CanAm First Drive Today.
Discussion
Even though there's many thngs left to do, decided to lower the car off it's jacks and see if I could make it move under it's own power.
http://home.attbi.com/~rosenracing5/wsb/html/view.cgi-photo.html--SiteID-724093.html
Only drove about 4 miles round trip to the gas station.
Never got over 50 mph.
Since we did the alignment while it was on jacks, the car seemed to handle extremely well right out of the box.
Still have a lot of engine mapping to do (really a lot of learning on how to do it), so that's why the short drive. Car was jerky at a constant speed.
Temps were good despite the high idle which we're working on.
Car is very comfortable both in seating, and control layout. Dead pedal is a great asset. Even took the Cobra out for a drive right after driving the CanAm to compare. Cobra is good, CanAm is better.
No problem with the left hand cill shift, (didn't expect to since many years ago I owned a XK140 RHD. Gearbox shifted well and was positive.
Clutch was smooth and pressure was reasonable for a high horsepower unit.
Brakes appear slightly soft despite thorough bleeding. I attribute this to the total flexible brake line going to the rear. That appears to be the cylinder that's soft. Will consider a solid line to the rear. Steering was light and solid.
Right now have 20lbs. in front, and 24 in rear. Will do temp checks across tread when car is ready to find ideal pressures.
Going to take the car the the Factory Five Open House this coming Saturday with their blessings.(three miles from my house) They have a mid-engine in the works which appears to be a cross between a Mosler and Saleen.
Biggest problem right now is the single wire alternator that will run the car, but not charge the battery. The car attracted a lot of attention at the gas station while I was waiting for the auto club to come and give me a boost. It was a beautiful day, and I had my cell phone, so got a little sun while I waited.
I have about 100 yards of dirt and gravel from my shop to the pavement. That makes a big mess in the battery and hydraulic area. Will work on that this week also.
At this point, I'm very happy with the car. Any problems right now are my own, and not factory related.
Will have further updates as shakedown progresses.
Regards
to all
Jack
http://home.attbi.com/~rosenracing5/wsb/html/view.cgi-photo.html--SiteID-724093.html
Only drove about 4 miles round trip to the gas station.
Never got over 50 mph.
Since we did the alignment while it was on jacks, the car seemed to handle extremely well right out of the box.
Still have a lot of engine mapping to do (really a lot of learning on how to do it), so that's why the short drive. Car was jerky at a constant speed.
Temps were good despite the high idle which we're working on.
Car is very comfortable both in seating, and control layout. Dead pedal is a great asset. Even took the Cobra out for a drive right after driving the CanAm to compare. Cobra is good, CanAm is better.
No problem with the left hand cill shift, (didn't expect to since many years ago I owned a XK140 RHD. Gearbox shifted well and was positive.
Clutch was smooth and pressure was reasonable for a high horsepower unit.
Brakes appear slightly soft despite thorough bleeding. I attribute this to the total flexible brake line going to the rear. That appears to be the cylinder that's soft. Will consider a solid line to the rear. Steering was light and solid.
Right now have 20lbs. in front, and 24 in rear. Will do temp checks across tread when car is ready to find ideal pressures.
Going to take the car the the Factory Five Open House this coming Saturday with their blessings.(three miles from my house) They have a mid-engine in the works which appears to be a cross between a Mosler and Saleen.
Biggest problem right now is the single wire alternator that will run the car, but not charge the battery. The car attracted a lot of attention at the gas station while I was waiting for the auto club to come and give me a boost. It was a beautiful day, and I had my cell phone, so got a little sun while I waited.
I have about 100 yards of dirt and gravel from my shop to the pavement. That makes a big mess in the battery and hydraulic area. Will work on that this week also.
At this point, I'm very happy with the car. Any problems right now are my own, and not factory related.
Will have further updates as shakedown progresses.
Regards
to all
Jack
US,
Very good post! Thanks! This is the type of newbie (newbie relative to Ultima I mean) that I was hoping for. Seems like you are happy with the car at this stage but realize that some items need to change, or be improved.
The car looks HOT! You seem to have done a very good job in building it - was this the first car you ever built besides the Cobra?
Also, how much body/structural vibration, cockpit noise (I know you have a CanAm with no top), and overall rattling and knocking did the car do - if any?
Did it sound and feel solid while taking bumps in the road? What was the steering like in terms of steering wheel force required to make turns at speed, or while maneuvering the car from a stand-still? Did you have to fight the wheel, or did the steering linkage comply without a lot of fuss?
Thanks again, and great post!
L2Pilot
Very good post! Thanks! This is the type of newbie (newbie relative to Ultima I mean) that I was hoping for. Seems like you are happy with the car at this stage but realize that some items need to change, or be improved.
The car looks HOT! You seem to have done a very good job in building it - was this the first car you ever built besides the Cobra?
Also, how much body/structural vibration, cockpit noise (I know you have a CanAm with no top), and overall rattling and knocking did the car do - if any?
Did it sound and feel solid while taking bumps in the road? What was the steering like in terms of steering wheel force required to make turns at speed, or while maneuvering the car from a stand-still? Did you have to fight the wheel, or did the steering linkage comply without a lot of fuss?
Thanks again, and great post!
L2Pilot
Congrats Jack!
It is about one year after you ordered the car. Glad to see it has all come together for you. I might be heading down to the Factory Five factory in a few months to pick up a cobra. It is not my first choice but due to investing on a another project it is all I will be able to afford these next two years. I intend to sell it afterwards and then build my Ultima. Should be good experience for the Ultima build.
Well done Jay C.
>> Edited by JCof T.O. on Tuesday 3rd June 11:57
It is about one year after you ordered the car. Glad to see it has all come together for you. I might be heading down to the Factory Five factory in a few months to pick up a cobra. It is not my first choice but due to investing on a another project it is all I will be able to afford these next two years. I intend to sell it afterwards and then build my Ultima. Should be good experience for the Ultima build.
Well done Jay C.
>> Edited by JCof T.O. on Tuesday 3rd June 11:57
L2 Pilot and all
Car seems great, except for getting the Edelbrock EFI mapped. I'm getting wip-lash from the herky jerky. Everytime I try what the Edelbrock rep suggests, it gets worse. Have a person with EFI experience coming tomorrow to give a look.
Sometime this summer, I'll take the car to our club's home track where I compete with the F2000 about 6 times a year. I'm able to drive the F2000 close to the fastest times that are possible there, so I should be able to have a good comparision.
So, based upon that, it's too early make any more driving comments, except, I have no problem turning the steering wheel when the car is stationary.
Jack
Car seems great, except for getting the Edelbrock EFI mapped. I'm getting wip-lash from the herky jerky. Everytime I try what the Edelbrock rep suggests, it gets worse. Have a person with EFI experience coming tomorrow to give a look.
Sometime this summer, I'll take the car to our club's home track where I compete with the F2000 about 6 times a year. I'm able to drive the F2000 close to the fastest times that are possible there, so I should be able to have a good comparision.
So, based upon that, it's too early make any more driving comments, except, I have no problem turning the steering wheel when the car is stationary.
Jack
I think that we're narrowing in on eliminating the herky-jerky. Just a matter of learning how to program the computer. Was able to drive around the shop without too much jerking before it started to rain.
If anyone has an Edelbrock 3500 EFI with a 383, fairly hot cam, and large valves, we would appreciate your fuel, misc., and sparks settings to use as a comparison.
Terry Abacrombie, the EFI tech rep. at Edelbrock has been very helpful, understanding, and patient, and everyday when we talk to him, we learn one thing more that will hopefully get us to a acceptable result.
Very definately, the car will have to go on a dyno to be properly mapped in the near future.
Jack
If anyone has an Edelbrock 3500 EFI with a 383, fairly hot cam, and large valves, we would appreciate your fuel, misc., and sparks settings to use as a comparison.
Terry Abacrombie, the EFI tech rep. at Edelbrock has been very helpful, understanding, and patient, and everyday when we talk to him, we learn one thing more that will hopefully get us to a acceptable result.
Very definately, the car will have to go on a dyno to be properly mapped in the near future.
Jack
Glad to hear that none of the questions I asked were a problem. I'm just trying to understand how "solid" the car "feels" from someone who just put their on the road for the very first time.
Your engine problems will mostly likely be solved just as you say, with the "correct" tuning. LTFT, STFT, Timing, Spark, Spray, etc., will need to be mapped accordingly. Every set-up is unique in "some" way. Get a good baseline from the supplier, then Chassis Dyno Tune from there until your TRQ and HP curves produce the right slope.
You might also look into something called AutoTap. (www.Autotap.com) Now, I'm not exactly sure if this will work with your set-up (call their customer service number, tell them what you are running and they will let you know of their systems will work for you). If their software works, then you can do your performance tuning at the Dyno Room and get some real-time feedback on engine parameters.
This might be for ODB-II Compliant vehicles ONLY - but I would double check that. It does not sound like you are running an ODB-II system? At any rate, this "might" help you with tuning - not sure.
This is one of the primary reasons why I want an ODB-II compliant system inside my GTR such as the LS1, or LS6. Once you get the Parameters established inside AutoTap for your own set-up, you will know immediately when something falls outside of range (when you have it connected).
Now, they even support the PalmPilot platform! Which means, no more laptop falling all over the passenger seat when road testing!!!
L2
Your engine problems will mostly likely be solved just as you say, with the "correct" tuning. LTFT, STFT, Timing, Spark, Spray, etc., will need to be mapped accordingly. Every set-up is unique in "some" way. Get a good baseline from the supplier, then Chassis Dyno Tune from there until your TRQ and HP curves produce the right slope.
You might also look into something called AutoTap. (www.Autotap.com) Now, I'm not exactly sure if this will work with your set-up (call their customer service number, tell them what you are running and they will let you know of their systems will work for you). If their software works, then you can do your performance tuning at the Dyno Room and get some real-time feedback on engine parameters.
This might be for ODB-II Compliant vehicles ONLY - but I would double check that. It does not sound like you are running an ODB-II system? At any rate, this "might" help you with tuning - not sure.
This is one of the primary reasons why I want an ODB-II compliant system inside my GTR such as the LS1, or LS6. Once you get the Parameters established inside AutoTap for your own set-up, you will know immediately when something falls outside of range (when you have it connected).
Now, they even support the PalmPilot platform! Which means, no more laptop falling all over the passenger seat when road testing!!!
L2
L2 Pilot and all
Slowly getting the little bugs out. Weather here has not been conducive to testing. Today the rain is gone, and the so is the alternator problem due to a few loose nuts, one on the alternator, and one in the driver seat.
Did notice the mess that the front wheels make to the body just behind them, especially if the road is damp.
The procedure with Edelbrock is that you tell them what cam you have installed, and they send you a chip that is matched to your engine. That will be the baseline for the engine. In my case, the chip is far too lean for my engine, perhaps because of other component factors that were not asked for. On the other hand, these are easily compensated for with 24 inputs each for fuel and spark maps, and these are accomplished with a hand held module, rather than a laptop.
If weather holds on the weekend, should be able to get a few hundred miles on the car. If weather doesn't hold, I'll finish up the dozen or so things that have to be finished.
Will update when possible
Jack
Slowly getting the little bugs out. Weather here has not been conducive to testing. Today the rain is gone, and the so is the alternator problem due to a few loose nuts, one on the alternator, and one in the driver seat.
Did notice the mess that the front wheels make to the body just behind them, especially if the road is damp.
The procedure with Edelbrock is that you tell them what cam you have installed, and they send you a chip that is matched to your engine. That will be the baseline for the engine. In my case, the chip is far too lean for my engine, perhaps because of other component factors that were not asked for. On the other hand, these are easily compensated for with 24 inputs each for fuel and spark maps, and these are accomplished with a hand held module, rather than a laptop.
If weather holds on the weekend, should be able to get a few hundred miles on the car. If weather doesn't hold, I'll finish up the dozen or so things that have to be finished.
Will update when possible
Jack
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