The last three weeks have been very busy for the Red Pig Rally Team... but unfortunately the outcome has been the same for both cars!
The Metro was due for it's first runout at The Jane Cowling Memorial Phoenix Stages at Manby on Easter Saturday. Preperation of the car was still taking place on Good Friday when it was finally loaded onto the trailer and taken to the venue where it eventually passed sound then flew through scrutineering. This is despite the fact that at some point the Hydragas Suspension on the front end of the car had given up the ghost on the left hand side...
Unfortunately by Saturday morning everything was not well. The engine was failing to fire with a weak battery being the problem and we when I tried to take the car out for a drive to get it warmed up it was pulling horribly to the left. We returned to the service area and jacked the car up and noticed that, when in gear, the left hand front wheel seemed to be catching. We lowered the car and Clive took it for a spin but only got 20 metres before he lost all gears. We spoke to some guys who were running a Mini and they had a quick look but they were as much at a loss as us. Rally over before we even got on stage.
This weekend saw the Escort take part in it's first event of the year at the Lookout Stages at Melbourne. The event started well for us, with the car running faultlessly on stages 1 and 2 (despite the co-driver having what he was assured was ManFlu, and not the plague). Stage 3 was going well but we were held up by a VW Polo at one point and after getting past it clipped a chicane but managed to avoid any serious damage.
Stage 4 started and we were immediately straight back on it and were flying, hoping to put in another good stage time before lunch, unfortunately when we were caught by a flying Pug 205 we went too hot into a chicane and side swiped the drivers side into it. We made it to the end of the stage without anymore excitement but the drivers door had taken a bit of a battering.
After lunch we again tried to hit the floor running but never really got back into it before the back end of the car stepped out at the split, Clive struggled and managed to just about bring it under control when we were t-boned by a Pug 106. They had seen us lose control and taken action to avoid us but, as the back end pulled itself back into shape we had ended up on the side of the road they had taken and they had nowhere to go. We limped out of stage (at speed) and surveyed the damage but it wasn't a pretty sight! The co-drivers door was completely stoved in and the sill had also been pushed in, triggering the extinguisher in the process and bending the door bar. With no extinguisher and a door bar resembling a banana we were forced to call it a day.
Both cars are now in their respective garages and work will start other the next few weeks on getting them up and running again. For the Metro, the first job is to charge the battery and then remove the clutch to see if it is that which has broken. If not it will mean a full gearbox removal. For the Escort, we have already had one quote for the repairs and will look at getting the work done within the next few weeks.
Thursday, 10 April 2008
Thursday, 20 March 2008
Jane Cowling Memorial Phoenix Stages - Manby - Metro - Preview
UPDATE!
The finishing touches are now being made to the car in preperation for the Jane Cowling Memorial Phoenix Stages Rally taking place at Manby this weekend.
The wing has been fixed, painted and re-attached to the car.
The bodykit has been painted and bolted (or more often than not rivited) into place.
A new air horn and co-driver push has been fitted.
Harnesses and intercom are now fitted.
Brakes have been checks and we've made sure all the nuts in the engine bay are tightened.
Battery has been re-connected.
Tyres have been looked at and debated over (rubbish... rubbish... good... rubbish).
New choke has been fitted.
Paintwork has been 'touched up' (sore point - spray can are rubbish and wind makes for big overspray)
So we now have only to fit some mudflaps (which are apparently mandatory) and the decals and we'll be pretty much good to go!
If anybody is in the Manby area on Saturday feel free to bob in and say hello! The seeding has interestingly put us in Car 39 in the 'club' class with an Evo8 and a Vauxhall Calibra behind us. I think they must have thought I was joking when I said I wanted to run last on the road! Either that or they thing the Metro has been fitted with a jet engine! In addition the weather is forecasted to be wet and windy with a high chance of snow!
Anyhow, come Saturday evening I'll know whether the car can run and whether I have the ability to keep it on the road!
The finishing touches are now being made to the car in preperation for the Jane Cowling Memorial Phoenix Stages Rally taking place at Manby this weekend.
The wing has been fixed, painted and re-attached to the car.
The bodykit has been painted and bolted (or more often than not rivited) into place.
A new air horn and co-driver push has been fitted.
Harnesses and intercom are now fitted.
Brakes have been checks and we've made sure all the nuts in the engine bay are tightened.
Battery has been re-connected.
Tyres have been looked at and debated over (rubbish... rubbish... good... rubbish).
New choke has been fitted.
Paintwork has been 'touched up' (sore point - spray can are rubbish and wind makes for big overspray)
So we now have only to fit some mudflaps (which are apparently mandatory) and the decals and we'll be pretty much good to go!
If anybody is in the Manby area on Saturday feel free to bob in and say hello! The seeding has interestingly put us in Car 39 in the 'club' class with an Evo8 and a Vauxhall Calibra behind us. I think they must have thought I was joking when I said I wanted to run last on the road! Either that or they thing the Metro has been fitted with a jet engine! In addition the weather is forecasted to be wet and windy with a high chance of snow!
Anyhow, come Saturday evening I'll know whether the car can run and whether I have the ability to keep it on the road!
Tuesday, 19 February 2008
Entries in...
The entry for for the Lookout Stages Rally, run by Trackrod Motorclub http://www.trackrodmotorclub.co.uk is now in for the Escort and the entry form for the Metro to compete in the Phoenix Stages Rally at Manby will be completed and dispatched within the coming week! Yes... we finally have the confidence that both cars are as ready as they will ever be to compete!
I picked up an extra 5 wheels for the 'tro at the weekend and will be picking up a set of arches at the weekend and will be picking up a bodykit next weekend, so the car might not be the fastest but at least we'll look good! Or as good as is possible in a battered Metro!
The bits of electrical work have been completed and the Tacho fitted so hopefully I'll be able to avoid destroying my engine, the wing it in the final stages of being fixed after I spent a night last week fibreglassing and filling it (probably a little over enthusiastic with the filler - I'm sure it shouldn't have ended up an inch fluch of the wing!) - it's now being sanded and then will be painted at the weekend. The Oil and Oil Filter have been changed after a great deat of swearing and not a small amount of brute force - the filter was pretty much welded in place and the plug for the filter was solid. The seats need re-fitting, and other bits like the harnesses, helmet hammock and intercom need fitting but we're pretty much good to go!
I picked up an extra 5 wheels for the 'tro at the weekend and will be picking up a set of arches at the weekend and will be picking up a bodykit next weekend, so the car might not be the fastest but at least we'll look good! Or as good as is possible in a battered Metro!
The bits of electrical work have been completed and the Tacho fitted so hopefully I'll be able to avoid destroying my engine, the wing it in the final stages of being fixed after I spent a night last week fibreglassing and filling it (probably a little over enthusiastic with the filler - I'm sure it shouldn't have ended up an inch fluch of the wing!) - it's now being sanded and then will be painted at the weekend. The Oil and Oil Filter have been changed after a great deat of swearing and not a small amount of brute force - the filter was pretty much welded in place and the plug for the filter was solid. The seats need re-fitting, and other bits like the harnesses, helmet hammock and intercom need fitting but we're pretty much good to go!
Monday, 4 February 2008
Rock and Roll!
It looks like things are finally starting to come together. The Escort is back up and running with the clutch looking like it has finally decided to work and the Metro has finally made it back from the garage with a full MOT.
The plan now is to enter two events - the Bill Cammack Rally at the end of February in the Metro and the Phoenix Stages Rally at the end of March in the Mark II. Both events are at Manby, a venue that is well used but new to both myself and Clive.
The Metro still needs a bit of work doing on it - there are a few electrical gremlins that we're hoping to sort (basically by re-wiring parts of the car to find the faults!) and the wing is a mess from where the wheel fell off. We're also looking at whether we should be cutting the wing back a bit to give the wheel a bit more room, should we encounter any significant bumps and lumps. This will be carried out over the next few weeks hopefully. Failing that we will reverse cars and do the Bill Cammack Stages in the Escort and the Phoenix Stages in the Metro!
Many thanks to HT AUTO'S in Garforth. They have been a massive help in getting the Metro up and running whilst keeping the cost within reason and can be strongly recommended for all you automotive needs! We use them for our regular cars as well as our the rally cars and they've always done a good job. Give them a call on 0113 287 2081 and let them know where you saw their name so they know that sponsoring us is a good idea!
The plan now is to enter two events - the Bill Cammack Rally at the end of February in the Metro and the Phoenix Stages Rally at the end of March in the Mark II. Both events are at Manby, a venue that is well used but new to both myself and Clive.
The Metro still needs a bit of work doing on it - there are a few electrical gremlins that we're hoping to sort (basically by re-wiring parts of the car to find the faults!) and the wing is a mess from where the wheel fell off. We're also looking at whether we should be cutting the wing back a bit to give the wheel a bit more room, should we encounter any significant bumps and lumps. This will be carried out over the next few weeks hopefully. Failing that we will reverse cars and do the Bill Cammack Stages in the Escort and the Phoenix Stages in the Metro!
Many thanks to HT AUTO'S in Garforth. They have been a massive help in getting the Metro up and running whilst keeping the cost within reason and can be strongly recommended for all you automotive needs! We use them for our regular cars as well as our the rally cars and they've always done a good job. Give them a call on 0113 287 2081 and let them know where you saw their name so they know that sponsoring us is a good idea!
Monday, 14 January 2008
Happy New Year?
The new year is only 14 days old and already we've suffered setbacks!
The original plan was to give both cars a run out at Croft - the Escort for the Christmas Stages and the Metro for the Jack Frost. Unfortunately, as with even the best laid plans, things have gone slightly awry...
The continuing issues with the Escorts clutch meant that we decided not to risk taking the car out until we had a chance to give it a proper shakedown. With this in mind we opted to look at entering the Riponian Rally instead. However, when the car was taken out for a test drive it was discovered that the clutch pedal itself had suffered damage at some point - this means that we have to refabricate the connection between the pedal and the clutch cable. With the extreme cost involved for a small team like ourselves to enter a forest rally we have therefore decided to give it a miss for now and have a run out in a single venue event instead. Watch this space to find out where and when!
The Metro went in for some welding doing before Christmas and suffered a minor mishap on the way when I discovered that I hadn't fastened the wheel nuts on fully. This came to light when the wheel fell off the car damaging the wing in the process! Anyhow... the car finally made it to the garage and had the welding done and went in for it's MOT and promptly failed. Two pieces of work needed to and have been carried out to get it through the test - a new piece needed to be fabricated to fasten the front wing on as this had been damaged at some point and basically rusted away, and the car needed a new rear radius arm fitting. These have been done and the car is in for the re-test today.
So the end of '07 and the beginning of '08 have brought a few niggly problems that will hopefully be pretty simple to iron out over the next week or two. We're looking to give the Metro it's debut at Manby at the end of February and the Escort should hopefully be out and about around the same time.
The original plan was to give both cars a run out at Croft - the Escort for the Christmas Stages and the Metro for the Jack Frost. Unfortunately, as with even the best laid plans, things have gone slightly awry...
The continuing issues with the Escorts clutch meant that we decided not to risk taking the car out until we had a chance to give it a proper shakedown. With this in mind we opted to look at entering the Riponian Rally instead. However, when the car was taken out for a test drive it was discovered that the clutch pedal itself had suffered damage at some point - this means that we have to refabricate the connection between the pedal and the clutch cable. With the extreme cost involved for a small team like ourselves to enter a forest rally we have therefore decided to give it a miss for now and have a run out in a single venue event instead. Watch this space to find out where and when!
The Metro went in for some welding doing before Christmas and suffered a minor mishap on the way when I discovered that I hadn't fastened the wheel nuts on fully. This came to light when the wheel fell off the car damaging the wing in the process! Anyhow... the car finally made it to the garage and had the welding done and went in for it's MOT and promptly failed. Two pieces of work needed to and have been carried out to get it through the test - a new piece needed to be fabricated to fasten the front wing on as this had been damaged at some point and basically rusted away, and the car needed a new rear radius arm fitting. These have been done and the car is in for the re-test today.
So the end of '07 and the beginning of '08 have brought a few niggly problems that will hopefully be pretty simple to iron out over the next week or two. We're looking to give the Metro it's debut at Manby at the end of February and the Escort should hopefully be out and about around the same time.
Wednesday, 5 December 2007
Done it!
I sat and passed my BARS test last weekend at the Chrisk Birkbeck Rally School in Saltburn, Cleaveland. This was the last piece of the puzzle that I needed to enable me to apply for my National B Stage Rally Licence. My application has now been sent to the MSA and hopefully I will receive my licence next week! I have also sent the MSA Competition logbook for the car to the MSA to register it in my name.
Whilst not a lot of mechanical work has been carried out on the Metro, I am hoping to be able to get the welding completed within the next week and then get it in for it's MOT. The plan is to get this done by the end of December so I'll be good to go on the Jack Frost Stages.
Things have also started to progress on the Escort as well. The gear box has finally been re-fitted after we had to take it off to fix the clutch which failed on the Thor Hammer Stages. This involved a lot of swearing one night in the garage with a light that didn't help matters due to it repeatedly cutting out. I bet Seb Loeb doesn't have these problems!
We're hoping to have the car up and running in time to enter the Christmas Stages at Croft later this month - watch this space!
Whilst not a lot of mechanical work has been carried out on the Metro, I am hoping to be able to get the welding completed within the next week and then get it in for it's MOT. The plan is to get this done by the end of December so I'll be good to go on the Jack Frost Stages.
Things have also started to progress on the Escort as well. The gear box has finally been re-fitted after we had to take it off to fix the clutch which failed on the Thor Hammer Stages. This involved a lot of swearing one night in the garage with a light that didn't help matters due to it repeatedly cutting out. I bet Seb Loeb doesn't have these problems!
We're hoping to have the car up and running in time to enter the Christmas Stages at Croft later this month - watch this space!
Thursday, 8 November 2007
2008
Plans for 2008 are progressing nicely for RPR.
I am booked to sit my BARS test that I need to apply for my competition license - fingers crossed this means that by the end of November I will be in a position to get my Driving and Navigating licences for the coming year.
We met last night 'down the local' to discuss what sort of enets we'd be looking at for the coming season and to sit down with Craig Warner who will be co-driving the Metro in 2008. Clive is hoping to have the Escort in the Forests in 2008 if we are able to secure a reasonable level of sponsorship. I will be competing in mainly Multi Use events in the Metro but I'm also looking at doing one or two tarmac events. We both hope to be in the woods in November for the Kall Kwik Rally if it keeps to a similar route to this year as there are two stages at Temple Newsam which makes it our local event and one on which we would look at getting all our sponsors and everyone who had helped us through the year down
I am booked to sit my BARS test that I need to apply for my competition license - fingers crossed this means that by the end of November I will be in a position to get my Driving and Navigating licences for the coming year.
We met last night 'down the local' to discuss what sort of enets we'd be looking at for the coming season and to sit down with Craig Warner who will be co-driving the Metro in 2008. Clive is hoping to have the Escort in the Forests in 2008 if we are able to secure a reasonable level of sponsorship. I will be competing in mainly Multi Use events in the Metro but I'm also looking at doing one or two tarmac events. We both hope to be in the woods in November for the Kall Kwik Rally if it keeps to a similar route to this year as there are two stages at Temple Newsam which makes it our local event and one on which we would look at getting all our sponsors and everyone who had helped us through the year down
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
