S197 tts/aix build start to finsh

[StangMahn]

that looks fantastic! I really wanna build a track specific car one of these days

 

[marksti]

Marksti, is your cars weight with you in it?

3400-3410

 

[marksti]

Well i didn't have the time to remove anymore weight...but a few loose end got tied up.

The factory driveshaft was replaced ( by talking to a few racers, turns out some of the factory two piece units also have probelms with the CV boot..sure enough mine i noticed was leaking grease from the boot slinging it on the underbody)

The driveshaft was replaced due to the center support bearing pushing out.

Power steering seepage was fixed..

Off to the track i go

 

[09AlloyGT]

I know I'm a nobody, but I must say this is a beautiful car!! And thanks alot for taking the time to share all of the BS you learned and parts you used..Its nice to see another (few out there, $$$$) that shared their Grigg's trial stories..I may have some questions for you on PM if you don't mind some time.

Again, badass car.

Robert

 

[foolio2k4]

More aero would be nice..your right

..the Roush track wing looks good also..but i have to save up for a 315 tire package.

I have the roush track wing. Its the same one as the apr gtc-200 series wing. I havent tracked my car yet but I can tell you that I did notice a difference even when im just going freeway speeds and taking onramps full on . Less bumping at the rear at higher speeds just a planted feeling.

 

[marksti]

I toke the car to the track...102+degrees..add another 20-30+ for track temps and then throw in a fire suit

I had some understeer problems..that no tire adjustments would fix...it was to hot to mess with..so i just backed down on my driving...as i was just given rides to friends and not competing in a class.

The car did well considering the PS pump died also (heat)

New Griggs brakes were great

On the to do list:

Fix PS system
Raise seat 2 inches
Fix rear hood lift problem (now does it at 100 mph due to higher flow from grille)
Tune out understeer, adjusting pressure didn't help..looks like adjustin the Watts link/Front sway bar may do the trick...If not, alignment.
Once thats dailed in..start ramping up my driving to suit the car

Get new tires/wheels soon aswell.

With road racing like many motorsports its never done..more so when you change setups.

 

[marksti]

I know I'm a nobody, but I must say this is a beautiful car!! And thanks alot for taking the time to share all of the BS you learned and parts you used..Its nice to see another (few out there, $$$$) that shared their Grigg's trial stories..I may have some questions for you on PM if you don't mind some time.

Again, badass car.

Robert

No problem..one thing i learned is that whenever you change alot of stuff..is not to get to frustrated..as it takes a day or two at the track to work out the kinks.

Quick cars are seldom built without alot of development/time/practice

 

[DusterRT]

Fix rear hood lift problem (now does it at 100 mph due to higher flow from grille)

If you look at the FR500S grille, you can see where they have it blocked off roughly where the GT fogs would be. I think this is to combat hood lift and the understeer that is a byproduct of having a high pressure area under the hood. There's a guy on another forum with a Griggs equipped S197 who reported a significant handling improvement by installing a hood with massive heat extractors on it. Food for thought...

 

[marksti]

If you look at the FR500S grille, you can see where they have it blocked off roughly where the GT fogs would be. I think this is to combat hood lift and the understeer that is a byproduct of having a high pressure area under the hood. There's a guy on another forum with a Griggs equipped S197 who reported a significant handling improvement by installing a hood with massive heat extractors on it. Food for thought...

Good points.. i was having understeer problems moreso in the slower turns (50-70mph)..then long sweeping ones..so i know the aero wasn't quite the whole problem..maybe part of it..but not all for sure.

I will shortly vent the rear of the hood to help with the pressures.

 

[DusterRT]

I will shortly vent the rear of the hood to help with the pressures.

If you're talking about removing the seal at the base of the windshield, don't do that..that's a high pressure area and you'll just let more air in. I took mine off, taped some strings to the back of the hood and what do ya know...even at 100+ they were getting blown under the cowl.

 

[SD07GT]

If you're talking about removing the seal at the base of the windshield, don't do that..that's a high pressure area and you'll just let more air in. I took mine off, taped some strings to the back of the hood and what do ya know...even at 100+ they were getting blown under the cowl.

What about putting some spacers on the rear studs that bolt the hood down on the rear....you could raise the back 1/4 of an inch to vent the air and heat ??


also do you know anybody who had a gt500 spliter and tryed to install it on a gt ??? ... I heard just with a few small mods it would work

 

[DusterRT]

The entire area at the base of the windshield is high pressure. I've seen guys with vintage Mustangs do just that, but I think it would take a whole lot more than 1/4" before you started seeing gains (probably 1"+). Aerodynamics are tricky!

As far as the splitter..it has been done more than a couple times, search around the various forums. IMO it looks kind of "off" and the mounting doesn't look too solid..it's not that large so I'm not sure if there'd be any appreciable gains.

 

[Kaiser]

Good info on the Hood issues.

My hood shakes around alot starting at 80mph so i need to do hood pin's or another hood. It just makes me nervous knowing that the hood could come off at high speed like what happened the first time they ran the FR500 at Daytona. Also, where can you get that FR500S grille?

Mark, just wondering if your PS pump has the Griggs PS cooler ?

 

[marksti]

I installed a new power steering pump..that fixed the noise of death coming from under the hood

I vented the rear of the hood by cutting a few slots ala some of the Saleen hoods

Got some new wheels/tires coming

I need to fix the driver seat//maybe raise it alittle still bit

Thats it for now..no track days planned for 1 or 2 months

 

[Blair]

How does the performance/feel of the torque arm compare to the upgraded UCA/LCA set up you had? I've looked into getting a Griggs SS setup on my car with a local installer. In their opinion the torque arm is the majority of the handling benefit of the package and they even suggested doing only the torque arm first and deciding on the coilovers later if I felt they were needed.

Thanks,
Blair

 

[marksti]

How does the performance/feel of the torque arm compare to the upgraded UCA/LCA set up you had? I've looked into getting a Griggs SS setup on my car with a local installer. In their opinion the torque arm is the majority of the handling benefit of the package and they even suggested doing only the torque arm first and deciding on the coilovers later if I felt they were needed.

Thanks,
Blair

The torque arm plants the rear end IMHO vrs controlling the rear end movement with a LCA/UCA setup.

The nice thing about the coilover setup is that it lets you corner weigh/balance the car and its alittle lighter then say a ford racing suspension.

I would suggest a torque arm... and if you want to "dail in" your setup a good coilover setup is a +.

 

[marksti]

Soo the new wheel/tire package is on


They are .9 inchers shorter so that lowers the car alittle..also to make the Mustang look better i dropped the car another .3 of a inch, Also being a smaller tire, this raises the rear gear fo the car alittle.

The contact patch of the tires measures a meaty 11.3 inches which should help hook up the car.


Here are some pics

Always a work in progress

I hope to install my Aerocatch hoodpin kit..Its been sitting in a drawer for two years

 

[marksti]

BTW for those of you that want get a view about what real racings like check this out..wheel to wheel on two well developed cars with a couple of rock stars for drivers.

Both cars are 150K+ and built by the best, so they aren't cheap..but they also hold track records in their classes...Turnin laps in the 1:49 range in the summer heat at Thunderhill


The stangs Andersons-Griggs car the GTRs is Locks-Gotos new GTR racer


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRzHEPeK33U

Thought a few might of not seen this..theres a part two also

 

[Kaldar142]

Nice what wheels are those?

 

[Kaldar142]

Man I love that hood, I wonder if it fits with the procharger intake