Gary Simmons: Blog Posts

D1 Chicago

Gary Simmons

D1 Chicago was the first D1 event I attended this year.

On the first practice session my electonic system started going crazy. It was like I had one of those bug zappers under my dash with my lights flickering and relays constantly clicking. Some wire must have come lose but I couldn't figure it out. Just when I thought I had it I would line up and in the middle of my run it would happen again.

After my second practice run I pulled out of line and just started to push every connector incase one was loose. It seemed to have done the trick as the problem went away.

I lined up for my thrid practice run and after I initiated I notice my rear end felt very loose. I ended up spinning out but when I tried driving off the track I could get no traction. It was as if I ran through a puddle of oil.

After getting back to my pit area I realized that I broke the passenger side axel. I pretty much called it a day when John Wagner mentioned Matt Waldin might have an extra axel. After asking Matt it turned out he only had the driver side but said that Mark (NOS S14) might have an extra axel passenger side axel. So I asked Mark and they just gave it to me. Huge thanks goes out to them for that.

I immediately asked to change my run group so I can have a little more time to change my axel then I saw Quoc Ly flip his car. For the most part this ended the practice session.

So on to qualifying. We were given 2 practice runs then 3 qualifying runs. I was a little nervous that I haven't gotten any practice runs in earlier. One my practice runs I just took it easy to get a feel for the track. Despite how it looks the main sweeper is a little tricky.

On my first qualifying run I remember telling myself to make a conservative run. I have a hard time doing that as I like to go all out. I made a decent run but it wasn’t spectacular.

My second run wasn't so great and it felt like I went through an oil puddle again. I pulled over and checked if I broke another axel but it seemed fine so I just continued on.

My third run I went for it. I initiated as close to the wall as possible, pulled as much angle as I could and hit each clipping point dead on. The Drift box said I had 58 degrees of angle. I ended up qualifying 4th and was allowed to continue on the next day.

I remember Daigo Saito coming up to my car and looking under it. I popped the hood for him and he seemed really interested in my SIKKY oil pan. My Japanese is bad but was able to tell him about the SIKKY LS1 kit.

The next day I was one of the first to line up and it started to drizzle. The ground was wet so on my first run I took it easy thinking I would slide. I was wrong, the pavement felt as if it was dry so on my next run I went for it as if it was dry.

After I initiated I felt the rear end slip out a little more that I wanted to so I quickly countered and pulled the handbrake earlier then I normally do. As soon as I did that the car straightened out and I ended going straight into the wall. It demolished my front bumper but to my amazement there was no structure damage. It didn’t even brake the lights, just pushed them in on my custom mounts. I was able to continuewithout a problem.

During the rest of practice I felt pretty good. I was hitting a nice outside line and all the clips. During qualifying I started to get understeer then my rear tires wouldn’t grip as much. On my first qualifying run I stayed on the outside line but almost overshot then clipping point. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IoWu2Izo5Cs :20 seconds)

I don’t remember my other qualifying runs but remember I didn’t even use the hand brake and my rear tires wouldn’t grip. I ended up qualifying 15^th and wasn’t too happy about it because I know I can do much better.

In the practice for the top 16 I was hitting my runs one after another (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trRkGrrb9so 5:40 Seconds). I was paired up against Forrest Wang, the top US guy in D1. I knew it would be hard to beat him but felt confident that if I didn’t win it would be a nice match.

On the first run I was following. Right after my initiation I knew I would suck right up onto Forrest as he was on the inside a little. He would either have to slow down or overshoot the clipping point. But then I spun out! WTF I didn’t spin all weekend other then my broken axel. That pretty much sealed it right there unless Forrest messes up big time, which he won’t.

On my leading run my car wouldn't kick out on the initiation. It then lead to me having to straighten out. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_bp7FqQDPI 5:15 Seconds). I found another video showing that I had only one tire spin. I guess the diff is going out but I don’t blame it on that. I was upset not that I lost but those were probably my worst runs of the weekend, other than hitting the wall :)

There were some coordination issues and apparently some driver drama but overall D1 Chicago was a blast.

Finally painted the inside.

Gary Simmons

I don't think my car has ever been so clean. Painting a caged car with the windows on is no fun and I'll know better next time. But overall I think it came out OK.

Check out the photo album fore more pictures.

Engine Bay Painted

Gary Simmons

After Atlanta I pulled the engine out and started to clean it up. I Also gave the engine bay a touch up.

More to come when it is all completed.

ProAm - Atlanta

Gary Simmons

I went to Atlanta to compete in the Pro Am and recieved my invite to Phoenix.

I spoke to each driver and only 3 actually plan on going to Phoenix if they recieved an invite. Only two of the three got the invite.

I spoke to Formula D to tell them about how cost prohibited it is of East Coast privateers having to travel cross country to only compete in East Coast FD events (Atlanta and Wall.) Several different proposals were given but nothing was formally accepted however, it was mentioned that they may host it at VIR again this year.

One of their reasons to make the finals in Phoenix was to help the privateer as there should be sponsors there. Unless something has changed with this event compared to the past Pro Am finals then there will be no sponsors. Look at the Pro Am web site, there isn't a single sponsor listed.

I went to the first Pro Am and recieved my FD license. I wasn't able to retain it due to mechanical problems. Having to go back to the Pro Am is dissapointing but understandable however, having to go to Phoenix to compete at Atlanta and Wall just doesn't make sense.

Last year 10 people were awarded licenses from the East Coast Pro Am. Only 2 people signed up for Long Beach and 4 people signed up for Atlanta.

FD needs to reconsider its Pro Am series to make it feasible to all. At this point it is hurting the privateer more than helping them.

It's been a long time

Gary Simmons

It's been a while since I've update my blog. Last season I was down and only made it to 3 events, one of them I blew the engine up.

This year should be a different story. I still have a few understeering issues to deal with but it should be taken care of fairly quickly.

New Look

Gary Simmons

I finally got around to putting up pictures on the new paint job.
Check out the photo gallery.

New paint next week

Gary Simmons

The car is getting a new look and should look near identical to my backup car.

Pictures will go up as soon as possible.

Test and Tune

Gary Simmons

With the SIKKY LS1 kit now completed it's time to put it to the test.

I'll be at Old Dominion Speedway in Manassas, VA this weekend adjusting my suspension and getting used to the new powerband.

S14 LS1 Bolt-On-Kit is now available!

Gary Simmons

SIKKY has finalized their kit for the 1995 - 1998 240sx S14.

This is the first of its kind and allows you to simply bolt the mounting package on and drop the engine in. You no longer need to notch the crossmember and pay a lot of $$$ in labor charges. The LS1 can now be easily installed just like an SR20.

Please check out the photos here:
http://www.d-rated.com/Photo/Photos.aspx?AlbumID=5

You may find all the information pertaining to the kit located here:
http://www.sikky.com/products/mount_kits/ls1__s14_240sx

LS1 Bolt-on Kit

Gary Simmons

I want to give a pre-announcement that a true bolt-on kit for a LS1 will be available soon. The kit will fit a 89-98 240sx. The 350z and G35 are right around the corner. More cars will be availble as time grows.

It's still too early to say what is exactly included in the kit. It may be broken into different packages to meet the demands of the diverse customer base.

At minimum it will include polyurethane engine mounts, transmission mount, headers, driveshaft and a custom oil pan as this allows the engine to further down which effectively lowers the center of gravity of the car. Additionally, the pan has a better design than the OEM pan which eliminates oil starvation commonly found with GTO's, has a more oil capacity, allows the addition of an oil cooler with ease and you don't have to beat your transmission tunnel to make the large T56 transmission fit.

I will be testing the kit and when it is released I'll announce it on my blog. If you want to be notified right away then you may subscribe to my RSS feeds.

New Website

Gary Simmons

I just redid my website to make it easier to manage all my info.

Let me know what you think!

okis14@gmail.com

LS1 has been dyno'd

Gary Simmons

The LS1 has finally been dyno'd and exceeded all my expectations. On a Dynajet dyno, it made 440.6hp and 406.2tq. The dyno runs were only to 6000 rpm as the tuner didn't want to push it more, at least not yet. Looking at the chart it could probably gain a few extra ponies if I took it to 7000 rpm.
Dyno Chart

I took the car to Summit Point Raceway in West Virginia and made a few laps. The engine is very responsive and is going to take me a few more runs to get used to.

I made a total of 5 runs. 2 were a complete wash as my powersteering line was having isses so out of the three runs I made I believe I got a good feeling for the car.

One thing that I can't put my thumb on is that the way the car transfers its weight. It just feels different. I'm assuming since most of the weight is from the transmission that this is what is causing the issue. It just takes a little getting used to.

The car is now back in the shop having the mounts redone and they will then be sold as part of a kit. More info on that later.

Over the winter my car will be getting new body panels and a new paint job. I can't wait for next season!

LS1 Swap

Gary Simmons

I am about to begin putting the LS1 into my S14.

I will document a lot of the steps needed and have my list of parts needed to build the engine.

LS1 Engine Build

DMCC Round 2

Gary Simmons

I made the trip up to Montreal and it was well worth it.

My car has been running good for the last 5 or so events and been able to get a good feel for the car.

During practice it was raining but the weather eventually turned out great. It was still cool, sunny, and not wet. I've had enough rain drifting there in Round 1.

I ended up coming in 1st place!!

Here are some pics.

More can be found here:
http://www.drifting.com/forums/showthread.php?t=23459

New LS1

Gary Simmons

My LS1 is coming along nicely. Just a few more things before I can get it to run.
Check out the pics: www.d-rated.com/Photo/Details.aspx