*see below for 1989-1993)
This is a fully programmable REPLACEMENT ECU, allows tuning of spark, fuel, rev-limiter, even fan temperature! Used on a Normally Aspirated car, the MiataLINK is good for 5-10hp (with deletion of restrictive intake air sensor). Example here.
On a Forced Induction car, this is really the ultimate solution for making "the big power". The LINK ECU has seen as much as 400HP! Example here.
I am including all of the following:
Flyin Miata says this:
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I have the following items for sale. Please contact me with any questions you may have. I'll also arrange pictures on request.
Wheels: SOLD
Hardtop: SOLD
Flyin Miata MiataLINK ECU + Injectors:
1994-1995 cars only (*see below for 1989-1993)
This is a fully programmable REPLACEMENT ECU, allows tuning of spark, fuel, rev-limiter, even fan temperature! Used on a Normally Aspirated car, the MiataLINK is good for 5-10hp (with deletion of restrictive intake air sensor). Example here.
On a Forced Induction car, this is really the ultimate solution for making "the big power". The LINK ECU has seen as much as 400HP! Example here.
I am including all of the following:
- MiataLINK ECU, mounted in spare 1995 ECU case, so you can keep your current ECU cased up as a backup. Basically a plug-in operation, just a couple of wires have to be moved in the harness. ($1546 value)
- RC 550 Injectors, recommended for Forced Induction installations, includes Injector ballasts ($415 value)
- Intake Air Temp. sensor
- Optional knock sensor ($92 value)
- Programming keypad, and all interface cables and manuals
- Serial link adapter for use with Laptop or PDA ($80 value)
- BONUS: Compaq PDA that can program and log from the ECU if you don't have a laptop. (Laptop and DataLogLab software recommended for initial programming).
- * I also have an adapter harness to use this with the 1.6L ('89-93) cars. I've never used it myself, but this was built and used by the original owner of the MiataLINK that I purchased from. FlyinMiata doesn't officially support this option via tech-support, as far as I know, but for an adventurous 1.6L owner, this could be a steal of a deal.
Flyin Miata says this:
Total control. This fully programmable ECU (Engine Control Unit) gives you the ability to change everything from fuel and timing curves to the temperature at which your fan turns on. If you want to produce safe power out of a forced induction engine, it`s a must - so it`s included with many of our kits. Also eliminates the stock airflow meter for less intake restriction. Naturally aspirated cars benefit as well! This is the most popular engine management for the Miata, and for good reason.
The software that the ECU runs is written specifically for the Miata and is not available anywhere else. Instead of adapting a generic computer and sensors to your car, this will start up the first time and has been developed to make your Miata run as well as possible. To safeguard your engine, it will even go into a limp-home mode if the certain sensors indicate a problem. Naturally it comes with Flyin' Miata's full support by both phone and email.
Read more from Flyin' Miata Here.
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Saturday, May 19, 2007
Question of the Weekend: Why do you love cars?
So Jonny Lieberman, one of the people that exist in the form of www.jalopnik.com, is asking the important question, Why do you love cars?
This is one of those litmus test questions that determines if certain folks are the kind you can "hang with", or not. Unfortunately the answer isn't as simple as my usual friend filters: Cheesesteak: Provolone or Whiz? and Designated Hitter: Pro or Con? Get the answer to either of these questions wrong, and I just can't hang with you. Period.
I like lots of people, both Car-People and non-Car-People. But it turns out, that I don't like all Car-People, and some of them just bug the snot out of me. In my youth I would have assumed that all car-people could hang with other car-people. What experience teaches, though, is that there's a kind of formal courtesy thats extended among car-people during the "feeling out" phase that could be mistaken for genuine amity. Instead, it may be a polite acceptance of another character, possibly as tense or awkward as if you were forced to befriend someone with nearly offensive views of your religion or politics.
For example, lets assume you're in the awkward situation of escorting your spouse to a work party, and find yourself seated at a table of ten strangers. You are then introduced to another party guest with the near epithet "This is Bob from accounting, you're both Car-Guys. You should have lots to talk about". Thus begins the "feeling out" of this other Car-Guy. You'll chat about the iron you've owned and driven, and about what your current project may be, but all of this is really about finding out one critical fact about this person, the Why of his love for cars. In the end, you may have found a kindred spirit, or you may have just met another asshole who likes cars, but doesn't like them for the right reasons.
To me the funniest thing about this search for truth, is that the criteria of the Why, the meat of "whether or not I can hang with you", usually has little or nothing to do with the coarse preferences of things like "American versus Foreign", "NASCAR vs. F1", or even "DAF vs. FAF". Even as much I'd rather watch an afternoon of nearly anything instead of a NASCAR race, I'll risk cliche' and say that "some of my best friends are NASCAR fans". No, the question of Why do you love cars? is an important departure from the simpler Do you love cars?, which is all that most "outsiders" ever see of us. It answers a more deeply rooted question about someone's hopes, dreams, and sentiments.
Its about finding a linkage to a common experience, emotion, or hope. Did you grow up working on cars with your Dad? When did you hear your first V12? (Can you even remember when you heard your first V12?) Are you excited about the emerging hybrid technology trend? These are just elements in a complex equation of questions and answers. Each of these reveals a little something about yourself. While complex, this "test" has a definitive answer. In the end, we'll have found that either our paths are destined to cross at an intersection, or to run in together in a caravan.
So Why do I love cars? As we've seen, its a hard question for me to answer in a declarative way. I can offer a dozen stories from my youth that tell the sanguine tale of how I came to kneel at the altar of iron. I could wax rhapsodic about how the art and engineering of cars inspire me and demonstrate the best of what it is to be a creative human being. Instead, I think I will say that the fact that I can't answer the question directly is, in fact, the answer. So tell me your stories about your favorite cars, and maybe we can hang out. Read More...
This is one of those litmus test questions that determines if certain folks are the kind you can "hang with", or not. Unfortunately the answer isn't as simple as my usual friend filters: Cheesesteak: Provolone or Whiz? and Designated Hitter: Pro or Con? Get the answer to either of these questions wrong, and I just can't hang with you. Period.
I like lots of people, both Car-People and non-Car-People. But it turns out, that I don't like all Car-People, and some of them just bug the snot out of me. In my youth I would have assumed that all car-people could hang with other car-people. What experience teaches, though, is that there's a kind of formal courtesy thats extended among car-people during the "feeling out" phase that could be mistaken for genuine amity. Instead, it may be a polite acceptance of another character, possibly as tense or awkward as if you were forced to befriend someone with nearly offensive views of your religion or politics.
For example, lets assume you're in the awkward situation of escorting your spouse to a work party, and find yourself seated at a table of ten strangers. You are then introduced to another party guest with the near epithet "This is Bob from accounting, you're both Car-Guys. You should have lots to talk about". Thus begins the "feeling out" of this other Car-Guy. You'll chat about the iron you've owned and driven, and about what your current project may be, but all of this is really about finding out one critical fact about this person, the Why of his love for cars. In the end, you may have found a kindred spirit, or you may have just met another asshole who likes cars, but doesn't like them for the right reasons.
To me the funniest thing about this search for truth, is that the criteria of the Why, the meat of "whether or not I can hang with you", usually has little or nothing to do with the coarse preferences of things like "American versus Foreign", "NASCAR vs. F1", or even "DAF vs. FAF". Even as much I'd rather watch an afternoon of nearly anything instead of a NASCAR race, I'll risk cliche' and say that "some of my best friends are NASCAR fans". No, the question of Why do you love cars? is an important departure from the simpler Do you love cars?, which is all that most "outsiders" ever see of us. It answers a more deeply rooted question about someone's hopes, dreams, and sentiments.
Its about finding a linkage to a common experience, emotion, or hope. Did you grow up working on cars with your Dad? When did you hear your first V12? (Can you even remember when you heard your first V12?) Are you excited about the emerging hybrid technology trend? These are just elements in a complex equation of questions and answers. Each of these reveals a little something about yourself. While complex, this "test" has a definitive answer. In the end, we'll have found that either our paths are destined to cross at an intersection, or to run in together in a caravan.
So Why do I love cars? As we've seen, its a hard question for me to answer in a declarative way. I can offer a dozen stories from my youth that tell the sanguine tale of how I came to kneel at the altar of iron. I could wax rhapsodic about how the art and engineering of cars inspire me and demonstrate the best of what it is to be a creative human being. Instead, I think I will say that the fact that I can't answer the question directly is, in fact, the answer. So tell me your stories about your favorite cars, and maybe we can hang out. Read More...
Thursday, January 18, 2007
We're Getting It: BMW 135i Coming to US - Jalopnik
We're Getting It: BMW 135i Coming to US - Jalopnik
Hooray!!!
During our trip to Germany last summer, this was one of my favorite "foreign" cars we'd spotted. (I was also a big fan of the various Smart offerings, especially the Smart Roadster, Kim liked the Smart ForTwo).
I have to say that, up-close, the Bangle "Flame Edge" treatment actually seems to work on the scale of the 1-series cars. (In the same way that it "sort of works" on the Z4 coupe.) The cars very purposeful looking, and have a similar "hunkered down" look as my E36/8 Z3 Coupe (although not as extreme).
Hopefully, the modern suspension design will allow them to comport themselves in a more "gentlemanly" manner, as my E36/8 is a handful. Definitely not a "beginners" car. She'll hang the tail on a whim and leave it hanging "'till you run out of petrol" as Jeremy Clarkson once said of the car on Top Gear.
The 135 (with the biturbo mill from the new 335 coupe) makes me think that maximum hoonage is likely to ensue. (Big power, low weight, and RWD is a recipe for hoonage if there ever was one).
For now, us 'mericans can sate our taste for Bavarian tail hanging with this little diddy courtesy of Google Videos. Read More...
Hooray!!!
During our trip to Germany last summer, this was one of my favorite "foreign" cars we'd spotted. (I was also a big fan of the various Smart offerings, especially the Smart Roadster, Kim liked the Smart ForTwo).
I have to say that, up-close, the Bangle "Flame Edge" treatment actually seems to work on the scale of the 1-series cars. (In the same way that it "sort of works" on the Z4 coupe.) The cars very purposeful looking, and have a similar "hunkered down" look as my E36/8 Z3 Coupe (although not as extreme).
Hopefully, the modern suspension design will allow them to comport themselves in a more "gentlemanly" manner, as my E36/8 is a handful. Definitely not a "beginners" car. She'll hang the tail on a whim and leave it hanging "'till you run out of petrol" as Jeremy Clarkson once said of the car on Top Gear.
The 135 (with the biturbo mill from the new 335 coupe) makes me think that maximum hoonage is likely to ensue. (Big power, low weight, and RWD is a recipe for hoonage if there ever was one).
For now, us 'mericans can sate our taste for Bavarian tail hanging with this little diddy courtesy of Google Videos. Read More...
Friday, June 10, 2005
Lucky Guy
So I know I have a fantastic spouse. I love her, and she makes me very happy. But every now and then you get a little extra reminder of just how lucky you are...
Had one of those moments recently, thought I should share:
The setting:
~6:50am on a Friday morning
Kimberley is getting ready for work and I'm sitting in bed trying to wake up; watching the Practice Round of the Formula 1 European Grand Prix on the TiVo. (Delayed several hours, time-zones and what-not)
While Kimberley moves from bedroom to bathroom and back, doing her morning routine, the commentators are laying out the "story lines" for the coming race:
Honda returns after a 2-race ban! Will Bridgestone sort out their tire problems? Can Kimi Raikkonen take his fourth straight pole?
And of course, the big one: The FIA and team owners have agreed to change the qualifying format:
Instead of determining the race order via the "current" system of aggregating times from a Saturday afternoon one-lap session and a Sunday morning one-lap session, they will now do only a single session on Saturday, and that time will determine race order.
At which point my darling bride sticks her head back into the bedroom and asks:
"Is that on race fuel, or light tanks?"
:) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)
That she was even LISTENING to the commentary was a pleasant fact. That she understood the significant difference 60 kilos or so of fuel can have on qualifying speed AND race strategy?!?!?!
Wow, I'm a lucky guy. Read More...
Had one of those moments recently, thought I should share:
The setting:
~6:50am on a Friday morning
Kimberley is getting ready for work and I'm sitting in bed trying to wake up; watching the Practice Round of the Formula 1 European Grand Prix on the TiVo. (Delayed several hours, time-zones and what-not)
While Kimberley moves from bedroom to bathroom and back, doing her morning routine, the commentators are laying out the "story lines" for the coming race:
Honda returns after a 2-race ban! Will Bridgestone sort out their tire problems? Can Kimi Raikkonen take his fourth straight pole?
And of course, the big one: The FIA and team owners have agreed to change the qualifying format:
Instead of determining the race order via the "current" system of aggregating times from a Saturday afternoon one-lap session and a Sunday morning one-lap session, they will now do only a single session on Saturday, and that time will determine race order.
At which point my darling bride sticks her head back into the bedroom and asks:
"Is that on race fuel, or light tanks?"
:) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)
That she was even LISTENING to the commentary was a pleasant fact. That she understood the significant difference 60 kilos or so of fuel can have on qualifying speed AND race strategy?!?!?!
Wow, I'm a lucky guy. Read More...
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