MasterC17's HPDE/Time Attack Track Car (Re)Build

[nickpiper12]

So, In theory ABS should be fully functional and happy. Next task is figure out Traction. I would like to have M Track mode. Believe we will need to add a DSC button by running a wire to MK60, fuse box, and a ground, and that should be it. The question right now, is whether or not tracking control is currently enabled?

Unfortunately you won't be able to tell if DSC or MDM is enabled/disabled, as without the IKE in place the MK60 will no longer stream its data over CAN.

You are running the MK60 in more of a “hybrid” configuration (MSS54HP, no IKE, AIM display).

[jhatch]

Nice work!

You should be able to read the VIN out from the MK60 and use that to get NCS to talk to it. This post has some good info: https://www.miataturbo.net/suspensio...9/#post1629234

Once you've got them communicating, just follow the regular M track mode instructions

Thank you! That is a great thread

[heinzboehmer]

Nice work!

You should be able to read the VIN out from the MK60 and use that to get NCS to talk to it. This post has some good info: https://www.miataturbo.net/suspensio...9/#post1629234

Once you've got them communicating, just follow the regular M track mode instructions

[jhatch]

More Updates:

1. MK60 Coding

Big thank you to bmwfnatic for responding to my thread in the e46 coding section about the NCS issue. NCS cannot connect as it needs to read the VO from either the LWS or The instrument Cluster, neither of which we have.
We can follow the guides that explain how to connect to NCS when doing MK60 swaps to non BMW's. This would only need to be done to enable M track mode, which we likely will in the future but not a priority atm.

After more research, I realized of our 4 ABS codes, only 1 meant anything.

The first code for vin not initialized, is to the LWS, which we dont have and wont effect ABS.
The second Code was Can Timeout for EGS, again which we dont have.
The third code was Can timeout for Instrument Cluster, Which again, we dont have.

None of these should effect ABS and are all present on Mk60 swaps on non BMWs (from what I have read).

The last code was for the right rear wheel speed sensor. This was due to the pins for voltage supply and signal being in the wrong order on the MK60 Connector. Opted to swap at the wheel speed sensor end as that is much easier.

So, In theory ABS should be fully functional and happy. Next task is figure out Traction. I would like to have M Track mode. Believe we will need to add a DSC button by running a wire to MK60, fuse box, and a ground, and that should be it. The question right now, is whether or not tracking control is currently enabled?


2. Tow Hooks

Small thing but mentioning incase anyone has a better solution.

I love the look of the sparco tow straps and like that they are not metal so less likely to destroy the paint / bumper when in use / moving around.
However, this meant we needed a bolt for them, as they are universal fit.

For the life of me I couldn't find a Bolt that has the tow hook threads, even after finding the correct Thread size.

So, I opted to cut down two Factory tow Hooks to turn them into bolts. For now I left plenty of room to get Vice grips on them to tighten/Loosen, may make them smaller at some point if there are no better solutions.

3. Driver Floor Panel

Also installed the Carbon Floor panel from CarbonTec.

This was a bit of a challenge as the floor pan is uneven with the left side being significantly lower.

My solution was Aluminum brackets and Riv Nuts.

The bolts/riv nuts on the right side were extremely close to the Fuel filter. I dont have a picture but it worked out perfectly, with the fuel filter being directly in between the two bolts on the right side.

Also you can see the $5 Clutch stop from Lowes. Elevator Bolt + Felt pad. Feels amazing. Found this over on the e46 Fanatics forum.

Note this was prior to wiping away sharpie and filing down the edges to clean up the cuts. Also prior to adding the Riv Nuts

The C shaped mount is stronger but the S shaped mount was needed as there wasnt much option for mounting location.


4. First Street Test drive!

Took the car out for about 25 Minutes, Ran perfectly, no Leaks, No heat issues, All seemed well.

Unfortunately we thought we had 7 days after registration to drive the car inspection free, but looking into it further, it is 7 days from purchase date, not registration date. So we are behind on that by about 10 years.

Because of this I didnt want to push my luck and only drove close to home on backroads. Would have loved to get it on the highway for some proper break in and testing, but that likely wont end well.

[jhatch]

I tried to do the coding for the MK60 Swap, but was running into an error.



I'm going to try doing a fresh install of NCS expert and see if that changes anything.

INPA connects fine and seems to function fully.

The DME was swapped with an MSS54HP, as well as the Mk20 -> MK60. Those are the only two factory modules left, and neither are original to the car. EWS is gone. No factory instrument cluster, I saw someone mentioning this could have an impact but not sure.

[jhatch]

Installed Roll Cage Padding, New Shift Knob, New Steering Wheel, and Quick Release.

Also Painted the Battery tray and made some proper brackets for the battery.

[MasterC17]

jhatch get's a lot of credit, the car would not be where it is without him! Or running at all lol!

Finally had a chance to weigh the car, and with ~10-12 gallons of fuel we're looking at just about 2,600lbs without. It's a bit more than I expected, candidly, but still pretty light! We have added some weight (fire system, lights, etc).

[jhatch]

Oh yeah, close those holes off where the OE hood latch went. You'll get a bunch of airflow through that instead of the radiator and intake. I just aluminum HVAC tape.

Would not have thought of that. Good Call, Thank you

[bigjae46]

Oh yeah, close those holes off where the OE hood latch went. You'll get a bunch of airflow through that instead of the radiator and intake. I just aluminum HVAC tape.

[jhatch]

Would like to hear what wires you tapped into for the turn signal switch. I'd like to get rid of my steering wheel stalks and replace the functions with switches

Sorry that was a bit misleading. Its completely on its own circuit, nothing to do with the stock setup.

We just used a generic switch off of amazon.




Not sure if this is the exact listing but same item.

Just a power signal to front and rear turn signal on each side, and then power that goes to the fuse box.

[bigjae46]

Would like to hear what wires you tapped into for the turn signal switch. I'd like to get rid of my steering wheel stalks and replace the functions with switches

Car is not street legal? Just delete the stalk.

[sdwz_m3]

Would like to hear what wires you tapped into for the turn signal switch. I'd like to get rid of my steering wheel stalks and replace the functions with switches

[jhatch]

Note: I double posted, see post above as well!

Things I can think of right now that we still need to do before first event:

Install Splitter (Waiting as will get destroyed on the street)
Install Brake Cooling ducts
New Steering wheel (Current has holes from SMG paddle shifters, considering a 350mm as current 330 slightly cuts off the MXG)
New Shift knob (Planning on f30 M performance carbon fiber/Alcantara knob)
Sparco Quick Release (Already Installed, dont have pics)
Fuel Level (wiring is laying in backseat, need to figure this out)
Rear Diffuser (Don't have yet, planning on custom building one)
Rebuilding the Exhaust, Tips have overspray on them, aren't removable without cutting, and Wide band O2 doesn't have room.
Add Plate around exhaust so the sideskirt doesn't just melt/ will look better aesthetically.

That's all the big stuff, There is a plenty of other things I plan to do over the winter, such as disassembling rear suspension to clean/refresh, but none of that is currently necessary.

Plan is to trailer the car to a parking lot this weekend and give it a quick shakedown. If all goes well, we will register, insure, and then break in the motor on the highway/street. That might be an awful idea but I cant really think of any reason why not, other than a ticket lol.


Semi Final Build Pictures:

[jhatch]

Hi all,

Lot of small things to update on, some since the last post and other small things that we never posted.

I'm MasterC17's younger brother, we have both been building the car together over the last 9 months. I have wanted to rebuild this car for the last 6 years, so exciting to see it nearly finished.


1. Fire Suppression System

First big item is the Fire Suppression System from Lifeline. Went With Mechanical 2020 System.

I've never installed a system like this so I was just doing what seemed best but im sure it could be done better.



Just noticed the line got pushed down in the bottom left of this picture, ill fix that!



The last things I need to do on this is potentially add the aluminum Nozzle mounts to the passenger side engine nozzle, and the interior nozzles. They seem very sturdy as is, not sure how crucial this actually is.
Then I need to do a final mounting location for the mechanical pulls to activate system. Plan is to build mounts and weld into the cage.

Overall pretty happy with how it came out considering I didn't really know what I was doing.

We chose to mount the bottle in the trunk to keep it out of the way and shift a bit of weight to the rear. We plan on adding a passenger seat in the future.


2. AIM MXG Dash Logger

The next big change was to upgrade to an AIM MXG. Got a good deal buying almost everything used. This is the Strada , but we bought the logger accessory.

Along with this we installed a cluster delete panel and light switch delete panel. Came out clean.





Didn't take any great pictures of it, but here it is with the delete panels. Note that I painted the tear in the seat with black paint, a lot less noticeable now. This seat will get replaced at some point, but not a priority right now.

You can also see the eyelets for the anti sub portion of the 6 point harness. Previously this was wrapped which I wasn't super comfortable with.



3. Brake Lights and Turn Signals

The last big change was to wire up the brake lights and turn signals. The reason for turn signals is that we plan to break in the motor on the street..... That may go poorly but im willing to see how it goes lol. Wanted to be as legal as possible even though the car will never be street legal again.



No pictures of the front but that's just a ground and power tapping into the same wire as the rears.

To operate we just have a simple switch that I mounted on the Dash.



Here I realized I didn't take the Trim into account which was a bummer lol. Ended up Cutting the trim, removing the bridge between the trim. Not supper happy with it as now the start button portion of the trim is a bit flimsy. Ill figure a better solution out later.


Along the way there was lots of small things done but I wont bore with every detail. The car is effectively complete until everything breaks and we have to fix it lol.

I will follow this post up with some semi final pictures of the car. Really happy with the results.

[MasterC17]

Slow and steady wins the race! We're nearing a trackable car!