Preliminary Bill of Materials and Build Plan Notes

After an interesting discussion on Formula500.org with Ted Simmons (thanks Ted, discussion about cost is always useful) and a long conversation with the McMahans, I have assembled a pretty decent first cut at an estimated bill of materials for my entire project.

• Powerplant: 2007 GSXR600 engine (with ECU, etc)
• Purchased off Ebay for $675, shipping included. Hopefully the motor's good
• Exhaust system - Header, manifold, pipe, muffler
• After talking to folks, the budget for this has to go to 500 dollars, minimum. Jet-hotting and custom mandrel bending will be necessary for a good product.
• 500 bucks.
• Power Transmission - I've opted to go with direct drive.
• Initial measurements indicate roughly .15 inches of center to center distance change over the entire range of travel for the rear suspension. I might have to develop a chain tensioner. We'll see.
• Sprockets + hardware: 200 dollars.
• Motor Mount - basic mild steel
• 50 dollars (material cost)
• Clutch, Throttle, Shifter cables
• 200 dollars.
• Paddle shifter + mechanical throttle blipper (still in design/thinking stage)
• 200 dollars
• Power Commander 3 (I still think I can manage this)
• 125 dollars, used
• Pedal Fabrication - basic design, aluminum and steel construction
• 100 dollars (material cost + hardware)
• 530 chain
• 50 dollars
• Two new Facet low pressure Fuel Pumps
• 100 dollars
• New Fuel lines
• 100 dollars
• New silicone radiator hoses
• 100 dollars
• Remote Oil Filter and cooler (adapter, filter assembly, stock cooler)
• 200 dollars
• Fuel Surge Tank (modified from old welding cylinder)
• 50 dollars
• Oil Pan modification -- not going with a billet solution. Baffled, modified stock pan
• 50 dollars
• Upgraded heat shielding and firewalls (because burning to death sucks)
• 200 dollars
• New Fuel Pressure Regulator
• 150 dollars
• Stock GSXR guage assembly (solves several issue with the wiring harness and need for engine data)
• 100 dollars, ebay,used.
• Sold old clutches, exhaust, motor, etc
• -800 dollars (estimate)

That's the entirety of the list, and should cover all the major and not-so-major items. There will, naturally, be incidentals, but nothing over 20 or 30 bucks.

Total out of pocket cost comes to ~$2250, without considering I saved myself somewhere between 300 and 800 dollars on a 494 rebuild (on an engine which is probably obsolescent, given the introduction of the 593 to Formula 500)

A drop-in solution with a 593 would have run me around 2 grand. Considering I want a shifter car, and I no longer have to worry about maintaining carbs or clutches, the extra 1050 bucks seems like a good trade to me.

Powerplant purchased

Today was an extremely productive day.

Not only did I start my build log blog (say that 10 times quickly), but I sold my old Rotax 494 and bought a gsxr 600 motor for exactly the same price (including shipping!)

I know, it doesn't look like much. But the above powerplant, humble and messy as it now appears, will be the heart of my new, fast, fun toy...er, I mean precision racing vehicle.

The remainder of the week will be spent going from this....

...to a bare engine bay.

Opening Salvo

Well, I finally leaped off the deep end.

For those that know me, you know that I've worked on various mechanical constructs, from bicycles to helicopters, over my life. I've always been an inveterate tinkerer. At 38, I took the leap into road racing.

The first step was to locate a car. An extremely helpful gentleman in Michigan sold me a 2000 Red Devil for 4 grand. It had all the parts, and I got spares....but the engine, a 494 non-RAVE was pulled out and disassembled.

I was in a quandary. Fixing the engine would cost me anywhere from 300 to 800 dollars, depending on whether or not I needed new cylinders. Currently, for those not familiar with the situation, there is a proposal within the SCCA to allow 600cc motorcycle engines into the F500 class. I personally believe it will be adopted for 2012. Time will tell, and I might come back to this post in a few years and shake my head sadly.

That said, there are regional events I can run in, and what I /really/ want is a small shifter car that goes fast. F500 fits the bill....with a few small modifications.

The Red Devil is now pulled apart and in the process of being stripped down. This blog will serve as a sort of log of events leading up to the day I win my first race in the car.

Hopefully.