TARP Blog

Tonight was a very good night for getting things finished up. In short, once I pour the oil in the car, it’s ready to start testing at the track. Tomorrow night shouldn’t be too late, which is good.

First priority was to get the new oil pan installed. That was kind of a pain because the kicked-out section makes it pretty difficult to screw in about half of the bolts that secure the pan to the bottom of the engine, but with some contortionist moves, they all went in. I used one of the dead-blow hammers that Pete sent along with the pan to jostle the pan into place when a few of the bolts didn’t want to mate up. Of course, I had to drop the exhaust and then re-install it to get the pan in, but at least we didn’t have to modify the stock exhaust to make it fit with the new, kicked-out oil pan. Apparently it holds about 8 qts, which should be good for helping to keep out engine temps from getting too high.

While I was pulling the exhaust, I noticed a crack on the bung that holds the oxygen sensor into the exhaust stream, so I welded that back shut. I also got the hood scoop finished (finally). Now I just need to cut the engine lid to match. I’ll do that tomorrow morning probably.

Finally, I put the windshield back on the car. I had no idea how convenient it is to be able to take the front glass on and off to facilitate working on the inside of the car. I feel foolish for not having broken the original windshield sooner

So, I’ll finish the deck lid and then it’s off to buy provisions and a few last other things, then I’ll be getting all the gear and parts and tools packed up and ready to load on the trailer for Thursday. Cheers.

Race Prep Author: Pat