1973 Midget build by ianjoub

6 minute(s) of a 203 minute read

1-11-2015

Ok, new discovery. I need 2 hands to drive this thing. I went down a nice twisty road and was unable to video while driving. The car does handle as well as I expected though! I am getting used to the power delivery. Itt does light up the tires in 6th gear too when the turbo spools up. I was practicing 'pedaling' it today trying to not kill myself. I have one short video of a 3rd gear roll on while pedaling it to keep down the wheel spin. The speedo is calibrated correctly to my GPS. It reads 58 at an actual 60 mph.

1-13-2015

I dug my contour cam out of mothballs. I d/l'd the latest software for it. I will try to get some real footage in the next couple of days....

What view do y'all want?

Rollbar view of dash and forward?

Hood facing forward?

Undercarriage looking at rear tires and suspension?

View of me holding on for dear life trying to make the shifts while keeping everything in line?

An inquiring mind wants to know :p

1-14-2015

Ok, I got the camera mount attached to the rollbar facing forward. With any luck, we will get views of the dash and the road ahead. The Contour cam does 1080p at 25 or 30 frames per second, so hopefully it will look good!

I also welded up a fire extinguisher mount today. I did not have my still camera with me though, so no pics until tomorrow.

1-15-2015

On the lower cross bar of the rollbar, in the center, is the camera mount



Hopefully I can get some video today. If so, I will edit this evening and post tomorrow...


I also mounted the fire extinguisher



I used the hanger that comes with it, welded up another bracket with anti vibration foam in it, and will use a velcro strap to hold it down

This is in 1080p, full screen is best. You can see the tach and speedo...

1-16-2015

The fun starts close to the 4 minute mark. Methinks this will be a very capable autocross car.

Open youtube and watch it in fullscreen mode.

1-17-2015

Thanks for the kind words and encouragement everyone!

Phil, so far the brakes appear to be up to the task. I have not used them extensively from high speeds as would happen on a roadrace course yet though. With autocross courses being under 60 seconds most times, I don't think that will be an issue. I did buy some of the Castrol SRF brake fluid at $60/ Qt though. It has a boiling point of 500 degrees and should be good insurance against brake fade. I also plan to duct cooling air from next to the intercooler intake and direct it onto the front rotors.

1-18-2015

Twice in this video, I have a little shifting problem. It doesn't seem to happen when driving hard, only when short shifting. I think the linkage may be binding a little or dragging on something.

I also had a problem with the intake hoses popping off at the clamps when hard on the boost. I will need to find a better way to secure them.

I also am seeing too rich fuel trim when cruising. I am getting some 10:1 and even lower. This is rich enough to wash cylinder walls. I think the boost controller may have gotten moved providing the wrong boost pressures as well as I see over 20 psi on the boost gauge occasionally.

These things are projects, so I will continue to work out 'issues' as they arise.

At any rate, one more video for good measure. The next one should be some live autocross action!

1-20-2015

I started doing a little of the bodywork, namely filling in holes in the sheet metal

1-21-2015

This is the connection that kept blowing apart under boost



This is my attempt at a solution, flare the ends of the connector



Yes, progress is slowing as paying work is increasing....

1-26-2015

Well, more bugs to work out. I lost the starter:





The gear it rides on, looks ok though. I have a used starter coming that I will rob the main shaft out of. A new one from Suzuki is close to $400.