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70coupyel
Samba Member
Joined: September 06, 2006
Posts: 1657
Location: So.Cal
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 Posted: Tue Sep 20, 2016 11:48 am Post subject: Re: Building a Vanagon LeMons Race Van |
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| Tristar Eric wrote: |
| I added the euro siren sound effect as a gag, all those guys were waiting in line because there was a full course yellow, but they dropped the yellow right when I pulled up, so I decided to take a few spots. |
Makes me wonder if the corner flagman/woman would black flag you for using a siren on a hot track.   
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| TheAndante wrote: |
| Saying that specs are different than dimensions doesn't make sense. Porsche specs/VW specs/engineering specs are nothing but a series of dimensions,sizes,percentages,measurements, etc. |
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=338946&highlight=
70 KG Coup
83 Westy Waterboxer |
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Alan Brase
Samba Member
Joined: March 28, 2004
Posts: 4532
Location: Cedar Falls, Iowa
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| Posted: Tue Sep 20, 2016 8:05 pm Post subject: Re: Building a Vanagon LeMons Race Van |
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| kamzcab86 wrote: |
| Tristar Eric wrote: |
Made a little video from our Thunderhill race called " You got passed by a Van"
This was footage taken from one of my hour and a half sessions.
Enjoy! |
Awesome! 
Some of those other drivers, though, need more "situational awareness"... a few close calls going into turns! |
Ya think? Either that or self driving cars. There's a concept: self driving race cars.
Al
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Al Brase
Projects: 67 sunroof bug, 67 Porsche 912 Targa, 70 Westy
Dec 1955 Single Cab pickup WANT 15" BUS RIMS dated 8/55, thru 12/55
To New owners: 1969 doublecab, 1971 Dormobile
Vanagons:
80 P27 Westy JUL 1979, 3rd oldest known US
83 1.6TD Vanagon, 87 Wolfie Westy daily driver, swap meet home |
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Tristar Eric
Samba Member
Joined: July 25, 2004
Posts: 1242
Location: Portland, Or
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| Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2016 5:05 pm Post subject: Re: Building a Vanagon LeMons Race Van |
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| Quote: |
| There's a concept: self driving race cars. |
Google that, it exists...
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Vanagon/Transporter flares here: www.terrawagen.com
[email protected] |
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Tristar Eric
Samba Member
Joined: July 25, 2004
Posts: 1242
Location: Portland, Or
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| Posted: Mon Dec 05, 2016 7:35 pm Post subject: Re: Building a Vanagon LeMons Race Van |
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Well in case you missed it, this weekend was the seasons final race for us at Sonoma raceway. We started in a field of 180+ cars against our rivals GoWesty.
We had Christopher from T3techniques send us our secret weapon for the weekend which helped us get over 1.2 G's in the van. Our van ran solid Saturday but we were behind 3 laps to Gowesty due to them only stopping once to our 4 driver changes.
At the end of Saturday they had an issue with their transaxle and were forced to swap it out for a non locking version. This meant they would have slightly slower lap times Sunday. I started Sunday morning with a mission to take back those 3 laps and hopefully add a few. I turned our fastest lap of the weekend in my first session, a 2:12.2 and soon after a couple more 2:12 laps. For comparison, GW was turning 2:30's. We had practiced our pit stops and could easily fuel and driver change in about 3-4 minutes. I have to really say that all of our drivers are top notch and consistent. We only had a couple of incidents. 2 spins, a couple of scrapes, and lost the front bumper.
So, when it finished Sunday at 4:45pm, we were 10th in our class (B), 34th overall out of 180. GoWesty came out winners also, they managed to win their class (C), 36 laps ahead of their next competitor. All in all, I would have to say that we as a group ( both vans ) did very very well. We received many compliments from other racers who all say that they're amazed at how fast we are in Vanagon's.
My thanks to my team, Gowesty, all our sponsors, T3techniques, Burley Motorsports, Tom's Syncro Transaxles, Motorsports Portland ( tires ), Terrawagen! and all those who supported us this year. Thank-you!
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Vanagon/Transporter flares here: www.terrawagen.com
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dhaavers
Samba Member
Joined: March 19, 2010
Posts: 7754
Location: NE MN (tinyurl.com/dhaaverslocation)
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| Posted: Mon Dec 05, 2016 8:39 pm Post subject: Re: Building a Vanagon LeMons Race Van |
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Congrats! Way to represent!
- Dave
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86 White Wolfsburg Westy Weekender
"The WonderVan"
<EDITED TO PROTECT INNOCENT PIXELS> |
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70coupyel
Samba Member
Joined: September 06, 2006
Posts: 1657
Location: So.Cal
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| Posted: Tue Dec 06, 2016 1:53 pm Post subject: Re: Building a Vanagon LeMons Race Van |
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So cool to see both teams do well. Also how sponsors have come together to help out the cause.
Secret weapon = cheating. Don't get caught it's not cheating! 
If you guys can please support these sponsors.
So lets hear the story of losing the front bumper! Who was in the van?
On the team I'm on we all tease the driver that was in the car when something happens till the next race.
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| TheAndante wrote: |
| Saying that specs are different than dimensions doesn't make sense. Porsche specs/VW specs/engineering specs are nothing but a series of dimensions,sizes,percentages,measurements, etc. |
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=338946&highlight=
70 KG Coup
83 Westy Waterboxer |
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Jake de Villiers
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Joined: October 24, 2007
Posts: 5911
Location: Tsawwassen, BC
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Tristar Eric
Samba Member
Joined: July 25, 2004
Posts: 1242
Location: Portland, Or
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| Posted: Wed Dec 07, 2016 11:59 am Post subject: Re: Building a Vanagon LeMons Race Van |
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Front bumper loss...
Andrew was driving the last session on Saturday afternoon. He was passing a black 914 on the inside turn 1 after start finish, the 914 driver turned in as andrew attempted the pass. Andrew hit the brakes really hard to avoid, but I imagine at the apex of 1 the back end of the van was a little light and he spun towards the wall. I think the bumper was ripped off by the 914 before he made perpendicular contact of the wall with the front of the van. The end of the spin left the van facing traffic. The whole incident only added 1 minute to his lap time. I was watching the the clock and noticed he was overdue. When he finally passed us in the pits I noticed he was missing the bumper. We actually never found the bumper, this is the second time it's been ripped off during a race.
Seth's spin on Sunday...
Seth was turning some pretty quick laps, he had knocked off 9 seconds from his Saturday lap times. This meant he was carrying way more speed into the chicane ( bus stop ). He came in too hot on one lap, the rear end got light as he turned in, and he spun.
Eric's bus stop side swipe...
Early Sunday in my first session I had a bunch of traffic to try and navigate around. Coming into the bus stop we were 3 wide with me being in the middle.
The Toy story Pizza Planet pickup was on the inside, and I guess he couldn't quite make the turn, so he did a full on side swipe, removing our front turn signal, and adding some scrapes and color to the passenger side of the van.
Lucky for both of us that the turn worker didn't see the contact, so we both stayed out and didn't have to report in for a black flag for contact.
We're now going to try and win our class ( B ). Our engine choice won't get us there. We are on the hunt for a reliable engine that puts down close to 300hp.
We welcome any suggestions. Our other problem is the transaxle, the poor thing can't handle much more power, so we're going to use a Porsche G50 I have laying around.
I'm really happy with the chassis set up. The van really has come a long way in the handling dept. Next step will be to remove some weight up front, and add a little more tire up front in preparation for the added HP.
Stay tuned!
On a side note, the flares have really held up very well !
Eric
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[email protected] |
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dobryan
Samba Member
Joined: March 24, 2006
Posts: 16501
Location: Brookeville, MD
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newfisher
Samba Member
Joined: January 05, 2012
Posts: 1764
Location: The wet spot--Oregon
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| Posted: Wed Dec 07, 2016 3:33 pm Post subject: Re: Building a Vanagon LeMons Race Van |
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" The G-50 I have laying around" I was wondering if that made it with the Doka sale
What about a mid mounted LS motor, 4l80E coupled to a 9"? |
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Jake de Villiers
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Joined: October 24, 2007
Posts: 5911
Location: Tsawwassen, BC
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Tristar Eric
Samba Member
Joined: July 25, 2004
Posts: 1242
Location: Portland, Or
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| Posted: Sun Dec 11, 2016 10:35 am Post subject: Re: Building a Vanagon LeMons Race Van |
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A few pics, because pics always make threads better!
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Vanagon/Transporter flares here: www.terrawagen.com
[email protected] |
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GWTWTLW
Samba Member
Joined: April 22, 2008
Posts: 2174
Location: Portland, OR
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| Posted: Sun Dec 11, 2016 11:28 am Post subject: Re: Building a Vanagon LeMons Race Van |
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Nice job guys!!
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89 Syncro Westy - GW 2.5, now with a double knob job
@gwtwtlw |
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burleymotorsports
Samba Member
Joined: July 17, 2005
Posts: 332
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| Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2016 5:23 pm Post subject: Re: Building a Vanagon LeMons Race Van |
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The race was a really fun time had by all. I especially enjoyed starting the line up. But it was a bit tough out there with 184 cars and 2 vanagons (!), all fighting for position.
It is a big track, but it was crowded... so it was all about not being hit and taken out of the race. A majority of the first few hours was spent on a yellow caution flag for one thing or another!
It was amazing how well the van handled. Even on the tight turns, even in the "corkscrew", we kept the pedal to the metal and the van just kept on pushing past!
Downhill was fun. The van never did feel top heavy. It really did amaze everyone how the two Vanagons out there, vying for the lead role between one another, just kept gaining speed, as cars were dropping out of the race, hour after hour.
This is a picture, taken by a phone, of our fun rivalry with GoWesty's Westafari van! Here I am on Sunday morning catching up to the back of them on a straightaway, all of us trying to make up for Lucas's big showing the day before.
This is just before passing Westafari for the third time that day!
The stakes were bragging rights, and, boy, we know that is important! But really it is simply good, clean fun. And at the end of the day, it was wonderful just to be together.
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dobryan
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Joined: March 24, 2006
Posts: 16501
Location: Brookeville, MD
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dhaavers
Samba Member
Joined: March 19, 2010
Posts: 7754
Location: NE MN (tinyurl.com/dhaaverslocation)
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| Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2016 6:54 pm Post subject: Re: Building a Vanagon LeMons Race Van |
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So fun! But one favor...ID these capable Vanagonauts, please?
I know I'm stuck way up here between the coasts, but I do love a nice bit of racing coverage...
- Dave
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86 White Wolfsburg Westy Weekender
"The WonderVan"
<EDITED TO PROTECT INNOCENT PIXELS> |
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burleymotorsports
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Joined: July 17, 2005
Posts: 332
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magician
Samba Member
Joined: February 20, 2007
Posts: 95
Location: Seattle, WA
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| Posted: Fri Dec 16, 2016 2:20 pm Post subject: Re: Building a Vanagon LeMons Race Van |
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The wheels,(spacers?), tires and brakes look like a great setup for a Vanagon. What are the specs?
Thanks
M
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04 R32 | 85 Cabrio | 79 Rabbit | 91 T3 Carat Auto
'00 Jetta TDI (sold)| 91 Cabrio (sold) | 81 Rabbit diesel (sold)| 87 T3 GL (sold) | 91 T3 Carat 4sp (sold) |
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Tristar Eric
Samba Member
Joined: July 25, 2004
Posts: 1242
Location: Portland, Or
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| Posted: Fri Dec 16, 2016 8:40 pm Post subject: Re: Building a Vanagon LeMons Race Van |
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Page 2 of this thread shows the brakes items used. It's basically a bunch of Porsche bits from a 993 twin turbo. Wheels are Porsche 964 Cup II's 17" x7 front and 9" rears.
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vwlovr
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Joined: May 21, 2006
Posts: 1122
Location: on the road
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