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Ice Driving School

This time last week, I was outside in my t-shirt and shorts starting to get ready for the first CCA driver’s school of the year at Summit Point. This year, the first school was to be on the main circuit, usually everyone’s favorite event. In February as the snow was blowing, we were all a bit concerned by having the event so early in the year, but as March started to warm up, those fears seemed unfounded. And then it started to snow again. I remember heading out the unplowed backroads from Charlestown to Summit Point thinking, “what am I doing?…” The idea of traving at speed on a track was far fom my mind as I concentrated on staying on the road.

When we arrived, the track was plowed, but covered in places by thick sheets of black ice. We proceeded with classroom work and opened the skid-pad. By 11 it was time for quick reconnaissance laps of the track which proved to have warmed fairly quickly. There was some standing water, some bits of ice, and places where the snow was still blowing across the track, but it was doable.

Since the track was covered with snow and ice and I had just changed my suspension, I thought it best to keep with my all-season tires for the first day. I figured that way, I wouldn’t get into trouble since I wouldn’t have much traction to start with. It turned out to be a good strategy as the snow melted and the track became quite wet in spots. By Sunday, the weather had warmed to the 40’s and the snow retreated quite rapidly. The track was still wet in spots, but it was sunny most of the day so the shaved track tires came out and my pace picked up considerably. In all, my pace was still off of the lap times from last Fall, but then again, we aren’t keeping track. Here’s the last session Sunday:

sundaylastsession

The new suspension worked out great. The car is very stable at speed, neutral in the corners, and turns like a cat on carpet. The cold, dense air really gave a boost to the super-charger and I found myself hanging with much higher horsepower cars that I couldn’t keep up with in the summer.

Lower & Faster

Part two of the suspension upgrade brought new springs and adjustable camber plates in the front.  This proved too much of a challenge for me to attempt at home so I went to Frederick Motorsports.  I hadn’t visited Scott since I had my Alfa four years ago.  It was a challenge to wrestle the plates in and get them adjusted since the new springs were still stock diameter.  I think the setup will be better once I get some coil-overs, but for now, at least I have some camber in the front.  This photo shows the change in ride height from the new TSW Lowering Springs. Overlay on rear wheel arch shows the difference.

Here’s the  current alignment:

alignment

I’m heading off to Summit Point this weekend for a DE on the main circuit.  The weather isn’t cooperating as it’s currently sleeting outside and we expect a couple of inches of snow overnight.  MINI does really well in the wet, but I doubt I’ll really get a feel for what the new suspension can do unless it dries out and warms out a bit.

MINI Rear Lower Camber Arms DIY

Notwithstanding the six inches of snow and ice in my backyard, it’s almost track season again. My first test & tune autocross is less than two weeks away and on March 17th I head off to the main circuit at Summit Point for the first HPDE of the year. My current project is to improve the suspension of the MINI. My goals are to fine tune the front end grip by installing adjustable camber plates in the front; install some firmer springs that will lower the car just a little; and install adjustable lower control arms to keep the rear camber in check. I don’t think I’ll get to the plates and springs before my next track event, but here’s how to install the control arms. This information is posted for entertainment purposes only — no wagering. Attempt at your own risk.

In this post, I’m installing Hotchkis Sport adjustable camber arms on a 2004 Cooper S. They are quite a bit beefier than the stock arms and the design is quiet (unlike heim-joint arms). The 2002-2004 cars did not have any rear camber adjustment built into the rear wheel carrier. On the 2005-2006 models there was a limited amount of adjustability, but not enough to compensate for lowering springs. If you install performance lowering springs, it’s critical to use camber arms to correct camber or you will wear the inside edge of your tires and possibly rub the inside wheel well. The instructions below came from Hotchkis Performance, with my two cents thrown in as well.

Tools Required:

  • 18mm wrench
  • 18mm socket
  • one inch extension
  • 1 1/8 inch wrench

Raise the rear end of your MINI and place it on Jackstands. Be sure to work on a level surface and only use the official jack points.

Stock Lower Control Arm

With the vehicle slightly off the ground, you can start on either side of the car. You do not need to remove the road wheel. Start by removing the lower link. Use the 18mm wrench to remove the outside bolt. [Spray it with WD-40 first. On my car one side was quite corroded.] As you start to remove the bolt, the wheel will want to come in as the hub is only supported from the upper control arm at this point. You may need to use a jack to push up on the end of the lower control arm to relieve the pressure to remove the bolt.

Inner Bolt

Use the 18mm wrench with 18mm socket to remove the inside bolt. Depending on the length of your socket, you may need to use the extension. There isn’t a lot of room to get your socket and driver in between the sub-frame and foot-well. I had to use my breaker bar since it had a lower profile than my driver. You may have to push back the aluminum insulation to free the inside bolt. Once the inside bolt is removed, the arm will drop free.

Arm removed

Remove the control arm and place it on a flat surface. Place one of the new control arms over it and line up the sleeves at one end. Adjust the new control arm so it is the same length as the stock arm. Use the 1 1/8 inch wrench to tighten the jamb nuts. Use the supplied grease pack to grease the exposed bushing surface on each arm before installation.

Adjust arm length

Install the H-sport arm with the longer section mounted to the inboard side and the short section at the outboard side. Slide the arm into the inboard mount first before the outboard side. Make sure the grease fittings are pointed down. If you car is off the ground, you will need to push out on the bottom of the tire from under the car to have enough room to push the bottom of the arm in place.

Lower end installed

Secure all hardware and repeat the process for the opposite side. The Bentley manual lists the torque on the control arms as 74 ft. lbs.

Expected time is 1 hour. My time: more than that. [More like 2 hours for the first side and 30 minutes for the second side.]

Finished Installation

Weather Control Experiment #2

Clean MINI

Original Post: January 16, 2007. In what’s becoming an annual act of meteorological defiance, I’ve washed and waxed my MINI. In January. What price will I pay? Check back on Groundhog day.

For those of you keeping track, yes that’s the fifth set of wheels you’ve seen on my car. Mark your scorecards: R85 “S-Lites”, which were sold for R82 “8-Spokes”, which were sold for R90 “Cross Spokes” (summer tires) which I still have, Kosei K1 Racing wheels (track tires) which I still have, and now R83 “5-Stars” with all-season run-flats that I use in the winter. Three sets of wheels — that’s not too much, is it? I’m thinking I’d like a fourth set: 15×7 Rotas with V710 Victoracers for autocross.

The runflat technology has actually come quite far in the last three years. My previous set was original equipment on the 17 inch S-Lites. They were Goodyear RS-As and rode like a stage coach. These new tires are Dunlops riding on 16 inch rims. The combination of a taller sidewall and advancement in rubber compounds have greatly enhanced the quality of the ride. They don’t come near the level of grip of my summer tires, but for every-day driving are more than adequate. They are still quite heavy at 43 pound for the tire and wheel combination as compared to 33 pound for my K1s. As an added benefit, I can leave my spare in the garage again.

Update: January 30, 2007: It took some fine-tuning, but I was finally able to appease the weather gods. It seems that washing and waxing one car is not enough to anger the gods, but wash all three cars and you get snow.

January 30th snow

Pulley Cupholder

pulley_cupholderGot a stock supercharger pulley laying around as a paperweight? Tired of having your iPod flop around in search of a good resting place? For about $10, you too can make one of these. The pulley phone holder fits perfectly in the cup-holder. All you need to do is buy one of those cheap phone holders from Radioshack and buy some bolts at Ace hardware and you’re all set.