See post below dated 1/12/03 for updated pic's



I had some time this weekend to work on my Formula so got some of my new parts installed. I'm overhauling the front and rear suspension; and steering. I have installed new Energy Suspension bushings; new Intrax springs; new KYB AGX adjustable struts; Hunter Motorsports strut mounts; Baer Tracker bump steer tie-rod ends; and McQuay-Norris steering parts.

Here is what it all looks like together in front:



Here is the loosely assembled Baer Tracker part:



Here is what the underside of the HMS mount with a strut installed looks like:



Here is what the HMS mount looks like from the top, installed with the strut:



Here is a close-up of the adjuster on the AGX strut. Notice the dot indicating it is in position number 1:



If I can answer any questions let me know.

 

Oh yeah, here is the rear suspension:

 

How do you like the agx's ? I think i may go with them, our suspensions will be pretty darn close.

 

How come it looks like your rotors are on the wrong sides, i could have sworn mine are marked and would be the opposite from what i see in your pics......

 

I haven't rolled on the AGX's yet.

 

I don't know what to tell ya'..............

 

Looks really good Tom... Hope to get a ride in it when it is complete.. Give me a call, I have not been able to reach you in a while.

 

It doesn't matter how the drill or slot pattern rotates- Many companies will do it differently. What you need to look at is the direction of the vent fins. The fins should be mounted in the direction to allow rotation outgas. You don't want the fins to catch air and force inward towards the rotor hat. This will cause bunching of brake pad material in the vented areas.

 

Tom,
After I get my 1LE brake parts on, along with my Baer Bump Steer kit, we'll have to hit the canyon.

 

You guys should try to hook up with this group, They're up there in your area. They look fairly hardcore and worth checking into.
http://www.mulhollandraceway.org/events.html

 

What brand rod end panhard and LCAs you running?

 

Nice Tom, I'm envious.

Here's a cheesy question for ya...what shock boots did you use and how did they attach to the HMS mount? Or do they just tighten down on the strut rod?

Ed

 

nice looking!

 

Dude!! :hail:

Thanks for the link!

 

Slot Car Racing

 

They are "Sky Jacker" brand shock boots. I looked in the Summit catalog, and they were the lowest priced. They are just loose up top, and zip tied to the strut body.

Better than what I used to run, as before I had no boots or debris covers installed.

 

You know me, Bret........ always ready for a little rubber dust on the fenders.

 

Thanks Jason. I'll get a hold of you...........

 

AFreaknGoodTme, at a local vette show a guy brought his Lingenfelter Stage 2 car and they installed the rotors the opposite way of the way you'd recommend. I thought it was strange as did a few other people. Could you think of any reason why LPE would do this?

 

Its real simple -- somebody put them on that didn't understand the importance of direction. Happens alot, People often make decissions based on how something will look rather than how it will perform.

 

how much did those AGX' cost you?

 

Tom,

You have lots of pretty colors under your car now.

Take care,
formul8

 

Look wicked Tom. Looks like you went spherical so its goin to sound like you have tools in the back. hehe. Your ride is goin to handle like mad.

 

Im thinkin he was still just looking at the slots or drill holes and not the vanes........

 

This may be dumb, but what is the baer thing in the first and second pictures? Part of the steering or something???

 

That's the Baer Bump Steer Eliminator kit. It replaces the outer tie rod ends and prevents the car from "self steering" when hitting a bump durning cornering. It's only useful on a lowered car. At stock ride height you won't need it.

 

Two days wages........

 

Yup, kinda like a kaleidascope! :sillylol:

 

Actually, not as bad as I had anticipated. I have driven quite a lot on the rear suspension with the heim joints and was pleasantly surprised that the noise level was not much more than I already had. Have yet to see how it will be in the front.

 

Would this bump steer kit be something i need really badly if I went with the pro-kit since it doesn't lower as much?

 

If you look at the very first picture you can see that he has the vents in the rotors running in the proper direction. The front of the car is to the left of the picture of course. They will rotate counterclockwise in the picture and the vents will off gas outward. If they were switched to the other side then the vents would catch air forcing it inward to the center of the rotor - the problem lies where the brake pad material can not off gas outward and starts to bunch up in the vents of the rotors. So again, Tom does have them correct.

 

No, i meant the person who said the ones on the other car were opposite of tom's, as in the slots, like i said, mine twist the other way, but thats how they're supposed to go on...

 

Heres the left front one to mine.

 

I understand the right way to have the rotors. The slots make no difference, it's in the vents between the rotor surfaces. What difference would the slots in the surface of the rotor make while rotating if they were facing towards the center as opposed to facing away from it?

 

There really is no difference from what I have seen first hand over the years. I use to follow Trans Am Series racing alot an would always check out the car is the pits at Long Beach Grand Prix every year to see the tech advancements. Every year those guys run many different slot designs and all running different directions- It never appears that one design has better stopping power than the next. They just cant run drills because of the extreme heat they rotors are under would crack quickly from hole to hole. Slots dont penetrate through and weakin the strength of the rotor where as drills do, however, on street car you will never come close to the 1400*+ heat they run at. You'd be luck to breach 1000*.

 

That car's gonna stop in a hurry

 

So it'd probably be best if i got a spare set of stock or slotted only rotors if i start racing in scca ?

 

I finished up the front end yesterday. Here are some pics of my new Spohn adjustable wonder bar. It is much beefier than the stock bar. I also got a set of the greasable swaybar brackets and Guldstrand 36mm polyurethane bushings from TDS. Finally I installed the Energy Suspension swaybar endlinks. I will have to trim them down once I get the car back on the ground, as well as readjust and tighten everything up. Then I can reinstall my strut tower brace and go get an alignment. I switched from Jamex springs to Intrax springs. Looking for another 1/2" drop, this time with a progressive spring.

Spohn wonder bar pics:



*





TDS greaseable 36mm Guldstrand polyurethane bushings:



Energy Suspension swaybar endlinks:

 

Looking very good Tom, now get that stock "wonderbar" on e-bay and sell it for a million bucks.. Please send me some pics when it is back on the ground, Thanks bud.

Jason

 

Ahh, are your inner tie rods on backwards? Usually the nut faces foward and from the pics you have the backside of the tie rod facing foward.

 

Looking good Tom! You've given me a good preview of what my car is going to look like once I get all my parts on. Except mine will be color co-ordinated - hehe

I ended up using the stock sleeves on the sway bar endlinks because the ES ones are longer. I'm thinking about switching over to the 1LE endlinks from TDS.

 

Yup - its on backwards.

The center link is on the wrong way... and the tie rods as a result are on the wrong way too.

Better switch that around or your steering geometry will be all messed up.

Shoulda taken more pics BEFORE you took it all apart so you could remember how to put it back :P
Just buggin ya' Things are lookin good Tom. Have fun.

 

Holy smokes!!

You are right. What a dumb ***, LOL! I should have bothered to look at the manual. I just looked at the old steering linkage laying on the ground and assembled the new one the same way. Obvious now that the old linkage had gotten turned around. Oops, heh-heh.

THANKS for the heads up Justins86bird and Hunter Motorsports!

Back to the garage we go.......................

 

Anyone know if those springs will be better for 1/4 mile type of racing than the Eibach sportlines? My Eibachs are really tight and the front has no desire to rise, resulting in pathetic 60' times. I will live with it though to keep the cars stance if need be, no way will I raise it back up! Toms springs have the same stance though, that is why I ask.

 

Jason,
Tom is setting his car up for cornering, so I doubt the Intrax springs will help you. You need to switch to some soft drag springs and disconnect the front sway bar when you go to the track. Kiss your handling good-bye though.

It's tough to have a car that drag races really well and also handles the corners really well. You really need to pick one or the other. I suppose, with the rear springs so easy to change, you could go back and forth between a soft drag spring and your Eibachs.

 

All better now!

I swapped the steering linkage after work today.

Jason, what Bret said is right. Virtually all lowering springs have no lift, and no weight transfer to the rear. The ones I have experienced anyways (3 sets so far).

You're just gonna have to make your car brutally fast to make up for it. :sillylol:

 

Call me dumb but I dont know what that bar is thats in front of the the wonderbar...You guys are gonna have to humor me on that.

Also if Karl from Hunter Motorsports is out there do you have a website I can go to look at the stuff you sell??? I emailed you a couple days ago but I dont know if you got my email or not. If you're not out there can ANYBODY tell me a little more about his comany?? I searched over the internet and did a search over this website but didnt really find what I was looking for (info wise).

TIA..

 

Sway bar maybe? If thats what your refering to.

 

I was wondering where you got the baer tracker bump steer
tie-rod ends, and how much they cost. By the way your car is
amazing.

 

You can buy them direct from Baer for around $149 or from Scoggin Dickey for $125. That's where I got mine.