|
03/30/19 In the previous post I said the weather is starting to cooperate... Well, at least part of the time. We got a few days of testing back to back. Ranged from parking lots to ORP in both dry and not so much...
Some weather-related hazards, too... I knew better, but thought it would be ok. Wasn't as bad as it looks but still.
The agenda now is to set a baseline with previous generation of D2 and see how the new generation compares. We have high ambitions. The posts over the next few months might be confusing at times, since we'll be testing both generation cars back to back and they generally look very similar, although the configurations are very different. One is RWD gas powered, the other is AWD electric. It's a major step for us to incorporate EV technology at this level and it's easily the most complex car we've done to date. Fortunately we have some great development partners, which will be announced in due time. So far, so good, but so much work remains. Here is one video and another. And a few random pix.
Other minor stuff - we now have a garage at ORP, and I finally got to see it. Pretty cool. An we'll make good use of it. A D4 and its trailer have found a home in it already.
There is a lot of other stuff happening. Key focus is on bodywork, getting the canopy, doors and interior together. More to report there soon. 04/26/19 Even though the posts are not very frequent, activity continues at a furious pace. We are now starting to stretch the new car's legs a bit. Here's a short video. I've been designing crazy cars for a while now. All have been pretty intense. I've also gotten to ride in a few famous cars at track speed - F40, F50, Enzo. So it is not lightly that I say this - the new car is the fastest accelerating vehicle I've been in, let alone driven. So much so that I've yet to bring myself to hold full throttle for more than a couple seconds. It pulls as hard at 100+ as it does off the line. This actually really messes me up because normally I accelerate onto the straight, get up to speed, motor along and set up for the brake zone. Here, it's blasting into the brake zone with me still pinned back in the seat. Need a total recalibration now. Maybe I'll figure it out, maybe I'll just have to live within my limitations when I drive it. Fortunately there are better drivers than me. And sometimes they give rides :)
There is of course a lot more to a fast car than acceleration and the next steps are to work on all the other bits. Aero for example. That's coming soon. But for now we've been working on the doors and bodywork in general. Good progress, with molds successfully modified and test parts fitted. I do look at the one-piece D1 and D4 bodywork nostalgically every now and then.
As I've mentioned the new car is electric and that means charging. We've made a portable cart that plugs into a 50A RV plug, like the one in the paddock at ORP.
But sometimes we need to charge faster than 11KW and sometimes there is no shore power available. So for this - another side project, a generator powered by a GSXR1000 engine. Should be fun. Too bad we won't be able to drive it :) Gotta get it into CAD first. Fortunately we're not having to do it ourselves (plenty on the plate already). Our partner companies are making it happen, although we'll still be the ones to put it all together.
So much more to do. Finally getting some D2s finished up is high on the list, and everything on the new car is actually moving that process forward as well. 04/30/19 Another test at ORP. The place is so beautiful this time of year. Good progress today. And I finally managed to hold full throttle, for all of 0.3 sec according to the datalog. Working up to it.
5/10/19 Testing, development and bodywork stuff continues, though no worthwhile pictures to post yet. In the meantime one development that started months ago has come to fruition. We have experimented with many transport solutions, from F150 truck to the Mothership Freighliner with 48' trailer, and eventually came up with something that has worked really well for the past 8 years - a E150 van with heavy duty towing package and a 20' trailer. We have put over 90K miles on the van in that time, including many trips to Pikes Peak towing a loaded trailer to over 11,000'.
The van is way more stable than a pickup truck towing, keeps its contents dry and secure, and transports crew in reasonable comfort as well. It is WAY more manageable than the Mothership was. Overall, it's been great which is why we have stuck with it for so long. But now at 150K miles it's getting long in the tooth (though still trouble free). The main trigger for change is that this year's Pikes Peak car is heavier than what we've built in the past. The van already was marginal through the Ws going up to Devil's Playground - foot to the floor 1st gear 15 mph, having to carry momentum through the blind hairpins in the dark at 4am, because if we slowed down we couldn't get going again. It wouldn't work with the new car. So about three months ago we ordered a replacement tow vehicle and trailer. The trailer I have already posted about - it's a 18' aluminum V-nose with custom 83" between the wheel wells. Only took 4 weeks to get built and has been working great already. The old trailer sold in 2 days and is gone. The tow vehicle took a lot of research and about 15 weeks to get built. I love the vans for towing - short of pulling a gooseneck, I really gon't get why anyone would buy a pickup for this. Yes the vans have lower 'rated' capacity but I suspect it's intentional on the part of the manufacturers. They make more money on pickups. So we needed more power. Turbo for altitude. Has to carry crew in comfort (22 hour drive to Colorado Springs), but also tires, tools, miscellaneous gear, etc. We operate in dusty, sometimes wet and muddy environments. After looking at offerings from Ford, Mercedes and Chrysler we went with a Ford Transit 12-passenger van, twin turbo 310hp Ecoboost, factory HD towing package, factory trailer brake controller, privacy glass, dual AC, running boards, and so on. Of course Ford doesn't yet make the perfect configuration ('crew van', coming next year) so after comparing getting a passenger version and modifying vs getting a cargo version and modifying, we went with the former. Earlier this week the van finally arrived and I have to say it's everything I hoped for and more. Pulling the trailer with the car in it is effortless. Passing semis on the freeway is a non-event, as is 30mph gusting side wind. Cruise control holds speed on 6% grades up and down. It's quiet and smooth, and has plenty of passing power on the uphills.
The interior is cavernous.
Of course we don't want all 12 seats and we do need cargo space. The seats snap out easily but the carpet is not going to hold up long under our use.
In this configuration it still has 7-person capacity and ample cargo space. To protect it we bought a cargo van bed liner and trimmed it to fit the passenger version, covering the unused seat anchors and floor vents. We did mark the anchors for when we want tiedowns. We'll just cut round holes to access them and then install plugs when not needed.
Along with a front molded floor mat, this will work perfectly and preserve the carpeting under it. After towing out to ORP for another test, super happy with the new rig. Fuel mileage is better too, about 12mpg towing fully loaded vs 7 the old van gets in the same use. It will make everything we do more efficient and less stressful. Now back to doing what we do.
06/06/19 Three weeks to the race. The Pikes Peak webcam looks like this.
We were originally scheduled to test up there this weekend but a while back had decided the time is better spent back here getting ready. Just as well it seems. Hopefully it will look a bit less wintry on raceday morning (it can do whatever in the afternoon, as is the custom). Lots of testing. Lots learned. Lots of tweaks. And like every time we've done this, we find ourselves in this mad race to the starting line. Pretty sure every Pikes Peak competitor knows what I'm talking about. At the latest round of ORP testing did some impromptu drag launches. Here's a video. The results: 0-60 mph 2.44sec in 108 feet, 0-100mph 4.20 sec in 305 feet, 0-120 mph 5.2sec in 501 feet. Then we ran out of straight.
Progress is being made, although right now the list of tasks seems impossible. We will eventually prove it isn't. Some pix along the way:
Experimenting with better/lighter wing construction techniques. Machined an aluminum mold to make carbon wing ribs, just hours before getting on a plane to Singapore for my other super-stressful job. Timing is everything.
Still working on the hinges and doors. Coming along.
Some further tweaks to the wiring. It's amazing how complex a car like this is - there is a full custom VCU just to talk to all the various computers and make them each do their thing at the right time. The dual power distribution modules are controlled via CAN bus.
Trying infusing carbon canopies - it's a steep learning curve for the crew.
Finally time to make the mold for the new diffuser that I've been CFDing for the last several months. This one I'm doing myself - kinda cool to get up from the computer and do some hands on.
Got some input from Gary Wheeler, the inventor of the Wheeler vortex generator and aerodynamicist with a distinguished career in motorsports including Dan Gurney's AAR. The challenge is to get the most downforce we can from the existing wings, and the VGs will help us do that.
Also started on molds for the diveplanes.
There's lots more that we're saving for the post-race blog. Something to look forward to :) In the meantime, warm thoughts. Site Sponsors and Links:
|
.jpg)
