July 2, 2011

Rosamond, CA — Big Willow (Fastest Track in the West)

Surface Temps 150 Degrees

Ambient Air Temp 106 Degrees

Project SHART — Lives Up To It’s Name

Photos by: Kyle Lewis, David Karey, and Jeff Naeyaert — Courtesy of MotoIQ.com

Welcome to Rosamond, CA, home of the Fastest Track in the West — Big Willow.  Arguably the Hottest track in the West by those in attendance this year.  Round 4 of the MotoIQ Pacific Tuner Car Championship brought us back to Big Willow for another shot at getting Project SHART on track.  Our second time on track with this build in as many races brought us an equal amount of Joy as it did heartache.

Our first event at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA sent us home with a lot to work with and even more to work on.  As with any new project, we took it as a learning experience and really its first shakedown of the car.  We hadn’t even shifted it past first gear before that event…hence, we didn’t even know if the transmission was worth its weight in scrap metal.  We came home with really only two major issues that needed to be sorted before the next event.

The car needed to be tuned, and we needed to repair a worn out wheel bearing.  So off to San Diego we went to solve the first issue.  Clark Steppler of Jim Wolf Technology was the man with the solution when it came to tuning the SR20DET we imported from Japan.  Apparently there is a safety feature in the stock ECU that pulls fuel at high speed when it senses no speed sensor attached.  With a few clicks of his keyboard, he quickly solved that issue on the dyno.  Then, to stay legal in the Tuner Under Class, we tuned the car down to a stout 213whp and 209tq.

Next up was a quick alignment and install of Whiteline Sway bars and bushings by the man himself, Robert Fuller of Robispec.  After cornerweighting the car, we realized the car was underweight by 50 pounds with a full tank.  Solution…we had to add some weight….nothing a couple of 45 pound plates won’t fix!  Figuring in the use of fuel in a 30 minute race, we added an additional 40 pounds to make up for any unexpected weight loss.  Out of concern for the safety of the driver…Robi welded the plates in the spare tire hole to prevent any movement back there.

After we finished up at Robispec, it was back to Fontana Nissan to be put in the hands of Master Technician, Chris Heimburg, to finish up all the loose ends.  Fluid change, wheel bearing replacement, completion of the install on the Snow Performance Water Injection Kit, Mishimoto Radiator Fans and other cooling aids kept us working late every night at the shop before the event.

Feeling confident this time would be different, we arrived at the hotel the evening before to get a good night’s rest before the event on Saturday.  Funny….I can’t remember the last time I was able to do that!  Seriously…what’s up with that?!? I mean really, I never have gotten a good nights sleep before any race weekend!!!! …..sorry, back to the point.  We arrived at the track ready to go…we would have 3 sessions to make this car go fast before the race that evening.

Track Notes from Each Session

Session 1 — 9am and its getting a little warm.  Wow!  So that’s what 4th and 5th gear feel like!!!  Thank you Clark Steppler and Jim Wolf Technology!  You gave me full power!!!  Car ran well…it was the first real seat time in this car ever.  It was time to get our tire temps and pressures dialed in.  Came into the pits a few times during the session to get some data.  Water injection wasn’t working yet…made note to check it out for the next session.  It was getting warm out, but not unbearable…yet.
Session 2 — Starting to sweat in the shade before getting into the car.  Feeling a little more comfortable in the car.  Started to push it more…trying to find its limits in the corners.  Temperatures were rising and tires started to get a little greasy.  Came in and noticed another increase in temps and pressures.  Went back out…just before turn one….car violently turns left….I didn’t do that!!!!  Midway through two, it was everything i could do to fight keep the car turning right and not fly off into the kart track next door.  Pulled over and out of the way before going up into turns 4 and 5.  Fire/Safety followed me in as I limped the car in.  Lesson learned — Sentra SE-R + Camber bolts = Not good at holding the Strut in place.  Still no water injection…getting hotter out…Needed to check things out.  We put the stock bolts on the struts, Robert Fuller of Robispec performed a quick alignment by eye to fix the massive toe out up front,  and found a new ground for the Snow Performance Water Injection Kit.

Session 3 — OMFG!!!  Its way to hot to drive…who else wants to do this?!?  Nobody offered…so i hopped back in.  We decided to run the radiator fan in conjunction with the Water Injection that was now working…for a minute.  Blew the fuse by turn 2.  By this time, the car was not liking me very much.  I pushed it probably harder than I should have…but I had no choice…we had to see what it could do.  Putting down our best lap times of the day but also putting a lot of stress on the motor and turbo.  Brought the car into the pits early and called it quits for the session.  Little bit of smoke comes out of air filter…I pretended I didn’t see that.  Kinda like when you’re a kid and you close your eyes….i didn’t see it….it didn’t happen!

It’s Time To Race!

4th Session — Race Time!

Car wouldn’t start…team pushed, and pushed, and pushed…and jump starting wasn’t working.  Sorry everyone!  We’ll be just a minute!  How embarrassing…i could hear Yukio the announcer making snide remarks about how cute my butt was and other various things to kill time while we were eventually able to get the car started.  Water Injection was now working…but car sounded kinda funny.  So I did what any racer would do….screw it…get in line and lets go!  As we entered the field in line, I could tell something was wrong, lots of popping, lack of throttle response, and stuttering under boost.  I tried closing my eyes at first…then soon realized that wasn’t going to work.  As the race started, the first lap went fairly well.

By lap two I knew something was wrong…somebody was smoking and I’m pretty sure it was me.  As a matter of fact, I knew it was me because I saw me doing it!  With every lift of the throttle, was a big puff of smoke,..I kept getting slower and slower.  Then, somewhere between laps 4 and 5 I was passed by a Honda Fit on the front straight like i was in his way or something.  At that point the decision was made, I had better bring it in….the SHART had sharted itself.  Turbo failure brought me in and my second attempt at the MPTCC resulted in another DNF.  Luckily for me as I came in to the pits, I was greated by my boss and mentor, Mike Cronin Jr. with a big smile and the words I will never forget…”Hey buddy!  How bout we get you some bbq chicken, ribs, and a beer!”  Oh how some people just know you!  If I remember correctly, I watched the end of the race sitting on pit wall with a beer in one hand and bbq chicken in the other…Wow!!! What an exciting race to watch!!!!  Someday I’ll be there to finish one!

I’d like to take a moment to thank those around me that made this weekend a success even though we didn’t technically succeed.  A huge thanks to Chris Heimburg for all of his lost sleep working on my car until the wee hours of the morning, my pit crew chief Robert Krencik for being my rock at the track and taking car of everything so I didn’t have to worry.  Thank you to the students of Universal Technical Institute for coming out and getting your hands dirty for me and all you got out of it was a lousy t-shirt.  And thank you too all of my valuable sponsors for allowing me to do what I love so much!

Project SHART Sponsors:  Fontana Nissan, NissanRaceShop.com, Toyo Tires, Snow Performance, Jim Wolf Technology, Robispec, Buddy Club, Sparco USA, Turbosmart, CSF Radiators, K&N Filters, APR Performance, Whiteline Automotive, and Mishimoto.

And Special Thanks to the Guys and Girls at MotoIQ.com and Redline Track Events for putting on this FANTASTIC event!