2118 replies to this topic

[rexy]

I saw your car parked up beneath the railway line on Toorak road in Camberwell last Saturday night near midnight on the way home from the Gunners concert.

 

Booty call?

[Heath]

Quite the opposite. That was my first time with the car on a tow truck. The hazard lights were on and I was waiting (4hrs) for a tilt tray. I got back to the workshop at 2am with a broken car, Calder opened the gates at 7am the next morning, so I had to fix the car, and sleep... that was quite the crunch.
 

Calder is a hell of a track to run test a new build, how did she go over the Hump? I've done plenty of laps there on Mudderbikes, and that right hander at the end of the straight is terrifying (will my brakes work?). Ha ha.
 
Seems like a small list of issues from such a punishing place. The event seems excellent, good on you for having a crack!

Yeah, I was also terrified. You're already a bit light on the ground at 200+km/hr and then you go over the crest and it all comes up really quick.
If you mean the "hump" on the rear section of the track, the car just comes over that hump and totally loses traction. I couldn't put much power down, but that was all good. 
 

11.9 quarter mile is already super impressive too for first time out! That's actually seriously impressive - and a really good sign of a well sorted car and driver. Will be really interesting to see how much further you can reduce that, with better weather, prepped track, drag rubber etc... hats off to you mate.
 
Just out of curiosity - the "professional film guy" - does this mean they produce some kind of event package? Where will that end up - YouTube or elsewhere? I'd love to see some video of the day.

Thanks dude!
 
The professional film guys I think are just getting lots of media stuff sorted for marketing next year's event, and this stuff will be used by journos talking about the event who weren't doing their own media. If I can get my hands on any of it, obviously, I will. But I don't know who has the rights, etc.
 

Awesome mate, you did intend for this car to do the circuit style stuff if I remember correctly, and with your mods etc, did it meet your design brief?

Yeah, I mean its primary intention is to be my perfect street car, and to tick that box, it also has to be competent for a bit of skidpan, drifting, sprint type circuit duties (not door-to-door or anything needing endurance), hillclimbing, etc.
It hasn't proven itself to be competitive at anything, but it's certainly very fun to drive, and with more development (some technical development like damper and anti-roll tuning, tyres, fixing the huge oiling issues) and more importantly, development of me in my ability to be comfortable in it and know what it can do, I'm pretty sure it'll deliver the goods.
And those two things go hand in hand. I can't learn to steady state corner it properly when it's pumping all the oil into the top end, then out the catch can, on-to the tyre, and I am scared it's going to drop oil pressure. As an example.
 
There is a very obvious clash of goals that I'm finding with this car... being able to take it on a track and lay rubber everywhere and stuff while still having a car that presents well.
I ultimately think that is going to be an impossible pairing of goals. It's already getting peppered with stone chips and I've already developed a slight crack in some filler at the base of the C-pillar from obviously putting some loads into the body of the car. That's maybe a feature of the design brief that was overlooked, but otherwise it is looking to satisfy it well.
 

That’s a great test and tune day you had there
Congrats on the 11.9, you must be stoked

Did you deliberately request the racing number 253 on your door?

Yeah, I guess so. I think it's easier for other people to enjoy it than it was for me... I'm so invested in the car that if things aren't going perfectly with it, I cannot separate myself from that. Obviously it's not just "a car" for me so if it isn't happy, I'm not happy. And not all evidence told me that everything with the car was happy. But the straight line performance certainly impressed me, and I am happy with the numbers.
 
Yes, I certainly did request the number 253, lol. Engine displacement of the gods.
 

High 11's is wicked considering it's not setup for drag racing.
 
Machinists would open up pushrod & return holes to help a little with oil return but serious guys would also add drainback in back of head or rocker cover to sump.
 
Some blokes would have 2 lines from intake valley & one off timing cover f/pump block off.
 
TK & Struggler posted up a lot those tricks on av8 forum back in the day

Yeah, I'm only just realising these things now. I wish I knew it was going to be such a problem the first time around. It would have been a lot easier to do things differently when the motor was in million pieces and I didn't have to weld onto aluminium parts that weren't contaminated with oil.

[LXCHEV]

Hey Heath it's near impossible to maintain a "showy car" and in parallel have fun punishing it at performance events without hurting the cosmetics. Stuff is going to get chipped, broken, scratched, dented and tested in all sorts of ways. And amen to that - use it and abuse it I say. Then every decade or so, give it a bit of a refresh. I have far more respect for cars that show solid signs of use versus yawning over show cars in pavilions that were trailered there. Nothing better than seeing people using their cars, especially when spirited! And I've always been one to preach that "the road trip is half the adventure".

[Bigfella237]

~ It seems to be filling the top end with oil, to the point where it saturates the catch can ports in the rocker covers ~

I'm really surprised to hear this, I thought the COME heads would've had that problem sorted. They were one of the pioneers in Holden V8 oiling mods after all!

 

If I recall (without scrolling back through the build thread), you've already done all you can do with baffles inside the covers.

 

As above, there's a few mods that have been done that supposedly fix this, you can put restrictors in the pushrods to reduce the amount of oil getting up there in the first place (although being a street car and not an 8,000 rpm all-day screamer I'd be hesitant), or you can improve the drainage.

[Adam77]

11.9!!
Jesus Heath that’s fantastic considering you have set it up to go around corners.
You should be proud of what you have built.
Well done mate.

[Liam S]

I'm really surprised to hear this, I thought the COME heads would've had that problem sorted. They were one of the pioneers in Holden V8 oiling mods after all!

If I recall (without scrolling back through the build thread), you've already done all you can do with baffles inside the covers.

As above, there's a few mods that have been done that supposedly fix this, you can put restrictors in the pushrods to reduce the amount of oil getting up there in the first place (although being a street car and not an 8,000 rpm all-day screamer I'd be hesitant), or you can improve the drainage.

So what you’re saying, is that Heaths engine block could use a healthy dose of drillium.


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[SHEEL]

Awesome update Heath!!

 

I recall doing 220 into turn one at Calder years ago and the track surface at the end of the straight had corrugations like a dirt road, due to the braking pressure of many cars and not much track maintenance...

Not sure if it's still like that? 

 

It was sketchy under brakes.

 

I loved the last corner onto the straight, I used to hold 3rd gear through that corner in the Gemmy and it was just coming on boost and barely holding traction... so much fun 

[Heath]

Hey Heath it's near impossible to maintain a "showy car" and in parallel have fun punishing it at performance events without hurting the cosmetics. Stuff is going to get chipped, broken, scratched, dented and tested in all sorts of ways. And amen to that - use it and abuse it I say. Then every decade or so, give it a bit of a refresh. I have far more respect for cars that show solid signs of use versus yawning over show cars in pavilions that were trailered there. Nothing better than seeing people using their cars, especially when spirited! And I've always been one to preach that "the road trip is half the adventure".

 

Yeah, that is something I need to come to terms with, and that will come progressively.

 

Summernats e-mailed me a few days ago and said that I am nominated for the Top 60 (Elite Hall), on a short list at least.

They might change their mind when I front up in a car that I just drove 7hrs up the highway with stone chips all over it.

 

 

I'm really surprised to hear this, I thought the COME heads would've had that problem sorted. They were one of the pioneers in Holden V8 oiling mods after all!

 

If I recall (without scrolling back through the build thread), you've already done all you can do with baffles inside the covers.

 

As above, there's a few mods that have been done that supposedly fix this, you can put restrictors in the pushrods to reduce the amount of oil getting up there in the first place (although being a street car and not an 8,000 rpm all-day screamer I'd be hesitant), or you can improve the drainage.

The COME 600 heads have bigger drain-backs than standard heads (I am told), but nowhere near enough, clearly. I think it may be a case of it being an impossible task without either adding external drain-backs (which I am considering), restricting oil to the top end (which I am definitely going to do), and doing a much better job with the covers. Saying that I've done "all that I can do" with the covers is absolutely wrong. The covers are one of the huge problems, I just didn't realise that until this happened.

 

11.9!!
Jesus Heath that’s fantastic considering you have set it up to go around corners.
You should be proud of what you have built.
Well done mate.

lol. Thanks man. It is pretty good hey?

 

So what you’re saying, is that Heaths engine block could use a healthy dose of drillium.

Bloody oath.

 

Unfortunately, I believe I've already done all I can do internally to optimise drainback. :(

 

Awesome update Heath!!

 

I recall doing 220 into turn one at Calder years ago and the track surface at the end of the straight had corrugations like a dirt road, due to the braking pressure of many cars and not much track maintenance...

Not sure if it's still like that? 

 

It was sketchy under brakes.

 

I loved the last corner onto the straight, I used to hold 3rd gear through that corner in the Gemmy and it was just coming on boost and barely holding traction... so much fun 

I would have described it pretty similarly.

 

There was a professional driver there who made some comments on hearing me coming onto the straight with a very audible lack of traction that his ears detected from the paddock, and he suggested I'd do myself a favour by easing onto the power there, so I decided to take the advice and stop being a dickhead doing the big multi-gear powerslide onto the main straight after that. LOL

[gtrboyy]

Being able to go full throttle for more that 10-12secs like at the strip or on street tests them enough with oil drainback but putting them on track or doing powercruise the issues people tend to over-look quickly show up.

 

Good trick is catchcan higher than heads & lines from intake valley better than front of rocker covers which blocks anyway as oil pools around plate to breather lines while trying to escape down pushrod holes.

 

That big crank creates alot of windage in small engine block lol.

 

But do agree very difficult to have it look 100% the way you want whilst fixing potential issues that come along after it's built.

[4dabush]

 
There is a very obvious clash of goals that I'm finding with this car... being able to take it on a track and lay rubber everywhere and stuff while still having a car that presents well.
I ultimately think that is going to be an impossible pairing of goals. It's already getting peppered with stone chips and I've already developed a slight crack in some filler at the base of the C-pillar from obviously putting some loads into the body of the car. That's maybe a feature of the design brief that was overlooked, but otherwise it is looking to satisfy it well.
 Yeah, I guess so. I think it's easier for other people to enjoy it than it was for me... I'm so invested in the car that if things aren't going perfectly with it, I cannot separate myself from that. Obviously it's not just "a car" for me so if it isn't happy, I'm not 
 

Yes, feel your pain, but I treated my stone chips as a badge of honour.  We drove my SS from Perth to the Summernats, drove all over WA, towed a caravan a few times and more. Dragged it and motorkhana’d, even got in the top 100 Go to Whoa at Summernats… and the photo below is about 5 years after I painted it.  
 

And you should be stoked about the call from Street Machine…that’s a fantastic compliment. Congratulations Heath! 

 1B3D8C53-4CD0-4650-B0CA-945AF7C8319C.jpeg   340.36K   10 downloads

 

 

[SHEEL]

Those gold simmons are beautiful. 

[Heath]

Awesome HQ. And yeah I don't mind taking a car to the nats with stone chips, they are of course inevitable, I just am a bit nervous about the whole taking my chances in the elite hall with it like that.

Alrighty, so a bit more progress:

 

This was the "before" corner weighting, when I weighed the car a few weeks back.

 

I made up some different spring spacers and had the front end apart.

 

And got it to here:

Waaaay happier with that.

 

Front hubs were looking a bit second hand after heat cycling and high speeds made some more fasteners came loose. :( And I found a broken bolt... Jouisus!

So I've replaced all the fasteners with something I could put a bit more torque on, and they just have normal loctite on them.

 

Also paid a pro I knew to give me a hand for a few nights and do a decent job of the paint correction on the car... and actually got rid of all the swirl marks etc.

 

Hatch lid keeps on moving away from the rest of the car, so I've gotta weld up the slotted hole and re-paint the hinges with the hope that the bolts coming loose won't let the panel gaps get so bad (see photos above)

[4dabush]

There will be plenty in the elite hall that will appreciate your car is not a trailer sailor. 

 

Can't wait to see it clean and unmasked.  What was scoring the front hub?

[neglectedtorana]

Hi Heath,

You continue to impress, thanks for all the info.

How many spring spacers?
Did you put more right front?

Hope you get what you want in the elite hall, I think just being invited is fantastic recognition especially for a well driven car.

Cheers, Tom

[Heath]

Well I had to move the spring spacer from the rear left and put it in the rear right. And put a 4mm one on the front left. Visually, it's worse, but it seems to be behaving a bit better re: picking up the inside right in corners.

The car just became much less of a trailer sailor, haha. I just took it on a very last minute trip that was pretty awesome, lol.

[Bigfella237]

~ Visually, it's worse ~

The only other thing you can do, of course, is move some actual weight within the car.

 

Is there any movement to be had in the engine/gearbox mounts? It'd probably only need a couple of millimeters sideways, which hopefully won't induce any driveline alignment issues, if you have the clearance on the passenger's side that is (headers, sump, trans tunnel, etc.)?

[Heath]

I don't think that's my only option... I'm mostly concerned about diagonal wheel loading. I think if I molested the front right flare, and re-mounted it in a way that gave me a bit more wheel clearance, I could drop the whole RHS of the car down nicely and I doubt that would skew the left-right balance in any meaningful way. Currently, I don't have the wheel clearance to drop the car any lower on that front right corner, so my only option would be to raise the left hand side of the car, which would hurt the look.

 

It just doesn't sit quite level, although it is probably not bad when I'm in it.

 

Had to install a machine in Albury on Monday & Tuesday for work, so as per normal I was at the workshop swinging spanners on the Torana on Sunday. I figured I didn't have any boring cars to take in the morning anyway (Chaser is at a panel shop currently), so maybe I should take my chances and throw my swag in the Torana, and hit the road Sunday arvo instead, taking the scenic route and camping by a river somewhere. It was the right choice.

 

 

 

The previous P.B. of fuel consumption on this thing was 24L/100km, clearly I just can't get my foot out of it around town.

 

I reckon the target mixtures are still fat for LPG, but at least I managed to achieve a very drastic improvement on the highway runs... she's only doing about 2,000rpm at normal highway speeds, and I was getting about 16.5L/100km out of it (that's about $135 for 1,000km of driving at current Vic prices). Obviously, that is babying it and in a way defeating the purpose of having this motor, but it's nice to know that it can at least achieve a >500km range (without beating on it) if gas availability is sparse on a trip.

[4dabush]

That’s awesome…love the bug splatter. What’s it like sleeping in the back with the brace in there?  

[rodomo]

Tourist

[76lxhatch]

Great to see it being used. The photo at the river reminds me of the ad.

 

The fuel economy thing is kinda interesting. I often do a day trip with mates to a car event that is a ~750km round trip and share the driving; I'm always surprised that it uses a quarter tank less (one way!) when I'm not behind the wheel. This costs at least $250 at current prices so you're on a winner.

[Shiney005]

How cool is that motel.  Is it in Albury?

[Heath]

You can't sleep in the back with the brace in there... maybe I could lie my legs under it with no mattress, but yeah it's definitely in the way for sleeping. I just rolled out my swag next to the river.

Since putting the harness in this car, my desire to remove the brace and wear a normal seatbelt has been pretty weak. The harness really makes a huuuge difference for driving experience.

 

The bug spatter was pretty funny, twilight is a bad time for insects.

BTW any recommendations for cleaning the radiator? I've tried compressed air but it still looks like it has been through the wars after this trip.

 

Yeah, I'm thrilled to be out using the car, finally. It isn't without its problems but it's very satisfying to be doing things like this with it.

 

The motel is indeed in Albury. Mega cool external decor (recently renovated/developed a bit), great food, etc. The rooms are basic and the price reflects that. Low car access is not great, though.

[4dabush]

Thought it might be a bit squeezyin there. :-)

 

When we drove the SS from Perth to the Summernats, cleaning the radiator was just soak and soak and soak, then hot soapy water and a soft bristle paint brush and being very careful. 

Edited by 4dabush, 22 December 2022 - 09:17 PM.

[Heath]

A bit more perseverance with brushes and softening with water did help the radiator bugs a bit... not perfect but satisfactory. Cheers.
 
Since I last posted, Mackie with the XYYNOT Falcon did a video wrap-up of his experience at the Optima event, and I'm in quite a lot of it. So if you want to see some embarrassing footage of me, it's peppered throughout the video, and then around 38mins in there's some more substantial action footage of the car as I take him out for a non-timed lap to have some fun.
https://youtu.be/26rw1uNZsxg

Also very stoked that I finally got my hands on a bunch of the photos from the event!

[kudu]

Cool stuff!... What was the orange hatch running?