Alfa GTV6 Rally Car

[Fylnn]

I did post a few photos a whole back of my GTV6 rally car.  Since then it has completed its first 2 events for the year.  The first one was wet and sloppy but we managed to make it through unscathed.

The second event was last month.  It was 131km competitive, and generally the roads were not bad, but every so often they turned us down goat tracks.  Seems the organisers were chasing km's at the expense of quality.  Always a problem in Qld.  After a long hard day I was really starting to enjoy myself and we lined up for the last stage.  Just had to get it home.  There had been some absolute carnage as Tony used to say.  Evos with cross-members ripped out, exhausts torn off.  But the Alfa was going strong.  Anyway, 4km from home, I was taking it easy, maybe too easy.  But on a rocky downhill section there was this almighty bang, followed by the car lifting in the air.  Seems we rolled a large rock under the sump guard.  Very shortly thereafter smelt oil, followed by smoke.  Thinking it was leak I asked distance to finish.  We were just over 3km out.  Pressure seemed OK, but after a corner or two became obvious things were serious.  Oil pressure started to drop, so flicked ignition off and rolled down the hill onto the local oval into retirement.  Short by 3km.  Damn

When I got it home the next day soon became obvious the 6mm alloy sump guard was not well bent and the sump was smashed.  Downside of the alloy sumps.  I got a spare from Richard at Avanti.  That is now on and the engine has oil.  It seems OK, will drive it over next few days and be sure.

Photo of damage attached.

[DHDamo]

Ouch - did a decent job of it.  Hopefully its back to pace asap.  Where was the sniper rock located?

[Fylnn]

Well I did not see it.  My co-driver reckons it was on the far side of a rocky dip, so the car was braking downhill, dropped into the dip and hit it with suspension partly compressed.  Damn shame as it was running sweet and after the first run through I had settled down and started to follow the lines and was going faster than before and enjoying it more.

I remain impressed of the basic engineering of these things.  The Datsun boys almost jack up the windscreen wiper and start again.  Swap out suspension, engines, gearboxes, diffs everything.  Mine is basically standard.  A TS gearbox with a LSD would be nice, the gap from second to third is a bit wide and one wheel drive is not always the fastest.  But the car has a lot more potential than I have at present.

I did get the award for the best oil slick of the day, Depositing 6 litres of Penrites finest over 500m of road.

[Nate Dog]

Was it unsealed road where you left your half k deposit or was it on the black stuff?
Would've made for interesting times for all those following you else