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4K video from Blyton

The cooling fan was running when I started my run, and I've found a setting in the ECU that allows the fan to be turned off when the vehicle speed exceeds the set value, so I'll change that to 5mph and next time I start a run, if the fan is on, it'll turn off as I set off.

I took a microphone intending to plug it in to the Kodak 4K camera, but when I went to fit it, discovered the Kodak camera has a 2.5mm socket, and the Gopro, 3.5mm, so the microphone wouldnt plug in, hence the wind noise. I've an adaptor on order for next time.


I've designed a new front wheel trigger disk, to replace the sink drainers that work OK, but I was seeing dropouts at Blyton in the front wheel speeds. I drew it in Fusion 360, and fractory.com are making them for me. Delivery is around October 7th. They have trapezoidal holes, 16 in total, and should present a perfect straight edge to the sensor. I was going to use circular holes, but the straight edges should give a better surface for the sensors to work from. I'm selling them for £20 a pair so if you need any, please get in touch.

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New PB at Blyton

A good performance by me on Sunday at Blyton, with 0.6s shaved off my 2019 PB with a 58.37s run in the afternoon, finishing 6th overall. We had 2 practice and 5 timed runs, and during the day I was focused on trying out differing traction and launch control settings, since it was a good opportunity with no pressure, and that allowed me to take my time making adjustments and seeing what difference they made. With the launch control I was trying different launch RPM's, and on the five timed runs I made five consistent 2.1s 64ft times, which was pretty impressive. On the final run I made a mechanical adjustment to the car, which meant that almost all the harsh load was eliminated when I released the clutch, resulting in a smoother take off, and my quickest 64ft all day. Thats going to allow me to increase the rate of acceleration, and maybe increase the torque a little in 1st and 2nd gear, which again should reduce the 64ft time further. The fastest 64ft all day was that of Graham Porrett in the mighty 600bhp V8 Lola, with a time of 1.87s, and that was mostly down to the new compound Avon tyres that they were trying. They are quite impressive and it'll be interesting to see how they cope over time against the popular Pirelli Ultrasoft.

Traction control was also working (finally) with the reduced spin targets. I ended up running with a gain of 0.88, and the adder was set to -2, which gave me great confidence accelerating out of the corners. I could be really aggressive on the throttle pedal and the car just shot off like a rocket. I've aquired lots of data from the seven runs so I can have a good look and see what other gains can be made. Yet again though, the rear speed sensors were showing large (~100mph) drops in the readings they were producing, and that was triggering faults. I tried enabling Filter on Rear Left A and Right A, but the ECU said that that wasnt supported. I changed the number of teeth per reading from 1 to 2 on the rears. I increased the spike delta wheel speed from 75mph to 120mph. The spike count decrement interval was dropped from 2.5 to 1.0s (so if no spikes occur for 1s the spike count is decremented). And I changed the spike count limit to 100. That in part helped. But I really need to sort this out properly, so its back to square one again. I'll have another look at the reluctance rings, and maybe remove every other tooth so there are 22 instead of 44, since the X10 expander really doesnt seem to be able to cope with the number of teeth at speed.

I didn't take a spanner to the car all day. I started the day with 10l of fuel onboard, and after three runs, topped it up with another 3litres, so I now know that a lap of Blyton uses exactly 1l of petrol. Once I topped it up, for the remaining 4 runs I just let the level drop lower and lower and there was no fuel surge at all. Now I know that I can let it fall to a much lower level, and continue to find the minimum amount of fuel before surge sets in. The Radium surge tank and Gemzoe tanks are a good combination.

I also ran some yellow wool on the near side barge board so I could video the direction that the air was flowing at speed, and it appears as though the boards dont produce a vortex down the side of the car to seal the floor. I'll look at adding maybe a right angle strip to the top edge to try and encourage the air to stay attached to the boards, which I can try out again at Castle Combe in October on the EcoBat sprint.

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Side skirt fitting complete

I've fitted the offside skirt, so thats both sides now swapped for the deeper strips. I'm looking at how well the barge boards are flowing air at the weekend, so I've stuck strips of yellow wool down one side, secured using magic tape. I'll fit the gopro to the bodywork so it can record the movement and direction of the wool.

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Side skirt fitting in progress

Direct Plastics has supplied the deeper Tufnol strips, and I've fitted them to the nearside, after spraying them with matt black paint, the gap to the floor is now 40mm on the Dunlops, so will be slightly higher on the correctly inflated Ultrasofts. I'll fit the other side tomorrow evening.

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Vinyl removed

I peeled the remainder of the matt vinyl off the engine cover, then polished the sticky marks off and applied wax to seal the surface. I replaced the steel M6 bolts that were holding the GT101 sensors on the 3D printed brackets, with aluminium bolts, which combined with the titanium nuts have saved a little bit more weight.

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Carbon shims fitted

The carbon fibre camber shims that Andrew O'Malley produced for me, are now fitted to the hubs. They were cut from 1mm and 2mm carbon, and are based on my drawing I produced in Fusion 360. Swapping them over takes seconds, and the Mygale shims are now back in my spares stash. Swapping from aluminium to carbon saves a few more grammes of unsprung weight.

Shims fitted


My Fusion 360 drawing

Speaking of unsprung weight, I've made a replacement brake pipe cover for the nearside front lower wishbone, the previous one was removed by the low pressure area behind the front wing, at Combe in July. They're supposed to be secured with a strip of tank tape, but I'd forgotten to stick any on thinking they'd never come off. Well, they do.

Aluminium brake pipe cover fitted to the lower front wishbone
The numbers are on for Sunday. Ages since I've had to stick numbers on, its still a faff. I've got some more Tufnol strips on order, to lower the skirts on the floor. Since the geo was setup professionally by Triple M in August, the car now has a slightly higher ride height, with more rear rake, so the gap from the floor to the 50mm tall strips was actually 55mm not 40mm, so 65mm tall strips are being delivered Thursday, and I'll get them sprayed and fitted for Sunday.

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TC updated

I've updated the TC Spin Target Map 1, to halve the values that were in the map I ran at Snetterton. I've also built a spreadsheet that runs through the switch positions for TC Select and tuneSwitch, so I can get an idea of the amount of wheelspin that the ECU will allow before the system takes over. I wasnt sure whether the tuneSwitch value was added to the result of the multiplier, or added to the spin target and then multiplied, so I connected the laptop to the ECU and displayed the all TC channels, and confirmed that the tuneSwitch value IS added to the result of the multiplier. So this value in effect offsets the spinTarget%.

What that means is the driver can make adjustments to the offset, whilst the car is being driven. So if the TC is kicking in too early, but the overall clamping is still in the desired range, then the tuneSwitch can be selected to move the spintarget above the current wheel spin levels, to allow more wheel spin before TC takes control.

These three graphs show the vehicle speed (blue), the wheelspin% at Snetterton (gray) and the spinTarget% that the ECU will allow at Blyton (orange). The tuneSwitch allows the orange line to be moved with respect to the actual wheelSpin% (gray).

tcAdder -5.0


tcAdder 0.0


tcAdder +5.0

My tuneSwitch on the steering wheel is set to provide from -5 through to +6, so I can adjust the offset easily if I feel the TC is interfering too much, orif it isn't helping as much as it could.

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Trailer mods complete

I trimmed the plastic side panels on the nearside and offside of the trailer, fitted them both back on, the cutouts allow both the motor movers to operate. It was easy enough to trim the abs plastic. I used a stanley knife and steel rule to mark them out, and a hacksaw to cut them. I then tried the motor mover on my driveway, and its very smooth and easy to operate. The next job was to collect the van from storage, and return the trailer, and it was so much easier to manouvere the trailer back in to its parking bay at the storage facility. For next weekend, I will order some 70A cable, and a battery box, and I'll permanently install the battery in the trailer to make it easier for me to collect and return it. I believe the battery can be charged via the trailer electrics whilst the engine is running on the van. I'll do a bit of research to see if that is easy to do.


I'm very pleased with the result. The install looks really professional.



I am car 104 at Blyton next weekend. I've a plan in my head of what I need to do to improve my times. I've still got the traction control settings to adjust. I need to power up the ECU and work out if the tuneswitch adds to the slip before or after the slip % is multiplied by the multiplier.

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Motor mover installed

The motor mover is now installed on the trailer, following a big favour from Will Locostbuilder, who made me a pair of brackets for the chassis using some scrap he had in the workshop. They're made from stainless steel, and were tough to drill, but after putting the pillar drill to good use I drilled six 12mm holes in the plates, and using a power drill on the drailer, drilled another six holes for the plates to bolt on to. With the brackets in place, it was a simple job to offer up the motors, and clamp them to the them. Once all the bolts are torqued up, I can refit the side panels to the trailer, and work on the wiring inside.


Bracket bolted to the chassis using 8.8 M12 bolts and nylocs


Motor mover suspended on the bracket


How the motors sit on the stabiliser bar beneath the stowage on the RS2 trailer.

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0 to 60 in 3.2s

The rear wheel speed sensor brackets produced by Andy Laurence for me, were perfect at Snetterton. Both GT101 sensors behaved far better than the XS608B's, but, I'm still seeing random speed drops of 70mph, so for Blyton in two weeks time I shall turn on the left and right rear speed channel filtering in the ECU to see what difference that makes. The 0-60 time at Snetterton was improved by an impressive 0.7s with a 3.2s on my last run. To launch, I'm now holding the throttle open for around 1.5s whilst the boost builds to the required launch boost target, and when I released the clutch, I could feel the wheels spinning initially, but the car really shoved me in the back, and the data from the ECU shows that 2nd gear was selected 0.5s earlier than the best of my runs at Castle Combe in July when I had the other sensors fitted. This is in part due to the improved sensors, but I've also programmed the ECU to report the wheel speed per pulse from the wheels, rather than per revolution, and thats made the closed loop launch algorithm more effective, since the wheel speeds now react more quickly to RPM changes from the ECU than before.

My carbon fibre camber shims have arrived. Andrew O'Malley cut them to my Fusion 360 design, using his CNC Router, and I have two sets, in 2mm and 1mm carbon sheet. I'll fit them to the car for Blyton, replacing the aluminium counterparts. Triple M said to be careful they dont come out, so I might place a small amount of gorilla tape on the top of the shims to keep them from escaping.

Carbon vs aluminium 2mm Mygale camber shims

This weekends job was to trial-fit the pair of Reich motor movers to the trailer. I've got to the point where moving the trailer in and out of storage is causing a real headache. The trailer is parked on grass, and it cant be hooked to the van to allow me to tow it out, so I finally dipped in to my pocket and bought a proper motor mover. On Saturday I removed the rear side panels on the RS2 trailer, and placed the motor movers behind the rear wheels. With the motors then moved up in to their fitted position, there is plenty of room beneath them to allow the trailer to be tilted, so I've got a pair of brackets being made that will allow them to be clamped to the chassis. The RS2 trailer doesnt have a C section chassis rail, like you'd find on a caravan or traditional trailer, so a pair of L shaped brackets are required to attach the motors. Brian James Trailers said that the trailer wasnt suitable for motor movers, but I reckon with the 4mm brackets I'm getting made, it should work fine.


I've had to remove a pair of rusty coach bolts from underneath the bottom of the trailer, to clear the square tube that passes across the width of the trailer and joins both the motors together. The coach bolts held the gorilla board to the trailer floor, and arent essential. I've also trimmed both the black BJT mudguards, so the motors can be extended forwards to contact the tyres. That was relatively easy and just needed a stanley knife to trim the ABS plastic.




The next decision to make is where to place the electronic control box for the motors. I might place it inside the plastic cover on the near side, ahead of the axles. I'll see how much cable run I have, as I also need to provide a 70A 12V battery to supply the motors. The two plastic side panels will need trimming to clear the motors, but the added advantage of that is that the motors are partially hidden when the panels are back on.

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Fressingfield Oily Rag Club Sprint

Following the visit to Triple M Motorsport on Saturday, Sundays trip was a very early 4.30am departure form Leicester for the 126mile journey to Snetterton. I was impressed with the new section of the A14 which must have opened last year. Miles and miles of 3 lane motorway, which cuts out the old section of A14 which used to wind its way around the hills and villages, rejoining the original route on the approach to Cambridge. With the weather deteriorating, I arrived at 6:50am and was allowed straight in to the 100 paddock where I parked up next to Tony Beesley and I started unloading. The day was cold, and cloudy with a strong wind, following very heavy overnight rain, the track certainly didnt provide much grip during the day, as track and air temperatures remained below 20C for the whole time. At Triple M, we totally reset the rear suspension, and tried a few changes to see if more grip could be extracted from the Pirelli Ultrasofts. Back on the F3 size tyres, I now have 1300lb springs on the rear, and Alan removed packing spacers and camber shims, altered the rear droop, antiroll bar settings, and increased the rear rake. After several hours the car was then corner weighted, and gave a satisfying 50:50 left:right split, and 40:60 front:rear. The chassis weight is some 3kg ligher than last year, despite carrying 5l of fuel in the tank. With me sat in the car, minus 3 pieces of bodywork and the front wing/crash box, the scales tipped 540Kg. My 12kg weight loss since the start of the year was finally paying off.


Restoring the Idle Control/Target Engine Speed from 1000 to 1100rpm when above 60C, appears to have cured the limp mode issue I had at Combe, when the revs dropped whilst manouvering the car.

The car wasnt running smoothly at all during the convoy run of the circuit. But she was cold, and stopping and starting in convoy isnt really her thing. I wondered if changing the engine tickover may have been a bad move, but it soon settled down for the remainder of the day. However, for the first timed run, whilst sat in the car, I struggled to start the engine for about 10seconds. It span over but wouldnt fire. It did eventually start, these tiny Lithium batteries really are impressive. After the first timed run finished, out came the 240V petrol generator and I charged the battery between the remaining runs using the Lithium battery charger.


Charging between runs maintained the health of the Lithium battery.


After two very slow timed runs, where the rear end was locking up going in to Oggies, I softened the rear ARB and added more front wing angle, and then went 3s faster putting me in to 2nd overall. I then improved again by 1s on T4, but Simon Wallis in the little 1070cc OMS 3000 had crept in front by .1s and for the next run I tried increasing the front wing angle and on the final run, the rear, but the last two runs were scrappy and I couldnt improve.


Opposite lock moment around Oggies, which was cured on the next run by softening the rear ARB

Big thanks to Fressingfield Oily Rag Club for an excellent event. One convoy, two practice, six timed runs and we were finished by 4pm! What incredible value for money.


Rounding Hamiltons at Snetterton. Photo Ken Carrington

I towed for 385miles over the two days, and I was very happy with the work that Triple M completed. The photos of the car now show that it sits level at speed, rather than nose up, and a fresh set of Ultrasofts on the front certainly helped with the grip. There is still some work to do, mostly to my driving, so I need to work on track positioning, brakes, and getting on the power coming out of the corners. The TC didnt kick in once, and I was struggling to get the power down. Even on the video below, exiting the hairpin on the 2nd lap, the rear tyres light up and I have to control wheelspin. Who's idea was it to go for 405lbft again LOL

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Fressingfield Oily Rag Club Sprint on Sunday

I have a last minute entry to the Javelin run Snetterton sprint on Sunday, having been on the reserves list for quite a while. On Saturday I'm taking the car over to Triple M for a chassis alignment and corner weights session, and at Snetterton I'll be working on the launch control, traction, wing angles and front and rear anti-roll bars, until I am happy with the way that the car is handling again. She now has 1300lb/in springs on the rear, which raises the wheel frequency from 3.1Hz to 3.3Hz, which is a step in the right direction, but things will need resetting again so Sunday will be a head down and focus kind of day.

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Sensor brackets completed

The printed sensor brackets came out as good as I'd hoped. My isometric drawing allowed Andy to create a Fusion 360 model, which he then printed, and they arrived in the post on Tuesday. I had to open out the 18mm holes for the GT101 sensors, just a tad, with the 18mm drill, and then the sensors easily slotted in to place in the brackets. I've got some aluminium M6 x 35mm bolts on order, and with the titanium M6 nyloc nuts, the total weight should be minimal. I've installed Fusion 360 on my Desktop PC at home, and I'm watching various YT videos on how to use it, and I must say its quite intuitive to use. I now have my own CAD drawings of the Intrax damper spacers that I had machined a couple of years ago. My model now includes fillets and a smaller waist that should reduce their weight if I were to get them machined. I've also made a model of the Mygale camber shims that are used on the front and rear hubs. I do need to get some of these made, so I will find someone who can manufacture them for me from 1mm and 2mm aluminium. I mean you could print them in plastic, that might work.

The three printed brackets.


The GT101 sensor held in place by my bracket. The steel bolt and nuts will be replaced by aluminium ones, including the missing nut. The more pictures I see of the gearbox, the more I want to clean it again :D

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NSCC Blyton Sprint

I'm running at the NSCC Blyton sprint in September, not the Saturday on the eastern layout, but on the Sunday 18th on the full outer circuit layout. This will be a chance to test out the launch and traction with the modifications to the rear wheel speed sensors. I'll also work on dialling out the understeer from the front end.

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Worlds fastest Mk1 Fiesta

Chris Todd broke in to the 8s at Santa Pod last weekend in his >700hp Mk1 Fiesta. Incredible.

The worlds fastest Fiesta Mk1 :D

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XS608's replaced

Both of the XS608B rear wheel speed sensors are now replaced by GT101's and a 3D printed bracket is being produced that will affix both sensors to the gearbox. They seem far more tolerant of the difference in tooth height of the reluctance rings. I made a simple aluminium bracket to locate a sensor and then took a drawing from it, which has been turned in to a Fusion 360 CAD model for printing.

The sensor fitted using my 2mm aluminium bracket


The Fusion 360 rendered model, ready for printing

I used my logic probe to monitor the pulses from the sensor. Because they are both wired directly to the CAN based X10 Expander, the X10 doesnt produce the analogue voltage from the sensor, like the F88R ECU does with the front wheel speed sensors. The X10 simply produces a 'speed' which is sent over CAN to the ECU. So to test the sensor, a logic probe directly connected to the output from the sensor, will show the pulses generated as the reluctance ring passes the sensor head.

I've now set the front and rear wheel speed sensors to generate speed per pulse from the sensor, rather than per complete revolution of the wheel, which will produce more accurate launch and traction control.

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Back working again

I've been back in work since the start of July, having left Rolls Royce in Derby at the start of April. I was really enjoying the work towards the end of my spell there. So I spent 3 months out of work (in-between contracts) and as luck would have it, in June I was approached to work for a company providing support on a technically demanding public sector project. So since the start of July I've been working again, and that means I can re-start the development of the car again. With that in mind, I've entered the Ecobat Sprint at Castle Combe in October, and I'll be going with a plan this time, to try adjusting the wings etc to get the most out of the car.

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Aintree cancelled #sadface

The Liverpool Motor Club Aintree sprint on September 4th has just been cancelled. I have no more events left this year. So I might consider doing a few of the remaining Javelin sprints instead.

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Anglesey cancelled #sadface

The season finale at Anglesey in October has just been cancelled by Longton. No reason given. Full refunds offered. Thats very sad, I was looking forward to going with the upgrades to see how much faster I could go :(

The video below is of my quickest start at Combe, 0-135mph in 11s or so. The car definitely picks up pace once its in 2nd gear, so I'll plot some new figures for the LC to raise the rate of acceleration in 1st gear, which may lead to quicker 64ft times.

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Wheel speed adjustments

I've pulled the data out for the quickest 2.02 64ft launch and put it in to Excel to analyse and there's some improvements to be made.
First of all I need to set the sensors back to report the wheel speed per-pulse, instead of per revolution. I replaced the left front wheel speed sensor for this event and soldered it direct to the loom, and this has now 100% cured the noise, so I can now revert back to per-pulse measurement. I'll set this for the next outing. The rear wheel speeds are still problematic. I dont think the sensors I'm using are suited to the reluctance rings, so I'm going to try some GT101's that I last ran on the Fiesta. They have a much higher operating range (50KHz), but I need to test them on the rings first to make sure they work.

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Dick Mayo Sprint

The Bristol Motor Club Dick Mayo sprint was a very smooth running event, with Covid-19 changes evident, but not interfering with the enjoyment levels.

Result:
1st in class
New class record by >3s
4th overall
3rd fastest car

Following testing at Blyton where I was trying the 250mm front and 300mm rear tyres, I didn't feel fully in control of the car, and decided for this event to run the 190mm front Ultrasofts that I bought at the start of 2019. However, having done a full season, compared to the new 300mm rears, i was always going to suffer from a little under steer, but I found it was quite hard to pedal the car around the corners. Being out of work since April, and with no sponsorship money, I couldn't justify the cost of a pair of new 190 fronts, and this was just a bit of fun, so i had to make do.

The first practice run was a disaster. The ECU decided to go in to Limp Mode on the start line, with a VVT Failure, and with no warning as I left the line, the car had no power, and I drove round flat out at a steady 45mph. I think the limp mode was caused by me almost stalling the engine as I pulled up to the line, which dropped the oil pressure, and the ECU panicked at this point. There is no warning light or indication that Limp Mode has come on. So from then on, I always tested launch control prior to starting, so if Limp Mode had come on again, I could turn the ignition off and on again to clear it.

The ECU log didnt tell me why Limp Mode was selected. Because the drive around the circuit took so long, and with the long trip around the paddock back to where I was parked, the ECU had overwritten the start of the file since it was set to record wheel speeds at 1000hz. So I ran the config tool and set the logging back to 50Hz, and this then allows more headroom to record data in the ECU memory.

My first timed run was a test of the new launch control, with reduced torque in 1st and 2nd gear to protect the gearbox, and the car just sat down and accelerated. One of the start line marshals remarked that the car looked slow off the line, but my 64ft times said otherwise. My fastest time was 2.02s.

I improved on my 2nd timed run, and recorded a 56.05 on my third, but I was >2s off the pace of the first three simply because of a lack of mechanical grip from the older ultrasofts. I had one more go, T4, which saw me brake lighter for quarry, but this just sent the car off towards the outside of the corner, so I knew at that point I'd lost time. Sure enough it was another 57s run.

I consistently had the highest top speed of all cars across the finish line, until I was equalled on the third timed run by the winning Dallara. Given I was slower in to the chicanes than the top 3, I was pleased with that as it at least shows the car has the performance to win.
Lets put it another way. Had I spent £1100 on new tyres and I was 3s off the pace I'd be very unhappy. As it is, on the 2018 fronts, to be within a few seconds of the top 3 I think, was a good performance.

   64ft Finish speed Finish
T1 2.20 109.6mph 57.05s
T2 2.02 110.1mph 56.12s
T3 2.09 110.1mph 56.05s
T4 2.12 108.0mph 57.00s

The rear wheel speed sensors are still not working correctly, so I'm going to swap the sensors out for some GT101's and see if that fixes the issue. No issues with the engine, or the chassis. I just didn't have the fresh rubber needed to give me the confidence to push in the bends. Thanks to Bristol Motor Club and the officials for an excellent event.

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ECU updates

I've switched Launch Control back on for CAL1, as it was still switched off from the dyno session in March. I've reduced the torque for 1st and 2nd gear, to help protect the gearbox during the launch phase. To reduce the torque, there is reduction of 400mbar boost pressure in 1st gear and 200mbar in 2nd gear, which I can tweak on the day if the car bogs down too much. I had to replace the 2nd gear during the gearbox service, so it makes sense to try and protect it rather than launch with 405ft.lb going through the gearbox!

The start RPM is still adjustable, and I'll be aiming for 3000rpm off the line. I've also set the helmet bleeper to indicate a change at 6600rpm in all gears seeing as there is no benefit from revving the engine higher since the gear ratios drop the RPM back in to the huge torque curve that I've got this year. I can still rev it higher, the red line is 7350rpm, but lowering gear shift points will also help keep the noise down, we know Castle Combe is very strict on noise. I've also replaced the aluminium flat bar that was supporting the front edge of the floor, with wire rope, which looks tidier, reduces weight, and reduces drag.

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Battery checks out OK

I started and ran the engine sucessfully using the relocated lithium battery, there were no issues. I then spent a while tightening the seatbelts. I've lost 2 stone in weight since January, and the belts needed shortening by around 2 inches! And now the battery isnt in the way, I can actually sit lower in the car, so it was important I adjusted everything. I signed on yesterday to the Dick Mayo Sprint. Due to Covid-19 there are no signing-on facilities at the venue, so to sign on on-line I had to provide various British Standard / FIA numbers off my crash helmet, my Simpson FHR, the vehicle passport number etc. So on Saturday there is very little for the scrutineers to do, but they will still be performing spot checks. One thing it didnt ask was any details of the race suit or gloves, so I suspect we'll all be visited on Saturday morning by the officials any way.

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Replacement battery has arrived

The MUK approved lithium battery is now sat on the diffuser floor, next to the compressed air bottle for the gear shift system.

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Mk2 brackets printed

I've had three new rear speed sensor brackets (for the XS608B sensors) 3D printed (Thanks Andy Laurence). I've fitted them on the gearbox and the sensors are now much more rigid. I was adjusting the sensor gap on the offside, when I found a dead spot on the reluctance ring. There is a tiny difference in the height of the teeth around the ring. I should have had them machined when they were fly-pressed on to the outputs cups. So a few more minutes spent reducing the gap to the teeth and I think the sensor is now working properly, detecting all 44 teeth as I rotate the rear wheels. No wonder I was losing the frequency from the X10 and the rear speeds were failing.

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Additional sensors

I've fitted another pair of thermocouples to the EGT-CAN box. One is measuring the temperature of the fuel in the large 10l Gemzoe tank, and the other is attached to the entry to the intercooler. I've set the ECU to log both channels, and I'll have some useful data I hope after the Combe event. I've also relocated the starter battery from inside the car, to the rear of the intercooler side-pod. The battery is now on yellow Anderson connectors, so I can isolate it from the chassis electronics to prevent the parasitic load from the Cartek isolator from draining it between events.

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Dick Mayo update

I am car number 8 at the Dick Mayo sprint, seeded number 1, so no pressure then LOL. I've added a gurney to the near side barge board so it matches the gurney thats built-in on the opposite side. This should again help the board deflect more air.

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Barge boards refitted

The barge boards are now modified and fitted back on the car. I've ordered the battery posts and ring terminals to allow me to relocate the Lithium Battery to the intercooler side pod. The parts should be with me next week so I can crack on with that piece of work. The battery will be connected to the loom using a small Anderson connector to allow it to be rapidly removed.

The professional pictures from Blyton are below.

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Bulkhead panels complete

Spent the afternoon cutting out a set of new firewall panels to fit both the sides of the drivers seat. These should isolate me from the temperature buildup that I was experiencing on Tuesday. At speed my right side felt like it was burning from the heat travelling forward from the turbo in to the cockpit, which was most distracting. I've also removed both the Dallara barge boards and I've cut out some carbon and stuck it in to the gaps on the ends of the boards, to force all of the air outboard of the floor, which should help seal it even more effectively.

I've got some more K Type thermocouples on order, so I can monitor the gearbox oil temp, fuel temp, and the air temp before it travels through the intercooler. I'll get these wired up and the ECU configured to read them in the next few days.

Two weeks to go to the Dick Mayo sprint, and I'm practically ready.

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Blyton testing

Testing went well at Blyton on Tuesday. I had a very high speed spin in the morning, at 106MPH losing the rear end around Port Froid, which was caused by too much toe-out with the larger front wheels fitted on the car. Later I adjusted the steering arms three times, taking a 1/2 turn off between each drive in the afternoon, to reduce toe-out and it definitely helped remove the dead spot from the steering. But I still wasnt comfortable with pushing the car near the limit, so for Castle Combe I've reset the ride height etc, so I can use the 2019 tyres. I think with more testing the larger tyres can be made to work, but I dont want to be making changes at Combe, and I at least have a starting point when I go back to the larger tyres. If I get to drive at Aintree in September, I'll probably try them again. I reached 2.5G in the corners, and on the spin I reached 2.8G so there is definitely more grip from the chassis this year. The floor and barge boards are all contributing. The Yaw angle sensor also worked, and I now have lots of data to pour through.



Mechanically the car was perfect. No issues with the gearbox, engine, or the temperatures. The steering wheel electronics worked perfectly, with no missed shifts, and the traction control (when it worked) worked brilliantly. The front and rear wheel speed sensors were throwing up errors which compounded the TC testing. The printed brackets that hold the rear sensors were allowing the sensors to move, which caused them to fail, so a new pair of brackets with additional support for the sensor are being printed. The front left sensor continued to fail, and this is a problem I've lived with for some time in 2019, so I've replaced it with a new one, and wired it in directly to the loom, having removed the rubber sureseal connectors which I loathe. I'll see if its solved the problem on the 18th July.


The front left sensor deteriorates to the point where it stops altogether. Front right is working 100%. The two rear sensors exhibit issues under acceleration/deceleration.

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