After a long hard couple of months with my 9000 its finally back on the road.
Wait, let me start again....
After a VERY long, and VERY hard couple of months with my 9000 it's finally back on the road. I don't think I have ever worked so hard on something before. These last few weeks have really showed me just how dedicated I am to this car and how much it means to me. Something I read a few months back in NATIONAL DRAGSTER has really stuck with me. This is in excerpt from an article written by Phil Burgess Editor for NATIONAL DRAGSTER a magazine dedicated to NHRA drag racing published weekly.
Racers are a hardy bunch. They'll work long into the night, in the rain, in the blazing heat, in the dirt, with busted knuckles and sweat stinging their eyes. They'll forgo creature comforts and sleep, risk relationships and credit scores. They'll get knocked down and keep getting up." - Phil Burgess
This quote triggers so many memories for me. I remember swapping my GT35R turbo (that hardly fits between the block and relocated radiator) in my yard laying on my back in the dirt during one of the hottest weeks of the year. I remember supporting all of its weight with one arm in the air while I tried to thread in the bolts with the other hand from the bottom. This makes me remember cutting my hands so many times working on my motor that I would only notice when drops of blood were running off of my tools. Most recently this morning I woke up with black weather stripping and spray glue all over my hands. Yes maybe I should have worn gloves but between taking my turbo off to fix an exhaust leak, fixing my idle, building a false firewall between the fuel cell and passenger compartment, and swapping in a new passenger seat it just slipped my mind. I have lost relationships over giving so much attention and energy towards my car, and I'm sure I have lost many friends because I simply don't have the time. Many times I have run up credit cards because I just needed one more new part... and then one more, and one more.
Yesterday I had the opportunity to put the first 90 miles on my new motor. Modifications to it include, but are not limited to: JE forged pistons, new rings - bearings - chain - guides, custom cams, valve lash caps, adjustable SPEEDPARTS cam gears, and balance shaft delete. The car drives fairly well after we did some road tuning the night before, but there is still plenty of room for improvement in the tune. The car starts up well but I have to fight it for a few seconds before it holds a perfect idle itself. I set the idle a little high at about 1300RPMs where it seems to be happiest at.
This morning I made the 45 mile drive to the tuning shop where it will be given special attention tomorrow on the dyno. :)
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