Pines Prep 2016

We have started to prepare! Like bears foraging before hibernation we…wait that’s no good. Like an Eagle preparing to defend the nest, we are sharpening our Talons and…

Yeah! Animal analogy AND puns! Ok we’re doing the most basic of prep, but we are doing some. So far we have:

  • Made sure the recce car starts runs and drives (since it hasn’t moved since Bear)
  • Made sure The Manchurian starts runs and drives (since it also hasn’t moved since Bear, when the pin holding the shifter linkage fell off while Ryan backed it off the trailer at his shop)
  • Replaced pin holding shifter linkage together
  • Changed oil and filter
  • Checked all other fluids
  • Planned the exhaust and how we hope to repair or replace the bent flanges caused by dragging the exhaust all over the place at Galway
  • Bought the plastic to replace the pieces that came off at Bear (and that stuff is not cheap, sadly)
  • Looked at our bent prop shaft bearing mount and considered what sized hammer would be needed to correct it
  • Fixed the droopy headlight properly (now we have a hose clamp on both sides)
  • Made sure the light bar would fit despite all the subframe bending that occurred at Galway and Bear…and it will
  • Packed up all our tires – cut gravels for sand, regular soft gravels for gravel, and winters for snow – because Pines
  • Installed the new suspension!

Yes that last one is pretty exciting for us. Hopefully it will stop us from damaging the bottom of the car so much and if that works out it will pay for itself in savings on exhaust systems alone. The new suspension is beefier, can’t be compressed by hand, and went over a speed bump like a champ so we figure we’re good. Set in the middle? Yep.

Ryan is working on the car this week and we’ll be back at his shop next weekend to do a few more things on it, like change the Power Steering belt, clean the alternator and change that belt, finish adjusting the suspension, mount the new camera, etc. We’ll post another update if possible but if not we hope to see everyone at Pines! The VIP tour is a great way to see the race and stay warm and dry, BTW…

www.TallPinesRally.com

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Recce car out of driveway? Check.

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Balancing car carefully on hoist (with winky headlight still) – check.

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Will we need to correct this? Check.

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Headlights both up, at least for the time being. Old hose clamp (on pass side headlight) might be getting a bit tired…

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This pic from the manual shows how we had run the exhaust: like stock, cross over just before the rear diff. However, after compacting the exhaust into the prop shaft a number of times we are going to try going straight until past the diff then turn and exit while avoiding the fuel tank and filler hose and possible fuel/hot exhaust contact. Yes, if we put in a fuel cell we could avoid the turn that will require, but that is not in the immediate plans. However we will put in an extra flange so we can pull off just the rear portion of the exhaust. And by we, we mean Ryan.

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So pretty! Also blue for extra horsepower. Would say they match the car but not covered in crud and rust like most everything else. Although Ryan did wash the exterior, so mad props for that. We do have some plans to clean up the car – minor rust, paint blasted away off sills and doors by gravel, etc – after Pines; we’re as interested as anyone to see if we actually get that done.

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Rears are also pretty, blue, and clean. We do have a bit of a challenge in that these shocks have more travel and so our flex brake lines are pretty extended at full droop, but we’ll see how it looks when we finish setting up the suspension and adjust accordingly. May have to put some longer lines in there after Pines also.

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