Jensen Healey Race Shakedown.....and Failure

[Gary Kadrmas]

Ron,

Like everyone else has said......great to hear you are OK.

One other point. You mentioned no other cars around you. Thats a good thing. Might have raised your heart rate (and others too) if you would have been in a group of 5 or 6 cars.

All of the damage to your racer can be repaired. No doubt, going down that race track in in the same place sometime in the future will bring back memories.

Get that car back together. Better than before. We are all pulling for you!

Gary Kadrmas

 

[Gregg]

After a lot of thought I think I'll keep and repair it. I hope to have a new garage a few months from now, and enough space to disassemble the car completely. I can do this in my spare time and not be in a rush - it isn't making any races anytime soon. Once the car is completely pulled apart I'll have it dipped, re-sprayed, and we'll put it back together with improvements. Hard to give up your first race car you'll built, and this car isn't half bad with respect to components and build. Certainly I'll improve it the second time around, that is for sure. And, if it goes well, and tracks okay, maybe it'll get raced in some events that aren't so competitive, the couple of vintage runs might be good for it.

R

Ron, my two cents is to unload the car as is or fix the car, but not go overboard, and then sell it. You have already stated it is not competitive so why bother. Good componenets on a bad car won't make the car competitive. I think your statements "if it goes well, and tracks okay maybe..." leaves plenty room for doubt and would be cause enough alone for me anyway, to not sink good money after bad. Its my opinion and your car. Do as your desire. Emotions and sentiment cost money. If you compare the money and time expended on the Jensen versus purchasing a more competitive car to enjoy and drive, I think the Jensen comes up short.

 

[Ian Anderson]

Ron
Glad to hear you are OK

Get into a car and go and do some laps of that track ASAP (Any car - just cover the miles)

The longer you leave it the longer the "block" is about that section and you will need to rebuild confidence

Ian

 

[flatchat(Chris)]

Change race number or color scheme then everything will be alright again.
Something with that age, needs to have all motive mechanicals fatigue checked (especially if its made in England)
The roll cage is excellent

 

[Paolo-LoveGT40 Modelworks]

Change race number or color scheme then everything will be alright again.
Something with that age, needs to have all motive mechanicals fatigue checked (especially if its made in England)
The roll cage is excellent

Maybe is the right time to give little JH.....the Gulf Livery Ron!

 

[Pete McCluskey.]

Wow Ron, when you do things you do them all the way. Like everyone else I'm glad you are O.K. I like Flatchat's idea about changing the number and colour scheme.

 

[CliffBeer]

With the right attentiont to detail almost any car can do OK in SCCA - there are loads of triumphs, jensens, alfas, etc. that are winning their classes today. After all the time and energy you've put into the Jensen it would be a shame to not enjoy it on the track some more. Get a replacement drive shaft and trans (and new trans tunnel with hoop) and get 'er back out there - you'll have a lot of fun and probably do pretty well in your class!

 

[Ron Earp]

With the right attentiont to detail almost any car can do OK in SCCA - there are loads of triumphs, jensens, alfas, etc. that are winning their classes today. class!

Depends on what class. SCCA Production, sure, 30 year old British cars and lots of TR6s, Alfas, etc. are the norm there and a highly modified JH (which is Prod legal and fixes all the "problems" with the car) can win. Huffaker's old 70s Jensen Healey Prod car was brought out, updated, and won the National in 1995. But in SCCA Improved Touring the Jensen is running against modern iron and it is an uphill flight. Race it in Prod? Not for me, Prod isn't my cup of tea.

I selected this car well over two years ago from the ITS rule set and the ITS classed cars. I didn't really do it with a mindset of creating a winning car - I selected it because I liked the car, had experience with the 9XX motor, and thought it'd be "cool". Emotions, they get you in trouble. Little did I know the prep levels that go into a winning Improved Touring car and what the modern BMWs, Mazdas, Nissans, etc. were capable of - like a knife to a gun fight. And, I didn't know about the issues the Jensen has that are not fixable via rules in IT. Now after building three other modern SCCA race cars I know now how much effort goes into a winning race car, and what you need to start off with - as they say, those that haven't done can't imagine what it takes.

She could race in ITS and I feel run mid-pack with awesome development, maybe better. But mid-pack isn't enough to win. And that is with a lot of development we've not even started on yet, it'd literally take about a year under normal circumstances. I won't abandon the car, but it is "unsellable" as nobody would want a Jensen like this - not fit for road use and not quite fit for track. Besides, it has a big hole in the middle. I'll put it in storage while I do some other projects and work on it slowly. She'll track and race, but it'll probably be at a much lower level sort of thing. Haven't lost any money if I don't sell it!

R

 

[Howard Jones]

What the hell? Whats another old race car in the yard anyway? Love ya ron. Take care.

 

[Paolo-LoveGT40 Modelworks]

hey Ron,
How is it going the reborn of the little jensen?

 

[Craig]

Yes i had a similar failure coming into turn one at 190kph at Eastern Creek here in Sydney. Front uni failed then as it slapped around the rear one fialed. It broke the gearbox in half like an egg and slashed the rear loaded tyre sidewall and i never did get what was left of my tailshaft back. Oh well thats racing..
I didnt really comtemplate the hospital thing until I had it loaded in the trailer....

 

[Doc Watson]

Ron,

Happy to hear all is well with you.....

A driveshaft faliure, the shaft is 'whipped' off center by its rotational speed and the torque being transmissed through it. Each shaft will have a (bitter...) sweet spot where any vibration is magnified to produce more vibration eventually causing the shaft to either snap (i've seen this on a 351 powered mustang, when the new owner decided to 'see what she would do..' the ends of the break in the driveshaft looked like a whipped ice cream). Or the shaft remains intact (sort off) and the vibration seeks a weaker spot than the shaft, in your case the u joint and gearbox. You would have been pushing relativly hard accelerating up the straight.. was it at high revs just before a gear change?

Rebuild her.... and maybe give her a new coloured dress to play in....

You will know its Silver Grey (GIP 26771/M)

...but tell her its really Sebring Silver (GIP 26771/M)

;-)

Andy

 

[Ron Earp]

The Jensen is still in storage. I've not looked at it since we put it away a few weeks after the explosion.

The driveshaft was bent badly and in three pieces, the exhaust in multiple pieces and some were flat, the one that saved me from the shaft, and there are holes in the transmission. The differential is destroyed as well.

The driveshaft was a "one off" of unknown origin. I imagine that it let go where the shaft meets the tailhousing U joint. After that the tail housing was free to destroy the tunnel while the exhaust got beat to pieces. I suspect the remains of the shaft putting extreme pressure on the differential and pinion bearing tore that up, indeed the front of the housing allows the pinion to rotate in a large "orbit" around the center that it should rotate in.

She's staying in storage this year. I'm racing my 260Z now and am enjoying it. I did blow up a motor holding on to a 6th place position by overrevving, but I'm back on with another motor and should be on track this weekend. All things considered, the Z is an infinitely more "racable" car, no doubt about that.

Funny thing - this Jensen mishap happened at about 50-60 mph and not even at full throttle. Took place at about 5k RPM too, so nothing completely out of the ordinary. I really think I had a bum shaft and, well, got shafted!

I do appreciate the wishes though and we'll have her on track in the future, but just not as in a competitive enviroment. Thing is, a Jensen just wants to lie in a field and rust. This one is inbetween lying in a field and racing, not sure where it'll end up.....

R

 

[Paolo-LoveGT40 Modelworks]

Ron..as for all others..also I ask u, if possible..to place a little cam inside your cars.
Love too much the camera cars,and think also others do

Thank u if u can

 

[Ron Earp]

Paolo, funny you should mention that. I just bought a small digital camera and solid state MP3 recorder for the car to be permanently mounted. I have run out of time to get it in for this weekend's race, but it will be in future races.

It'll be hard wired and single touch recording. All the times I've screwed around with digital video recorders and mounts it has never worked out correctly and one time broke my recorder. This system is 100% solid state and can't break, at least in the traditional manner.

Ron

 

[Howard Jones]

Ron, I am also very interested in a on-board cam. Please keep up informed on your set up and how it works. I may be interested in duplicating your system in the future.

 

[Duncan Potter]

I posted this elsewhere but I'll repeat here. This footage was taken with a miniature roll bar cam and a solid state dvr

YouTube - Spec Racer Practice at Mosport

I got the parts from Security Camera, Video Surveillance System, CCTV Camera Security System, Wireless Video Security

Camera is about $70, DVR about $400. mic is about $15.

Mine is fed through a datalogging device which was not set up hence the bogus rpm data on the screen.

The raw footage is actually better than shown on youtube. It was changed in format and compressed for upload.

BTW, I have no affiliation with supercircuits.