NEED TRACTION!!! This car is insane on the track and is crazy fast when it hooks up but even with 225s i got nothing. Has anyone tried running the 16x7 steel wheels from the camry? That would allow me to run a 235 or 245 but i havent procured a rim yet as its impossible to find that wide of tire for a 15" wheel. Thanks

Im not 100% sure if the camry wheels will fit or not. But I know the 7GC GTS wheels will fit and they are 16x7, so I'd be willing to bet that the camry wheels would too.

Do you know if the GTS ever came with steel wheels? aluminum brake and bend easily on the dirt.....Especially on this crazy track I run...

>

As far as I know the GTS was the only version to get the 16x7 wheels, the other versions only came with 15in wheels... Im not sure if they were steel or not

>
They are 16x6.5 +39

^ My bad, I stand Corrected.

I shoe horned a 225 on a 6" rim so that will have to work for now. Looking into a bead lock kit so that I can run the tires with 20 psi vs 32. Also looking into custom wheels and doing some more welding this week to the front end to get some weight over the wheels. Stay tuned as I am determined to get this to hook up on the dirt.

post pics as soon as your done.

Will get some pics up and video soon.

Took the checkered flag tonight. First win and second race I actual finished. I need to build another one of these freaking screams. Still have traction issue but the extra weight from new bumper made a world of difference. Stay tuned.

Some updated pics.




This post has been edited by turnip: May 2, 2010 - 7:36 PM

So you hear me complaining about traction. Doing some experimenting. Figure I would try one before I get too much $$ wrapped up in it. Found a steel wheel that thats has a little higher offset that would fit and this will be going on it tonight. If all goes as planned I will be ordering more along with beadlock kits. ITs the same diameter basically as the 225/60/15. But as you can see drastically wider


245/50/16 going on the front.


Update:

Me and my assistant at walmart exchanging a battery and getting the 245 mounted.



Clears strut.


Update 2:

Grooved the 245 so it grabs the dirt a little better. LOL my luck i will break an axle now. Knocking on the proverbial wood as i type.




This post has been edited by turnip: May 7, 2010 - 9:48 PM

Picked up project #2 tonight. Stay tuned for the new thread shortly.



Will have some updates this weekend after I run the 245s and should be able to get some video up of the last race.

Video Up of my win with it at the track. Shiny Black Celica #49 Pre 245s Since added its has crazy traction. Third time driving the car. I need to work on my corning. Lots of driver error on my part.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1ML_9X2_GM

Thought I would bring this thread back alive with a recap of the race season as the car accumulated a few more wins this season and the BEAMs did what it should have.

Twice the exhaust got ripped off and thru the car into limp mode. However still won those races. The traction issue is an ongoing but its really based on the track running and if I need to shift at all. The track I normally run I can run in 2nd without shifting. Ideally I would love to have about 500 rpms more before hitting the redline. That would really make the setup ideal for this track. Got spun out a few times when starting on the pole by a repeat offender.

On a few 1/2 mile tracks had it rolling at 100 going into the turns. That will pucker your a$$ up a little. However its was these high speeds and the load on the front right that destroyed two axles. Now the last one definitely immobilized the car. I thought it was the clutch or pressure place that gave because definitely did not have any noise coming out of the tranny. But after pulling the engine and tranny the pressure plate looks okay and the clutch wear was acceptable but there was one corner of the clutch pad missing.

So its time to rebuild for next season.

Plan on putting a 3sgte from the caldina in after I straighten the frame and reinforce it from some racing mishaps.

Transmission is the question?? I am concerned about the hybrid solution for running the e153 based and how they will stand up. Used st185 axles are starting to get rare and thats an issue if I need one in a hurry. I have read I can get guts from the s51 and put into the s54 which will put me at 3.94 instead of 4.17 which should make a some difference on the turbo engine and not smacking the rev limiter. However I have the issue of popping the s54 from throwing too much power thru it. Now I am running exclusively on dirt which is less forgiving than asphalt and those trans can be had in a pinch if I pop one. In fact I have an extra one here now.

So any thoughts from you guys running 3sgte in a fwd application would be appreciated. Also I am building another beams race car for a team mate which will be the identical to my car this year except we are gonna weld the spiders in the trans to see how it performs. The beams pulled on all of the field on the straights but lagged coming out of the turns and I really think its because of how the LSD works vs a solid trans that has no slip. The neons just fly out of the turns with the welded trans. So i figured we would experiment a little.

Thanks as always.

This post has been edited by turnip: Nov 5, 2010 - 10:55 PM

So the experimenting has begun. I pulled everything and the trans/LSD looks to be just fine. I cannot say the same about the clutch and pressure plate. I see an upgrade here.

So im playing with a few options here and I am not sure which way I am going to go. 1st. Beams back in with welded s54 trans and piggyback on ECU to raise rev limiter. 2nd. 3sgte with welded s54. This will likely end with pure destruction to the transmission but maybe it will make a race season since its all dirt. 3rd. 3sgte with e153 and hybrid axle setup.


welded diff


Will post more as the project progresses.

Car died. Check first post on page 1 for the carnage.

wow, looks like ya took quite a hit!
hope your ok!

Thank got I have a plasma cutter cause taking the cage and engine out has proven to be a pretty good task. Cage didnt move at all so its a solid built car. Learned a few things on the weak spots. This is my Gen 1 build. Gen 2 is built and in the garage and has yet to see the dirt. As soon as this is completely gutted I will roll donor #3 in the garage for the Gen 3 build.

Wow, that's a pretty good hit. At least you're alright! I can't wait to see the Gen 2 build. Will that be the orange car? What will you be doing differently?

yes, thread revival, but i missed this one, sad to see the wreck pic... Turnip has not been online over a year, anyone knows his whereabouts.

I talk to him every now and then. I haven't in a while though. Time to shoot him an email, maybe a text.

i guess he moved on then,,,,

I am still alive just spending more time with my little girl these days. My gen 3 car is still in one piece and looking new yet. The Superstrut is still on front and hope to get some track time this spring or mayb6e sell it. Looking at a job change so might be moving and NYC doesnt have many dirt tracks.

Hope you all doing well.

Lol good to hear from you!!

Let's hope you can get a few more races in next Spring. Best of luck with the new job or the next racing season!

Still building my racecar. Might be interested if you're selling...