Topic: Coolant & tech

Two questions:
1) How do you pass tech and prove 100% water in radiator?  I'm concerned that even after flushing the old coolant and replacing with water that there will be some amount of coolant left - how is this tested in tech?  We have an escort and are planning to pump out the old, fill with water, run repeat.  This seems simpler than draining out the bottom of the radiator but i may just yank the bottom hose.
2) And aren't people boiing over if really just running water?  I get that its slippery and all but dont most race leagues allow water wetter?
Thanks!
Peter

Re: Coolant & tech

The coolant check is visual--we don't do any CSI-style trace analysis to make sure you got rid of the coolant.

If your cooling system is in decent shape, it won't boil over on straight water under race conditions. Keep in mind the system is under pressure, which raises the boiling point a bit....

The water wetter issue is one we may revisit in the future. When Jay originally wrote the rules, he put a blanket ban on any kind of additives for simplicity's sake--though this does make things easier on the tech inspectors, we are aware that water wetter is specifically designed for track applications.

That said, if your car boils over on straight water, I have my doubts about how much the addition of water wetter would help....

Re: Coolant & tech

I understand the reasons for no additives, but I'm curious about waterpump durability.  Now that Lemons cars are being used over and over, are teams seeing any more WP failures than normal for these crapheaps?

BRE Datsun (Broke Racing Effluence) formerly Dawn of the Zed Racing
'74 260Z
Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/editpicture.php … 2559430584

Re: Coolant & tech

At MSR Houston, the coolant check went like this: tech inspector asks us to remove our radiator cap. Inspector sticks his finger in the tube, removes finger, and rubs finger against thumb. Mixture doesn't feel slippery like coolant-mix does, so we were okay. We were running 100% distilled water and had fully flushed the system; I'm pretty certain that in the 23+ years of operation, it had never been flushed before. But a lot of stop-leak had been poured in at some point, which felt really, really reassuring...

Pat Mulry, TARP Racing #67

Mandatory disclaimer: all opinions expressed are mine alone & not those of 24HOL, its mgmt, sponsors, etc.

Re: Coolant & tech

Jeff G 78 wrote:

I understand the reasons for no additives, but I'm curious about waterpump durability.  Now that Lemons cars are being used over and over, are teams seeing any more WP failures than normal for these crapheaps?

Uh, define "normal."

Keep in mind, you're racing a car that probably has a quarter-million miles on its original water pump. Running for two days on plain water is probably among the least of your concerns. Put another way, I'm sure teams have lost water pumps, but determining whether they failed because of plain water or just being totally old and terrible is next to impossible.

Re: Coolant & tech

Our WP was leaking after the NO race. 160k on it. That the car sat for 6 years didn't help any I'm sure.

Re: Coolant & tech

Two races run in ours and the water pump is now squalling like a banshee! Water only by the way

1980 Chevy Malibu Classic

Re: Coolant & tech

That was the point of my question.  From what  know, water pumps need lubrication and water alone  doesn't lubricate.

BRE Datsun (Broke Racing Effluence) formerly Dawn of the Zed Racing
'74 260Z
Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/editpicture.php … 2559430584

Re: Coolant & tech

Several brands of liquid stop-leak have water pump lube built-in....would it be legal? Nice to have the ability to deal with small leaks before they get embarrassing

Jim "Endo" Anderton
30 years of racing and still not Brambilla.....