RLY240

The 2012 Targa series is being shown this year on 7Mate starting tomorrow with the 2011 Classic Targa Adelaide rally. First broadcast is tomorrow (Good Friday) on 7Mate at 4:00pm (check your local guides). Sneak peak For the rest of the telecast dates check out the Targa website here. http://www.sportcom.com.au/targanews/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=1&Itemid=59&limit=1&limitstart=3 Roger

Good luck getting all those kilowatts to the ground Paul. Roger.

Total clamping force is a factor of pressure on a given surface area (say pounds per square inch) muliplied by the total surface area. Keeping the piston pressure (force) constant and increasing the pad surface area certainly increases the fricton area but there is less pressure per square inch so the overall clamping force remains the same. The only way to increase the braking force is to increase the pressure at the piston or to make the disc diamter larger and move the caliper outwards increasing the brake torque. So what are the benifits of a larger pad? Better temperature control as each square inch of pad is doing less work, better pad life (same reason) and less tapering or uneven wear over the pad area. Roger

See my post below This might be a good setup but again, I have no personal experience http://silverminemotors.com/Stage-4-Rear-Big-Brake-Kit-Stage-4-Rear-Big-Brake-Kit.htm Roger

Hi Mick, can't comment on the 280zx rears as haven't used them but I have R31 rears on mine and they are OK. There are certainly better options out there but the R31 setup is a straight bolt on with the right brackets. Roger

P.H. is doing 17's in his 260 so I'll be disapointed if you're not in the 14's. I'll be out crewing the formula ford so will see you there. Roger

Hi Gareth, I'll take the Carter pump. PM sent.

This post is a review of the aftermarket S30 guards available on eBay. I have no affiliation with the seller and this review is a summary of my experience. S30 front guards are getting thin on the ground and thinner in the metal so when I needed a set to repair my damaged 240 rally car I got tempted by the aftermarket items popping up on eBay. They certainly looked good in the photos but no one could give me first hand knowledge of the fit and finish or whether much work was required in getting them fitted and prepped for painting so I put in a call to the company selling them and spoke to the owner. He was pretty helpful and told me they had sold something like 50 sets so he figured the fit must be OK. Based on this phonecall I ordered a pair. The guards arrived within a week and came wrapped in fitted cardboard and packed together in one box and while not the greatest the packaging was good enough to prevent any shipping damage. My first impressions were good, the panels were straight, painted black and had all the right brackets and mounts. Dropping them onto the car also suggested that the fit was OK and the initial signs good. But when it came time to bolting up the guards some gaps started to appear in the alignment. The two main areas of concern were the headlight mount and the gaps at the top of the door. There were two major issues with the door gaps. Firstly, it was obvious that there was a section of the outer skin that had not been folded around the inner pressing and this fouled the scuttle under the windscreen. There was a section of about 100mm that simply had not been folded and it was the same for both LH and RH guards. Checking my old guards confirmed this and a few minutes with a body hammer sorted this. Secondly there was trouble with the inner skin fouling the seam at the top of the inner guard and no matter what I tried the gap at the top of the door was too big. Again checking my old guards showed the inner pressing was welded badly and needed to be changed. Drilling the spot welds out and repositioning the inner skin made enough clearance to get the guard sitting down low enough to make the top of the door gap OK. I then needed to make some changes at the headlight mounts. Again it looked like the headlight pressing had been welded too close to the outer skin making it difficult to bolt up the guard and very hard to make the scoops sit flush, this also effected the fit at the bottom of the door as the whole guard had to be twisted to get the holes aligned. The fix again was to drill out the spot welds and then offer up the guard, fit some bolts and then tack and weld the sections back with the right alignment. With a bit of trial and error it was possible to get some reasonable gaps all round. The one last issue is with the section where the bonnet and the inspection covers meet at the corner of the guard, again the outer skin is badly folded leaving a sharp edge and a small gap that you can't fill. The one part I couldn't fix however was the section that curls around the bottom of the screen. On the RH guard (the LH one was fine) the curved section at the base of the screen had the wrong profile and didn't match the curve of the body. The door is made up of four main parts, the main outer skin, the headlight mount and two sections that make up the brace at the rear of the guard. Each of the separate pressings look accurately made but the manner of assembly leaves a little to be desired and in this particular case the folding of the outer skin around the inner skin at base of the screen was done badly and meant the alignment was out and it was beyond my skills to rectify. I was able to tweak to the section to fit around the screen and make it look OK but it certainly isn't a great fit and where the guard should come to a point it now comes to a flat end which isn't a great look. Lastly, I had to slot the mount holes where it meets the inner guard along the bonnet line. For me it will be OK as it's a rally car but for a road car it probably wouldn't be acceptable and would need some expert hands. In the end I have to say that I'm happy with the outcome, I didn't really expect to fit up some aftermarket guards without any mods but it was still easier for me than repairing the mangled rusty ones available otherwise. But if you want a perfect fitting guard you will probably be better off repairing a factory one. Roger

Hi Mick, good to see your car is coming along. I've had trouble with a Holley blue recently and replaced it with a similar Carter unit, bit cheaper and actually quieter. Roger

Hi Stivva, I'll take them if you are happy to post. I'll pm you my details. Roger

[quote Someone showing off their 5 axis cnc machine. Next step, make a complete engine out of one massive block of aluminium. Like this?

I'll take them if the previous posters pass. Roger

I'm on the lookout for a pair of front guards and these eBay items keep popping up, has anyone bought these and got some feedback on the fit and finish? Especially the fit. Thanks, Roger http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/DATSUN-NISSAN-240Z-260Z-FRONT-GUARD-FENDER-BRAND-NEW-/120791370722?pt=AU_Car_Parts_Accessories&hash=item1c1fba0be2

I'm looking for a pair of clear front indicator / park light lenses for a 240z. Only need the lens but will also take the whole assembly. Really only need the left one but would be happy for a pair. Roger

PM sent Roger

The Alexandrina Council in SA has banned motorsport events that require road closures (gravel and tarmac rallys). This will affect both the Adelaide Hills Tarmac Rally and the new Classic Targa Adelaide rally. For Immediate Release Langhorne Creek, October 2011 Alexandrina sabotages local businesses with event ban On Tuesday 4th October, Alexandrina Council voted in changes to their Festival and Events Policy to stop all motorsport requiring road closures running in their area. The largest of the affected events is the Adelaide Hills Tarmac Rally run by Ultimate Motorsport Events, which is a business registered in the Alexandrina Council, and the Southern Districts Car Club, whose home track is located in the Alexandrina Council. In 2009, the council changed the policy to allow only one closure of each road for a motorsport event in any 24 month period; a policy that the organisers of the Adelaide Hills Tarmac Rally have abided by. This latest change to the events policy was proposed by Councillor Oliver, based on false and misleading accusations about the conduct of the 2011 Adelaide Hills Tarmac Rally. “The event has a great relationship with the councils of Victor Harbor, Yankalilla, Mount Barker, Adelaide Hills and Onkaparinga. I personally feel that Alexandrina council has victimised this event that I and many other volunteers give our time to run and that we all work so hard on, and I am really disappointed, because my family has lived and run a business in the Alexandrina Council for the past 92 years!” said Michael Clements, event director, CEO of Ultimate Motorsport Events, and newly elected board member for the Confederation of Australian Motorsport. As part of the policy for road closures in the area, Adelaide Hills Tarmac Rally organisers hold a public meeting each year at the Strathalbyn Town Hall for Alexandrina Residents to find out more about the event and raise any questions. To date, none of the residents of Alexandrina have ever attended one of these meetings. In making plans to change the policy, Alexandrina Council deliberately excluded the organisers of the Adelaide Hills Tarmac Rally, never advising them that a change had been proposed, nor inviting them to make a submission to council or attend the meeting to speak to council. Despite organisers making a nine-page submission to Council against the proposed changes to the policy, Council also failed to advise the event of the outcome of their decision. With planning for the 2012 event already underway, the ban on the use of Alexandrina Council roads will force organisers to make one of two moves – either shorten the event to two days, or spend more time outside of the Fleurieu Peninsula. Either option will be detrimental to those businesses in the Alexandrina Council area who note increased trade during the event due to the spectators, competitors and officials who attend the rally. The 2012 event plan had the event stopping off at Strathalbyn for a service park and regroup of the cars, which would have brought a greatly needed boast to the local businesses during a quieter time of the year, but that will now have to be revisited with the road show spending its money elsewhere outside of the Alexandrina Council area. “It’s clear to everybody that there’s a lot of revenue brought to the area by an event like this” says Heather Cox, of the events long term major sponsor Application Service Provider. “The event brings with it some 150 competitors, 300 service crew and families, 400 event officials and over 3000 spectators to the regions it travels through, all of which spend money on accommodation, food and drinks, fuel and entertainment. The TV coverage this year alone was commercially worth $1.4 million dollars. It’s sad that the businesses of Alexandrina Council will not be able to share in that in future because of this disappointing decision by council.” # # # For further information or to arrange an interview, contact Michael Clements on 0418 804 105 To discuss the decision with Alexandrina Council, contact alex@alexandrina.sa.gov.au or call 08 8555 7000

I use one, 3bond to seal the water passages, does weep oil however and probably not the best option but does work for me and is re-useable. Roger

Hi Dan, nice to meet you last week, thanks for coming to say hi. Rob's stage times were awesome, goes to show what a committed driver can do in one of these cars. Roger

Sorry to dissapoint you. We were running just inside the top ten on Leg1 before this happened on the last stage of the day. We were able to repair the car and get back in for the rest of the event although a little slower... Roger

Hi Dan, we'll keep an eye out for Rob in the mirrors... Our prep has got off to a bad start, we have a timing chain rattle so the engine is back out today. Might be a busy week. Roger

For those in SA the revived Classic Adelaide (now Classic Targa Adelaide) is back this year after skipping 2010. While the numbers are down there are still over 100 entries in the various categories and at least seven Zeds competing from around the country. There are plenty of opportunities to spectate and if you want to get closer to the action the organisers are still looking for more road closure volunteers (see below and jump on the website to register). Hoping to catch up with a few of the interstaters making the trip this year, and a big thanks to those who helped with parts and advice in getting the 240 ready this year. Roger www.classictargaadelaide.com.au Supaloc Classic Targa Adelaide is full steam ahead with over 200 officials already registered to be a part of the event. However, we still need 50 more road closure officials to make this event happen, so it will be ‘all hands on deck’ to get this great event up and running again. To register your interest, please click here www.classictargaadelaide.com.au to download an officials registration form, or phone Todd Grant on (08) 8463 460 to be a part of this great event. The event is looming large and is less than 3 weeks away so get those registration forms in! (Event Dates: Wednesday 14th September – Saturday 17th September) Becoming a motor sport official is the best way of getting close to the action without being in the driver’s seat. Volunteer officials are a vital part of motor sport and without them the sport could not function. Become a volunteer official and you will receive:  Supaloc Classic Targa Adelaide cap  All of the necessary training under the CAMS license structure  Invitation to the officials BBQ function  Most importantly the chance to be a part of a committed motor sports team See you all there!

I assign each letter of the alphabet with a number and then add up the user's name to get a numerical answer, then rhyme this number with a movie title. If I like the movie, I can trust the poster. Roger

I'm interested in the back panel light cover, any chance you could get it to Eastern Creek next weekend? Roger

I was there crewing for a mate in a Duratec Formula Ford, did you come over? Roger

With the Adelaide Hills Tarmac Rally run this weekend it was great to see the Zeds at the front of the pack coming 1st and 2nd in classic and 8th and 9th outright. Champagne tastes sweet... Octagon have now announced a change from AASA to CAMS for all their events so looks like we'll have consistent regs for the new Classic Targa Adelaide and we're happy that we comply. Thanks again for the feedback. Roger edit for ammended results.