So, After spending 3 months making the switch from FI to carbs (It should've taken a week or two....but I ran into every possible problem.....twice), I get everything all loaded up and start rolling quarters so I can flip the bill for gas, registration, and a hotel room to test the car at the Speedtrials Buttonwillow event over the weekend. I went up friday night so I could get to the track all rested up and concentrate on getting the car tuned and set up for the start of my season next month. I pulled the car off the trailer in the morning, let it idle for a while and warm up, checked the guages....everything good so far. Went over to tech the car and then back to the truck to hang out until the parade laps. Time for the parade lap....I hop in, fire it up, check my guages.....****, what happened to my fuel pressure. Its gone. Flip the switch a few times. Tear the dash out and check my connections, check the fuse....all good. Check power at the pump....good. Pull pump out of the tank, it works....stick it in the tank, it stops. WTF. Called around Bakersfield and apparently an in-tank transfer pump for an 86 VW GTI is not a very fast moving part anymore and nobody has it in stock. Kicked the kaa, Packed up my **** and headed home. This was the icing on cake. Do you guys ever think about hanging it up and taking up a cheaper, less stressful hobby like...say...collecting stamps? I know its just a fuel pump, and I spent today setting up a new fuel delivery system....but just when I think I've got all the bases covered and there isn't anything left to *** up, something else **** up. I'm about ready to throw a match at this thing.

[end rant]

 

<---got some really cool stitches in back of hand just over two weeks ago working on car

<---hasn't been fuking much with car lately

...think about it? frequently. actually do it? i'd just cut off my thumb instead, but i'd probably find some way around that.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by LBHgti &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Do you guys ever think about hanging it up and taking up a cheaper, less stressful hobby like...say...collecting stamps?</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yep, and you buy a newer not busted car and leave it stock (like a ITR) and just drive it to the track on street tires and have fun I did that for a year, got lots of seat time... really helped me out that I didnt have to worry about a car for a year and work on my driving.

 

I hate to say it but it is a case of the VW....I loved all mine but I had one problem after the next...over and over again. When I decided to purchase a vehicle purely for autocross and the intentions to build a track car... I chose a Honda...I actually had to replace the fuel pump in my 87 GTI, it was something crazy like almost $200 from the dealer...picked up a used one at my local Pull A Part for $6. There were times when I wanted to take a match to mine also, like when after installing a new timing belt, my new tensioner broke...or the time my new water pump leaked... or the time the dealership told me the part in my hand didn't exist...or the time.... you get the idea.

 

It just dumped 10" of snow here, the racecar has to be at the track this weekend, and I have no garage.. Yea, it ***** on everyone..

 

I put the autox ka in the shop because I knew I'd end up getting frustrated and breaking something.

Now I am all worried because I am allowing someone else to work on my car.

 

hi.

i got over 18" of snow yesterday. i have a very long driveway with big hills. for just these occasions, i have the old diesel tractor from our family farm with a big angle plow, parked underneath my house. i use it very infrequently (maybe once every 3 years), only if the snow is 12" or more. otherwise, i use an old single stage Honda snowthrower. anyway, about 3 weeks ago, i decided "there probably won't be any big snow this year; i'll park the Probenstien in front of the tractor and start taking it apart". sounded like a good plan! up on jackstands and start stripping the racecar.

so, i start getting a little nervous friday when the weatherman says we might get some real snow (4" to 9"). thats about the absolute max that my little 3 hp snowthower can do. so, i wake up sun morning and find over 18"! no way can get the tractor out. i tried the little snow thrower; its worse than shovelling; its so hard to try to wrestle that thing through the snow (it is not self propelled; you have to push it). i start shovelling around 7:30 am and stop around 4 pm. i do take breaks every 45 mins or so to collapse. i now have a narrow opening from house to road, but have not done the lower parking area. arms feel like they are 6" longer than stock. oh, and a huge branch fell on my 626 and crushed the winshield and moonroof.

all this trouble was caused indirectly by a racecar! blah!


todd

PS i have satellite TV, and it has been out since sat nite; some huge branches are drooping down and are on the roof covering the satellite; i hope that the satellite isn't damaged....


Modified by Todd Reid at 3:30 PM 2/13/2006

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Honda318dx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">It just dumped 10" of snow here, the racecar has to be at the track this weekend, and I have no garage.. Yea, it ***** on everyone..</TD></TR></TABLE>
ditto that...

 

Fortunately, we have no snow here....it was about 80 degrees this weekend

The car is on time out for a while....parked nose in and covered up. I'll dick with it somemore once I get the finances in order, I don't want to end up racing on the credit card.
RJ....the stock car sounds pretty good, I've contemplated putting a set of springs and sway bars on the new X-Runner and having the factory Bilsteins revalved......wow......a track car with a warranty, that would be nice. The problem being, track days do very little for me any more, racing is fun. I thought of just going back and crewing for the team, that way they cough up all the money, not me, but then I figure I'd run into the same problem I did last time.......watching other people race makes me want to race, and then I'm back to building another car and going through the same crap again. Damn, this is worse than my smoking addiction.

 

racing&gt;heroine

I think it does it to us all. I am currently broke, have a broken race car, and want to drive. It is just a revolving cycle; brake, spend, race... one of these days it will do me in.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by LBHgti &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
RJ....the stock car sounds pretty good, I've contemplated putting a set of springs and sway bars on the new X-Runner and having the factory Bilsteins </TD></TR></TABLE>

followed one of those around the track the other weekend. You will either need to wait a long time to get on the gas, or buy a CRAP load of tires.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by slammed_93_hatch &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

followed one of those around the track the other weekend. You will either need to wait a long time to get on the gas, or buy a CRAP load of tires. </TD></TR></TABLE>

That was probably me.....Speedtrials event at SOW about a month ago? I went out for two of the scariest laps in my life....it was like driving a pillow. I was helping out my boss for the weekend in his red 996 Twin Turbo, and thought I'd see how the truck did. Not good.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by LBHgti &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

That was probably me.....Speedtrials event at SOW about a month ago? I went out for two of the scariest laps in my life....it was like driving a pillow. I was helping out my boss for the weekend in his red 996 Twin Turbo, and thought I'd see how the truck did. Not good.</TD></TR></TABLE>

naw this was at Sears Point.

 

the most I've seen people quit is just over a year...then their back at it again...but sometimes with a different approach.


No one really quits, and I don't think you will Pat, especially if you plan is to run a full season this year I may have to come with you guys and be the beer consumer of the race weekends

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by HapaHaole &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

No one really quits, and I don't think you will Pat, especially if you plan is to run a full season this year I may have to come with you guys and be the beer consumer of the race weekends </TD></TR></TABLE>

I don't think I will either....as much as I want to. The first Mexico race is April 1-2 in Mexicali. We've got room in the truck.....(I'll need a pit guy)


(PS: bring spare fuel pumps)