As a driver, I hate tech guys who think they know more about engineering my
car than I do. But I do like the times they find something actually wrong
(can't think of one off-hand but maybe there was one...)
As a Tech Inspector, I caught some good ones - an E-type with a broken
steering box such that the steering wheel had a quarter turn (honest, it's
always loose like that sez the driver until shown the bits moving out of
the housing), several formula cars with the racks not fastened to the frame
tightly, front wheel bearings installed backwards on a lotus 7, leaving a
quarter inch of play, seatbelts firmly attached to the fiberglass racing
seat and nothing else, front brake hoses that would be torn off if the
wheels were turned to full lock, brake discs that were 3/16" thick instead
of 3/8", and probably more. I've also done the wheel stud too short dance,
made people install electrical cut-off switches, pointed out the fact that
their roll bar is 2" under their helmet instead of 2" over (local rule,
local car).
One classic on an otherwise professionally prepared car was the bolt that
secured the adjustable steering column upper and lower halves together
installed without a nut.
Brian
At 12:17 AM 10/05/1999 -0400, you wrote:
>Tom M wrote:
> >
> > Then there was the guy who sternly warned me of the urgent necessity (to
> > prevent electrical shorts) of installing a grommet around the battery
> > wire where it goes through the firewall... in a fiberglass car.
>
>My own, true, version of this was an SCCA techie at a vintage race who
>insisted I had to cover the grounded battery terminal. So, with tongue
>in cheek, I used some aluminum tape and he was happy. Maybe we were both
>inwardly smiling at each other.
Brian Evans
Director, Global Sales
UUNET, An MCI WorldCom Company
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