Day 4
This is the pivotal final day of competition. If all goes well and the car finishes the endurance event, the team comes back with the University of Manitoba's best result, and a strong overall finish.
The day started yesterday, when the engine guys were assigned to replacing the burnt clutch. The engine came out rather quickly, but the clutch just wasn't right. The borrowed parts weren't of the same engine year, so the pressure plates weren't the right dimensions. Long story short, the clutch was a mix of newer model-year friction plates, with the older pressure plates. The long story would include the fact that the engine guys were coming in while the rest of the team were leaving for the track at 7:30 AM.
Unfortunately, with the time it took to replace the clutch, the engine reinstallation was not properly tested. So when the team tried to start the engine, things just weren't perfect. The fuel pump wiring was not in the same proven position and orientation, so when the team tried restarting the motor, they discovered a short in the fuel pump circuit. The fuel pump also needed to be replaced. With frantic calls for help to the other teams, they found another fuel pump and started wiring and plumbing that in.
All this hectic work means they missed their designated time slot for the endurance event, which adds a time penalty, but a finish with this 2-minute penalty added to their endurance run completion time would still guarantee an excellent finish. The team replaced the fuel pump, and the car was ready for running in the afternoon.
After a long, agonizing wait to stage and start the car, the driver finally pulled away and looked good for his first complete lap. The team was confident of the car's engine reliability, and all the chassis bolts were tightened. The clutch was good. The car was fast.
But then, when the car reached the far side of the track on its second lap, it seemed to crawl to a stop. The chain had broken. Their endurance race was done.
Despite its troubles, this was the quickest, most reliable car the team had ever brought out. Fundamentally, it was the 2004 car with the reliability bugs worked out, with some minor, but as a whole significant performance improvements. After some on-site debugging of the electronics and fuel supply, the car had ironed out all of the previous year's weak points in the engine starting, cooling and suspension uprights, which was the plan from the beginning. The chain failure was caused by too much lateral movement of the differential assembly. The team has every confidence that they can fix this and a bring bullet-proof car to the local Winnipeg autocrosses, and show the way with their speed.
All in all, it was a very educational year for this fairly green team. It will be interesting to watch them at the autocrosses this year, and even more interesting to see what they do and how they do it for their next Formula SAE entry.
On with the autocrosses! Winnipeg Sports Car Club's next autocross is June 12th!
The day started yesterday, when the engine guys were assigned to replacing the burnt clutch. The engine came out rather quickly, but the clutch just wasn't right. The borrowed parts weren't of the same engine year, so the pressure plates weren't the right dimensions. Long story short, the clutch was a mix of newer model-year friction plates, with the older pressure plates. The long story would include the fact that the engine guys were coming in while the rest of the team were leaving for the track at 7:30 AM.
Unfortunately, with the time it took to replace the clutch, the engine reinstallation was not properly tested. So when the team tried to start the engine, things just weren't perfect. The fuel pump wiring was not in the same proven position and orientation, so when the team tried restarting the motor, they discovered a short in the fuel pump circuit. The fuel pump also needed to be replaced. With frantic calls for help to the other teams, they found another fuel pump and started wiring and plumbing that in.
All this hectic work means they missed their designated time slot for the endurance event, which adds a time penalty, but a finish with this 2-minute penalty added to their endurance run completion time would still guarantee an excellent finish. The team replaced the fuel pump, and the car was ready for running in the afternoon.
After a long, agonizing wait to stage and start the car, the driver finally pulled away and looked good for his first complete lap. The team was confident of the car's engine reliability, and all the chassis bolts were tightened. The clutch was good. The car was fast.
But then, when the car reached the far side of the track on its second lap, it seemed to crawl to a stop. The chain had broken. Their endurance race was done.
Despite its troubles, this was the quickest, most reliable car the team had ever brought out. Fundamentally, it was the 2004 car with the reliability bugs worked out, with some minor, but as a whole significant performance improvements. After some on-site debugging of the electronics and fuel supply, the car had ironed out all of the previous year's weak points in the engine starting, cooling and suspension uprights, which was the plan from the beginning. The chain failure was caused by too much lateral movement of the differential assembly. The team has every confidence that they can fix this and a bring bullet-proof car to the local Winnipeg autocrosses, and show the way with their speed.
All in all, it was a very educational year for this fairly green team. It will be interesting to watch them at the autocrosses this year, and even more interesting to see what they do and how they do it for their next Formula SAE entry.
On with the autocrosses! Winnipeg Sports Car Club's next autocross is June 12th!
posted by Bob at 2:03 PM
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