My 205/50R15 Falkens weren't up to the challenge of running against R-Compounds at Grissom this weekend. Competition at divisional solo events is never predictable. Seeing that the other drivers had R-compounds I wasn’t expect to even match their times. I was surprised when I received my Sportscar that the winner in my class, Jack Burns and his Mazda 3 were expected to win Nationals.
I actually came away feeling that the SC2 has pretty good chances. First the other drivers were on fairly narrow 16” wheels. The Mazda had 225/50R16s Kuhmo V710s. I know the SC2 can legally fit 225/50R15s on the 8lb SSRs. Which brings me to my next topic weight:
I go the SC2 up on the scales at registration with half a tank of 93 octane and the spare and jack in place:
2320 lbs without driver -- FL: 711 lbs FR: 732 lbs RL: 439 lbs RR: 438 lbs
2525 lbs with driver -- FL: 793 lbs FR: 758 lbs RL: 510 lbs RR: 463 lbs
This is with OEM 15.5 lb wheels, optional A/C, and spare & jack in place.
2320 lbs
- 30 lbs (spare & jack
- 30 lbs (8 lb wheels)
- 18 lbs (3 gallons less)
- 27 lbs (A/C)
- 3 lbs (air pump, etc.)
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2212 lbs
Not too bad for a car that can fit 225s and probably make close to 140 lbs stock legal. Of course it is still pretty softly sprung, and the KYB's can't handle it.
I paid some attention to the Storm GSi today. I bought two quarts of Pennzoil Synchromesh at Autozone. The service manual does describe exactly how you are supposed to get the fluid into the transmission. I decided that the quart bottles looked like they were designed to connect to a hose, so I rummaged around looking for some hose. I first tried some clear tubing from a fish tank aerator, but it was too small to fit over the end of the bottle. Luckily there was also some larger tubing with the fish tank stuff that ended up working fine.
After filling the transmission I remembered to look at the brakes. The reservoir was empty so, I read how to bleed the system. The directions mention bleeding the master cylinder using the forward pipe. The only thing I could see was a bolt on the inner side of the cylinder. So, I filled the reservoir and then loosened that bolt. Fluid came out. Christina helped pump the pedal, and I let some more fluid leak out of the bolt and then bled both calipers.
I put the E30 wheel back on the left front and noticed that the studs were not sticking out as far as they should be. I had had some longer studs in that hub in preparation for using spacers, which hadn't worked out. My dad had helped get the new axle on, but evidently the studs never got seated correctly. I left it like that for now, just another project for another day.
Of course, the battery was dead from sitting since the beginning of spring, but the Storm started right up when jumped with the wagon. The 1.8L DOHC Isuzu sounded fine as I drove the Storm slowly up and down the street. Something was screeching on the right front side of the car, and the brakes were grinding like they had been left out in the elements not kept in a garage all summer. I probably will need to pull the pads and rotors on both sides to see what's wrong. That will be a good time to fix those studs I suppose.