Slant 6 Turbo 68Dart Project

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Well, spent the better half of the morning replacing what was left of rubber with braided fuel line for tech. I am still going to have an issue with the oil that is making its way past the seals on the oil pan, and between the block and head on the passenger side. I may put some RTV on those spots and just hope it holds enough oil back to keep it from dripping. Basically it amounts to about a 1" drop of oil on the driveway when the car heats up, and just 1. It's been doing that forever though.

How stringent are tech inspections with these things? I have some metal braided line running over the bellhousing and I read on one track that that is a big no-no unless it's shielded as they don't want the housing to blow apart and ignite it. But it's an oil line though.

I'm basically just super worried I'll drive all the way there and be shot down.
 
I can't answer to the oil line but on another tech question. Do you have a radiator over flow container? More often than not our older cars did not come equipped with these.

I did not have one and painted a one quart oil bottle hemi Orange. A friend of mine put an oil bottle on un painted. Mine passed tech, the inspector blew up on my friend and said he never wanted to see that again. Of course that was quite a while ago and now I use real overflow containers. But it kind of illustrates that inspection can be hit and miss.
 
I have a long aluminum cylinder for overflow. The same one you see at a lot of carshows, or at least that I have. I'm assuming it's at least a pint.

Anything else they really dug over though? Check under the car, etc? I saw I may have to get a metal tie down for the battery as it's right now a mesh strap.
 
Serj22 said:
I have a long aluminum cylinder for overflow. The same one you see at a lot of carshows, or at least that I have. I'm assuming it's at least a pint.

Anything else they really dug over though? Check under the car, etc? I saw I may have to get a metal tie down for the battery as it's right now a mesh strap.
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Great.

They do look for leaks and drips but I think if you wipe it down when you arrive and as you say one drop a day then it should NOT oil the track.

You know I am not sure what they will say about a mesh strap vs a metal tie down.
Just found the online rulebook for NHRA.
[ame]http://www.nhra.com/userfiles/file/2014%20Rule%20Book%20General%20Regulations_120413.pdf[/ame]
 
tech at my track is pretty lenient. metal battery hold down, seat belts, helmet. once in a while they check for the overflow tank. last time i went out i had jammed a half gallon iced tea container down in my engine bay and stuck the hose through the lid. it passed. first time out with the turbo i was informed i needed a fire jacket because the turbo wasnt stock. my track had them for rent. i wound up buying one after that though. found one for $65 on ebay. my car leaks oil but ive never been flagged for it.
 
Two throttle return springs is another thing they always look for. In my experience at my local tracks they are pretty lenient with the street car stuff - no leaks, battery secure, two throttle springs, neutral safety working, no major leaks (wipe them up before tech) etc. Basic stuff.
 
Looking at their raceway forums it looks like if it's a stock new car it is just looked at quickly but their more inclined to look over an oldschool or muscle car. The drag I want to enter has a several classes, and one of them is highschool. I'm assuming mine would be street, as that seems to be above highschool...? I'll find a metal strap for the battery no problem, but it makes one more part to add. I don't know that I'd run higher than a 14 as i have no idea what I'm doing, but if I don't think it's possible it looks like i wouldn't need a helmet. I should probably bring one anyway just in case.

Tomorrow after work I'll do a huge scrape job on the underside of the motor and K-frame and make sure I get everything off. Basically I'm just worried about being shot down is all, so whatever quick adjustments i can make, I should make them.

-I have metal return line to the tank, braided steel line from the reg to carb, and to the entry of the return line, and also braided from the feed line (also steel) to the entry of the regulator. No rubber fuel line anywhere at all.

-Battery is in the trunk, bolted down with 3 3/8" bolts to the body, and in a plastic box.

-Seat belts are modern but bolted to the body

-I'll take the front hubcaps off.

-Hood is pinned down, and has safety cables on the pins.

- I'll take the subwoofer and any loose stuff out of the car on track day.

-Aftermarket gauges are screwed into the body A pillar and are very secure.

-Very small oil leak that i may be able to contain long enough to get through tech.

I can't really think of anything else that would apply to me, but as Rusty was saying i may have an issue as the motor is not stock? But maybe it's not a problem if I don't think I'm going to run a 14 or quicker?

-There's 2 throttle return springs, one inside the other. Does that count? Or does one have to go to a different point of return?

-I'll reinstall my catch can, just have to find somewhere to mount it.

-There's full exhaust on the car with muffler. It may even be the quietest car there...

I've never done this before, and I think it shows.
 
Even if you just go to check it out it is cool , they run everything from Mom's grocery getter to some awesome rides . Worth the small entry fee for sure ....
 
GTS dude, yeah I read that one as well and was a little worried about it. ALl the car has is the cardboard/masonite firewall for the back seat, and the battery is in a plastic box intended for battery use, not battery storage (so the connections still hook up).

Right now I'm dealing with more fun Big-O stuff. After getting my car back this time i did not drive it at night. I did tonight, and the headlights work, but the dash lights and tail lights are non-op. The marker lights on the side and parking lights are also non-op. The turn signal works, but all the lights are blacked out unless it's flashing for the turn signal.

This marks another system they've tampered with that they weren't supposed to. First time i got it back the left turn signal is broken, second time, brake lights wouldn't go off - on all the time, third time, all lights gone.

I was in a parking lot trying to figure it out. I can actually climb under my dash and see absolutely everything under there (really) and I see that the fuse for the dash lights, and the fuse for the R P lights (assuming Rear and parking lights?) is blown. I tried jumping them just to get home, the lead sparked, but the circuit was still dead. I'm assuming it's still grounded out wherever it is on the resistance or after fuse side of the circuit. The wire arced real bright which to me usually means it hit a good ground. Now i have to figure out what the ****. This is rediculous. I want my money back so bad, but every time they insist on fixing it and like an idiot I let them. I'm too nice I guess.

$325 to fix TWO blown up brake cylinders, and what i get is a car that pulls to the right, brakes lock up on that side easily, no tail lights, no left turn signal, no dash lights, no parking lights, a grounded circuit i now have to find, a broken brake light switch, ugly looking master cylinder, and god knows what else they touched that will fall apart. I drive it every day and I don't break ****, they have it a couple hours, and break everything.

I'm never ever taking my car to a mechanic again, I only did it because the brakes blew out and the pedal wouldn't stop the car and they were the closest I could roll to. Next time I just blow through every red light, since i can't stop and ram it right into the wall to stop when I get home, at least I know all the lights will still ****ing work.
 
damraider said:
Even if you just go to check it out it is cool , they run everything from Mom's grocery getter to some awesome rides . Worth the small entry fee for sure ....
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True,
I have seen station wagons and mini vans at the track.
Even if they turn you down you still get to watch the races. This way you will know what needs to be fixed and you can check out all the other cars. Pick the other racers brains about their rides and get some advice.
 
That truly sucks!

Might be time to send a letter to their corporate headquarters. Or maybe Michael Finney at 7 on your side?
I wish I had some disc brakes I could throw your way. If I see something at pick n pull I will let you know. Discs aren't perfect either but seems less of a hassle. 20 years ago a shop like Big O would probably handled this but now they seem pretty clueless unless it is a Honda or toyota.

Serj22 said:
I'm never ever taking my car to a mechanic again, I only did it because the brakes blew out and the pedal wouldn't stop the car and they were the closest I could roll to. Next time I just blow through every red light, since i can't stop and ram it right into the wall to stop when I get home, at least I know all the lights will still ****ing work.
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The problem now I think, is they used to have local people who were actually mechanics or at least went to school for a minute fixing cars, now they have less than adequate "cheap labor" if you know what I mean.

I watched them jack a dodge pickup up while i was waiting on my car. They raised the wheels to about eye level, took the wheels off on the back, hit the drums with a sledge, then let them fall on the ground instead of catching them. I personally don't know if that would hurt them, but it's not your car for 1, and 2 if the drum is supposed to be round, I think dropping it from 6 feet high is the last thing you want to do.

Discs would be less of a hassle true, but if the initial install is super hard, I may not be able to do it with my limited tool supply. Also the picknpull in fairfield has nothing in the way of cars that are pre 1980.
 
beating the drum is standard practice. the drum rusts to the hub and there is no other way of getting it off that doesnt take days. i beat mine pretty good with a 2lb balpeen hammer when i have to take them off. dropping it isnt going to hurt it either.

you can change over to the stock disc brake setup with standard hand tools. just need a socket set that goes up to 1" and wrenches that do the same. it seems like a lot but it really isnt.
 
RustyPlymouth said:
beating the drum is standard practice. the drum rusts to the hub and there is no other way of getting it off that doesnt take days. i beat mine pretty good with a 2lb balpeen hammer when i have to take them off. dropping it isnt going to hurt it either.

you can change over to the stock disc brake setup with standard hand tools. just need a socket set that goes up to 1" and wrenches that do the same. it seems like a lot but it really isnt.
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I know beating on it is necessary. I've had to do that to mine, I mean the throwing around afterwards.

If I found discs I would likely do that, if it's not that hard.

I figured out the lighting. My brake switch that the manager said was supposedly just "dangling there" was in no such way. It was firmly attached right where it was supposed to be. What was missing were the two connectors on it and their respective wires. Both made contact with the column and shorted the circuit and blew the instrument cluster and lighting fuse. I replaced both fuses and spent about an hour becoming a contortionist under the dash trying to reconnect both wires and finally managed to do it. One connector is against a piece of steel and very hard to break all the bones in my hand so I can reach it, so it took a while. I also figured out I can lay underneath the entirety of the dash and see pretty much everything in there. Very useful for further conquests.

I am still upset as I don't know what possesed them to lie about my brake switch they claimed to have "not touched" and then left the two leads off which apparently grounded the circuit. There was also no reason to mess with it in the first place as the actual issue was "car pulls to right because of brakes you installed."

They don't want to take any responsibility for it unless I pay $320 more for them to replace the left side. WHen they fixed it the first time, it worked fine, and straight, till the cylinder popped again. After they fixed the second time, the car brakes suck - I know the left side is not causing the car to lock up on the right.

Anyway... brake irritation aside (and I am just ranting) - I will call the track tomorrow and see if my battery setup will fly. I really do want to race if I go because it will mean a huge negative point to the girlfriend if she had to stay and hang out with the kids just so I could go watch cars. Now if it was to fulfill a childhood dream of drahving mah racecah. -Then it'd be ok.
 
sounds like the cylinder popped again or they didnt replace the shoes the last time and the brake fluid is making it lock up.

the disc setup was easy to do. really worth it too. i went from barely being able to stop from 100mph to almost getting thrown through the windshield. its nice to have confidence in your stopping ability.
 
If you're making any kind of power at all, discs should be in the immediate future. I wouldn't even trust 10" drums.
 
I'll do discs soon. I used to be able to stop with the drums perfectly. They worked great, now they just don't work well at all.
 
buckshotbishop said:
if you want stock disks you might want to call this guy.

http://slo.craigslist.org/pts/4751886041.html

if you need i can pick up and ship
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Tried it. It would be awesome if he gave an area code... If it's truly that low a price I'd do it in a heartbeat. I'd just have to find different wheels. No biggie. Also if I get a hold of them and you could pick them up I'd give you some cash for picking them up and shipping em.
 
Serj22 said:
Tried it. It would be awesome if he gave an area code... If it's truly that low a price I'd do it in a heartbeat. I'd just have to find different wheels. No biggie. Also if I get a hold of them and you could pick them up I'd give you some cash for picking them up and shipping em.
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That is a really good price.
 
I found the full number and left a message. We'll see what he says. If he's onboard and still has them buckshotbishop I'll work out something with you. Probably send you some cash to pay the man, and some money to ship them here and something for your trouble.

I have been trying to get a hold of a tech at Sonoma raceway to see if the battery box would fly. It seems they may let it but I need a definitive answer before babysitters are hired, rear seats are removed... etc...
 
[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HElZ4DB49k0"]Turbo Slant Six Dyno Pull HybridWorks - YouTube[/ame]

Well, proof is in the numbers. It only got to about 3700 rpm before there was some significant spark cutout, so it will probably go higher. This is a completely stock internal slant, pushing 8 pounds of boost. 164rwhp at 3500rpm, and 224ft/lbs of torque.

Here you can see the ignition sputter. She's got more in her. I think 10 lbs puts you right near the 200 mark I'm thinking.

Here's all three runs, and below is the best run. MORE TUNING!

dynoresults_zpse1b39b87.jpg
 
Cool. You're getting there. I kinda figured your grin was not as big as it should be yet.
 
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