Nope.

Will try and remember to mount the GoPro for the RAL event.

Cheers,

Charlie

 

A wise person once quipped "why be difficult, when with a little extra effort one can be impossible?".

In the same spirit, and having already removed a number of completely functional and very shiny parts from the new Gollum, I today took the plunge and ordered two of the only four alternate steering knuckles (hub carriers? spindles?) now present in the US. They will be fetched from Philadelphia, and arrive next Tuesday.

And on Friday, one day before the competition debut, my dear friends at Mini Of Peabody (including co-conspirators Joel [service] and Tom [parts]) will undertake the following completely unnecessary work:

1. compression check (I do like a baseline, it comes in handy later)
2. oil change (at 1,500 miles, 'cause I am relentlessly old school)
3. R&R all four Toyos to replace the TPMS sensors (at Tire Rack's expense)
4. replace the front knuckles with the alternate part which yields -30 min of camber
5. alignment - to measure the result, and ensure that all is optimum in addition to having the maximum legal negative camber out front per SCCA regulations

And then - it's time to go racing.

BWAHAHAHAhahhaa... harumph. Hee hee.

Lord help me I am bull goose looney.

Cheers,

Charlie

 

What exactly are these 'knuckles' you speak of?!

 

In the R56, they are: http://www.minipartsmass.com/parts/2...iagram=1972345

 

I love this thread.

 

LOL - me too! Some kids just never grow up.

All the best,

Charlie

 

As requested, here's a sample of Gollum III for your dining and dancing pleasure...


Cheers,

Charlie

 

Sounds Great Charlie. Thanks for sharing

 

Did you have them remove the muffler section completely and fab up a new pipe to fit, or did they cut the muffler out and splice in some new piping?

I'm excited to hear that the 3 banger has a decent grunt under it.

 

That's a cut & splice job. In my view it is still a little too quiet.

Much better though!

Cheers,

Charlie

 

Ladies and Gentlemen - may I present.... CAMBER!!!



Which looks like this


Which was done by Sarak (Ace Mechanic and Magic Knuckles), Joel (Ace Mechanic and Alignment), Graham (Service Advisor), all made possible by Tom (Parts).

The best unofficial pit crew ever - from Mini of Peabody. Thank you!

 

Great- so, to re-cap- it was the new knuckles that gave this camber? Do you know how much you had in stock form?

 

Are the part numbers the same then for the F56 as the R56?

 

Yes, I do not know, and again I do not know.

If I guess, then stock is 0 degrees, and the part numbers are completely different.

But them's guesses.

Cheers,

Charlie

Ps: I set comp tire pressures (41/48) and checked the balance again. Nice! The oversteer is there if I really ask for it, and there is no significant roll over on the Toyos out front even if I run a fair bit of slip angle at them. I might actually be able to back the fronts down a few pounds to increase the contact patch - will find out tomorrow. It's still all theory until I get a clock on the car (although it runs the test area @ 63 which is a new top mark for street rubber).

 

Ahhh you beat me to chopping the muffler off!

From day 1 I've been dying to do it, and had a sneaking suspicion the car would sound great and not be loud at all. From what I can tell in your video, I was right....

Hate to be a pain....but can you get an exterior clip and also accelerate a wee bit harder than you were in the video?

Also, good find on the added camber....think I figured it out, but confirmation of part numbers would be lovely

I can only assume its "2" in this diagram:


Part numbers for the set that gains negative camber being:
31216860989, left
31216860990, right

....am I correct in this?

 

You rule for adding that lovely diagram, and you are correct I think in the Part #. In my fussing about the other day I left MoP without hard copy of the repair order, so in a while I shall fix that, and then will confirm the part numbers.

Thanks,

Charlie

Ps: Gollum III lost his virginity yesterday, with 12 runs on a short but entertaining course up at NHMS. Preliminary indicators:

1. nope, I am not an idiot, Gollum III is an autocross car like his predecessors
2. yep, I need a bit of practice to get the best from the new setup
3. yep Nik Finn and Warren Barck are not only great folks, they are also fast
4. all THREE of us were on the same TENTH on that course (Nik in the Fiesta ST, Warren in the Impreza RS)
5. every single driver there was beaten in the single elimination bracket race that awards the Jeff Gordon trophy (which as last year's winner I remembered to bring...)
6. that talented driver, who took the trophy which is only about 9" shorter than she is is..... (drum roll) Kimsoo Gopnik!

I also had the pleasure of taking another of our talented junior drivers (Felix Beck) on the "track tour" around the NHMS road course towards the end of the day. Felix was great company, likes roller coasters, and therefore we had a very good time indeed during the 6 laps we took around the course, particularly turns three and six!

 

Well the points event on Sunday is in the books. Gollum PAX'd 9th on the day and took top honors in G Street. That is a very good start, but there is much still to learn as we ran on the postage stamp course up at NHMS where no car can stretch its legs.

Next Sunday we shall go to Devens where that mighty 2nd gear can be fully used, and that will be the most important test. I have a very good feeling about it, but as they say when the flag drops...

Regrettably the GoPro mount is too low, so this
this
short video of my last run is pretty much useless except for watching the steering wheel.

Here
Here
however, is a nice tour of the nethermost parts of NHMS, including a short blast through the tunnel to the infield, and a view of the paddock areas.

More to come, but I must admit today was a very good day indeed.

And, Kimsoo raw-timed her Dad! (Oh sharper than a serpent's tooth...)

Cheers,

Charlie

PS: The season results to date have Gollum II at the top of H Street, and Gollum III in 5th place in G Street.

 

So the matter is settled. Gollum is a suitable G Street car. I drove like sh*t and took second.

Here is the apology I posted to the NER web forums.

Sometimes life really sucks.

Sorry to bum you out - if you dunno what GBM is, smile - you are blessed.

Cheers,

Charlie

"My thanks to all for allowing me to compete last Sunday.

I came to Devens from a 30 hour shift looking after my big sister, which began in Cambridge and ended at MGH. The last few weeks have been very difficult, and a brief return to the joy and normality of our sport was most welcome.

I thought I could leave my grief and stress aside for the occasion, but it turned out I couldn't. I had fun, but eventually my condition started leaking around my defenses and by the last run of the day I could not even shift the car cleanly.

When Chris (who had generously allowed me to stow my computer and a few other bits under his tarp) picked up at the end of the day, taking great care and leaving my kit on his passenger seat I was caught out, and to my great surprise and embarrassment I just melted down.

Thanks to all who tolerated my over-reaction, scraped me off the ceiling, and ultimately helped me to gather myself back up and get home. I am deeply touched, and very grateful for my extended family within the NER community.

For those of you who do not know what glioblastoma is, count yourselves lucky, and tell your loved ones how dear they are as often as you can.

Sincerely,

Charlie"





That's more than a G of turn, so the Sport Suspension and the negative camber from the alternate knuckles seem to work. Note the outside front camber.

 

:(

 

oh no... i had no idea

so what now? are you going to lincoln?

 

to living each day to the fullest

 

Amen.

 

Gollum III is such a different car than his predecessors. Same lineage, different personality - different rhythms.

This is the first turbocharged car I've ever owned, and that matters.

The good news is that the tiny whistle spikes below 2,000 rpm, and the power from 2,500 to 5,000 is very good indeed. Driving therefore can become a grand touring waltz as opposed to the slightly nervous humming of the H Street car. In 4th gear that rev range covers a lot of ground.

But I am still trying to figure out how to change up quickly without the car stumbling a little, apparently coming off the boost momentarily. I am not inclined to be mechanically cruel, so the "two tenths" shift with accompanying 2nd gear wheelspin is not part of my repertoire.

A two second shift - lazily double clutching while listening to the revs fall from 4,800 to 2,500 - seems to work best. Rolling off the throttle as I leave 1st, and rolling back in as 2nd ultimately appears produces a lovely smooth change with an instant rush of power in the next gear.

Not exactly a racing change, but easy on the shiny parts and aesthetically pleasing.

Steering input too seems to want to be just a little smoother, as without the stiff damping of the previous car's Koni yellows I find it slightly easier to unbalance the chassis in transitions.

On the street, the car is vastly better than the R56 - faster, smoother, and amazingly long legged on the highway.

On the course I need to see ahead and be smooth - G Street and H Street are different.

Cheers,

Charlie

 

The vastly reduced torque-steer, is that helpful on the track? Something you noticed?

 

Didn't notice.