Lucky has nuts

As crazy as this sounds today I finally got the lug nuts I have been waiting for. Is that nuts or what? (no pun intended) At ant rate now Lucky has nuts.

A few minor items that I managed to get done today are finishing installing the fuel cell hold down straps and then I rerouted the fuel cell vent hose and filter so there would be no chance of fuel fumes getting inside the car. We also painted and installed the new skid bar and made some clearance adjustments.

Last but not least I installed the fan that I finally chose to keep Lucky cool with the least amount of problems. After months of research, phone calls and discussions I have finally ruled out an electric fan and have decided to go with a metal, belt driven fan. As a matter of fact it was the tech department at Spal themselves that advised me to go this way. Due to clearance reasons many car builders often utilize a thin electric fan that will fit between their engine/water pump and the radiator. Using thin fan may seem OK but they do not have large enough windings in the motors to run the fan at the required speeds for the high altitudes of the La Carrera Panamericana. Then there are those who for years have ran the most popular fan of choice which is the classic electric Ford Taurus fan. What I managed to learn is the Taurus fan uses a large amount of amperage and one thing I have learned over the last year is not just a few but a WHOLE BUNCH of competitors experienced electrical and charging system problems over the last few years. Is it possible they never put two and two together? I don't know but I am not taking any chances. The six bladed steel fan I chose is the very same one used by the majority of race teams who have campaigned Shelbys in both high altitude and hot weather racing. One thing I have learned about being successful at winning races is... Simple basic is good.

I hope like all get out that the drive shaft I ordered will be here tomorrow so that I can actually drive the car. If so I will try to get the car out to my front end expert ROGER KRAUS RACING who is one of the best known susspension experts in California.

Never too busy to remember 911

TEAM CALIFORNIA'S BEST would like to take a moment to remember those who are missed by many and for their families as well as those men and women who acted as heroes on that terrible day.

Today was huge! A lot got done today and actually it all started yesterday since it is now 4:00 am in the morning and I just got home. First of all the panard bar was welded in place and the rest was installed and adjusted. From there we welded in some of the power steering brackets that always need some strengthening and then we built the skid bar from hell! It is specifically built with the speed bumps in Mexico in mind in an effort to help protect the oil pan, headers, power steering hoses and so on. Then we installed the seat belts but before we did we welded in plates with threaded nuts in them instead of simply drilling holes in the floor and using washers. Another very cool job was using the fender well roller. Not only did it roll the fenders to eliminate the sharp edges of the fenders away from the tires but it flared the fenders substantially which makes for much better tire clearance.

Like I said, a lot was accomplished today and we even had some time to start spending some time on the trailer we will be using on this trip.

Welcome letter from the governor of Oaxaca

When my wife told me I had a letter from the Governor all I could think was, "I sure hope it's that stay of execution I've been waiting for. I must admit getting a letter from the Governor of Oaxaca was just as cool. (Click on the letter to enlarge)

I can see clearly now

Well, just like the Anne Murray lyrics, Lucky now has a brand new windshield and wipers and he too can see clearly now. Coincidentally the lyrics of what has been one of my favorite tunes since the early 70's reminds me of the upcoming adventure.


Anne Murray - I Can See Clearly Now

I can see clearly now, the rain is gone,
I can see all obstacles in my way (Donkies, race cars, missing parts of road...)
Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind (Blown engines from other race cars)
It's gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)Sun-Shiny day.
It's gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)Sun-Shiny day.

I think I can make it now, the pain is gone (Worring about getting Lucky ready)
All of the bad feelings have disappeared (Montezuma's Revenge)
Here is the rainbow I've been prayin' for (Podium finish)
It's gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)Sun-Shiny day.

Look all around, there's nothin' but blue skies (Wishful thinking)
Look straight ahead, nothin' but blue skies

I can see clearly now, the rain is gone,
I can see all obstacles in my way
Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind
It's gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)Sun-Shiny day.
It's gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)Sun-Shiny day.
It's gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)Sun-Shiny day.

Step into my office

Early this morning I did some minor wiring for the spark knock control and finished hooking up the horn button. WHAT! A horn on a race car? LOL. From watching hours of video of previous La Carrera Panamericana events it will be well used. Then I prepped the car for my glass guy to install the front windshield which he will do today along with the chrome mouldings. Then I installed the driver's seat and climbed in and pretended to be going 217 miles per hour. I found out that when you pretend the gas mileage is much better.

13 days left

There are only 13 days left until I can hopefully have Lucky ready to take a few runs at Infineon Raceway. I have priorities of items that are a must, some that I would really like to have ready while some can be taken care of after the test day. Naturally my main concerns are to break the car in, check for leaks, rubs, noises, or any issues that need attention. Every time I build a car that comes out perfect I have to keep asking myself, "How long before the winning streak is broken?" After all, that's exactly what testing is all about... That and anything that can get us onto the track in a race car.

Other than a few nice lines, there is nothing mild mannered about Lucky whatsoever. He should ride like a truck, sound like an explosion, be more than able to deal out G-forces that would kill a Hamster, all the things that any fast well prepared race car can do. It's like Maxwell Smart used to tell Agent 99... "And loving it."

MAN THE HELM!

Lucky finally has power steering and it hasn't been easy at least to make sure it's done the way I want it. When I originally began designing Lucky I did not have any plans to use power steering. Then after a few discussions with National auto cross champion Mike Maier of Maier Racing I was thoroughly convinced that power steering was in Lucky's future. Having owned, driven and raced Mustangs & Shelbys since 1964 I canm honestly say I have a fair understanding of their strong features as well as their weak features and the design of early Mustang power steering is certainly the later of the two. Since I had decided to use power steering I decided to build a better mouse trap so to speak. One of the big concerns with Mustang power steering is how low the hoses are and the fact they hang down so far. Get them up too high and they rub on something.

Using my knowledge of their weakness's I was able to build what I feel will be the ultimate power steering system for this application. I was sure to use the highest quality braided/Teflon hose and then had the ends custom made for clearance and flex issues. This was an all day job today and the end result was almost perfect. Clearance was good, movement was perfect, and no leaks. The only issue with the power steering that still needs attention is that In want it to give a little more assist than it does. This is a simple cure because the racing pump I bought utilizes different restrictors which will allow me to raise or lower the amount of assist I want. It's important to remember the more assist you get the less "feel" you will have at high speed so this will be something we will want to check out at the track in the next couple weeks.

This evening I took care of a few other small details like adjusting the fuel sender so that I will know how much fuel is "usable" when it reads quarter tank. This is a detail all endurance racers live for. And hey... even though I don't have a drive shaft I hooked up the speedometer actually watched the speedometer work. Speaking of the drive shaft, I was told the custom built aluminum drive shaft should be here Tuesday or Wednesday. Think about it... Lucky could actually move under his own power after who knows how many years of sitting in some field in Oregon.