427ci LS2 sleeved, dry sump oil pump, engine build & install, 69 Camaro

[Flash68]

Dale, what a great trip. You are livin the dream and puttin that thing to good use. Keep it up. Many of us live through you.

Originally Posted by PTAddict

My company (Autodesk) is based in S.F.

San Rafael you mean?

Also saw your car at SEMA back when... loved it. Interested in what changes you have made since.

[PTAddict]

Originally Posted by Flash68

San Rafael you mean?

Actually, the company headquarters is still officially San Rafael, but the real center of gravity these days is downtown San Fran at 1 Market Street. That's the single largest product/technical site in Autodesk, and it's where Carl Bass, Jeff Kowalski, etc. are based most of the time. There's also a fantastic new "maker" facility with everything from 7 axis NC to additive manufacturing (aka 3D printing) to welding to sewing, and on and on, which we use to develop and exercise real world applications of our products. It's at Pier 9 on the Embarcadero. I'm definitely going to use that to build some custom stuff going forward.

Originally Posted by Flash68

Also saw your car at SEMA back when... loved it. Interested in what changes you have made since.

Thanks. I've also followed your project, which is amazing . I haven't made too many significant changes since SEMA, unless you count the extensive road rash on all the quarters Fixed a few teething troubles, upgraded to a Rick's/Vaporworx tank, swapped out a few suspension bits, experimented with tires and shock settings and such. Mostly, I've become even more addicted to track days (aka HPDE), and I'm about to start a series of upgrades related to that. I'll start a build thread any day now.

[Track Junky]

Originally Posted by GregWeld

Dale --- I'm really over it.

Say that enough times and sooner or later you'll start believing yourself

[PTAddict]

Originally Posted by GregWeld

When you're two days down and two days back --- you get a back up race car....

And it's an important quality for a back up race car to be very light, tiny, and toy-like In all seriousness, I'm jealous. I've had a few of those Loti running up my butt at ORP ...

Originally Posted by DaleTx

Very nice... All you need now is a 69 Camaro!

Originally Posted by GregWeld

Dale --- I've had lots of 'em.... and I'm really over it.

Greg, dude, you could be banned for life from this and all other PT related forums. Also, the FBI, CIA, and NSA now have you on their lists of Pinko Commie Terrorist anti-American Radical Sociopaths. WTF, dude, you can't just throw grenades like that anywhere.

Seriously, if I were ever to build another car, it just might not be a ... well, you know.

[GregWeld]

HAHAHAHAHAHA



I love '69 Camaro's... And I'm really happy you all have them.

[Sieg]

Originally Posted by GregWeld

HAHAHAHAHAHA



I love '69 Camaro's... And I'm really happy you all have them.

You're a real peach!

[DaleTx]

Originally Posted by rickpaw

That's awesome Dale. Looks like a great track. Sometimes I kind of miss the scenery of the NW.

Thanks Rick… it was a very fun track. I will be back next year for sure. I’ll bet your not missing the rain here. Today it's 57 degrees, gray and rainy all day.

Originally Posted by GregWeld

Dale --- I've had lots of 'em.... and I'm really over it.

Greg, that’s cool. You’re a couple of steps ahead of me. I think the Lotus was a great purchase... a car designed to be driven hard on the track... you just strap in, turn the key and go. When it does break down... you just drop it off at the dealership and have them get it ready for next time while you kick back in SV (i'm jealous)

Can't wait to see it out on the track some day.

Originally Posted by Flash68

Dale, what a great trip. You are livin the dream and puttin that thing to good use. Keep it up. Many of us live through you.

Thanks Dave... I look forward to running with you guys down south one day. Been following you're build on here... one of my favorites... keep it coming

Originally Posted by PTAddict

Actually, the company headquarters is still officially San Rafael, but the real center of gravity these days is downtown San Fran at 1 Market Street. That's the single largest product/technical site in Autodesk.

Scott, it's a small world. I had no idea you were one of the guys behind Autodesk. I use Inventor 2014 Professional 3D-CAD software in my work. Great stuff!



I have run quite a few track day events this year and pushed the car pretty hard... recently out at PIR I had my first problem. The serpentine belt came off the pulleys when I shifted from 3rd to 4th gear on the back straight. When the serpentine belt came off it took the belt that runs the dry sump oil pump with it... causing low oil pressure and then no oil pressure! When I did some internet research... I found that others running their cars on the track have had the same problem with the serpentine belt coming off.

The belts typically come off between shifts... during the time when the loads on the belt change. The solution in my case is to add an additional idler pulley on the longest leg of the belt that is un-supported. I have designed a mount for an additional idler that I am testing. I tested the new idler at RMP and had no issues with the serpentine belt coming off. When I finalize the design of the idler wheel and mount I will post up pictures of the design.


When the belt came off the dry sump pump I was able to shut the engine off within a few seconds. I coasted into the pits and called the engine builder to get advice on what to do. A.C. Nutter recommended that I have the car towed home, and then pull the pan to check the rod bearings and main bearings just to be safe. I followed his advice... and had the car towed home. The next weekend I pulled the engine and brought it out to A.C.'s shop to have them pull the pan and check everything out.


In the 3 weeks between the event at PIR and RMP I pulled the engine and tranny and then re-installed










Ready to go to the shop for inspection




A.C. told me that the first thing to go when there is no oil pressure is the rod bearings... and then the main bearings. The reason is that there is less area on the rod bearings and higher stresses compared to the main bearings.


It turned out that he was exactly right. Two out of eight rods bearings just started to shows early signs of galling. The main bearings were fine.



I am very glad that I installed a low oil pressure warning light so I had early warning of low oil pressure. This saved my engine from catastrophic damage. A.C. replaced all the rod bearings and main bearings and I was good to go!

When I took the oil pan off there was one more surprise. I will post info on that later... it has to do with the timing chain tensioner.

[Che70velle]

Great catch!!! What rpm were you turning before shifting? Glad this turned out to your good. It's hard, if not impossible, to lose a dry sump belt at speed, and not pick up a bearing.

[DaleTx]

Originally Posted by Che70velle

Great catch!!! What rpm were you turning before shifting? Glad this turned out to your good. It's hard, if not impossible, to lose a dry sump belt at speed, and not pick up a bearing.

Thanks... according to the GPS, I was running 94 mph. Third gear at 94 mph calculates out to 6,500 rpm. As soon as the light came on I let off the gas... slipped it in neutral, and turned the engine off. The early warning saved my engine for sure.

[PTAddict]

Originally Posted by DaleTx

Scott, it's a small world. I had no idea you were one of the guys behind Autodesk. I use Inventor 2014 Professional 3D-CAD software in my work. Great stuff!

That's a very small world, because I wrote substantial pieces of the Inventor kernel code back when. Who do you work for? PM me if you think that's better ...

Scott