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build diary May 16, 2005: If I didn't listen to the voices in my head, maybe I would have driven the Seven home from Moab. The weekend started off a bit rough. While preparing Janel's Miata for the trip (new springs, shock mounts, exhaust - you know, little stuff) I noticed her supercharger belt was making dust. So I tightened it. That broke on Friday night so Saturday morning was spent putting on a new one. Finally, a couple of hours late, we took off to Utah. The belt broke again about 75 miles later - it seems I have some investigation to do into the superchager. I was happy and unaware of this problem as we zipped down the interstate and then on to the classic 128 into Moab. On the highway, the Seven is remarkably comfortable. The suspension eats up all bumps and undulations. I had earbud headphones on to listen to music so the exhaust noise wasn't bad, and other than high pressure air trying to inflate my left nostril the aerodynamics were good. Without some sort of earplugs the exhaust is loud, though. The new muffler is not as effective as the previous one, particularly at full throttle. On the twisty bits I felt as if we were almost walking although Jeremy and I did get a chance to play for a bit. I also found out that I should not lead a group without a working speedometer, as my estimated 45 mph turned out to be closer to 65. The police officer going the other way merely flickered his lights and gestured for us to slow down. Whew! The event itself was fun. Lots of shiny cars and the new 2006 Miata was in attendance. I crawled all over that one as you might imagine and managed to take some photos with the Seven. The average attendee at the event was older and more interested in cruising and scenery than performance, but once I took the hood off the Seven so they could see the Miata engine I was a little more accepted. In the evening we took a run up to Fisher Towers and a few miles down a rough dirt road. It's a great place for taking photos of cars near sunset and I availed myself of the opportunity to fire off quite a few frames. I also rattled the exhaust pipes free of the collector and popped an exhaust hanger. Not such a good plan and very noisy although it was easy to fix. Jeremy and I then headed for a campsite as Janel went back home due to her brother's graduation. The next day, we were lining up to go on a tour with a group going into the Canyonlands park. I stalled the cold Seven in the parking lot in front of everyone. This got me some teasing about a "poor first impression" - so I decided to give a different one by offering a taste of some tire spin. Nothing major (less than I've used in an autocross start)...but when I was done there was a ticking from the rear end. It sounded like a flange hitting as the differential turned. Uhoh. Nothing was visible so I backed the car up on to some trailer ramps. The diff had shifted a bit and some feeling around indicated that perhaps I'd ripped the diff mount off the frame. With a bit of prying I could drive the car without noise, but the diff was definitely moving up and down. My car lasted longer than any of the other CMC "Miata" frames without this failure but it's my turn now. Lucky for me, Joe Portas (the Knobmeister - if you need custom engraving, shift knobs or other bits talk to him!) was just packing up to head home to Littleton and trailer his Miata. He offered the use of the trailer to get me home to Grand Junction. His wife Mary was quite happy with the arrangement as that meant she got to drive the Miata instead of riding in the tow vehicle. I had a comfy ride home with good company as Joe and I have been seeing each other for years at Miata meets all over the world. It all worked out well. So, what now? The Seven was almost ready for some relatively major work anyhow. I'll put it back up in the air and sort out the differential mount. I'm not sure if I'll do the pseudo-PPF as CMC ended up as I don't think any of those cars have ever actually run. The solution that BSI worked out for the GRM car is tempting and easier to reach. Regardless, the seats are coming out. I'll make a new transmission tunnel cover, add some switches for wipers, fit an electronic speedometer driver, reroute a front brake line, make a better headlight mounting system, add a master power switch and generally do a number of jobs that have been accumulating. I have quite a list. entry 857 of 1439 |