1995 Compliance Seminar

TRANSCRIPT FROM SPEC RACER COMPLIANCE SEMINAR
SCCA NATIONAL CONVENTION
MILWAUKEE,
FEBRUARY 17,1995

Seminar given by David Liddle, Engine Department
Manager and Spec Racer Compliance Director, SCCA Enterprises.

(Editors Note: Renault specific material removed for brevity)

My name is Dave Liddle and I am employed by SCCA Enterprises, Incorporated. My position at Enterprises is that of Engine Department Manager as well as being Compliance Director for Spec Racer, a position which was created at the request of SCCA’s BOD. They felt I was right for the position because of my familiarity with the engines and the experience I’d gained during compliance trips with the late Dick Martin. The Spec Racer Compliance Program was begun in response to concerns voiced by a number of Spec Racer owners. In no way did we see this as a criticism of the Club Racing national compliance crew or the local scrutineers that the club so heavily relies on. Presently, Spec Racers are nearly 25% of all cars entered in club races, and with the number of classes that the tech crews have to deal with at every event, there simply isn’t enough time for them to look for all of the subtle improvements the resourceful owners have attempted. Today I’m here to share with you the knowledge I’ve gained from five and a half years at SCCA Enterprises and 31 races doing SR compliance.

The primary goal of my compliance activity is to maintain the “Spec” concept in Spec Racer. Much of this activity is to eliminate performance-enhancing modifications. My second concern is to protect SCCA Enterprises’ interests and therefore the club’s interests in Enterprises being the sole parts supplier for most of the parts which are used on the Spec Racers. Some of the participants have taken it upon themselves to duplicate parts that we sell, in an effort to save themselves a couple of bucks. Unfortunately, this hurts Enterprises’ ability to remain in business and supply parts to those competitors who choose to participate by the class rules.

I’ll begin my talk today with those items I consider to be performance improvement related and then talk about the problems with illegal parts. One other thing I’d like to mention is about the Compliance Team letter that each nationally and divisionally licensed scrutineer should have received.

As it says in the letter, I am presently accepting applications for the SCCA Enterprises Spec Racer Compliance Team for 1995. If you are interested In learning more about this program or becoming a member of the team, I’ll answer any of your questions after my presentation this afternoon. Also, I realize that you may have questions as we go along, but if you could make a note of your question and wait until the Q&A session after my presentation, it will make better use of our time.

The Sports Racer Category Specifications book is the reference I use to clarify any questions that I have when checking cars. Because I have been managing the engine department of SCCA Enterprises for almost six years, I’m very familiar with the way the engines are assembled and sealed. This inside knowledge of the engines and the use of the seal database information has proven to be invaluable during my travels. The counterfeiting of engine seals is a practice which has been done both to improve performance and to attempt to save money, but I have yet to see an illegally rebuilt engine that comes close to the level of quality workmanship that SCCA Enterprises’ engine department consistently provides.

The tires themselves are particular to Spec Racers - Yokohama 185/60-13 front and 205/60-13 rear. These tires are marked on the sidewall - the original run was literally branded with the words “SPEC RACER”, but currently the same words are molded in., It’s unlikely that you will see any of the “branded” tires still in use, unless someone is branding the tires themselves. I have recently been in contact with Yokohama to discuss the potential problem of illegally-marked tires and what they were able to tell me is that the production dates can be checked to correlate whether or not that tire should have the “branded” or molded lettering. Tires which are branded and have a production date later than March of 1994 are tires which are illegally marked. The date of manufacture of a tire can be found in the last three numbers of the DOT serial number on the sidewall. The first two numbers give you the week and the third number is the second digit of the year. For example the numbers 513 would be the 51st week of 1993. The tires are to be mounted on wheels supplied by Enterprises, the most common of these being the familiar 4-spoke alloy, with the letters “SCCA” cast into one spoke. The seven inch wide rim with the 205 tire, is, of course, only to be used at the rear of the car. The other legal wheel is the older, stamped-steel design which most of the racers only use to mount their rain tires.

The only legal brake pad is the Performance Friction “Carbon Metallic” pad sold through Enterprises. This pad can easily be checked by looking through the gaps between spokes on the cast wheels, but the steel wheels make checking more difficult. When you’re checking brakes, look at the brake caliper for the open area behind the pad. The older, illegal pads will either show a rivet or gold-anodized color. The legal pads are black on the outside with either stamped SCCA or lettered in white the words “Performance Friction.”. In case clarification is needed, the pad could be removed from the caliper. I have here for you to examine, some samples of the legal brake pads and some older, illegal ones.

New for ’95 is the cockpit-adjustable brake bias kit. The only legal part is the one Enterprises sells. This piece can be identified by the Spec Racer logo sticker on the knob. In case this sticker is absent, look for the reflective sticker on the aluminum plate that mounts the adjuster. Should this sticker also mysteriously have vanished, each aluminum plate has been stamped with a diamond containing the letters SCCA. If the stamp is missing, the guy has an illegal adjuster on his car. Also new this year is the requirement for every Spec Racer to have the welded-on upper control arm reinforcing strap. The required start date is March 1st; this updating information some of you may have heard. The reinforcement was necessary because we are on our third generation of tires, which are significantly stickier and place higher loads on the suspension.

Each of you, I would guess, is familiar with the 1580 lb. weight of the car. Once I saw a car get weighed with the driver on a single axle scale setup. The problem was the driver was standing up in the car and he would lean forward as if looking at the scale readings while the front of the car was being weighed. Then, while the rear of the car was on the scales, he turned around and leaned over the rollbar to allegedly get a better look at the rear weight. Effectively, he was using his body weight as ballast to make sure the car would make weight. So, be sure the driver stays put in the car during weighing.

Many of the SR guys feel their car will handle better with as much weight as possible up front in the nose. So, we frequently weigh the nose section of the bodywork. 57 lbs. maximum is right there in the book. New this year in the rules is a clarification regarding crash damage. The rule now makes it clear that the weights of body sections must still conform to the specs, even if the bodywork in question has been repaired at the track. Also, fairly new is the tail cutout and airscoop modification. This change in the bodywork was developed during testing on the Ford-powered cars and we felt it was appropriate to allow the Renault cars to use this tail section as well. Many CSR’s, teams and prep shops that simultaneously field cars with both of the drivelines would have to carry twice as much spare rear bodywork, so we allow both cars to use it. The stipulation with the tall cutout is that you must perform both modifications to use either. Specifications for the tail cutout are as follows: The vertical cuts are to be made at the outer edge of the vent holes in the rear upper panel, with the horizontal cut being one inch below the crease at the bottom of the upper panel. A one inch radius is to be maintained at the point of the intersection of the two cuts to help keep cracks from beginning at the corner. The airscoop is sold through Enterprises and is marked underneath with a patch that is manufactured into the scoop. The scoop is to be mounted with it’s leading edge flush with the forward edge of the tail. It is allowed to “glass in” the scoop to improve the appearance of the installation. The tall minimum weight does not change, so as to not create any weight advantage. On the subject of bodywork, there are some dimensions given in the specs and perhaps the potentially most abused violation of dimensional modifications made during crash repairs is the length of the nose. The thought here seems to be that a couple of advantages could be exploited if the nose were slightly lengthened. First, the weight would be placed even farther forward to alter the balance of the car as well as lowering and slightly closing off the radiator opening to gain a slight aerodynamic advantage. I carry a tape measure to check this one; at the center of the nose -62 and 1/2" is the legal limit.

The suspension springs and sway bars may not be plated and the sway bars may be disconnected - not removed - for a wet race. Dimensions for the spring and bar diameters are called out in the book. I have tested spring rates, but this is an item I’ll normally only be able to check during a major race such as the Runoffs, but with an appropriate tool, such as this one, it’s easy to check the spring and bar diameters. Dimensions are given in the specs book.

Data acquisition systems are allowed, but according to the rule book, the system data recorder must be removed from the car for the race.

The Spec Racer Ford is probably not nearly as familiar to you yet as are the older cars. When I wrote the rules for SRF, I tried to understand exactly what parts and systems had been changed and how to be able to best monitor the legality of the changes.

Starting with the major changes, let’s go over what I consider to be the differences between the cars. Weight is now 1640 lbs. for both club and pro racing . Due to an unfortunate typo in the pro rule book, the Fords could run ten pounds lighter than that in '94, but no longer. When the cars were introduced at the '93 Runoffs, one of the first things we learned was that the welded strap seals on the cam covers were cracking and sometimes even breaking off completely. All of the engines currently in use have a version of the familiar Superseal, minus the troublesome wires. You should see two of these seals on the camcover and two on the oil pan. Here again, the seal numbers are cross-referenced to the engine serial number. The seals on the oil pan are not easy to see, especially the one on the forward edge of the engine. Don’t pay attention to the old Roush welded strap seals which may still be on some of the first thirty-some engines. Everyone should be aware that the only valid seals are of the Superseal-variety which have proven to work well and that no competitor should be prosecuted for missing one of the old seals. The gearboxes are also sealed with two of the new seals. These seals are located on two of the bolts that hold the two halves of the transaxle together. To locate these seals, stand outboard of the left rear wheel and look down at the upper control arm. The first seal is just below and forward of this arm. The second seal goes on the bolt which is just above the lower transmission mount, on the same bolt flange as the first seal. It’s probably easiest to see this seal from the rear of the car as it is approximately 1 3/4" above the axle centerline and 3" to the rear of the CV joint. One part of the transaxle that is not sealed is the fifth gear cover. Removal of this cover is relatively easy and if there is any question about the 5th gear ratio, this is the place to look. The teeth on the two gears can be counted, and if correct, should be 41 and 30. Ford offers no other fifth gearset for this box, so changing the ratio is not a simple task, but that's never stopped them before.

Each Ford competitor is required by the rules to have his copy of the Roush Ford Spec Racer Installation Instructions to assist tech personnel as per D.18. Vehicle Logbook. So, if you see anything unusual on any SRF, the RSFRII book, which is the assembly manual for the conversion, should answer your questions. The rule book frequently refers back to the RSFRII to define the proper execution of the conversion. The rule book also specifies the precise Ford part which is legal for maintenance replacement.

Now let’s look at some things you can check at the racetrack for compliance. Along with the bodywork weights and specs, much of the chassis is exactly the same.

The engine and its related Systems are the real meat of the conversion. Since the engine output is essentially restricted by the amount of air that can get into the hemispherical combustion chambers, I make it a point to examine the restrictions in the intake system. First and easiest to check is the air filter. To check, simply undo the clips on the air box and look inside. The rules spell out exactly which air filter is legal. Ford part number FA1031. The part number is right there on the filter. Nothing else is legal. The next thing to do is take the hose off of the throttle body and measure the “butterfly” inside. I have fabricated a simple, inexpensive gauge from a long 8MM bolt. I ground a 40mm long notch into the bolt to serve. as a “go-no-go” gauge. The technique here is to hold the throttle In the wide open position and slip the gauge over the butterfly. The gauge should just ft. What you’re looking for here is a larger diameter bore in the throttle body. Also, at the same time, look carefully inside the throttle body opening to be sure that the sharp comer left by the machining operations is still in place. I would consider the removal of this sharp comer to be a modification of the part and thereby illegal. At Mid-Ohio this past year I looked at intake manifolds as one of the post race items. Removing the manifold is not difficult but doing so creates two problems. One is the fact that coolant will be allowed to flow into a couple of the intake ports. Not a big deal if you’re aware that it’s going to happen, but it made one of the competitors quite upset. The second and more important problem stems from the fact that the cylinder head on the SRF engine is what’s known as the “Mexican Escort Hemi” head. This head has a unique port spacing and thereby does not use the same intake manifold gasket as the standard Escort. There is not a Ford dealership parts department in this country that has ever seen this gasket before, much less, has access to one. Enterprises even had to pull some strings to get replacements for the three cars we tore down. So, it’s probably not a good idea to inspect intake manifolds on Spec Racer Fords. The first competitor who decides to take off his manifold is in for a bit of a surprise.

Enterprises now sells a muffler for use at tracks with sound restrictions. The only legal mufflers are easy to check since they all share the same three-letter code GDL right on the muffler itself.

Another of the sealed parts on the SRF is the EEC (short for Electronic Engine Control) module. This part is the brain of the engine management system. It is located at the forward end of the right-hand side pod and is accessible after removing the nose section. Enterprises originally used two small stickers on diagonal comers of the module to prohibit disassembly. These seals will self-destruct if someone attempts to remove them, so tampering is immediately evident. We soon had larger stickers of the same design made because we were concerned with the durability of the small stickers. I am in the process of replacing all the smaller stickers. The large stickers are installed on the long sides of the EEC, so as to cover two of the bolts that would need to be removed to get inside. Also, lately I’ve begun installing a third seal across the top end of the box, which is visible in the car, unlike the other two seals. The penalties for tampering with the EEC module seals are just as severe as the penalties involved with engine seal tampering. As a part of my traveling arsenal, I carry several of these EEC modules that I use to exchange with competitors’ boxes when I see fit. I wrote into the rules a provision for exchanging parts with the competitors just to make sure they had no loophole to prevent me from doing so and the board has reiterated this ruling in a recent Fast-track. The fact that the competitors know they are subject to these parts swaps, I believe, makes the guys even less likely to attempt to cheat. One additional item I’ve looked at is the wiring harness, essentially to try to find any non-standard resistors or switches.

Unlike showroom stock cars, our calibration has already been optimized for performance by the manufacturer in another attempt to discourage tampering with the EEC. I am very confident in the programming skills of the engineers at Ford SVO, so I seriously doubt there’s any room for improvement.

One other tool I’m starting to use is a diagnostic tester made for Ford vehicles, known as the “New Generation Star Tester”. This very complicated instrument replaces the small STAR tester and has the ability to display real-time data from the engine management system. I believe this tester will be able to find a faulty sensor or one which has been tampered with. When enough competitors know that we have the ability to locate modifications of this nature, I imagine it’ll be an excellent deterrent.

The second aspect of my compliance checking involves counterfeited parts. For example, the sheetmetal surrounding the radiator is, by the rules, to be only an SCCA Enterprises' supplied part. Enterprises initiated a program in 1989 to mark sheetmetal and fabricated parts to prove their origin. Unfortunately, not all of the parts which were supposed to have been marked, actually left Enterprises with their stickers in place. We have attempted to prosecute for parts which were even admitted to me to have been from an alternate source, but we knew we'd lose an appeal. Not wanting to set a rather destructive precedent, we backed out of prosecution. All of the fiberglass sections manufactured since 1989 are also supposed to have been marked with a special identifying patch, but the same problem has been found here too. As for a workable solution to this problem, I’m not sure exactly what to do. It may come down to marking every piece of fiberglass and sheetmetal on every car that we see at the races and eventually establishing a date at which unmarked parts are no longer legal. I can just imagine the problems we'll have trying to enforce that. The logistics of reaching each of the over 700 cars can only add to the scope of the problem. At the January CSR meeting, we briefly discussed a registration program for individual cars that would show compliance with each marked part, and then in the future, should that chassis number show up with any unmarked parts, it would immediately be illegal. I like the idea of car registration, but implementation may be met with some resistance. On this subject, I will listen to any constructive suggestions.

Thanks for attending, and if you have Spec Racer related compliance questions that come up in the future, I can be reached at SCCA Enterprises, (303) 693-2111.

Dave Liddle, Engine Department Manager/Compliance Director
SCCA Enterprises, Inc.

Barry