Open track day and parts runner build

[blake4591]

I checked up on the rim widths recommended for the tires. All the slicks recommend a minimum of 6" and are usually mounted on 6.5" or 7" when measured. The R888 are actually mounted on 5.5" when they measure them but a 60 ratio side wall gives a lot of space for them to move around. The wheels I found are so cheap though I don't think I could loose money even if I just end up cleaning them up and reselling them. The guy is way out in farm country and I'm sure there isn't much demand for old vw wheels out there.

I have actually been looking for a good option for used 13" wheels for a while so I'm pretty familiar with the old BMW wheels. The 13x6s only come off the 2002 and are pretty rare. There is a 13x5.5 that is almost identical looking that comes from the 320s and is a good bit more common. Most people still want a decent amount for either style though because it says bmw and the back spacing of either isn't great for front wheel drive.

[Advancedynamix]

Yeah, you can't go wrong with a set of inexpensive wheels to have as spares or for rain tires/street tires.
I was running R888s when I noticed the abnormal wear.
The 5.5" recommendation on those tires may be based on lighter cars. Formula Ford cars ran those on the front as a spec tire for a few years. The cantilever sidewall may work good on those cars, but not on the front of a Festiva.


Here you can see the uneven wear with the 5.5" wide rims. The center is worn, indicating excessive pressure, but (can't be seen in the picture) the outside edge of the tires would wear past the arrow. Then there was 2 strips of tread left on the outer 1/3 of the edges. They were folding over and needed too much pressure to keep shape.

This shows that I'm not getting the most from the tire. Since these things are about 400 a set after mounting, and only last a few days, it's nice to get the most out of them. My 13x7 Team Dynamics wheels have paid for themselves in being able to get about 3 or 4 more sessions from a set of R comps.



The old 13x6 bmw wheels aren't as rare as you may think. The BBS RA wheels are worth a good amount these days, but still pop up on Craigslist and other local classifieds once and awhile. Also, there are many aftermarket wheels that were made in that size for the old Bimmers and VWs. I've got a set of BBS wheels and a set of Enkei 92 wheels in 13x6 that I found locally in salvage yards over the years. The offset is et15 on my BBS wheels and ET12 on the Enkei wheels. They require a good amount of negative camber, but the car likes the camber anyway.
There are 13x8 wheels available new on Ebay, but I'm not sure if there is enough room for a 13x8 without cutting the fenders. My 13x7 wheels are just a hair off the strut mount part of the knuckle, and they barely fit inside the fenders with the 185 60 13 tires.

[blake4591]

Yeah the only 13" wheels I have now are factory steelies. So I figure I can't go wrong even if it's not ideal. haha

13x7s with an offset that will work are a custom order wheel as far as I can tell and I'm not quite ready to spend the money for custom wheels when I'm still finishing up the car. There are a few companies making minilite copies and offering 13x7s but you still have to have them make a set with the correct offset.

There are 13X7.5s and 13x8s all over ebay. Someone is going to have to buy a set and see if they fit. Maybe the 7.5s might just clear everything but then they are meant to be a drag wheel so they might not hold up well to road racing.

Getting correctly sized wheels and tires is probably the hardest part of getting one of these cars on the track. lol

[Advancedynamix]

Agreed

[blake4591]

So, I finished up the VAM mount the other day. I'm just painting it and one other small bracket. I have the brakes completely plumbed, they just need bleed. The interior is installed except for the seats and harnesses. There are some other small things that need done but it's just a matter of wrapping things up now.

I ordered a 12" slim fan and the parts I need to put the exhaust together this morning and they should all be here by Friday.

[Advancedynamix]

These cars are so sweet to drive and you've done a great job at this build. I'm excited to hear what you think of it. Sounds like you'll have it running by the end of the month!

[blake4591]

Well thank you. I'm pretty confident it'll be wrapped up by the end of the month. The next track day at Waterford Hills (my local track) is August 28th. So I should have enough time to get most of the bugs worked out before then.

[blake4591]

Still moving toward finishing the car.


Finished front suspension, I still didn't have the brake line on here but those are all installed now. Quick tip harbor freight sells a box of copper washers for like 7 bucks. There is a size that is exactly the same as those for the front calipers. They probably aren't exactly the right copper alloy for brakes but time will tell how well they actually hold up.



Car with all the suspension on it. The front jack stands are under the front edge of the front doors and if you push on the front bumper the rear end will lift up. I threw an extra truck battery in the spare tire wheel as a counter weight to make myself fell safer when I have to go under it.


Finished engine bay. I still need to run the vacuum line from the intake to the brake booster and make a lower radiator hose but this pretty much where everything is going.


Test fitted the VW 13s I picked up. They look like they were recently repainted, one has a little curb harsh and they need cleaned up but for $120 I'm not complaining. They also came with old BF goodrich 205/60s that I'm going to try out at an autocross. I expect the tires to be junk but I'll try them before I trash them. I still need to order another set of lug nuts because VW used that acorn style rather than a traditional cone like Mazda.

I'm not a huge fan of the white on the silver so they might be getting painted but for now I'm just going to clean them.


Wrapped up putting the seats and harnesses in the car last night. It was nice to get to sit in the car for the first time since I bought it over a year ago.

[Advancedynamix]

The capri Brake Booster hard pipe makes a tidy way to get the vacuum over there. Also, Nissan and Honda both come with some nice robust check valves that seem to work better than the Mazda ones. I get mine from PAP yards along with random booster hoses to cut up for a perfect fit. The engine moves, so it's important to allow flex between the hard pipe and the intake manifold.

[blake4591]

Well i missed the end of the month but I have almost everything done.

I had to make up a lower rad hose so I started with a festiva lower and a half of a random hose from autozone that was the right size for the capri outlet.


Added some copper pipe that also acts as an adapter between the different size hoses.


Test fit


Painted and ready to be installed


I had to make up the front half of the exhaust to then reuse the 2 1/4" that was on my BP car.






Exhaust finished and ready to install


You have to really get the exhaust tucked up tight to the car once you start lowering them. Hopefully I've done a good enough job that it doesn't drag or bang on the body.


Actual wheels and tires on the car.


I ran into a hood clearance issue so I have to sort that out and get the alignment correct and it should be ready to go.

[bhazard]

You'll prolly wanna stick a resonator in there at some point

[blake4591]

You'll prolly wanna stick a resonator in there at some point

I wasn't planning on it. It's basically the exhaust I ran with the BP for two years and had no complaints about. There is a "turbo" style muffler at the end that seems to keep away the drone and buzz. It was loud on on throttle but it wasn't obnoxious cruising around.

[blake4591]

Well I finally got the car off the jack stands on Wednesday. Only drove it up and down the dirt road since I forgot to mail the plate renewal (its in the mail now). Everything seems to be good except the idle is a little high. I've already got the list of possible causes to go through tonight so it shouldn't be a hard fix. I also need to roll all the fenders just a little to make sure there is no side wall contact.

There is an autocross next Sunday so I need to get some miles on it next week to shake everything down.

[Advancedynamix]

I use a short wooden table leg that I bought at home depot. It is the best festiva fender rolling tool I've found and I have an actual fender roller. Lol. The Festiva has small awkwardly shaped fenders and the metal is easy to shape. I prefer the feel of a manual tool and the wood slides nicely on the metal. The different shapes and diameters of the turned table leg work well to shape the steel lip.

[bhazard]

I use a short wooden table leg that I bought at home depot. It is the best festiva fender rolling tool I've found and I have an actual fender roller. Lol. The Festiva has small awkwardly shaped fenders and the metal is easy to shape. I prefer the feel of a manual tool and the wood slides nicely on the metal. The different shapes and diameters of the turned table leg work well to shape the steel lip.

Do you use a heat gun or something to keep the paint from cracking?