GTracer38's Yard of Cars

[GTracer38]

Hi! I've been meaning to make one of these threads for a while but never got around to it...so now I am.

Anyway, I have 2 cars at the moment. One for daily driving and one that will eventually be used for racing...hopefully.
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Starting off with my first car. It's a 1996 Mercedes-Benz C180 Esprit that I got picked out as my 18th Birthday gift

It's a good car, mostly and it only cost $2250 (AUD) so that was good. Runs fine, good on fuel, etc...its just not very quick. Not that I really need a quick car for driving on the road.

It has a few dents and scuffs that I need to fix one way or another eventually. Oh, and I have to fix the bloody air con... It's temperamental. Not nice on a 40 degrees day.

But here is a few pics from a little while ago;

So, yeah, that's the car I refer to as my Baby Benz...don't know why, I just do.
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Now...the 'project' car per se...
It's a 1996 Hyundai Excel (Single Cam) in, well, not the best condition. But it was only 150 bucks.
The plan is to use it as a hillclimb car and eventually race it in a State-level Excel Series.

Not much good to say about the car other then the fact it exists and puts out the same amount of power as my Baby Benz...apparently.

Anyway, we (my father and I) haven't done much yet. We've started stripping it out. Once we finish that we will clean and fix any issues and then build it back up, basically.

Here some pics of the Hyundai;

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So that's what I have to keep myself busy for now. I'll try to keep updating.

 

[Hayden]

Nice Merc mate, looks clean!
The Excel series has some fantastic racing and the affordability of the cars is incredible. As far as entry level motorsports go, look no further! I'm pretty sure they even do a nationwide competition if you start taking it really seriously. Keen to see how you go with it all 👍

 

[GTracer38]

Nice Merc mate, looks clean!
The Excel series has some fantastic racing and the affordability of the cars is incredible. As far as entry level motorsports go, look no further! I'm pretty sure they even do a nationwide competition if you start taking it really seriously. Keen to see how you go with it all 👍

Thanks! I tried to keep the damaged corner out of the pics

The Excel series is reminiscent of the old Ford Laser series that gave Skaife his 'big break' per se.
I haven't heard about the national comp, but I do know more states are getting involved in it. This will be the first year VIC has had its own dedicated series, with Qld (and NSW/WA I think) having started the concept.
Island Magic had a big field too. A fair few Queenslanders came down for that.

For now, it's just going to be a learning curve really. Do some hill climbs to gain experience and understanding of what to do and how to do it correctly. Then move up to the Vic races. PI and Sandown are both an hour or two away, so not too bad.
Just working on getting it running first. Got a 2nd Excel for free, and we've started cannibalising it.

So, 2 Excels and a set of rims has cost us $200 so far, although one of the rims has a hole in it XD

 

[magic_town]

Get that Excel on the track asap!
I didn't know they were a CAMS sanctioned series this year, that's good for the class. They've been building numbers quick.

 

[GTracer38]

Get that Excel on the track asap!
I didn't know they were a CAMS sanctioned series this year, that's good for the class. They've been building numbers quick.

I'll try my best!

 

[GTracer38]

Update #1: Progress is good!

The engine is alive and the car moves! Brakes and clutch both work too
Fixed the drivers side window and replaced the passenger side door (still needs mirror and door handle).

Took a little while to sort out a little electrical gremlin. As usual, its the simplest thing that was just over-looked. The hazard was tripping a relay sensor, meaning that as soon as the battery was connected the car thought it was on. It would tick over and start to idle, before idling very rough and grinding to a stall...even with the ignition off and the key out. But, it's all sorted (from what I can tell).

More of taking things apart and what not for a while now. Probably won't get much done this weekend with the GP on

 

[GTracer38]

Painted it in some random 'gloss' black;

 

[Suzumiya]

Love seeing beaters get another chance at life. Interested in the progress!

 

[GTracer38]

Love seeing beaters get another chance at life. Interested in the progress!

Well, it's (mostly) good to go. The engine is running rough at the moment, so that's the next thing to sort out.
But, excluding the engine, everything has been checked and seems to be fine.

 

[GTracer38]

Well, I joined a local car club and entered one of the CAMS Come&Try Days (seems like the right thing to do).

Getting some little things done on the Excel, hopefully it'll be ready in time. If not, I suppose I'll ask if I can sub-in the Baby Benz for the day. Just got some new boots on it which is always a nice feeling

Speaking of the Benz, here's a pic I took for no apparent reason (other then 'oh look I parked next to another Merc):

 

[GTracer38]

Tomorrow is the day. Not sure if it'll pass inspection but we shall see.

 

[GTracer38]

Had a great morning! Got a few runs in and had my first run on a closed circuit in 18 months! 👍

The car worked. A couple things that need to be changed and/or fixed, but nothing major. I liked the track. Very different to any kart track I've ever driven (elevation, corner style etc).

In the end, the car came back in one piece, unlike the (2015 model?) Renault Clio that rolled at the bottom of the hill (driver was fine).

Can't wait to do it again!

 

[magic_town]

Where did you go? That hill climb type track near the motocross track near Newborough?

 

[GTracer38]

Where did you go? That hill climb type track near the motocross track near Newborough?

That's the one! Haunted Hills Hillclimb (aka Bryant Park Hillclimb). They were only running the half track today though.

 

[GTracer38]

Update on the Excel:

We went up for a practice day over a month ago (outer loop thus time which was fun ). Did 5 runs and then had oil leak so we had to pack up and head home.
We believed to have fixed the issue, but we'll have to have another run to find out for sure. If not, then the hunt begins for a twin cam to put in the front (although we have a spare single cam to use in the mean time.

It will still be a while before we can get it back to the track as we have been left without a trailer. Working on one in the shed now, so hopefully we will be able to do some more running after Bathurst (Caravan prep has begun too hehehe).

 

[homeforsummer]

Didn't spot this thread until now. Must admit, I clicked on it expecting to see a Lotus Excel, rather than a Hyundai Looks like a neat budget track car though.

 

[GTracer38]

Didn't spot this thread until now. Must admit, I clicked on it expecting to see a Lotus Excel, rather than a Hyundai Looks like a neat budget track car though.

Honestly, I have never heard of a Lotus Excel before. Now that I have, makes the thread title a little misleading lol

The only reason I ended up with an Excel is because of the series. Makes for good, cheap racing.

 

[GTracer38]

This weekend has been productive when it comes to the aesthetics

Still a bit to do on the livery but I'm happy so far...especially for a backyard hack job

 

[GDII]

Looks evil from the front!!

 

[GTracer38]

Sooo....It has been quite a while since I posted an update here. Best I get to it then.

Since it's been so long I'll just give a brief run down on what has happened.

- No change with the Benz

- Green & Black Excel had some Silver added as well

- I've done multiple hillclimbs at Haunted Hills on a few different layouts

- Second-hand Pedders Suspensions installed in the Excel. Made a significant gain.

- We did change to the other Single Cam engine which was an excellent decision. It no longer leaves a bigger cloud than a steam train plus it runs a lot smoother and seemingly has more power.

- Have also used a set of Federal 595RS-R (same as the spec series / semi slick) and holy crap did that make a difference. Cut a ridiculous amount of time that day.

The most recent run in that car was at the end of last year.
We have since added better brakes, air filter and a couple of other things but I have yet to drag it out on track this year.


The reason for that is because after looking at the task to make that car into series spec, we had decided that it wouldn't be very cost-effective and with our lack of experience it seemed like a better idea to buy a car that was ready to go.

After some chats track side and elsewhere, I purchased another Excel that had raced the season before


So then came the task of getting everything I needed to actually race. CAMS licence needed an upgrade and I needed to get pretty much everything in terms of gear (suit, boots, gloves, undergarment, helmet, HANS device etc). Also needed a new race seat.

After some delays and difficulties, the car ended up being ready to go 2 weeks prior to the first round at Sandown. I had my helmet and HANS device at that point but the rest was yet to arrive. Also, I hadn't driven the car...

Since I had missed the chance to do a practice day and my OLT at Winton, I opted to enter the East Sale SuperSprint just so I knew what the car felt like before going to Sandown the following weekend.

That was an excellent decision. It was great fun, plenty of track time and I was able to get reasonably comfortable.

Fast forward to Friday and after a very nervous/anxious morning due to circumstances out of my control, I ended up passing the OLT without any real issues. I did snap the gear link cable in the last run but we had a spare at home and got that swapped over on Saturday morning.

Passing the OLT meant that 3 and a half years after my last go-kart race, I was going to finally be racing in the VIC State Series.

More on that later because I've done enough typing for now

 

[GTracer38]

This was the rundown for the Sandown weekend from Facebook

" Qualifying on Saturday was an eye opener.. Lots of quick drivers that have far more experience than I were running rings around me.
Still a good chance to see how hard the cars can thrown into corners and still stick.

Race One went without any issue. Improved my times a bit but not really near anyone in particular. Didn't make any major mistakes either, which is a plus.

Race Two on the Sunday morning was a little better. No major gain in times but seemingly more consistent as I didn't fall as far back.

Race Three had the biggest gains. Got to the back of the pack and had a good race with a few other people. It was all a bit too exciting so I toured the sand to cool off.

In the end, it's the debut ticked off without any damage or issues.
Looking forward to getting back out there in the next round! "

 

[magic_town]

Good stuff! I missed the first round but I’ll come say hi at Phillip Island! I recognise that car too, I think it used to run up near the front so at least you’ve got a decent car.

 

[GTracer38]

Good stuff! I missed the first round but I’ll come say hi at Phillip Island! I recognise that car too, I think it used to run up near the front so at least you’ve got a decent car.

Yeah the car is good and the people that are helping us out are really good too.

I'll see ya at PI then 👍

 

[GTracer38]

@magic_town Let me know if your around.

I'm parked in with the HQs.

 

[magic_town]

I checked the photos in this thread to double check the car he was driving, turns out he was pitted right behind me, about 4 metres away! Was nice to meet you @GTracer38

 

[daan]

I clicked on it expecting to see a Lotus Excel, rather than a Hyundai

And his other car is an Esprit.

 

[GTracer38]

I checked the photos in this thread to double check the car he was driving, turns out he was pitted right behind me, about 4 metres away! Was nice to meet you @GTracer38

Hahaha I know which car to look out for now. Nice to meet a fellow GTP user. Will have to catch up at the next round!

And his other car is an Esprit.

Errrr nothing to see here...definitely don't have anything lined up to run a Lotus...



I'll post more on Round two in the coming week.

 

[GTracer38]

Ripping from the Facebook page again, but here is the weekend rundown.



Starting 44th (out of 53 cars) for Race 1 (2:08.7). Should be a good race. Hopefully we can tag onto the group ahead of us and pick up a few tricks.
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35th in Race 1!

Rubbish start but kept it clean and had a race long battle with a good group of 5 or 6 cars.

Cracked a 2:07 (2:07.9) and finished a race in the top 40 so the weekend goals have been met.
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Race 2 - Started out of 35th. The start was delayed due some barrier damage from another category's race I made a pretty average start.

Ran well enough to stay inside of the top 40 (38th). Ended up in a gap between one group and another so there wasn't much battling, but it meant that I had a chance to push a bit harder and learn in the 4 racing laps we had.
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Race 3 - After penalties were applied, we lined up 35th again. Ended the race in 40th.

By that mark, it was the worst race of the weekend, however I was able to cut a second on my best lap time and get down to a 2:06.8

The drop in positions were mainly down to a few mistakes throughout (two of which I will post clips of soon) and a 'conservative' opening lap.

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After all was said and done, it was an excellent weekend and we made some real progress over the weekend. This weekend gives us a good point to build from and hopefully work our way into the mid-pack.

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Also, mind the sound not lining up, but here is a clip of me being a hack

 

[Zona]

That Excel looks awesome dude! I love grass roots level racing like this, can be a lot more entertaining to watch than Formula 1! I'm going to be getting myself booked into the drivers school at my local hillclimb this September.

 

[magic_town]

What a save! I thought for sure you were going all the way