Start On The Nosecone

After some time away due to vacations, I was back for a bit. I've also been procrastinating a bit since I'm uncomfortable with drilling the fiberglass.

First small task was to unpack the indicators that go on the nosecone. They came with two extra bulbs and an indication from Steve from Aries about changing them. I did it and it seems the reason is down to light power. The bike indicators had 10W lamps and the replacements where 23W.

I had information from Steve on where to drill for the indicators. Also, to measure very well and many times because it will look odd if the indicators are not exactly at the same height when looking from the front. Besides this I also had instructions shared by my fellow builder Iain on how to hold the nosecone to the chassis.

Holding to this information, I spend lots (really, lots) of time covering the sides of the nose with tape and then measuring, remeasuring, creating paper indicators and gluing them to the spots and then putting the nose on the car to test it out.

In the end, I think it is right but I haven't drilled yet. And I'll probably remeasure and look at it again before drilling.

Driving the Car Indoors

With the cooling circuit fixed, I had to stress test the circuit! And confirm that there were no other leaks. So, the wife and kid came to "help".

First drove the kid around the garage, 3 laps, one going up just one floor and the other two going up two floors. This all went a lot better than when I drove the car up to have my spot washed. The following video shows me pulling off, pursuing a neighbour on his BMW, while the kid screams with joy.

These 3 laps had as top speed 22Km/h (if the sensor is correctly set, can't confirm without going to a track), 7500rpm (going up the slope, afraid I would stall) and cooling temperature rose up to 70C. Then the fan light turned on to warn me and I switched on the fan, keeping the temperature around 65C.

Then the kid went home and I drove the wife around, 2 laps, one up one floor and the second up two floors. She filmed so I even have inboard footage. I stall the car a couple of times and the lights are draining my battery, so I end up going for a bit without lights. It's not as dark as it seems on the video.

Notes from the driving... The "clank" noise I heard two weeks ago is still there, although not always. It only shows when I'm driving really slow and the car is almost stalling, otherwise no noise. It still seems to come from the tunnel and probably is nothing to worry about.
The panels that are just rivnutted (tunnel) vibrate a bit when on low revs and make a bit of a noise. I'll probably have to put some isolation tape under them to make the noise go away.
Comparing with last year, the wheels make a lot less noise while driving, setting up the camber and toe did pay off. One of the front wheels still wobbles slightly, I have to tighten it better. One of those times I wish I had a power tool to do it...
The battery charges if I have the lights off, with the Digidash saying 13,5 to 14v. If I turn the lights on, it drops to around 12v and it effectively drains the battery. With me constantly stalling the car, makes the charger I bought well worth it's cost. I probably have a bad earth or some other connector messing it up. After all, most of my light wiring is still lose around the car. That's what I'm going to work on next, along with panels.

It was wonderful to drive the car and I'll probably be doing it once in a while. Maybe I should service the engine, new oil and spark plugs, since what the engine has is what was on the bike the engine came from, 3 years ago... And I have to properly bleed the brakes!

Fixing the Cooling Circuit

This was a short morning in terms of what was done on the car because I started with some cleaning. I still had a box with parts inside the house (semi-hidden in our sleeping room). It was only half-full and I now have space for those parts on the underground storage room. So, I moved the box down and sorted the bits into smaller boxes, getting it all organized. Anyway, those parts are some of the ones I'll soon need (bodywork fixings, lights, ...).

During the week I went to a hardware store and bought a replacement T piece. Got a brass one, that should not rust and be sturdy. After lots of fighting it (it was a snug fit on the pipes), I got the cooling system re-established.

While doing this, took the cap of the expansion tank and looked inside. It seemed to have some dirt on the bottom. Since it was mostly empty, I unbolted it and emptied it. It actually was some aluminium swarf and either dirt or rust. Probably garbage that was inside the pipes... I forgot to wash them before fitting them. After the tank was "clean", added more fluid. Turned the car on and let it idle for a while while checking the liquid level and adding a bit more. After turning the car off, checked for leaks and stains on the floor and all looked dry and clean! It's time to drive the car again...