Tweaks Re-build thread

[Advancedynamix]

Little bit, especially with your earlier explinations on how this particular chassis put power to the ground. Come next spring I have alot of work to do to get mine to the track.

Love to hear this. Keep us posted on your progress and always feel free to hit me up with any questions.

Love your car! Your attention to detail and build quality are amazing :thumbright:

Thanks Fred! This is the most fun I've ever had on 4 wheels (well, it's on 4 most of the time )

[Festiva_Fred]

Love your car! Your attention to detail and build quality are amazing :thumbright:

[defprun]

Little bit, especially with your earlier explinations on how this particular chassis put power to the ground. Come next spring I have alot of work to do to get mine to the track.

[Advancedynamix]

So your front end will REALLY look like the rear suspension of a dirt bike!

Saved for another Festie that will be track only?

Motocross is where I cut my teeth on suspension tuning. Can you tell?

[Advancedynamix]

EPic work !! Where did you get your doctorate in engine bay cleanliness ? ahah

I used to build professional and club level race cars for a living, mostly Porsche cars. The only way I can keep an eye on chassis fatigue and any other possibly problems is to have a very clean car. This car is my hobby, but I treat it as though it were a GT3 RSR. I regularly push the limits in this car, it sees corners in excess of 2.5 G's on a regular basis and is often jumped and slid over curbing at speeds over 100mph. If you have ever watched professional touring car racing, that is how Tweak gets driven. I need to know every inch of this car in order to have the confidence to drive it like I do.
With that said, I can personally vouch for the durability of the Festiva Chassis. The only fatigue I have seen is the seam sealer has cracked at the seam where the firewall meets the strut towers. No metal has cracked, only the seam sealer, which is probably old and dry anyway. I prefer to allow a cars chassis to flex, because this helps the car conform to the racetrack better. I only reinforce the spots that fatigue. I knew the front lower support area was going to be a problem before I ever drove the car, because of other cars I have built that had a similar setup. The flexing that starts in the front of the car is then exaggerated the further away from the front that you get, typically causing cracks and fatigue where the flexing chassis components attach to the rest of the car. In the festiva we see the signs of this flexing in the firewall and strut tower cracks that have shown up on some of the higher HP cars on this forum. The areas where the chassis cracks though, aren't typically where the stress is being applied to the chassis. By strengthening the chassis where the twisting originates, I have drastically reduced the chances of fatigue further down line. Also, this adds beneficial wight to the car, since it is in front of the front axle line. Any weight in front of the front axle line is transferred to the front wheels when accelerating and cornering. This helps the car to hook up, and to turn in better. Forward weight also helps high speed stability, therefore it's a win win win situation. Weight behind the front axle line pulls weight from the front wheels under acceleration and cornering and will tend to make the car more unstable during high speed cornering. This is a lose lose lose situation. The festiva has huge advantages over other FWD vehicle because it's chassis only requires reinforcement in the very front, and it's suspension design is all trailing link style, which follows the ground much better than A-arm or most multi link suspension systems. It's light and simple and has very little resistance. Basically, Mazda Designed one of the most efficient road racing weapons ever made, and then restricted it with too little of power and not enough rubber on the ground. Make a few adjustments in a few areas and these cars are untouchable on a road coarse.

[defprun]

So your front end will REALLY look like the rear suspension of a dirt bike!

Saved for another Festie that will be track only?

[Advancedynamix]

Here you can see the gusset on the backside. I seam sealed it after weld to make it look as OE as possible. I enjoy building cars that are nowhere near stock, but appear untouched to the untrained eye. It confuses the hell out of the Corvette drivers who come over to see why they just got passed by an econobox. :p

[Damkid]

Maybe I misunderstood then lol I intend on strengthening my front chassis as well

[Advancedynamix]

Hate to ruin this thread with stupid questions lol...I don't want u to log in and feel compelled to answer all my stupid questions before you can post cool pix or anything but just kinda curious if welding a piece of 1" or 1.5" angle across the stock radiator support (in front) would help anything? Instead of having to cut the stock metal and stuff, you know I'm all about quick and easy. Well easy anyway..

Not a stupid question at all. The main purpose of this stronger support is to tie the sway bar mounting points together securely, while supporting the front main frame horns from twisting. Basically all of the engines torque is being transferred into pushing force through the cars front sway bar. All power related chassis flex starts here. This removable brace was my best attempt at strengthening the weakest link when I made it 3 years ago. My next roadrace setup will have a tubular front end with trailing links and no front sway bar. I'd like to put 250 ft.lbs to the ground with an open diff.

[Advancedynamix]

Woot woot!! Hey Charlie, you once said you added some bracing on the frame rails, do you have any pics of that by chance?

Is the bracing his removable lower rad support? Looks really beefy.

The only bracing I have is the front support mod. It's plated and gusseted behind where that support bolts I'm on. This area is the most stressed area on the chassis, when it concerns driving TQ.
I also have a harness bar going across my B pillars, but it didn't seem to make the chassis more rigid.

[TominMO]

^ I was wondering the same thing.....

[zoom zoom]

Hate to ruin this thread with stupid questions lol...I don't want u to log in and feel compelled to answer all my stupid questions before you can post cool pix or anything but just kinda curious if welding a piece of 1" or 1.5" angle across the stock radiator support (in front) would help anything? Instead of having to cut the stock metal and stuff, you know I'm all about quick and easy. Well easy anyway..

[skimsucka]

EPic work !! Where did you get your doctorate in engine bay cleanliness ? ahah

[defprun]

Is the bracing his removable lower rad support? Looks really beefy.

[Flyin4stroke]

I'm ready to see tweak with a big turbo on 20lbs! My b6t ran really well on 9lbs though too. You can really tell the difference in weight too with the bp over the b6t. I may be the only one who has had the pleasure of having both setups in the same car. And, Omg sooo clean......!