Those are a lot of questions... and many I dont have answers to.. I will know a lot more as we get the car completed and tested.. the goal again is to be ready for the Henderson 250...and thats going to be close. I will answer a few of the questions... the car is in the 2k range on wieght as it sits.. we have 22in of travel front and 24 inches rear... 22 gal tank.. we will be running a Stock clutch with some tuning. Stock wheelbase with 5+ width. I will try to answer what i can over the next couple of weeks.. I know Ried means well and has asked most of the other teams the same questions with little to no response.. some things are just held close for competitive reasons..even among the same Factory teams.
You are correct. I have learned this year that even teams racing under the same sponsorship and manufacturer are deceptive when it comes to what works well for them. Even the mfg's deceive teams through blatant lies, or avoiding a specific request or tech question.
Actually, the answers to the questions are really not all that revealing. Here, let me share an example of what it is I seek. The blue text is what our car is running:
What are the shock motion ratios, stroke, and vertical wheel travel?
Rear = .81mr, 15.5" stroke, 18 1/2" travel . Front = .75 mr, 13.5" stroke, 18" wheel travel. How much does the car weigh, and what are you doing for a clutch?
2,365 lbs., Stock primary using 35 gram custom balanced fingers and stock spring, STM gen 2 secondary w/40* helix and gold spring. What cv's are you using, and how much deflection are you allowing them to see?
OEM cv's deflecting at 28-29* max. What is the top sustainable speed?
65-68 mph How much unsprung weight per corner?
101 lbs. at each corner.How are you keeping the clutch cool?
1-3" and 1-4" bilge blower feeding into a modified variator with open faced cut outs.Will you be racing in the 1000 with this car?
yes How long is your wheel base, and what is the track width?
wb = 91.5". Tw = 76.5" front, 75 " rear How many gallons of fuel will you be carrying, and what is your mileage?
18 gal., and 7-10 mpg depending on sand/dirt composition, course elevation and ambient temperature. What spare parts, if any, will you keep on board?
1 rear axle, 1-primary clutch, 3-drive belts for the CVT, 2-alternator serpentine belts, resistors for the alternator, 1-tire and jack Stock motor, or modified?
Bone stock with UMP 6x12 donaldson canister filter
See, that wasn't so bad now, was it? Your fabricator (who made fun of my screen name, whilst he refers to his build as "Maximus") said he would answer some questions, but has yet to do so. He's a pretty knowledgeable guy, and has a talent above mine for building performance into an existing framework. Knowing how much caster, or what your scrub radius is will not give me any more ability to beat you on the track than not knowing the boring numbers associated with chassis kinematics. I find that most builders are not aware of these technicalities, or what affects they may or may not have in the overall handling of a vehicle anyhow. We race in a pretty sloppy arena (in the dirt) with fairly average drivers, and limitations that minimize our ability to exploit our knowledge of chassis design and engineering. Your best bet to beat the Monster Mav on the course is to spend some time at a Bondurant school, or testing time on a track where repeatability is easily achieved so you can see the effects of changes in your cars chassis/alignment, or shock valving and tire pressures etc. C'mon. Share. You can't take it with you..... With any luck, you should be able to go up against us at every venue next year. Marc loves it when cars can challenge him, or nerf our heavy slug. It makes him laugh when he tells me of these on track incidents. He knows our car sucks in an overall performance category, and he has to drive the wheels off of it to compete. The fact he can drive anything with wheels and hates to lose is our saving grace. He aint no slouch, and the Monster Mav can take more punishment than most cars out there. Not boasting. It's just plain facts. This isn't a hobby for him. It is his life, and he takes nothing more seriously than racing. I don't understand why I always get so much flack for reiterating that fact, although I am happy to see that more and more members are realizing that fact, and enjoying my offerings. I am the most misunderstood poster in the underground for sure.