LeMons 2017 wrap-up

[California98Civic]

Hey, it features a Metro, a Beetle, and a three-wheeled car... Ecomodder!

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6cU_R6chBlU

And their vid about the "rally" is awesome too:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JXAq6Jqluk8

I wish I lived close enough. Wonder is a merely ecomodded civic could rate for much in this distinguished company.

[redpoint5]

I've wanted to enter this for a long time. One can dream, one can dream.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

I like the Reliant Regal (3-wheeled car)

[freebeard]

Thanks, I needed that.

Reliant and a stretch limo on Tail of the Dragon...
The Mercedes hood ornament...

[redpoint5]

Given the budgets of many of the folks on here, the resourcefulness of the community, and considering lengths people are willing to go through to engineer solutions, I propose an Ecomodder LeMons team. Anyone interested?

[freebeard]

I thought the 3K mile road trip was more interesting than the roundy-round part.

I saw a Lemons team at a show 'n shine in Creswell. They had a soccer-mom Dodge [turbo] van. The race officials had had them cut holes in their roof so they could inspect the welds on the top of the roll cage. That's hard-core.

...Vs street legal.

I have wanted to crew on a car at Bonneville, but I'm not doing anything with the [unlicensed and untitled] 1958 Baja at the moment. If you want to do (finance) one of these, I will volunteer it:

[redpoint5]

Would be super neat to apply our aero treatment to race theory. Rules allow an unlimited budget for safety related things such as roll cage, fuel cell, tires, and brakes. I believe the rest of the car has to come in under $500.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by redpoint5

Would be super neat to apply our aero treatment to race theory. Rules allow an unlimited budget for safety related things such as roll cage, fuel cell, tires, and brakes. I believe the rest of the car has to come in under $500.

I didn't know they were more liberal with the budget for safety-related gadgets.

[freebeard]

I'd be hard pressed to make it street legal for a road rally, for $500. But I've got the roller, a 5-speed, and a stroker 1776 (the famous Mileage Motor).

[redpoint5]

Originally Posted by cRiPpLe_rOoStEr

I didn't know they were more liberal with the budget for safety-related gadgets.

I gathered some interested kids in high school to build and compete in the local utility sponsored electric vehicle races. They pulled out sponsorship and the program died a few years after I graduated. I'm sure the reason was liability.

We built our car with the most meager margins of safety. The front end was tubular aluminum with no padding, and an aluminum hinge welded to it for the canopy. That hinge was like a 1/4" thick blunt knife sticking out in front. The cantilever brake was fitted to the tiny 20" rear wheel only, since that was the simplest to engineer (and last thing to be engineered because stopping is boring).

The rules specified a 4-point harness, a roll cage 1" above the drivers head, and foam padding on the frame members around the drivers torso. The car also had to stop within a maximum distance. I got the car to qualify on the 3rd attempt after deflating the tire to minimum, not quite meeting minimum speed, and scrubbing some speed with side to side steering. Stopping the 3-wheeled vehicle on a tiny bicycle tire was like watching a shuttle landing.

During testing on the 1/4 mile running track, we got the car up to 45 MPH where it was at its cornering limit. The steering was very twitchy with the steering arm moving left and right rather than turning like a normal steering wheel. A kid wandered over from the junior high and didn't look as he crossed the track. The driver had about 3 seconds to apply the garbage brake before flipping the kid over the car. His injuries were superficial, but only because he was 13.

I can see why LeMons would allow an unlimited safety budget in addition to their stringent requirements. Small budgets and disinterest in safety can be a recipe for disaster.