Roll Cage has Arrived

Two days after I placed an order for a new bolt-in cage from Kirk Racing, I found a user Autopower 6-point cage on Craigslist. The only problem - it was in Philadelphia. After a briefly considering making a road trip to Philly with Patrick, we concluded that shipping it was the best route. As luck would have it, the seller, Kyle, was more than willing to help us figure out how to get the cage freighted down.

Kirk Racing had not started building our cage yet, so I canceled the order. I contacted Freightquote.com and was quoted $130 to ship. With that, the total cost was still considerably cheaper than the new one from Kirk. Again, Kyle was extremely helpful on his end in getting the cage strapped to a pallet and prepared for shipment from the loading dock at his company. Freightquote.com made sure I had everything I needed to make the shipment go. Patrick assured me that we could have the pallet delivered to the loading dock at his office. With that, we were all set. The cage was picked up on Monday afternoon and delivered to us on Tuesday afternoon.

Here's Patrick with the cage.

MRS2 Goes to the Track

MRS2 went for her initial shakedown at VIR with Audi Club on November 14th and 15th. Overall, it was a good first outing, but we did learn a few things.

First, the lower half of the radiator is clogged, so I could only run her for 15 minutes before she would boil over. We will install a new radiator before we track again.

Second, the brake bias is way too far forward - especially on a slippery track when you simply cannot transfer much weight forward under braking. (I learned this the hard way by having a brief encounter with the tire wall at turn 4 - no real damage done.) Of course, running race pads on the front and street pads on the back wasn't the best idea, but we have an issue to work out nonetheless.

Third, LeMons cars attract a lot of attention at driving schools. I was stunned how many people stopped by to chat with me about my $400 MR2. "Are you preparing that for LeMons?", I was asked time and again. It is very amusing to take a $400 car to an event that features many $100k cars, and have no many people clamor to see your clunker.

Fourth, the car handles well. It is really nicely balanced. Of course, that's why we sought a mid-engine car, but I was quite pleased. We installed the tiny factory rear sway bar and cut off the springs, but otherwise, the suspension is stock. I had read that the handling can be twitchy, but I did not experience that at all. Perhaps it is all relative. I normally drive a Mini Cooper S with a huge rear sway bar. Compared to the Mini, the MR2 seemed docile.

Fifth, 112 bhp ain't much. The little motor sounds good and it likes to rev, but I was running the climbing esses flat out with no issues. Granted, I was running Toyo r-compounds, but still. My Mini would eat this little car alive on the straights. What the heck. It's a LeMon. It is a blast to drive, and LeMon courses are always tight and low-speed. I think this will be a good Lemons starter car.

Before we track again, we will install the rollcage, racing seat, harnesses, a new radiator, and cockpit adjustable proportioning valve (bypassing the factory one). We'll also prepare it with the tires and pads that we intend to race. We are currently targeting March with Track Daze as our final shakedown run before the April Chumpcar race.

Preparing for her debut

It has been a while since our last update, but Patrick and I have been frantically preparing MRS2 for her track debut (but not her race debut.) Like most debutantes, MRS2 required preparation. In this case, that meant lots of horizontal time beneath the sheet metal (on the creeper, that is) replacing hoses, removing the gas tank, replacing the clutch cylinder, etc. Here's a quick run-down of the tasks that we completed in preparation for her VIR debut.

• Removed, delicately straightened (with a 3 lb sledge hammer) and reinstalled the bent panels
• Removed and lightly cleaned the radiator and replaced radiator hoses
• Renewed all brake hydraulics
• Renewed all clutch hydraulics
• Fabricated and installed fancy hood hold-down mechanism (thanks Home Depot!)
• Replaced all ball joints, tie rod ends and struts
• Removed 5/8 coil for all suspension springs
  
• Stripped the interior
• Removed all glass
• Replaced windshield
  
• Removed gas tank and replaced fuel pump
• Replaced water pump and timing belt
• Replaced all coolant hoses in the engine compartment (and there are many!)
• Replaced oil cooler lines
• Replaced valve cover gaskets
• Rebuilt distributor
• Replaced thermostat
• Replaced fuel filter
• Changed oil and tranny fluid

Trophy Wife Racing Commences!

After weeks of searching for Miss Right, we found her, a 1987 Toyota MR2 that we will now transform into MRS2 - the trophy wife. Once the transformation is complete, we will campaign her in 2010 in the 24 Hours of LeMons and Chump Car World Series.

She will be hot. She will be sexy. She will cost a LOT more money than we anticipate. She is the trophy wife.

MRS2 had a good upbringing. She was owned from new by a pair of cousins in Henderson, NC. She ran reliably for years until a tragic accident in 2006 rendered her economically unjustifiable to repair (but just right for LeMons racing.) There she sat for 3 years, exposed the elements, fading in the North Carolina sun, and hoping to be rescued by a pair of dimwitted suburbanites who struggle to overcome the throes of middle-age.

From what we can tell at this point, she is perfect. Although she shows a scar or two, she has only 116k miles. She has a hard-top - no sunroof or t-tops. She should need nothing more than a good diet, some exercise, a fresh coat of fashionable paint, and some credit cards.

Let the fun begin!