trevornewman Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 Hi all just bought an 89 SE and already have an overwhelming urge to alter it first on the list. seats and belts currently fitted with the standard vinyl lose fit 2 piece ply-backed buckets, and British Leyland badged Kangool magnetic hook type seat belt (track day imminent and i dont feel safe) Suggestions for high backed seat shells with provision for 4 point harness (comfort is not high on the list) something like a kart seat. as for the harnesses it appears i only have a single central mounting point behind each seat back. Do i get a 3 point harness or a 4 and mount both upper points to the one fixing belts rollbar tyre pressures speedo suspension brakes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trevornewman Posted March 20, 2004 Author Share Posted March 20, 2004 oops forgot the other points speedo is over reading (gives a good impression to passengers) originally running 185/70/13 now running 205/60/13 and a vdo speedo head but no idea what diff ratio its running it has spax adjustables (14 levels of adjustment) fitted currently set really soft. so pointers for and initial set up would be helpful (fast road and track day) i know they need to be the same on either side of the axle but what about front to rear tyre pressures up or down for a track day from the recommended 20psi and are the standard cortina pads up to the job of a track day or should i think about some ebc green stuff app. 130bhp xflow (described as a lightly tuned 1760 burton engine) sorry for so many questions but the 1st of many track days this year is on the 5th of april thanx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
felters Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 What roll cage does it have? Worry about the seat belts by all means but make sure you have the RAC cage... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taffy Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 Hi Mines a 89/90 so Ive done some of the things you are talking about. As Felters said Roll cage is important so RAC ASAP! There is loadsa stuff on seats if you do a search (Ive always wanted to say that!. I believe Headrests or high back seats are now compulsory for sprints, but no doubt its in the regs. Seatbelts, you can get a specific 3 point "Westfield" style harness. I had mine with aircraft type release buckle and from TRS (let me know if you want tell no) for about £100 squid each! Make sure you specify the lap straps to tighten when you pull towards the centre of the seat, otherwise its difficult to tighten them. My Speedo reads about 20% over, Ive just put some sticky labels on the glass at the critical "Gatso" limits Spax, you will have to experiment, but if you slacken them right off then set them as (say) 4 clicks front and 3 clicks rear to start. See how you go and experiment from there. Dont know where you are but a visit to sombody like Procomp to check your set up will be well worth it . I was there for 8hrs, completley re set up the car and learnt a lot about set up at the same time, cost about £100. Will be less for solid rear axle! Cant comment toooo much on tyre pressures but I run 20 rear and 18 front on the road. Standard pads are pretty good as the car weighs nowt. I could always lock up when driving around Curborough even after a few consecutive laps. Green Stuff need some warming up on the road (by comparison). My advice is stay as you are and talk to others. In order IMHO; Do the safety stuff first, Get suspension set up checked next, then drive the car and see what other people do/use! Good luck Rob Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conibear Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 The Westfield high back racing seat in GRP only @£150.00 each are good value. Tyres Pressures: - You need a digital thermometer for this. After first session on trackday, record temperature of inner edge, outer edge and centre section of each tyre. If inner edge is hotter that centre/outer edge then pressure too high, if outer hotter then pressure too low. Ideally all three readings should be the same for correct pressure for each tyre. Ian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilwillis Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 And join the club of course, to get discounted track days and lots of other benefits too delicious to mention! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trevornewman Posted March 20, 2004 Author Share Posted March 20, 2004 roll bar is just a simple 2 point loop from each rear upper suspension mount Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trevornewman Posted March 20, 2004 Author Share Posted March 20, 2004 search where 4 seats ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adhawkins Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 Use the 'Search' button at the top right hand corner of the page. Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trevornewman Posted March 20, 2004 Author Share Posted March 20, 2004 thank you andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adhawkins Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 No problem. Most of the questions you think of will have been answered before. A few minutes searching can save you a lot of time. Welcome aboard! Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stu999 Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 Tyres Pressures: - You need a digital thermometer for this. After first session on trackday, record temperature of inner edge, outer edge and centre section of each tyre. If inner edge is hotter that centre/outer edge then pressure too high, if outer hotter then pressure too low. Ideally all three readings should be the same for correct pressure for each tyre. Dunno about that, too many variables to make the above a hard and fast rule-the suspension geometry, settings, driving style, and amount/type of corner will all have an effect on tyre temps as well. Can be very useful information for someone looking to set their car up to the nth degree, but for a trackday newbie, far too in depth. I'm not sure the above is actually correct either. I thought that centre hot-pressure too high, and both outside edges hot-pressure not enough. Around 18-20 psi should be a good starting point. You can always play with pressures when you are there. But dont take the actual readings as gospel, warmer tyres will indicate that there is more pressure in them. Wait until they have cooled (i.e. next day) to record the 'ideal' pressures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timd Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 The Westfield high back racing seat in GRP only @£150.00 each are good value. Playskool GRP seats cost less and are much more comfy for the larger driver Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conibear Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 I'm not sure the above is actually correct either. I thought that centre hot-pressure too high, and both outside edges hot-pressure not enough. Yes thats right Stu, If you've got too much heat in the centre then too much pressure as well. But I was told this last weekend by the company who set up my car on corner weights. They set up and look after F3 cars and have raced developed F3 cars all their life 30 odd years, so I thought it probably was correct, but hey I've been wrong before Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blatman Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 But I was told this last weekend by the company who set up my car on corner weights. They set up and look after F3 cars and have raced developed F3 cars all their life 30 odd years, so I thought it probably was correct, but hey I've been wrong before Probably is correct for an F3 car....... Any road legal tyres fitted to a Westfield will almost certainly behave as Stu has said when under or over inflated. That's certainly my experience so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.