So this morning I go out and open up the trailer and find a puddle of oil running out from under the car. Didnt notice any oil when I loaded it. Backed it out and removed the hood. now I see why it quit at the top of the track. Did all the usual checks. No dip stick so I drained and measured the oil. 1 qt missing. That line goes directly into the feed from the pump to the Master Lube . Fitting broke off and was spraying oil directly down onto the track when it broke. NO OP No ing.
Honestly Gary, I think it may have contributed to a mishap on the track. No way to be sure but shortly after I made my run a turbo'd Nova got loose and brushed the wall at the top of the track. Coincidentally right in front of where I was pitted. Very dark down there also
Make sure the fittings are compatible and or the same brand.....not all are and they can fail...the nut obviously pulled the threads on that one
Yeah, that's scary....I remember Etown where Bill Lagna in wagon blew engine on top end and they never cleaned up....sent more Buicks down....Mike Pollack went thru the traps close to sideways and saved it.
What had happened is the Masterlube canister slowly worked its way down in the mounts until the hose was basically supporting it and the #6 90* finally gave way and snapped. Im looking at it and saying to myself theres no way I made it this tight. Looking at the pics its several inches short of where it was connected. Removed that band clamp and put some glue on it and then reassembled. Should hold it now. Will keep an eye on it for sure
Doubtful. However at the very end of the frame as its going down the track I see the starter guy walking over to the staging light area looking at something on the track. The car is set up with a oil pressure kill switch which shuts power off the the box if OP falls below 7-10 psi. Thinking John C is right when he said it wasnt hitting the suspension hard enough to plant the tires. Leaving off the foot brake didnt give it the weight transfer it needed. Just gonna take time to figure it out.
If that were my car, I would replace every hose and fitting on the car that I couldn't identify as Areoquip or Fragola.. I have had Earl's fittings fail, let alone the cheap house brand garbage from the big parts houses manufactured in Asia.. Consider this a warning, that type of serious car needs only quality stainless hose and fittings. I had a customer bring in some of that overseas crap, and just putting it together, you could tell by how little effort it took, that it is not holding as well as the good stuff. If your doing a -8 hose and not struggling a bit with the hose ends, then something is wrong here. And one thing you can't control or identify is the material these fittings are made out of. Beware the inexpensive house brand hose and fittings. Track conditions look questionable for launching that car.. looks like it was on Ice for the first 60 ft. Your going to find that car to be very demanding on the track conditions, more so than anything you have previously raced. Just the nature of the beast with that much torque. Time to take it to an event with good track prep, strap on the big boy pants, and start using the trans brake. I still think you going to be adjusting the suspension... weight distribution, and power are completely different now. Old settings should get you down the track, and I believe they will once you start using the trans brake, but you will have to experiment to find the optimum settings for the current combination, as well as track conditions. While this particular failure of a fitting can be traced to other factors, it does bring into question material strength and quality. JW
Not piling on but Jim is right. This a serious step up with this engine and chassis. With that comes the responsibility of quality race parts and fabrication. That would include not using worm clamps on a copper tube on your oil system. Things that get cobbled up for 11 second cars do not apply here. Too much speed and power to cut corners. The life you save might be your own. You said it yourself, your oil issue may have caused another car to hit the wall. I'm not saying that's what happened but I wouldn't want that on my conscience. Time to get this stuff corrected.
That was a Fragola fitting and everything on the car thats not a solid / hard line has been replaced. Yes I do believe track prep for that TnT was questionable. John C recommended I leave soft using the foot brake a few passes . The time before I was there I left off the T brake and it hooked for a second then broke loose, hooked again. sister was there and said it pulled the tires both times. Getting a better feel for it and will push a bit harder next time out. Probably go to Gainesville. I'm a long way from entering any competition.
