Carina 1 : 0 Davy

This is about as good as it got for me yesterday at Hampton Down – parked up in the pits. Because the 3 or 4 laps I managed to get in were pretty average and ended up in a freak car fail.  For me it was somewhat demoralising sitting on the track in my broken machinery, getting towed back to the pits and coming back down to earth from the anticipation and excitement of it all.

(Photos sauce: Matt Malcolm.  Check out his blog for more Hampton and actual drifting photos!)

It was a day of firsts personally – first time with the new turbo setup, first time with decent rubber up front, first time on a proper track and also the first time I’m sure that anyone has managed to get their fuel line wrapped around the driveshaft. Yes you heard right – just imagine a grapevine except my fuel line was the vine and the driveshaft was the rack it wrapped itself around.  Bizarre and actually dangerous.

On the 3rd lap I heard this horrible thudding noise from about 3rd gear/100kmh and above so pulled into the pits.  I thought it could have been either front tires rubbing on guards something chronic, bottom end/big end oil fail, some sort of driveline or suspension fail.  Had a look and couldn’t determine what it was.  So what the heck I went out again.  Then halfway around the track BANG, then no power.  To be specific, no fuel as the line snapped and wrapped around the driveshaft which bought my car to a halt at the first hairpin.

I haven’t looked into it yet but I figure it was a combination of driveshaft inbalance, not so good gearbox mount and maybe the yoke into the box crapped out or something.  And also, who puts (or knew) the fuel lines were so f***en close to the driveshaft?  To be honest, in looking back I was lucky the car and myself for that matter didn’t go up in a 4 door sedan sized ball of flames cos the fuel was pissing out of the broken line a couple of inches away from the hot exhaust.

Oh well, I’ll give it a week or two rest, pick myself up then back into fixing it hoping for better luck/drifting/less fail next time.  BBS, TTYL.

Thanks to Sam and Wazzy for giving me a hand in the pits and Matt Malcolm for letting me tax his photos!