Build Diary - RCR Lola T70 Spider

[Bill Musarra]

You do have the latest version. If you go here:
http://www.centroidproducts.com/pic-cal-4-13-2009.pdf
it will tell you the specifics of how to set the gauge. My take on it is,
1. If you don't shorten the gauge, the factory setting are good, or they should have been given to them when you ordered the gauge, and they were programed into the gauge for you.
2. If you want to reset the factory settings or you shorten the guage, make sure the inner tube does not touch the outer tube or you will get a constant or false Empty reading. Also don't let the inner or outer tube touch the bottom of the tank. It will short the guage giving false readings. I think within 1/2" is sufficient.
3. For Empty reading take the gauge out of the tank. Wire the gauge as normal with Ign. off. Run a jumper wire from SEND to NEG. Turn ignition on and count for two seconds and turn Ign. off. Gauge may bounce around but will settle on empty mark or what it considers empty.
4. For Full reading, if you have a 1/2" tube it is set at the factory. If you have a 1/4" tube, place gauge in a full tank of fuel, wired as above. Turn Ign. on and count for 5 seconds and turn switch off. It may bounce around again but will settle on the full mark. Remove jumper wire. If it doesn't look right, call tech support for help. The low light alarm is preset at the factory. You will have to live with were ever that is. I would guess it is when the fuel is not touching the tube????
My SW gauge is the same as yours and I think the only trouble you can get in to is to use a different amperage setting with your sender.
Hope this helps.

Bill

 

[Terry Oxandale]

You need to block the rear coolant taps in the manifold. Otherwise the coolant doesn't flow from the back of the head to the front of the manifold, it just comes up through the block, out of the back of the head, into the rear of the manifold, then out to the header tank.

Based on your comment, and the diagrams below, I would be bypassing water around the head rather than through the head, thus cooling would be reduced around each combustion chamber, is that correct? Part of my confusion is why a normal cooling system does not have cool efficient cooling in the front of the motor, while having hot inefficient cooling at the rear of the block where there is more resistance (longer path) to the coolant.

Anyway, I'm wondering if my my reverse cooling path eliminates this problem (upper portion of the diagram). I don't want to be redoing my coolant plumbing after its in the final assembly.

 

[Ron Earp]

I don't think your upper diagram is going to work well, but I could well be wrong. Your lower diagram illustrates (mostly, some of the bleed/bypass lines are pointed in the wrong direction/places) what I had before I plugged those rear intake manifold coolant passages - water was taking the path of least resistance.

 

[Ron Earp]

You do have the latest version. If you go here:
http://www.centroidproducts.com/pic-cal-4-13-2009.pdf

Yep, that is the one and was conflicting with half the paperwork with the sender. I talked to Fuelsafe and we're all square now. I'll just be running a low fuel light, no gauge.

 

[Seymour Snerd]

I seem to remember the Saker as the model as they were made specificly for that car.

Yes that's the one you referred to in an earlier post.

 

[Ron Earp]

I seem to remember the Saker as the model as they were made specificly for that car. The mounts are adjustable and they sit about 1/2" off the floor.Here is the page.
http://http://www.racetechseatsna.com/products.php?name=Seats/RTSAKER.php
Bill

That is the seat that I was originally considering, Saker RT. Link here:

Racetech seats at On-Track Performance

But I'm not sure we can fit it. The seat we have now is a modified ally seat but the "wings" were cut off of it to help ingress.

 

[Ron Earp]

Mucho changes going on with the Lola - coolers, lines, fuel sender, ball joints, caster, ducts, stud fix, new carb, etc. and much more. Here is a shot of the recent carnage involving cutting the rear deck out for better airflow and the installation of an access door to check some things without lifting the rear clip.

Turns out there is a car show this coming weekend that features race cars. So Jeff and I are going to take race cars, this one and his TR8. Never brought a car to a car show before, I hope it isn't as boring as I think it is going to be. Hope they like'em dirty, because about the most I'll do is wipe it down with Fantastic and roll on. Man do I like race/track cars, don't have to worry about all those nitpicking "detailer" items that don't do squat for your lap times.

 

[Jack]

Neat access door Ron, did you fabricate it?

 

[Terry Oxandale]

I was just looking at my latches last night (Hartwell?), and your photo validated the need to cut a slot (so to speak) on the cover-plate to operate the latch. Perfect timing!

 

[Jeff Young]

I think Ron is traveling today...

He bought the latch, but "worked" it some to make it fit that spot. We wanted a way to access the coolant over flow tank to add/check coolant without raising the rear clam. I've not seen it in person yet, but it sure looks good in the pics. Nice work.

This car is really being transformed. Fran did a great job with the basic design, and Ron has really made it into a potential enduro monster.

 

[Ron Earp]

Bday today, abandoned the interwebz for a bit and worked in the garage.

That door is from......something like "The Chassis Shop", hold on.....yes, that is it:

The Chassis Shop

For checking the water in the tank it works well. And you can get your hand in there for other things too. All in all I'd give it a thumbs up. Plus it is cool.

Front bar mounts on for the sway bar too and lots of other things. I'll put up some pictures. Hope to drive it down to the show on Saturday.

 

[Randy V]

Bday today

:thumbsup: :chug: :thumbsup:

Happy Birthday Ron!!!!

 

[Ron Earp]

Thanks Randy!

Got out this AM and did more work on the car. Mainly tidying up projects and wrapping it up for sway bar installation. Most of the heavy work over the last few weeks has been done with assistance by Jeff and Jeff.

With the MSD relocation we now have a large flat area to install our new driver cooling system that we're developing. Non-water/ice based, stay tuned for that one as it gets finished up. Here is a bit of rear hatch detail for those interested.

Finally got the fuel sender installed and wrapped up. It is calibrated so that an orange light on the dash will start to flicker at four gallons remaining and go to steady on at three and a half gallons left. I suspect the last two gallons are not usable, so when the light comes on it is time to find a place to pit. We could debate relative merits of making it come on at various fuel levels but I like it just where it is - light comes on, you've got maybe four laps (at a 3.5 miles track) and time to refuel.

 

[Malcolm]

Two gallons unuseable??????? Thats 6kgs you are carrying unnecessarily mate! Sort that out and you can have a few beers extra

 

[Ron Earp]

Hell, we're not worried about 2 gallons of gas. There are so many other cheap and effective ways for this car to ditch about 250 lbs it isn't funny. Ditch the mongo battery, steel wheels, etc.

But I have discovered a problem with my fuel level light. It is an acceleration detector. Gas on, light on. Because the tank is long and skinny there is a significant amount of fore aft motion when the tank is even 1/2 full. Going to have to think on this one a bit and come up with some way to baffle that sender.

 

[Jeff Young]

By the way guys, I was down in my office parking lot (literally about 3 minutes from Ron's house) and what comes rolling into the lot? A damn Lola T70 race car with a license tag.

I'm debating whether I should call the police. Thoughts?

 

[Seymour Snerd]

....some way to baffle that sender.

A narrow cylinder, closed at the bottom, open at the top, about the length of the sender tube, enclosing the tube and tall enough so fuel can't "slop" into it from the top; drill a small hole in the bottom. The cross-sectional area of the hole at the bottom determines the rate of change in fuel level within the cylinder. Start at 1/32" and experiment. Adding a floating "piston", OD = a little under cylinder ID, ID = a little over tube OD, would help dampen sloshing within the cylinder. Not sure what material but a solid chunk of wood would probably work. The float in my Lamborghini was cork.

Or the same cylinder closed at both ends, with a small hole at the top (for air) and at the bottom, and sealed around the sender tube.

Or if you're using "SAE-style" sender mounting, the cylinder could be a little under 2" outside diameter, closed at the bottom (with tiny hole), open at the top, with a top flange that includes the 5 screw holes on 2.125" circle and seals on its underside to the top surface of the tank and is thus sandwiched between sender and tank. (ref. Centroid Products Sender Mounts)

Or maybe the mfr can slow down the "alarm" reaction of the gauge; after all presumably it's all under software control. You can't be the first person to have this problem with that sender.

 

[Doug S.]

Ron, is this one of those ISSPRO fuel senders, using a tube like discussed in this thread:

http://www.gt40s.com/forum/gt40-tec...ine-cooling/30017-aluminum-tank-question.html

Just curious, I think I need a different sending unit system for my foam-filled aluminum fuel cell in my Cobra and wonder if this sort of unit has this problem b/c of the design (although I suspect the foam in the tank might well stop a large part of the sloshing).

Thanks!

Doug

 

[Ron Earp]

Hey Alan, thanks and I think that will be the ticket. I don't see why that wouldn't work.

As to foam solving the problems I don't think it will, at least not the way I'd like. There isn't any foam right up there near the fill plate because I was afraid of possible filling issues. That top plate is one of those NASCAR fill plates with a couple of rollover valves and feed to the female NASCAR fill dry break connector on the side of the car and catch can valve. Foam in that area might slow down the dump can and/or create blow back into the catch can while filling.

 

[Jim Glickenhaus]

Very Cool Car and job you've done sorting her.